The Challenge 

 As Florida's leading litigation firm with nearly 600 attorneys and almost 1,500 staff, Cole Scott & Kissane had been through a period of significant growth which brought about opportunities to enhance its financial reporting and billing processes. Manual workflows presented challenges in effectively managing the billing and collections lifecycle. Streamlining these processes became a priority to ensure seamless year-end analyses, compensation reviews, and continued delivery of the first-class client service the firm is known for. 

"Reporting was always done ad hoc with the year-end review and analysis causing a lot of delays. Integrating payroll data with attorney performance metrics was done in an inefficient and clunky manner, requiring multiple platforms. It would take us up to three months from start to finish to complete our year-end processes for about 750 timekeepers," explains Ed Aguero, Chief Financial Officer. 

The firm also had to work harder to provide timely financial insights to support the firm’s business development needs as they saw more growth. Through the manual financial reporting process, it was a challenge to maintain strong client relationships in a competitive, niche market. With some billing cycles dragging on between invoicing to collection, delayed revenue realization further impacted operational efficiency. 

“The manual processes slowed down decision-making and limited our ability to stay agile in client negotiations,” comments Aguero. “As a firm primarily focused on insurance defense, we need to quickly analyze and present competitive rates when bidding for new panel work with insurance carriers. BigHand Business Intelligence gave us the ability to pull financial data and reports faster than we could before. The time we’ve saved can be used to further improve our financial operational efficiency and strengthen client relationships.” 

The Solution 

Cole Scott & Kissane implemented BigHand Business Intelligence, an advanced financial BI solution for law firms with role-based reporting via intuitive dashboards, to help streamline financial reporting, boost operational efficiencies and meet their clients’ needs in a timely manner. The flexible data warehouse replaces manual reporting with data visibility from firm level to individual clients and matters. Self-service analytics provide controlled access to relevant, visually represented metrics that empower users with immediate financial insight. Driving efficiencies to better service Cole Scott & Kissane’s lawyers internally has a knock-on effect of providing better service to clients externally. 

“Our year-end review process used to take three months to complete but with BigHand Business Intelligence, we are able to get it done in just about three weeks. Data refreshes that used to involve running multiple reports are now done in seconds. BigHand Business Intelligence allows us to proactively manage financial data and even respond quickly to client needs during bids or negotiations," says Aguero.

The Results 

The implementation of BigHand Business Intelligence has delivered transformative improvements across multiple facets of Cole Scott & Kissane's financial operations by enhancing efficiency at every level. 

By adopting standardized reporting formats, Cole Scott & Kissane has streamlined their financial reporting processes, saving valuable time for the finance team.  "The team at BigHand worked with us to encompass what everybody’s looking for into one comprehensive page.  Clear and actionable insights are now readily available for stakeholders, enabling faster decision-making and improved resource allocation. This approach not only optimizes internal operations but also reinforces the firm's ability to provide seamless, high-quality service to its clients." Aguero notes. 

One of the most notable impacts has been on the firm's year-end compensation review process, a critical task that directly impacts financial planning and employee satisfaction. The process takes 77% less time to complete from start to finish giving the financial team more time to focus on how to sustain the organic growth they have been seeing while meeting clients' needs for financial transparency.  

A faster process ensures that financial data is fresher and more accurate when making compensation decisions. This reduces the risk of errors and enables more efficient, timely payouts for. Additionally, the solution has transformed the role of the finance team at the firm. The team empowers attorneys with accurate financial reporting, so they have the information they need to have meaningful discussions with firm leadership. 

"Now that we are using BigHand Business Intelligence, it's the opposite of the spectrum. We're able to give our attorneys key info on their year-end performance metrics and their top clients so when they meet with the firm's leaders, they can have a strategic conversation about their performance and expectations,” explains Aguero. 

Furthermore, BigHand has driven significant improvements in the firm's financial operations, particularly in billing and collection cycles by providing the firm with the ability to be more financially transparent with clients through timely financial insights on their matters.

These advancements highlight how BigHand Business Intelligence has empowered Cole Scott & Kissane with streamlined processes and actionable data, supporting their commitment to operational excellence, financial optimization, and first-class client service. 

"It's not a question if you can afford to do it. Can you afford not to do it? Once you get a hold of the BigHand Business Intelligence data cube and what it can do for you... it’ll be life changing for your firm’s financial operations," concludes Aguero.