Law Firm Automation with Roman Zelichenko

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 22:12 — 25.4MB)

In this episode, Alay and Roman discuss:

Automating the processes that can (and need to be) automated.
Investing the time to document the systems to make things more efficient in the long run.
Stumbling blocks around automation.
Tools that may help you to automate your processes and systems.

Key Takeaways:

When you look at automation, start by looking at everything you do, step by step, without judging if it is worth automating or not.
Be open to the fact that nothing is going to be perfect. You may try something that won’t be the right fit for you; there is a discovery process.
While you may need to hire, some of what you are doing can likely be done by software.
If you are only using a small fraction of a software, call up your provider and see what else their program can do for you.

Tweetable Moments:

“Audit or review your processes across your law firm without judgment, without thinking about what is or isn’t ripe for automation, what is or isn’t high value or low value. Write everything down, step by step, as if you were going to give your law firm to somebody else and have them run every single piece of it.” — Roman Zelichenko
“You have to invest in the systems to get them running, but they make things more efficient. And, oftentimes, it’s a lot cheaper and easier than hiring an employee.” — Alay Yajnik
“Having it not be perfect is not an excuse to not start. It’s not going to be perfect, but it can still save you a ton of time.” — Alay Yajnik
“That lack of communication [between client and software company] very often is one of the biggest challenges with underutilizing a tool.” — Roman Zelichenko

About Roman Zelichenko:

After graduating from Brooklyn Law School where Roman founded the Brooklyn Law Immigration Society, he landed a job practicing US immigration law at a DC immigration firm. Handling a high volume of H-1B cases, Roman quickly realized that he was often doing more administrative paperwork than interesting and challenging legal analysis, particularly around LCA compliance. He knew that he wasn’t the only one who felt this way – no one was automating LCA compliance and there was a gap in the market, so Roman quit working as a lawyer, got a job in tech to learn the ropes, and eventually launched LaborLess, helping H-1B employers and immigration law firms across the US and overseas automate their LCA process.