Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/83718
ILTA's 2012 Financial Management Poll Results other, the business of the law firm suffers, potentially resulting in "worst case" work stoppage. Challenge the Status Quo It is no secret that establishing a good partnership between IT and finance can be challenging. It is important to get the leaders of both teams to understand how they can help each other. If that is a big challenge in your firm, seek out help from the firm administrator or a partner who can assist. Help these leaders understand that no department would be taking over another department; instead, the goal is to work together so that everyone is operating as efficiently as possible. The IT team should be expected to help identify issues, come up with creative solutions to technology problems and assist the finance department in implementing changes. The finance team needs to make sure their processes are not only well-documented, but efficiently maximizing resources and minimizing wasted time and effort. Finance also needs to be able to clearly communicate its needs to IT and strive for continuous improvement. Based on experience, continuous improvement only happens by constantly challenging the status quo and questioning why things are done the way they are. Case in point, why not have the firm's IT department take an active role in increasing law firm profitability and improving the bottom line? When it comes to selecting and optimizing the use of mission-critical financial applications, the law firm IT department can lead in many ways. ILTA White Paper 31