The Chancellor of the Exchequer delivers the UK’s Budget this week and businesses will be keen to hear details of the Government’s economic plan. Although the short-term economic outlook is generally more positive, longer-term challenges are predicted and it’s widely expected that the Government will retain its tight fiscal environment alongside some carefully targeted spending.
So, what can you do to balance your own budget and protect your legal business from being buffeted by the current economic headwinds?
Reasons to be cheerful
The Law Society’s financial benchmarking survey for 2021/2022, published at the beginning of this month reported that despite the challenging economic environment, law firms remained resilient and were reporting strong fee-income performance: nearly half of law firms saw growth of more than 10% and median fee income per equity partner increased by 5.4% to £939,525 in 2022.
It’s all about people
Despite these impressive results, the coming year is still expected to be challenging and it’s staffing (and associated costs) which are likely to cause firms most headaches as they look to grow.
Recruitment and retention have been tricky for some time and many law firms report not being able to find the staff they need. Labour shortages have led to salary wars which have priced many mid-sized firms out of the market in some areas.
Staff are likely to continue to feel the impact of the UK’s cost of living crisis for some time yet , which is likely to drive pressure for pay increases and firms will naturally be keen to find ways to offset these growing costs.
What can you do?
There are options. Many firms have already cut rent costs and other expenses by embracing hybrid working and reducing office space.
Increasing productivity is also worth looking at. This does not mean upping everyone’s billable hours target! It could however involve ‘smarter working’ by embracing innovation and technology and, most importantly, making sure the right work is being done by the right person. For example, do you have qualified lawyers doing tasks that could be carried out by a competent PA or Clerk?
Another sensible option to consider is outsourcing some internal functions – both legal and non-legal. Not only could this be very cost-effective in itself but it could also drive-up productivity and remove the burden of recruitment and day-to-day management, leading to further savings.
How can we help?
At Global BPO , our teams of legal and business specialists are experts in the work you wish to delegate. We know from experience that if we place the right person in the right role, productivity goes up. Here’s a snapshot of some of the services we offer but if you have something else in mind, we’ll likely be able to help.
- PA support
- Conveyancing support
- Data Subject Access requests
- E-discovery
- Due diligence document review
- Bundle preparation
- Document checking and creation
- Accounts support
- Legal precedent and knowledge support
- Risk and compliance
- HR support
Talk to us
Talk to us to find out how we could help you keep on budget. For more information contact our Client Manager, Suzie Young, at: suzie@globalbpo.co.uk
