By George Psiharis, Clio Channel Program Manager.
Last week, I had the opportunity to represent Clio at the 8th Annual New York City Bar Association Solo and Small Firm Symposium. In addition to exhibiting, I spoke as part of a vendor panel that featured Rachel J. Minter from The Law Office of Rachel J. Minter, Amy Porter from LawPay, Mairim Vant from Effective Solutions Plus, Inc. and Casson Masters from Scribecorp.
The theme of the panel presentation was “Grow Your Firm While Minimizing Overhead.” One way to go about that is to make decisions, especially technology decisions, based on Total Cost of Ownership, or TCO. This approach allows you to compare the costs of subscription-based purchases, such as cloud-based applications, v. full acquisition models, such as desktop applications.
It is important to remember that, as your small law practice expands, it becomes increasingly paramount to invest in technology platforms that can grow seamlessly and affordably with your practice. Whether that involves storing a higher volume of case data, or adding new users on demand, the cost savings afforded by subscription models are often a lifesaver for small firms on a shoe-string budget.
The panel fostered some great discussion among both the vendors and attendees, and it wasn’t the only hot topic discussed during the symposium. Other topics included running a paperless office, mobile interfaces (especially iPads) and how to differentiate your practice in a competitive market.
I’d like to give a special thanks to Mark Josephson, our panel moderator, and to Alla Roytberg and the NYC Bar’s team for putting on a great event!
And if you want to learn more about TCO for practice management applications, be sure to check out our TCO whitepaper.