Redchip is not your average legal firm. With services that span a range of commercial, property, private and litigation fields, Redchip has been delivering key information, advice and recommendations to Brisbane businesses and individuals for over 20 years. The expert Redchip team has come together over the years to include directors, associates, lawyers and specialist support staff, and has grown both professionally and socially. To enable provision of excellent customer service, Redchip knows their underlying intranet and client onboarding processes need to be of the highest quality.
The Challenge:
Like many companies, Redchip’s intranet system was in place to facilitate internal company communications. Although intended to enable notifications for both work and social purposes, the old system, ‘Rover’, hadn’t been designed specifically for Redchip or their particular requirements. Sadly, Rover had become increasingly inadequate for a dynamic office of legal and professional colleagues.
Redchip office hours differ depending on the employee and the day; with lawyers meeting clients on site or in court at varying times, a single email to all staff – even an important one! – can easily be overlooked. The Redchip office, where 30 staff are based in Newstead, has remained open throughout 2020 but there has been added complexity determining who is in the office, who is attending court and who is working from home. Redchip’s challenge for Sentrian included the ability for a new-look intranet to keep all staff informed of announcements while also providing the quick-and-easy ability to track the daily status and availability of all employees.
The Redchip team provides legal services for big clients – which means complex work involved in quotations and contracts. Sentrian’s challenge was also to design a system for onboarding clients that served as a client portal containing all the relevant details about the service (including the legal team), the quotation and all other pertinent client information.
But the task for Sentrian didn’t end there. To make life easy for this busy legal firm, Sentrian was asked to replicate the look and feel of the old Rover system while improving efficiency and usability.
The Solution:
Sentrian systems engineer Mahak Jain met with Redchip to get a clear sense of the company’s existing situation and to understand their requirements for a tailored system. Mahak realised the present frustration stemmed from an inefficient and unattractive site that simply didn’t provide the necessary capabilities.
Suggesting SharePoint as a base unit, Sentrian was able to build the system to specifically suit Redchip’s needs. Scoping for the customised additions included permissions and accessibility restrictions around privacy and confidentiality that were particular to a law firm. Redchip not only needed internal privacy protection, but also the ability to share documents safely externally. Mahak designed a data room SharePoint site to enable external users (Redchip clients) to log in, see content and upload documents easily. Known as a parallel system, this has transformed the way Redchip interacts with its clients. Clearer and easier internal communication through the portal for colleagues now forms a solid basis from which to provide ongoing excellent client services.
Suggesting SharePoint as a base unit, Sentrian was able to build the system to specifically suit Redchip’s needs. Scoping for the customised additions included permissions and accessibility restrictions around privacy and confidentiality that were particular to a law firm. Redchip not only needed internal privacy protection, but also the ability to share documents safely externally. Mahak designed a data room SharePoint site to enable external users (Redchip clients) to log in, see content and upload documents easily. Known as a parallel system, this has transformed the way Redchip interacts with its clients. Clearer and easier internal communication through the portal for colleagues now forms a solid basis from which to provide ongoing excellent client services.
Sentrian’s process of working with an in-house champion has benefitted Redchip in more ways than one: Rebekah’s involvement ensured the system was a good fit for the company; she has promoted the uptake of the new system and her new skill set means straightforward issues can be rectified immediately without raising a ticket for IT support. Using a similar design to the old Rover system has also saved time for all staff – intuitively understanding the site layout rather than needing to learn a new system has removed potential resistance from all areas of the business. Rebekah affirmed ‘[Mahak] did a really good job,making the user interface feel familiar, by the time we got a preview we already knew he was on track with what we wanted.’
Mahek is patient, responsive, reliable and an excellent communicator. He's tenacious and resolute when you put a problem in front of him.
Results:
By accepting Sentrian’s expert advice, Redchip has improved efficiency and security in managing clients and key client documentation. The parallel system design (essentially multiple versions of SharePoint for different clients) has given Redchip a unique selling point. When putting forward proposals to clients, Redchip presents a visually appealing example of the client’s portal in the online SharePoint system. Potential clients immediately see the ease with which they can access their information and communicate with Redchip, and they realise the efficiency and advantages this technology provides. All staff and clients can see instantly the documentation and information relevant to a particular case, saving everyone time and money. The increased privacy and confidentiality for clients gained through an electronic permissions system can only be a positive addition to already excellent processes.
Redchip has noted an improvement in internal communications since the inception of ‘new Rover’. The internal SharePoint site has matured in both aesthetics and function – staff can easily see who is located where at any given time and can use the in-built chat function (Microsoft Yammer) to contact colleagues effortlessly. Staff have observed that office information is disseminated much more efficiently and no longer clogs – or is lost in – email inboxes.
Engaging Sentrian’s expertise has provided Redchip a technological advantage that has reduced obstructions and challenges to their everyday workspace. But more than that, for an industry that is often perceived as unexciting or bureaucratic, the bespoke parallel SharePoint system distinguishes Redchip from its competitors providing a clear benefit to clients and colleagues alike.
