Here’s a practical and powerful exercise you can do that will help you accomplish your goals for your law firm and know exactly who is responsible for every task! It involves making a unique organizational chart that is created by looking at what needs to get done before you determine who in your law firm will do it. Function takes precedence over personalities.

This is how to do it:

You’re the leader of your organization, so your name goes on top. Underneath that, you list each broad category of functions that needs to be handled within your law firm – much like a large business is divided into departments. Each category is further divided into smaller programs, with a box under that for each distinct task involved in running every program.

For instance, you might have categories for Lead Generation, Lead Conversion, Fulfillment (doing the actual work), Finance, and Management. Under each category, you’ll list the programs needed to implement that category, with each program further subdivided into distinct tasks. There will be a box for each category and for each program and for each task. Everything that needs to get accomplished has a box.

As you go through this process, you’ll add a name to each box, giving someone in your organization responsibility for that category, program, or task. At first, you’ll notice that your name will be plugged into a lot of boxes. As your firm grows and expands, and as you train more employees, their names will fill in the boxes and replace yours.

There’s a certain magic that happens when you go through this process and actually put the organizational chart on paper. Doing this allows you to see the pieces of your firm almost like they’re on a chess board – you can literally move the pieces around strategically to figure out how to best implement each idea and task within your firm.

This exercise will give you a feeling of control you may never have experienced before. Try it – you’ll see what I mean.

For those of you who have already done this for your own firms, how has it helped you achieve your initial vision for your practice?

Sanford M. Fisch
CEO & Co-Founder
American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.
9444 Balboa Avenue, Suite 300
San Diego, California 92123
Phone: (800) 846-1555
www.aaepa.com