Business Process Management in Law Firms

This assignment delves into the application of Business Process Management (BPM) within the legal sector. It examines how BPM techniques, such as reengineering and simulation, can enhance law firm operations, improve client service, and address challenges unique to the industry. The analysis considers factors like change management, technology integration (including ERP systems), and the role of case management in successful BPM implementation.

Running Head: ENTERPRISE SYSTEM 1
Enterprise System: Chris and Patricia’s
Legal Support (CPLS)

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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Case Summary.................................................................................................................................3
Rationale of Organizational Change................................................................................................4
Common Reasons and considerations for organizational change in other organization.............4
Reasons from Changes in CPLS..................................................................................................5
Business Processes...........................................................................................................................6
Current Business Processes..........................................................................................................6
Proposed Changes to Business Processes....................................................................................6
Considerations in making decisions to go ahead with project.........................................................7
Alignment of BPM, BPR and ERP with CPLS’s Mission and Goals..........................................7
Abridged Feasibility Analysis......................................................................................................8
Risks Associated with BPR and ERP Systems............................................................................9
Change Management.......................................................................................................................9
Organizational Commitment........................................................................................................9
Model, methodology or best practice related to BPM, BPR, ERP and Risk Management.......10
Recommendations..........................................................................................................................10
Proposed Organizational changes in Business Processes..........................................................10
Decisions Related to BPM, BPR and ERP................................................................................10
Change Management..................................................................................................................11
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................11
References......................................................................................................................................12

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Introduction
Change management is an important process to make changes in the organization and implement
some new and innovative things in the system. Each and every organization has different reasons
for change implementation and development in its processes and systems (Hayes, 2014). It
depends on their business and needs for changes, like; implementation of new and modern
technology, filling the performance gaps, finding new opportunities etc. This report includes the
discussion about change management and implementation at Chris and Patricia’s Legal Support
(CPLS) that was established by Chris, a High Curt retired judge and his daughter Patricia. Chris
had achieved the award for giving the legal support to the local population in the state. In this
report, there is the discussion about the change management and change implementation at
CPLS. The firm is facing various difficulties in managing their records and books, so it is
planning to implement new technology system to for recording the information and data about its
services, transactions, volunteers and some other information.
This organization, i.e. Chris and Patricia’s Legal Support (CPLS) is thinking to execute an ERP
(Enterprise Resource Planning) system for increasing its efficiency and effectiveness in order to
manage its books and records. ERP is an advanced technology system that assists an
organization in keeping the records of different business resources, like; payrolls, volunteers,
customer details and purchase orders (Altamony, Al-Salti, Gharaibeh, & Elyas, 2016). The
information or data stored under this system is communicated and shared across different
departments of a single organization. Implementation of this system will assist CPLS in
enhancing data flow among different departments and organizing the data flow among external
and internal stakeholders of the organization. This report includes the reasons behind the change
implementation at CPLS. Under change implementation, the organization is executing different
business processes, like; ERP system. Furthermore, there is the discussion about the model,
methodology and best practices about the ERP, BPM and other business processes. At the end,
there are some recommendations, which are given for improving the change management and
decision related to the ERP, BPM and other business processes.
Case Summary
The given case states about the Chris and Patricia’s Legal Support (CPLS), i.e. a non-profit
organization and providing free legal services and assistance to the local people. The costs for

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giving free legal services are recompensed by the donations, which are received from local
donors in the state. Number of people from different cities of Australia has approached CPLS for
availing the legal support. Now, the laws firm has 30 lawyers and 18 office staff. All the
members are dedicated to their role and providing services to the people, who required this.
Recently, the organization has got the donation of $100000 and 25000 every year for the coming
10 years. In addition to its administration staff and lawyers, the firm has 50 volunteers, who are
working at its 3 branch offices for managing its records and books. However, the company is
facing some difficulties in managing its records as there is the increase in the size of firm. So,
CPLS wishes to implement some changes and develop ERP system for maintaining the records
of its material information.
Rationale of Organizational Change
Common Reasons and considerations for organizational change in other
organization
Organizational change management is the process for managing the impact of changes in the
organizational systems, new business processes and other changes within the enterprise. In
general, it can be said that organizational change management seeks to address the change
management’s people side. For each and every organization, the reasons for changes any be
different as per their business and need (Jeston, & Nelis, 2014). There may be various reasons,
which force an organization to make and implement changes in its systems and processes. These
reasons may be, like; new technology, crisis, competition, internal and external pressure,
recognition of new opportunities, strategic alliance and to resolve any issue. Sometimes, internal
factors, like; management and employees put the pressure to make changes and external
pressure, like; competition, customers, market trends and changes, government rules and
regulations and other pressures in external environment. Performance gap is another reason that
encourages the organization to execute changes (Kanaane, Akabane, Peterossi, & Endler, 2015)
One of the major reasons behind change is installation of modern and advanced technology
systems, so that the organization can make the business processes more effective and efficient.
This change can support the organization significantly and enhance its competitiveness in the
industry. If the existing practices and operations of the organization are not able to attain its

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predetermined goals and objectives, it needs to execute changes in the practices accordingly. In
today’s business environment, there are so many medium and large size companies, which are
using ERP system for effective management of information and stored data. This method is used
as an effective and proficient method for managing the information flow among different
divisions (Kimberling, 2017).
Reasons from Changes in CPLS
After reading the given case situation, it can be analyzed that there are various reasons that CPLS
needs to implement the changes in its business processes and systems. At CPLS, the
management requires to record and maintain the details of administration staff, lawyers, legal
advice to its clients, and confidential information of clients, their previous cases and other
important information. In addition to this, the organization has to store the other details about the
clients, like their name, bar councils and their addresses. It is confronting issues in managing the
flow of information between its departments. In case of large size organization, it is very tough
to maintain the records and books manually. At CPLS, Chris and Patricia are finding this very
problematic and daunting to maintain the records manually (Kuipers, Higgs, Kickert, Tummers,
Grandia, & Van der Voet, 2014).
From the case, it can be observed that the existing processes of the firm to maintain the records
of lawyers and clients manually is not very effective for managing the business practices and
operations of organization. It can manage them using a computerized system and the founders of
CPLS believe that this computerized system will not only assist them in recording the
transactions easily, but also assist in generating the reports to understand that which advocates
have provided the legal services to the clients every month, in the peak season and about the list
of pending cases (Laudon, Laudon, and Brabston, 2011). Thus, the major reason behind change
implementation is that it is investing a large amount of money on human resources to maintain
the records. They can manage the records effectively by using the computerized system. It will
eliminate the need of more human resources for record maintenance.

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Business Processes
Current Business Processes
In any organization, the business processes start with establishment of business objective or
goals and concludes with the attainment of these objectives. These processes flow through
different activities before approaching the success. For an organization, it is very important to
manage and maintain the business process strategically. At CPLS, the current business processes
are manual, which have caused the organization struggling in maintaining the books and records
up-to-date. The firm has hired 18 people in its administrative staff, who are doing clerical tasks,
like; maintaining and recording the information and details of lawyers and clients. In addition to
this, it has recruited 30 lawyers with the proficiency and skills in different fields of law and
registered at recognized bar councils (Law, & Ngai, 2007). Under its current business processes,
the organization is recording the details of lawyers manually, like; lawyers’ contact details,
registration number, bar councils, where they are registered and previous experience in the field
of law and legal services.
Apart from this, they also record the current practices and legal services, which they are
providing to the clients of CPLS and about the past and pending cases. For recording the details
of customers, it is doing the same and giving the responsibilities to administrative members for
collecting and maintaining the data of clients. The current business process at CPLS indicates
that one person involves in the process of application filing, another person puts the files and
records the data and information about the clients. After that, the third person verifies the
recorded information with the documents of client whether it is right. At CPLS, all current
processes need the investment of resources in a large amount (Petculeţ, 2012). The financial
resources of the firm are very limited, so it is getting support from the local donors.
Proposed Changes to Business Processes
In the above mentioned current business practices, the organization is confronting various issues
and difficulties in managing records and books. It is very expensive to maintain the record
manually, as it needs to hire human resources for handling these records. So, it can be proposed
that the organization should implement a computerized system that gathers and records all the
data of lawyers and clients in cost effective way. For this, Enterprise Resource planning (ERP)
system can be useful and effective for CPLS. The organization can implement ERP system as its

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best practice that will assist it in connecting the real data with transaction data. CPLS requires
executing a system for managing its operations effectively (Phillips, 2015). ERP system is the
only platform that can aid to the growth of company by assisting to its functions. These functions
include human resources, time management, financial management, budget and cost and expense
management.
As a result of ERP implementation, the company will be able to eliminate the need to install
business processes, which are needed for different operations of organization. Though, the
implementation of new system is challenging for the organization, because it will increase the
cost of technology. If the firm will implement this system, it will be able to remove the expenses
related to system license, its maintenance and assist the costs of online solutions (Pugh, 2016).
ERP system can be useful for CPLS, as being a law firm, it not only offer the legal services but
also need to organize different processes under a restricted budget. As CPLS is a non-profit
organization, so it needs to manage its budget. It has to ensure that all the processes are
organized effectively under limited budget. By implementation of new business processes, the
organization will be able increase its efficiency to deliver the needs and requirements of
customers and market. For CPLS, the ERP system is proposed for attaining its strategic goals,
like; improvement in the efficiency and increase in the revenues. With this new Enterprise
system, the firm will need only one or two staff members for the management of system that will
reduce the investment in the salaries of administration staff. Via this system, the lawyers can
store their information themselves (Raukko, 2009). Other information about the clients and cases
can be kept by the hired human resource. Thus, for maintaining the ERP system, there will be
only a service personnel and it will reduce the need of other human resources and fund
investment on their training and management.
Considerations in making decisions to go ahead with project
Alignment of BPM, BPR and ERP with CPLS’s Mission and Goals
Business process management (BPM) is the process under company’s operation management, in
which the organization uses different methods to recognize, designs, improves and systematizes
different processes. BPM improves the performance of organization by managing all the

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activities in an effective manner. The business processes of an organization can be repeated,
variable or structured. BPM can provide a system for enhancing the processes, aligning the
processes with its goals and objectives (Rinaldi, Montanari, & Bottani, 2015).
There are so many organizations, which are using Business Process Re-engineering (BPR). This
is the practice, which is used when the business process of the organization are very difficult and
complex. This system is preferred by the companies when the business process optimization is
not attained and existing practices are not able to attain desired results (Kalpana, 2017). In the
present case, the maintenance and recording of the data of volunteers is the most important
business process. It is handling all the information and records manually that is requires more
financial and human resources. The BPR can be used by CPLS to enhance the productivity and
efficiency of the organization with limited budget and people. Moreover, the firm should
emphasize on creating operational intelligence that will deliver real time and accurate data or
information about the lawyers and clients (Rosemann, & vom Brocke, 2015).
After the implementation of above-mentioned enterprise system, the organization will ensure that
all the systems are aligned with its mission and goals. To align the business process management
and re-engineering with the CPLS strategies and goals, first the organization will start with the
documenting and arranging the current situation and current business processes (Robert, 2011).
It will determine the significance level of each process by analyzing the current efficiency and its
business impact. By the implementation of ERP system, the company will be able to manage its
records and books and this system will definitely align with the mission and goals of CPLS.
Under this implementation process, the major focus of company will be on identifying the target,
which can assist attaining the business goals (Ryan, 2017).
Abridged Feasibility Analysis
After analyzing the issues in record keeping and maintenance, CPLS will implement the ERP
system and other business process management system, so that it can make the process simpler
and smoother. Under this process, it will include all the members, associated with the CPLS, i.e.
lawyers, administrative staff, volunteers etc. and make the decisions regarding implementation of
new computerized systems (Tønnessen, 2014). The project will start after analyzing the current
processes and it will prepare documentation about the organization. The company will
implement the ERP system and train the human resources to handle this system and record the

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data. It can execute the cloud computing based ERP system. As it is a small company, so it can
take the system on rent to decrease the expenses and costs. After this, the lawyers will be able to
store their information on their own. Thus, the practicability of this system will be significant
and effective for the organization.
Risks Associated with BPR and ERP Systems
After the implementation of BPR and ERP systems, CPLS may face some risks and challenges,
which are stated below;
 The company may face the risks related to employee turnover due to new technology
implementation
 Employee change resistance
 Lack of technical infrastructure
 Lack of technically expert staff
 Lack of proper training
 Delay in upgrading the ERP software
The company should have a contingency plan to mitigate these risks in the future (Umar, Khan,
Agha, & Abbas, 2016).
Change Management
Organizational Commitment
Change management is an important process for making and implementing change in the
processes and systems of an organization due to various reasons, like; technology
implementation, crisis, performance gaps etc. At CPLS, it is very important to develop
organizational commitment towards change implementation, i.e. ERP and BPM systems for
recording the information of clients and lawyers (Weske, 2012). Different employees in the
organization will perceive the changes differently, but they can play an important role in
encouraging change. There may be chances that people resist this new implementation, as they
need to learn about technical skills for using new system. So, it is very important for the
organization to analyze the organizational and employee commitment towards implementation of
ERP and BPM systems.

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Model, methodology or best practice related to BPM, BPR, ERP and Risk
Management
To deal with the risks and above issues, CPLS needs to use an effective methodology and best
practice, so that it can implement the processes effectively. The management at CPLS should
create communication plan that can develop positive feeling towards the implementation of these
new computerized systems. This communication plan should include all the needs, benefits and
requirements of change process and implementation. The volunteers should be shared that the
change implementation will enhance the convenience of staff and make the process of recording
the details and information smoother (Willcocks, 2013). After the implementation, it should
conduct training and development program, so that employees can learn about the new system
and develop the skills and abilities accordingly. ERP and BPR systems are totally computerized
system, so the employees need to develop technical skills. By this training program, they can
motivate the volunteers towards change process implementation and management.
Recommendations
Proposed Organizational changes in Business Processes
After the above analysis, it can be recommended to CPLS that organization should improve its
current business processes by implementing new technical systems and processes. To make
changes in the processes, it should take the support from top management and motivate other
levels of management to accept the changes. After the implementation of these processes, they
should develop a communication plan and training program, so that it can motivate them to
accept the changes and think that these changes are beneficial for them and their organization.
Decisions Related to BPM, BPR and ERP
Regarding the decisions of BPM, BPR and ERP, it is recommended that first the company
should take the cloud based ERP system on rent and try this. If the company thinks that it is
beneficial and successful for the organizational processes, then it should purchase it. The
employees should know about the configuration and operations related to the BPM, BPR and
ERP (Wolf, 2017).

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Change Management
To deal with the issues related to change management, the organization should implement the
practices, which eliminate the employee change resistance. It should develop a team to enhance
the potential for team development. The leaders in the organization should specifically discuss
about the benefits and solutions of change management practices at CPLS.
Conclusion
From the above analysis, it can be concluded that CPLS can deal with the issue of maintaining
the records and books by implementing ERP and other computerized systems. The company will
be able to reduce the expenses and costs related to human resources. It will be beneficial for the
organization to use these new business processes and systems. The management of the company
may face some risks after the implementation of ERP systems, like; lack of technical
infrastructure, lack of proper training etc. Thus, CPLS should implement these practices by
taking the support from upper level management and senior managers, so that it can improve the
business processes effectively.

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Distributed Systems.

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