Converting Raw Data Into Meaningful Business Intelligence

Zelle, Hofmann, Voelbel, Mason & Gette LLP is a national litigation law firm with extensive experience in complex, high-stakes cases. The firm represents plaintiffs and defendants in antitrust, business, class action, securities, insurance coverage and intellectual property litigation, among numerous other areas.

At any given time, these cases may require the combined talent and data from the firm's six offices. Since most cases require extensive sharing of documents among co-counsel and clients, a primary technical challenge for us was to provide secure extranet and collaboration workspaces. These requirements, along with our previous experience with our existing Hummingbird-powered document-management system, were the primary drivers for selecting Hummingbird Enterprise as our document management, collaboration and portal software.

During our installation of the Hummingbird Enterprise suite, we discovered Hummingbird BI, the suite's business intelligence component. We originally purchased BI in hopes of providing clients with simple financial snapshots of case related expenses and fees via the extranet. However, we quickly realized our expectations were inadequate and found that BI was the unexpected gem of Hummingbird Enterprise.

Why did we suddenly focus on BI? Generating easy and accurate reports from the financial system had always posed a major challenge for our accounting department. Prior to rolling out Hummingbird BI, we were using four different reporting products, none of which were compatible with the other and each with its own expensive support contracts and dependencies on outside consultants. We saw in BI unlimited potential to reinvent the way financial data, and any data for that matter, is used at Zelle Hofmann.

The primary goal for the BI project was to regain control over our financial reports and reduce the time required to process data when needed. The main problem with our old reporting method was that our report templates were static and in most cases required the assistance of outside consultants and software developers to make changes. We also found that most of our reports were not giving us data in formats we wanted and we consistently were reformatting the reports in Word or Excel. These poor report templates and inefficient reporting methods were the driving factors in developing BI as our reporting standard.

Converting hundreds of Elite reports into Hummingbird BI is an ongoing process. Throughout this process many procedures and workflows have been optimized using BI's many tools. One tool in particular is BI Scheduler, which is part of the BI server. BI Scheduler is a component that allows BI reports and processes to be initiated via a predetermined schedule or based on defined criteria much like a trigger. Using BI Scheduler, we've been able to streamline and automate many monotonous accounting and administrative tasks such as the updating of daily accounts receivable reports. Using BI Scheduler to perform these reoccurring daily tasks has freed up valuable resources in accounting that can be used for more important and urgent purposes.

After evaluating BI's success with the Elite system, we found many other data sources that could benefit from BI's technology. Currently, Hummingbird BI enables the firm to easily collect, analyze and report on our multiple legal applications and data sources, offering the firm a more timely and accurate view of our business, improving strategic planning and overall decision making. By utilizing Hummingbird BI to generate reports from various business systems, we are able to save time and money.

The main legal applications and data sources currently accessed by BI are the Elite financial system; Interaction, where we store all the firm's contact information; DTE, which feeds billing data into Elite; Genifax, our electronic fax system; Hummingbird Enterprise DM, where we store all documents and work product; West km, our link to internal documents stored in DM via Westlaw searches; and Novell eDirectory, which holds all our network login and object information.

We use Hummingbird BI to create reports the attorneys really want, reports that provide data in the way they've always wanted to see it. From publishing financial data out of the Elite financial system, to reporting on document history out of DM, to updating personnel address lists via scheduled BI reports out of Interaction, Hummingbird BI has a pervasive presence at Zelle Hofmann.

Simplifying Report Creation and Distribution

One of the first widely used reports developed from Humming-bird BI was a Working Timekeeper Report. The report displays how each attorney spends their time. The BI report is more comprehensive and easier to read and analyze than its predecessor, while the time needed to compile the report has been reduced from hours to seconds. Now it's one click and in 30 seconds, accounting has what they want in a format that can be distributed instantly.

Our CFO considers BI's greatest asset being that we are not restricted in what we can report on. For example, the firm uses the BI tool to track usage of West km. In the past, it was difficult showing the firm's partners our return on investment for West km. With Hummingbird BI, it is easy to track how often West km is being used and what it is being used for. Our reports show how often attorneys use West km to save clients thousands of dollars in potentially redundant research.

Hummingbird BI also allows us to report on our Genifax electronic fax system. For billing purposes, it's very important that certain statistics such as number of faxes and pages received are recorded. However, Genifax itself can't easily provide these stats. Using Hummingbird BI, a simple report was created that is now accessible to all Central Service employees.

We also use Hummingbird BI to access and report on data in the firm's contact management database ' Interaction, because its own out-of-the-box reports do not provide the flexibility or scope needed to effectively use this information. For example, the majority of our attorneys' Continuing Legal Education information (CLE) is kept in the database; however, there isn't a good report to analyze and organize this data. Using Hummingbird BI, we created a custom report that provides a detailed summary of each attorney's CLE activity.

The Intranet-based Firm Personnel List is also updated via Hummingbird BI. Since not all employees have access to Interaction, this report keeps them up to date on employee data such as home phone, cell phone, address, and other information. A BI report automatically queries (via BI Scheduler) the contact database once every hour to retrieve all the information for the firm personnel list and publish it to the firm's Intranet.

Implementing the Portal

Sharing documents via e-mail is often a frustrating task. For example, in cases where many different attorneys are working on the same documents, exhibit lists and client lists, e-mailing back and forth can lead to trouble with old versions, lost documents, and missed revisions. In these instances, we use the Webtop (portal) and collaboration components of Hummingbird Enterprise to provide an enhanced service to clients and co-counsel. With Webtop and collaboration, every-one is working out of the same secure, collaborative work-space, thus avoiding all of these problems.

On to the Future

The firm has plans to continue expanding the use of Hummingbird Enterprise components such as the Webtop, collaboration, business intelligence and knowledge management. Several new projects involve using Hummingbird BI to report on multiple databases at once. A merged DM/West km database model is planned that will allow the firm to simultaneously report on document activity in both systems. A merged DTE/Elite data model will allow accounting to identify and report on missing or erroneous time entries. Another project will see the firm use Hummingbird BI to tap into the extensive and complex Elite Conflicts index to easily and quickly provide client conflict and relationship information to attorneys. Regardless of the application, Hummingbird Enter-prise will continue to give our data value by allowing it to be valuable to our attorneys, co-counsel and clients.

Zelle, Hofmann, Voelbel, Mason & Gette LLP is a national litigation law firm with extensive experience in complex, high-stakes cases. The firm represents plaintiffs and defendants in antitrust, business, class action, securities, insurance coverage and intellectual property litigation, among numerous other areas.

At any given time, these cases may require the combined talent and data from the firm's six offices. Since most cases require extensive sharing of documents among co-counsel and clients, a primary technical challenge for us was to provide secure extranet and collaboration workspaces. These requirements, along with our previous experience with our existing Hummingbird-powered document-management system, were the primary drivers for selecting Hummingbird Enterprise as our document management, collaboration and portal software.

During our installation of the Hummingbird Enterprise suite, we discovered Hummingbird BI, the suite's business intelligence component. We originally purchased BI in hopes of providing clients with simple financial snapshots of case related expenses and fees via the extranet. However, we quickly realized our expectations were inadequate and found that BI was the unexpected gem of Hummingbird Enterprise.

Why did we suddenly focus on BI? Generating easy and accurate reports from the financial system had always posed a major challenge for our accounting department. Prior to rolling out Hummingbird BI, we were using four different reporting products, none of which were compatible with the other and each with its own expensive support contracts and dependencies on outside consultants. We saw in BI unlimited potential to reinvent the way financial data, and any data for that matter, is used at Zelle Hofmann.

The primary goal for the BI project was to regain control over our financial reports and reduce the time required to process data when needed. The main problem with our old reporting method was that our report templates were static and in most cases required the assistance of outside consultants and software developers to make changes. We also found that most of our reports were not giving us data in formats we wanted and we consistently were reformatting the reports in Word or Excel. These poor report templates and inefficient reporting methods were the driving factors in developing BI as our reporting standard.

Converting hundreds of Elite reports into Hummingbird BI is an ongoing process. Throughout this process many procedures and workflows have been optimized using BI's many tools. One tool in particular is BI Scheduler, which is part of the BI server. BI Scheduler is a component that allows BI reports and processes to be initiated via a predetermined schedule or based on defined criteria much like a trigger. Using BI Scheduler, we've been able to streamline and automate many monotonous accounting and administrative tasks such as the updating of daily accounts receivable reports. Using BI Scheduler to perform these reoccurring daily tasks has freed up valuable resources in accounting that can be used for more important and urgent purposes.

After evaluating BI's success with the Elite system, we found many other data sources that could benefit from BI's technology. Currently, Hummingbird BI enables the firm to easily collect, analyze and report on our multiple legal applications and data sources, offering the firm a more timely and accurate view of our business, improving strategic planning and overall decision making. By utilizing Hummingbird BI to generate reports from various business systems, we are able to save time and money.

The main legal applications and data sources currently accessed by BI are the Elite financial system; Interaction, where we store all the firm's contact information; DTE, which feeds billing data into Elite; Genifax, our electronic fax system; Hummingbird Enterprise DM, where we store all documents and work product; West km, our link to internal documents stored in DM via Westlaw searches; and Novell eDirectory, which holds all our network login and object information.

We use Hummingbird BI to create reports the attorneys really want, reports that provide data in the way they've always wanted to see it. From publishing financial data out of the Elite financial system, to reporting on document history out of DM, to updating personnel address lists via scheduled BI reports out of Interaction, Hummingbird BI has a pervasive presence at Zelle Hofmann.

Simplifying Report Creation and Distribution

One of the first widely used reports developed from Humming-bird BI was a Working Timekeeper Report. The report displays how each attorney spends their time. The BI report is more comprehensive and easier to read and analyze than its predecessor, while the time needed to compile the report has been reduced from hours to seconds. Now it's one click and in 30 seconds, accounting has what they want in a format that can be distributed instantly.

Our CFO considers BI's greatest asset being that we are not restricted in what we can report on. For example, the firm uses the BI tool to track usage of West km. In the past, it was difficult showing the firm's partners our return on investment for West km. With Hummingbird BI, it is easy to track how often West km is being used and what it is being used for. Our reports show how often attorneys use West km to save clients thousands of dollars in potentially redundant research.

Hummingbird BI also allows us to report on our Genifax electronic fax system. For billing purposes, it's very important that certain statistics such as number of faxes and pages received are recorded. However, Genifax itself can't easily provide these stats. Using Hummingbird BI, a simple report was created that is now accessible to all Central Service employees.

We also use Hummingbird BI to access and report on data in the firm's contact management database ' Interaction, because its own out-of-the-box reports do not provide the flexibility or scope needed to effectively use this information. For example, the majority of our attorneys' Continuing Legal Education information (CLE) is kept in the database; however, there isn't a good report to analyze and organize this data. Using Hummingbird BI, we created a custom report that provides a detailed summary of each attorney's CLE activity.

The Intranet-based Firm Personnel List is also updated via Hummingbird BI. Since not all employees have access to Interaction, this report keeps them up to date on employee data such as home phone, cell phone, address, and other information. A BI report automatically queries (via BI Scheduler) the contact database once every hour to retrieve all the information for the firm personnel list and publish it to the firm's Intranet.

Implementing the Portal

Sharing documents via e-mail is often a frustrating task. For example, in cases where many different attorneys are working on the same documents, exhibit lists and client lists, e-mailing back and forth can lead to trouble with old versions, lost documents, and missed revisions. In these instances, we use the Webtop (portal) and collaboration components of Hummingbird Enterprise to provide an enhanced service to clients and co-counsel. With Webtop and collaboration, every-one is working out of the same secure, collaborative work-space, thus avoiding all of these problems.

On to the Future

The firm has plans to continue expanding the use of Hummingbird Enterprise components such as the Webtop, collaboration, business intelligence and knowledge management. Several new projects involve using Hummingbird BI to report on multiple databases at once. A merged DM/West km database model is planned that will allow the firm to simultaneously report on document activity in both systems. A merged DTE/Elite data model will allow accounting to identify and report on missing or erroneous time entries. Another project will see the firm use Hummingbird BI to tap into the extensive and complex Elite Conflicts index to easily and quickly provide client conflict and relationship information to attorneys. Regardless of the application, Hummingbird Enter-prise will continue to give our data value by allowing it to be valuable to our attorneys, co-counsel and clients.