We have just introduced some nifty dashboards into Lexis Visualfiles. These KPIs look great and provide excellent insight into individual and team performance across a Visualfiles operation. I’ve no doubt they’ll help our customers from a management perspective, but it has made me start to think about their future potential.
Last year I started cycling again (no MAMIL jokes please!) and I use Strava, a brilliant app that’s pushing me to try for faster times, steeper hills and longer distances. This app has introduced ‘gamification’ elements into an otherwise standard time/distance/route recording solution for cycling and running. These elements encourage me to ‘compete’ against myself and other cyclists – and my competitive nature keeps me pushing harder, faster, longer.
Taking this idea to legal workflow, we all accept that workflow technology delivers improvements in efficiencies, and that analytical tools can point to good and bad performing areas - but how can we push its boundaries even further? Can ‘gamification’ play a part?
Critically, it would have to augment not detract from the process. It’s no good improving performance in one area of service, if another area suffers as a result. In cycling terms, getting halfway up the hill at record pace is useless if you have to then walk the rest of the way! It’s also important to consider qualitative measures as well as quantitative – increased numbers, but reduced quality isn’t a recipe for business success.
So what areas could we consider? Performance tables possibly? The idea of league tables and rankings is not new in the legal sector. The “Legal 500” is built on this principle. So potentially, we could look at providing the capability to create real-time user league tables that relate to the key business metrics in the solution.
Or a less confrontational approach may be that rather than focusing on league tables that reflect your users’ operational performance, think about how the organisation’s processes could be improved. The people best positioned to offer insight are users – ask them to identify where improvements could be made, publish these anonymously for others to consider and “like”. Then offer rewards for the best ideas.
These are just a couple of simple thoughts from me – I’d love to hear your ideas. Maybe we should take our dashboards technology forward to make ‘gamification’ easier to introduce into a Visualfiles environment?
About the Author: Nigel Williams
Nigel has led the product function since 2013 and has worked with Visualfiles since it was first released. With wide experience the legal sector, including Head of IT in 2 separate law firms, before joining Solicitec in 2004, he has also worked in the NHS and served for 9 years in the RAF, in the UK and overseas. Outside of work, Nigel lives in Gloucestershire and is married with 3 grown up daughters. He is a long-suffering Gloucester Rugby season ticket holder, hoping rather than expecting! Aside from the rugby, Nigel is a qualified hockey umpire and a keen photographer.
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