Phase 1: Observe the Real Workflow
We sit next to the people doing the work — not the partners describing it from the org chart.
Deliverables
- Shadowing notes from each fee-earner / paralegal / consultant in scope
- Catalogue of every distinct manual workflow with frequency and time-per-instance
- Stakeholder interview summaries (operations, finance, partner level)
Actions
- Spend 3–5 working days embedded with the team, watching real cases end-to-end
- Time individual workflow steps with a stopwatch — no estimates, no self-reporting
- Identify dependencies on practice-management, CRM, document, and email tooling
Outcome
- An honest map of how work actually moves through your firm — usually different from how leadership thinks it does
- Identification of which workflows are eating real hours vs. which just feel painful
Phase 4
Phase 2