Struggling with Low Productivity in a Law Firm Department: How Can I Boost Efficiency?

Dear seniors,

I work for a law firm and was asked to conduct an audit of a department. The department has shown lower productivity, and the staff in that department have not been completing work on time. Bills are being prepared after a delay of 4 months. Kindly advise on how I can maximize the utilization of the manpower.

I need advice very urgently. Please.

Regards,
Quinn

Your post has left out some information. Which department were you told to audit? How many employees are there in your law firm, and how many are in this particular department? If the department raises the bills after four months, should we deduce that your company has not prepared the process manual for the department? Please note that we audit process compliance, not individuals. Apart from the process manual, we need to establish the turnaround time for various processes as well. The monthly scorecard of the measures itself is audited, and no separate audit is required.

For any further queries, feel free to contact me.

Thanks,

Dinesh Divekar
Business Mentor, Consultant, and Trainer

Department Standards and Staffing

What are the established standards for the department? Are there sufficient staff members? Is there a benchmark for the number of staff required?

Targets and Shortfalls

What are the targets and shortfalls? An analysis of the shortfall needs to be conducted. Discussions with staff can provide insights into the reasons, which may include staff negligence, laziness, or systemic issues.

Performance Evaluation

How was the performance in previous periods? What are the tasks of the department, and how do they fit into the overall workflow of the company? Delays in the department can affect overall output. Here, output can be in the form of getting briefs fully prepared and case papers ready on time, etc.

Are you auditing the competencies and skills of employees or the effectiveness of the HR Department as a whole? It looks like you need an organizational effectiveness audit as well as an assessment of the gaps in competencies and skills within the organization.

Audit Report Assistance Needed

Kindly help me in writing an audit report for a department with 12 managers and 10 assistants. I had asked for work profiles from both managers and assistants. I observed in the work profiles that everyone is doing everything in the department; a single manager was not holding a single profile. Even the assistants were the same.

I also observed that some assistants are overloaded with work, while a few don't have much to do.

I also had a meeting with the assistants to hear what they have to say. They informed me that practically everything is done by the assistants, and the managers are just taking a high salary.

I need to give my recommendations on how I can distribute the workload equally and also ensure the smooth functioning of that particular department.

I have never conducted an audit before, and this is the first time I will be doing it. Kindly help me in writing the report. I need to submit this report on Monday.

Urgently help me. You can write to me directly at [Email Removed For Privacy Reasons].

Regards,
Quinn

Following is my take on your post:

a) You have mentioned the department, but which department is it? What are the objectives of the department?

b) It appears that you are confused with the term "audit." The definition of an audit is to examine carefully for accuracy with the intent of verification. To examine the accuracy and verify, you need to first define the systems and processes of the department. Please remember that an audit is conducted to check whether the systems and processes are followed correctly or not. The audit is not of the persons.

c) To understand the systems and processes of the department, you have to understand what the input to the department is and what the output from the department is. To whom is this output for? Is it for internal customers or external customers? What is the customer satisfaction ratio?

d) You feel that managers are not working. Nevertheless, would it be right if we place managers on par with their subordinates? The manager's job is to get the work done from the subordinates. For this, they constantly need to guide, coach, counsel, train, and advise their subordinates.

e) Since you have not mentioned the name of the department, it is not possible to write for what they are accountable. Take the case of the Inventory Turnover Ratio (ITR). No single person in the purchasing department is directly responsible for elevating this ratio; however, the Head of Purchase or Head of Supply Chain will remain responsible for elevating this ratio or maintaining the level where they are. For this, he/she has to get the work done from all the persons working in the Purchase Department.

Final Comments

Well, gentleman, this is your second query on the same subject. Earlier, you also raised the query. There were three replies to your query; however, instead of responding to their clarification, you have raised a second post after 15 days. You wanted to keep cards close to your chest and yet want seniors to respond! How long will this continue?

Thanks,

Dinesh Divekar

[Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons]

Hi everyone, I'm seeking guidance on creating a comprehensive manpower audit report. I need to analyze employee utilization to determine if they are over or underutilized and include a skill audit as well. This audit will be conducted every six months.

Any tips, templates, or best practices you can share would be greatly appreciated! Thank you in advance.