By Joe Ulm
For some of you, even mentioning Microsoft Word can bring forth a few choice words. So many people within the legal industry have been using WordPerfect for so long that even the thought of moving to Word is cause for anger. Nevertheless, the reality of the situation is that more and more firms are moving to Word and this makes it difficult for firms still using WordPerfect to communicate and collaborate with clients and other firms.
The problem with switching to Word is that word processors are the most utilized software in almost every firm. Consequently, changing word processors (Word Perfect to Word) can cause productivity to take a real hit. Unless, of course, staff members are trained and comfortable using Word before the transition takes place. And that’s exactly what most firms are doing these days.
Word training is an easy It’s relatively inexpensive and the return on investment is exceptionally quick (usually under 30 days) if you consider the resulting productivity gain. However, there are some things you should ensure your firm is receiving when you sign up for training.
Course Material—training is great, but staff members can’t absorb everything even if the training sessions are relatively short (60 to 90 min.). Having information staff members can refer to when they get in a bind will help greatly.
Course Outline—you should always know what you’ll receive for your training dollar. Although the quality of the training is impossible to tell until the training begins, you should be provided with a course outline that details what will and what won’t be included in the training.
Industry Knowledge—Law firms rely heavily on certain functions within Word and don’t use other functions at all. Utilizing a firm that knows the legal industry, their needs, and the types of documents they routinely create will make a big difference in getting the most out of your training dollar.
Of course, this is our newsletter so you can be sure that we provide firms with all the aforementioned goodies. Yet there are other things that are important to consider as well, such as the personality of the trainer (do they get along with your staff), their depth of knowledge with Word, and how experienced they are.
Ultimately, it’s hard to find a company that can provide Word training in a way that is immediately applicable to producing real documents in a law firm. Here at ITP, it’s just another aspect of the industry we consider our obligation to know and be able to assist our clients with.
For more on ITP's Word training, click here.
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