Consumer Maven

Organic Delights

Several years ago a friend of mine sent me a dried fruit sampler from Diamond Organics. It was without question the absolutely best organic dried fruit that I had ever had. We think so highly of their food quality that we’ve been sending business associates gifts from this company.

The Wednesday night before Mother’s Day I ordered one of their samplers and some organic spelt sweet potato biscuits for my mom. The company usually ships two days overnight unless an item is perishable, in which case they usually ship overnight. Since I had perishables, on Friday I had expected my order. Nothing came. I looked at their website and realized that I probably messed up the shipping method. I emailed them with a question: “We placed our order Wednesday night. Did we specify the wrong shipping method?  One of these items was for Mother's Day.”

Several hours later I received an email, not from them directly but from Fed Ex. My package was upgraded to FedEx Overnight morning delivery. We had our food by 10:30 A.M. I looked at our online bank statement to see if there were any additional shipping charges, since my lack of appropriate communication did contribute to the delay. There was none. I’ve known that Diamond Organics has stood for high quality organic foods, and now I can say that they also stand for superb customer service. You can find their website and all their delectable organic foods at www.diamondorganics.com.

Must have software for your law or professional services office

A friend of mine is working on a project for a software company. Years ago I had a life managing and implementing financial and other user applications. Despite my education in business, I was at heart a tech nerd. Many years later, I am still proud of my geek heritage. I maintain an unnatural love for almost all things software, especially when I hear about an application area that is still so untapped.

Some time ago, when I needed the advice of an attorney, I was both surprised that they had any computer savvy at all and yet appalled that their offices were so low tech. One of the partners admitted to me that the office was held together by a young twenty-something gal who was attending law school at night and ‘a whiz’ on the computer. Whiz or not, she could only do what the programs they had would allow her to do. I remember going to meetings and watching with amazement as the paralegal, soon to be attorney, manually dug through amazing mounds of physical files and papers while putting cases together for trial. In between it all I would, hear lawyers yelling out reminders to check for issues of conflicts and scheduling concerns, and remind each other about impending filing deadlines that needed to be met. From what I heard about other law offices, this was common in the practice of law. Clearly, the high tech corporate world I was from had not met many law office environments.

Fast forward to 2006 and my friend tells me about something called case management software. Being in a business that requires a lot of contact management and billable time, my ears perk up. It turns out she’s working on a project for a company called Chesapeake Interlink, Ltd. I asked for more information, all the time wondering if this is something I can use to help our own professional services consulting business.

First, I should tell you what this software, called Needles, does. While it was designed specifically for law firms and those in the legal profession, it is a must have for anyone in the professional service industry who needs to track time, have a place to connect emails to projects or clients, add client notes, be able to keep track of all of a case or project’s documents, calendar appointments and deadlines (so we don’t miss important deadlines and meetings), track case status and other important information,  and check our system for conflict of interest issues. (Our consultancy makes it a policy to never take on another client who is a direct competitor of an existing one. Understanding how a client’s connections can affect this policy is also important to us.) By using the software we can track communications, Statute of Limitation dates, provider information, expenses, multiple payments, etc. You can see how, even if you are not an attorney, this software is like having an administrative staffer working for you 24/7. It also has a report writing system so that customized reports can be created on virtually any field, standard or user-defined, in the database.

Besides all of the critical issues that this software handles, it is also highly flexible, or in as we would say in business, it is highly customizable. Remembering in awe the Patagonian sized mountains of files at my attorney’s law office, I asked my friend if this software from Heaven had any solutions for that. “Of course,” I heard my friend respond. The software also had document management capabilities that provided links to any letter, pleading, photograph, diagram, scanned item or other document that needs to be viewed in the case file. I suddenly saw a great leap forward for the environment, as millions of trees breathed a collective sigh of relief that no additional members of their family would end up being fodder for the client’s files or any extra needed copies.

I’ve been an adopter of calendaring systems as soon as I ever found out about them. For those of us who live by our Palm Pilots or our Outlook or ACT! programs, Needles has something for all of us. The heart of the Needles system is the checklist. A daily task list is automatically created as each file progresses that enables the client to easily record completion of items, reassign tasks to accommodate staffing changes, generate or change task due dates, create single and repeating items and track multiple statute of limitation dates or warnings. It is truly a system from the “Goddess of Scheduling.”

While the nuts and bolts of all the unbelievably cool things this software does for anyone who needs it are impressive, what struck me most was the company culture of this organization.  Now that I’ve talked about Needles Case Management Software as if it was the only software on the planet, (Microsoft withstanding; of course), I have to tell you about the company.

Chesapeake Interlink, Ltd. was the first company to ever make a case management software program for law offices. From what I understand, in the early mid-1980s a group of attorneys approached them and asked if they could create what evolved into a case management software. After all that I’ve heard, that alone helped me understand why this privately held business has been so customer focused. Their roots and the core of their business has always been about helping law offices and attorneys do their work more effectively and efficiently.

My friend tells me that their customers are not just customers but customer evangelists who hold a passion for the software and the Needles name. From my experience in enterprise implementations, I’ve seen software companies develop good or bad reputations through their interactions with their user base. Until I heard about Needles, I had never heard of such fierce customer loyalty and passion for a software product. Software, after all, is intangible. You can’t hold it, feel it, cozy up to it, wear it or eat it. Despite all that, Needles Case Management Software for lawyers, and us other professionals, seems to be the closest thing to comfort food a software program can be. The company knows how to listen to their customers and how to keep them happy. Needles is an example of how technology in offices can be a beautiful thing when a company really gets what is important to their customers. In turn, their customers are passionate about them. It’s no small wonder that the company that developed the first case management software for law offices is still an industry leader. Check them out yourself and Go Needles!

 

 

 

Zuca Bags really are about Fashion, Function and Fun

As an urban gal, I usually walk to the grocery store and have to schlep my stuff back in a grocery cart. I resisted buying a grocery cart for a long time, mostly due to its association with little old ladies. I’ve also tried loading heavy items on a luggage carrier, only to have to stop several times to rebalance what seems to be an ever shifting load.

My uncle told me about what looked like a portable case on wheels. Larger than a backpack, this easily holds a day’s worth of books for anyone on campus. I’ve been intrigued by Zuca bags, and I finally ordered one. When it came I promptly put the bag in the frame and had fun rolling it back and forth on my hardwood floors. Zuca bags have four wheels all on the side closest to where you are rolling. The two wheels that contact the ground sparkle and flash while you walk, and gives the bag a fun appearance.

I am unfortunately used to drivers who are usually so impatient at Stop Signs that they want to barrel through the intersection while people are still walking. I’m not a particularly slow walker, even while pulling something behind me, so I have never looked kindly at those who are sitting comfortably in a car when it comes to giving the right of way to a pedestrian crossing legally. As a Chicagoan, I have to admit I was impressed at how this seemed to change while pulling my Zuca. Apparently drivers found themselves looking at the sparkling wheels and it gave them something to do besides wanting to blow through a Stop Sign.

Besides that charm of the wheels, I found the Zuca Bag one of the best rolling portable storage items, ever. Although the wheels are smaller than those on my grocery cart, the materials which they are made for results in a very easy, gliding roll. The trip home was far more easier on my shoulders and arms than when I've used a shopping buggy, which ergonomically should be easier since the cart is pushed in front (four wheels).  The wheels on the Zuca provide a much easier roll and my shoulders didn't feel the standard strain from pulling heavy items for long distances.  For an added bonus, bringing it up to the second floor of the three flat that I live in was astonishingly easier than anything else I’ve used thanks to that second set of wheels. Instead of pulling the cart up each stairs they rolled up.  My only regret with my Zuca bag is that I didn't  get one earlier! You can find out more about Zuca bags by going to their website.