Agile project management for the real estate lawyer
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Busyness is the plague of Lawyerdom. Yet while lawyers claim busyness as a merit badge, our clients don't care if we're busy - only if we're productive. Fortunately there is an entire professional discipline devoted to the art and science of productivity, and that's the field of project management. This presentation will offer suggestions about how lawyers can improve their effectiveness - and reduce the mental clutter of busyness - by borrowing Agile project management systems from the technology sector. With its roots in the Toyota manufacturing revolution in Japan, the heart of Agile project management is a system of visualizing work in production. Called a kanban board, this system helps knowledge workers identify and prioritize actionable work, as well as identify the "bottleneck" in their workflow. This presentation will cover how lawyers can implement Agile principles and kanban workflows in their practices. Whether you run a transactional or litigation-focused practice, Agile can help you gain a new clarity and focus with your case load. Best of all, the tools for implementing kanban are either free or virtually free. Check out Agile and see if there is something you can borrow for your own practice.
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Agile project management for the real estate lawyer
- 1. Agile project management for the real estate lawyer May 4, 2016 King County Bar Association – RPPT Section Greg McLawsen Managing Attorney
- 2. w w w . s o u n d i m i g r a t i o n . c o m Outline Against efficiency It’s not the goal 01 The lawyer as builder A different framework 02 känbän Visualize your work-in-production 03 Online kanban tools Start experimenting 04 page 2
- 3. Against efficiency The hellish Home Depot vortex
- 5. w w w . s o u n d i m i g r a t i o n . c o m What is the goal? Attorney See my client achieve her goal and be fairly paid for my work Client Close the deal on my property page 5
- 6. The lawyer as builder We manufacture legal products, and that’s a good thing
- 7. w w w . s o u n d i m i g r a t i o n . c o m The lawyer as builder Historically we have been artisans page 7
- 8. We are builders Think of legal products instead of legal services. What can we deliver?
- 9. w w w . s o u n d i m i g r a t i o n . c o m The lawyer as builder Once upon a farm page 9
- 10. w w w . s o u n d i m i g r a t i o n . c o m The lawyer as builder #NotAJoke page 10
- 11. w w w . s o u n d i m i g r a t i o n . c o m The lawyer as builder page 11 Packing station Love note station Handcuff station
- 12. The Bottleneck • Card station is the bottleneck • Bottleneck = system constraint
- 13. How do we improve? • Subordinate to the constraint • Elevate the constraint
- 14. w w w . s o u n d i m i g r a t i o n . c o m The lawyer as builder page 14 Associate Paralegal Partner
- 15. känbän The free technology you never knew your firm needed
- 17. w w w . s o u n d i m i g r a t i o n . c o m känbän page 17 How to kanban
- 18. What’s on your plate? What isn’t? To do Doing Waiting Done Client 1 Client 6 Client 8 Client 15 Client 2 Client 7 Client 9 Client 16 Client 3 Client 10 Client 4 Client 11 Client 5 Client 12 Client 13 Client 14
- 19. w w w . s o u n d i m i g r a t i o n . c o m känbän page 19 Waiting on client Waiting on 3rd party To do Doing Done Client 8 Client 20 Client 1 Client 6 Client 15 Client 9 Client 21 Client 2 Client 7 Client 16 Client 10 Client 3 Client 11 Client 4 Client 12 Client 5 Client 13 Client 14
- 20. w w w . s o u n d i m i g r a t i o n . c o m känbän page 20 Prospects Waiting on client Waiting on 3rd party Doing Delegated to LPO Filed Holding pattern Done Our current Kanban columns at Sound Immigration
- 21. w w w . s o u n d i m i g r a t i o n . c o m känbän page 21 Intake Client questionnaire Paralegal draft Senior attorney review Sample Estate Planning Kanban
- 22. w w w . s o u n d i m i g r a t i o n . c o m känbän page 22 Sample Property Purchase/Sale Kanban Client questionnaire Paralegal draft Senior attorney review Property inspection Appraisal Waiting on other party
- 23. Litigation is tricky 1. What’s the next action? 2. Where is the case in its lifecycle? To do Doing Waiting Done Client 1 Client 6 Client 8 Client 15 Client 2 Client 7 Client 9 Client 16 Client 3 Client 10 Client 4 Client 11 Client 5 Client 12 Client 13 Client 14 Investigation Discovery Motion Practice Trial prep Client 1 Client 6 Client 8 Client 15 Client 2 Client 7 Client 9 Client 16 Client 3 Client 10 Client 4 Client 11 Client 5 Client 12 Client 13 Client 14 1 2
- 24. w w w . s o u n d i m i g r a t i o n . c o m känbän page 24 One litigation solution: add a dimension Investigation Discovery Motion Practice Trial prep Partner Associate Paralegal Waiting on client Waiting on opposing party Waiting on third party Waiting on court Opposition has provided discovery, now ball moves to partner to set motion practice strategy Where’s the next action? Where is the case in its lifecycle?
- 25. w w w . s o u n d i m i g r a t i o n . c o m känbän page 25 Not “just” for case work
- 27. “Start with this” John Grant @JEGrant3
- 28. w w w . s o u n d i m i g r a t i o n . c o m Online kanban tools page 28 Trello
- 29. w w w . s o u n d i m i g r a t i o n . c o m Online kanban tools page 29 Trim, intuitive interface
- 30. w w w . s o u n d i m i g r a t i o n . c o m Online kanban tools page 30 Checklist Comments/ case notes
- 31. w w w . s o u n d i m i g r a t i o n . c o m Online kanban tools page 31 LeanKit
- 32. w w w . s o u n d i m i g r a t i o n . c o m Online kanban tools page 32 Favorite feature: board within board
- 33. w w w . s o u n d i m i g r a t i o n . c o m Online kanban tools page 33 Lawcus
- 34. w w w . s o u n d i m i g r a t i o n . c o m känbän page 34 LPM build around kanban
- 35. w w w . s o u n d i m i g r a t i o n . c o m AgileAttorney Slack Group agileattorney.com/join-the-agile- attorneys-slack-group/ Materials from this talk soundimmigration.com/agile The Goal Eliyahu Goldratt (Painful but helpful read) Resources JohnGrant agileattorney.com / @JEGrant3 Font of all things Agile-Law Lawyerist podcast John Grant, again http://bit.ly/1NCXd7d The Lean Startup Eric Ries Business as experiment page 35
- 36. Thank you Greg McLawsen Managing Attorney Sound Immigration @mclawsen 253-203-3170 greg@soundimmigration.com www.soundimmigration.com
Editor's Notes
- Both client and attorney want to see case successfully closed out. Karol needs paper to print contract but it’s inefficient to drive to store, will wait until paralegal is available next week. End of month, can’t get paid rest of fee because case isn’t closed. Doesn’t matter if paper will be efficiently obtained sometime; that paper became blocking problem that means Karol gets $0 for this case this month.
- Historically we’ve viewed ourselves as artisans. We offer a highly customized, client-tailored service – like a bespoke suit from a tailor. There’s tremendous craft to our profession, and what I’m talking about today has nothing to do with detracting from that view of lawyers. But I want to offer a different and additional framework for viewing how we deliver value to our clients. Photo Credit: worradmu – freedigitalphotos.com
- That framework is the paradigm of manufacturing. Or more broadly, it’s the framework of building things. Today we’re going to try looking at what we do as building a product for our clients. We’re going to think about our law firms as manufacturing plants that build legal products. Or – if you prefer – we’ll view our work the way software developers think about completing projects. It turns out that the project management systems used all throughout the tech industry – that we can apply to law – grew out of car manufacturing. <a href="http://www.shutterstock.com/gallery-1456598p1.html?cr=00&pl=edit-00">Irina Borsuchenko</a> / <a href="http://www.shutterstock.com/editorial?cr=00&pl=edit-00">Shutterstock.com</a>
- We start our journey far from the assembly room floor in rural Vermont. That’s where my sister, Kay, works on an organic vegetable farm. They grow cabbages that sell for $20 in New York (no kidding). But in the winter things are slow, so Kay moonlights at various odd jobs. Last year she worked in a manufacturing plant building these: Image credit: Supertrooper @ freedigitalphotos.com
- The 50 Shades of Grey tedddy bear. Better yet, when you order one, you can get a customized love note to accompany. Kay’s job was to hand write these customized notes to be packed with the Teddy.
- Big Boss comes to visit Image credit: Business People @ freedigitalphotos.com
- Big Boss comes to visit Image credit: Business People @ freedigitalphotos.com
- Big Boss comes to visit Image credit: Business People @ freedigitalphotos.com
- Big Boss comes to visit Image credit: Business People @ freedigitalphotos.com
- In transactional work tracking “what next” and “who is responsible for the next action item” are the same questions. In litigation, not so. Within a particular stage of the case life-cycle, the ball may pass to associate, paralegal, attorney, opposing party, judge, etc.
- Far more feature-rich, also more confusing
- Far more feature-rich, also more confusing