| The Satisfaction Challenge |
| Within the environment of a
law firm, client surveys can greatly aid in establishing and maintaining
effective client relationships. Attorneys are usually highly trained
and experienced in their chosen practice area. Yet this very training
and expertise can make it difficult for the professional to view
the client relationship in the same way that the client perceives
it. As a result, lawyers can be surprised when high levels of quality
and professionalism in service delivery are not matched by equally
high levels of client satisfaction. |
| Survey Process Benefits |
| For this reason, a survey
process tailored to the firm’s practice can be especially
beneficial in obtaining client perceptions and in maintaining satisfaction
with respect to such areas as the following:
- Extent to which the lawyer conveyed
understanding of the client’s problem.
- Degree to which the legal assistance provided
was responsive to client needs.
- Extent to which the lawyer made the client
aware of the costs and risks associated with a chosen course of
action.
- Degree to which the lawyer was able to explain
the rationale for his/her recommendations and help the client
make well-informed decisions.
- Empathy and interpersonal skills of the lawyer.
- Degree to which the service met client
expectations.
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| Survey Process Considerations |
| In addition to tailoring the
survey instrument to the type of practice, several additional issues
should be addressed when implementing a customer survey in a law
firm:
- Procedures for survey administration
should minimize disruption to the ongoing client-professional
relationship.
- Survey analysis and feedback should
be handled within the context of professional development, practice
development, and service process improvement.
- Account relationship managers
should be involved in the planning and implementation of the survey,
as well as in post-survey follow up.
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| How Wolf Management Can Help |
| In order to optimize the use
of a client survey, a key step is to establish a cross-functional
team to assess how the survey is being used and identify
ways to make it more useful in service improvement. Specifically,
Wolf Management Consultants can help you:
- assess your current client
survey process and recommend improvements
- design or improve
survey questionnaires
- identify satisfaction and
repurchase "drivers"
- assist stakeholders in organizing
teams to improve client service
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