Systems or People to Provide Excellent Client Service?
Look what I found! The blog of Patrick J. Lamb asks an interesting question, when he asks, "Who Speaks for the Client?" (March 17, 2007 post).
"Is the answer, then, that all lawyers must be the voice of the client? I think not.....I've come to the conclusion that we cannot rely on ourselves to speak our clients in a law firm environment. The answer, it seems, lies in systems, not solely in people.....systems must supplement those individuals who truly are committed to clients."
I anxiously await what he has in mind for supporting systems. If he means compensation systems, how does the firm measure and reward it? If he means other support systems (like callback procedures, out of office processes, using blackberry devices, etc.), measuring those support systems would be easier (either the call was returned in 2 hours or it wasn't); implementing it hard; changing behavior and attitudes even harder. Not impossible, but difficult. Hence, the reason I say I anxiously await what he has in mind.
Go get 'em, Patrick.
