Over the last decade, information technology has become an integral component of virtually every industry, including the legal sector. In light of these developments, corporate paralegals must hone their tech skills and become savvier in the use of digital assets.
In order to help law firms and in-house legal teams increase their competitiveness in this increasingly digitized ecosystem, we have outlined five things every corporate paralegal should know.
1. Technology Suite Management
While corporate paralegals are by no means expected to be de facto information technology experts, they should possess a strong working knowledge of their firm’s entity management software and other applications. This is vital to their success for several key reasons.
Corporate paralegals who are confident in their knowledge and understanding of technology will be more willing to “buy in” when their firm invests in new solutions. Employee buy-in is one of the most important factors in the outcome of any tech deployment.
Additionally, legal professionals who are familiar with their firm’s technologies will be better equipped to use these applications to carry out their core job responsibilities. They will know which tools to use and when to use them in order to operate more efficiently on a daily basis.
Ultimately, this knowledge will allow professionals to spend more time on billable activities and avoid engaging in redundant tasks.
2. How to Use Help Center Tools
While the top Software as a Service (SaaS) providers offer an abundance of assistance and support, many minor application issues can be resolved via self-service tools. Therefore, corporate paralegals must know how to navigate the help center tools included with their entity management software.
Help centers also allow legal professionals to expand their knowledge of the applications available to them on an ongoing basis.
If they are unable to resolve these problems in-house, paralegals should also be familiar with how to seek outside support via live chats or other communication mediums. This knowledge will help them minimize downtime in the event of a software malfunction or outage.
3. Virtual Minute Book Management
One of the most powerful tools included in modern entity management solutions is a virtual minute book. These virtual logs allow corporate paralegals to move away from the use of physical minute books or spreadsheet-based tracking practices.
When used strategically, virtual minute books can pave the way for significant cost savings while also eliminating the need to store massive amounts of physical documents on-premises. In addition, virtual minute books can be shared with clients in a “read-only” format as a means of demonstrating a firm’s value.
4. How to Collaborate Digitally
In the corporate world, time is money. Conversely, delays can be incredibly costly. Traditional collaboration processes and document signing practices are laden with issues that have the potential to hinder productivity.
Tech-savvy corporate paralegals can overcome this barrier to efficiency by utilizing leading-edge collaboration tools. These tools allow paralegals to take advantage of auto-populating form templates, get approvals signed more quickly, and interact with other team members remotely.
Digital collaboration is more important than ever, now that remote and hybrid work has become the norm. Clients and coworkers expect to be able to sign documents, review forms, and perform other business-essential tasks virtually.
Paralegals who have mastered the art of digital collaboration are well prepared to meet these expectations and provide an exceptional level of service.
5. Task Management
Corporate paralegals are known for being expert multitaskers who can juggle a seemingly unending list of responsibilities. Still, even the most experienced legal professionals worry about missing important deadlines.
Fortunately, tech-savvy paralegals can eliminate this concern by taking advantage of user-friendly task management applications. These solutions allow teams to organize compliance activities, set reminders, assign tasks to coworkers, and arrange tasks by deadline.
Task managers help paralegals prioritize urgent matters without losing sight of their many other responsibilities.
How Entity Management Software Can Enhance Tech Literacy
Corporate paralegals and other auxiliary professionals serve a vital role within private law firms and in-house legal teams. When these individuals are provided with the tools and knowledge needed to succeed, they can help the entire group become more efficient and better serve clients.
While there are many ways to increase the technological literacy of corporate paralegals, one of the most pragmatic solutions involves investing in cloud-based entity management software, such as the platform offered by Athennian.
Our technology is much more than an entity management database. It includes a dynamic suite of tools and features that can elevate the performance of legal professionals while simultaneously remedying long-standing compliance concerns.
If you would like to learn more about Athennian’s best-in-class entity management software, speak to one of our experts today. We will connect you with the resources necessary to get the most out of your technology investment.
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