Modernizing prebilling and maximizing year-end revenue with Intapp Billstream at Seyfarth Shaw
Seyfarth Shaw LLP, an Am Law 100 firm, isn’t just a power user of Intapp Billstream — it’s a pioneer as well.
That’s because for years, the firm relied on Billstream as its go-to enterprise prebilling system. Then, as part of a modernization initiative, Seyfarth Shaw migrated to the cloud to accelerate and automate prebilling cycles.
Moe Ban, Seyfarth Shaw’s Director of Financial Systems, recently sat down with us to share what brought Seyfarth to Intapp Billstream, how Billstream transformed the firm’s billing process, and why Seyfarth chose to integrate Billstream with its Aderant system.
Improving workflow visibility
Seyfarth wanted to improve visibility into the billing lifecycle so it could eliminate the need for manual shoulder-tapping and information-pulling. That meant the firm needed a system that could deliver accurate, real-time insights into status and roadblocks, as well as enable easy reporting. Plus, the firm wanted to give lawyers flexibility to collect updates in the ways that worked best for them. Billstream helped them achieve it all.
“Some want to know right away what the financial system has generated for them,” Ban said. “Others like being able to forward it and push a prebill through the process. Billstream gives them the option to work how they want.”
The biggest efficiency is the visibility – being able to see where a prebill is and how long it’s been there, and who it’s with.
MOE BAN, DIRECTOR OF FINANCIAL SYSTEMS, SEYFARTH SHAW LLP
Increasing system compatibility and adoption
When the Seyfarth team first selected Billstream, compatibility with existing firm systems and prebill processes was paramount. The team needed the product to work seamlessly with existing firm technology and workflows to ensure a successful, widespread adoption. So Ban formed a small pilot group of attorneys to start using Billstream and share their feedback. This critical change management process meant that by the time the firm rolled Billstream out firmwide, they could have confidence that it was set up to work for their professionals.
The Seyfarth team also needed Billstream to be compatible with its financial management systems. “Part of our decision about which workflow tool to use for prebills or proformas was that [it needed] to be compatible with our new financial management system,” said Ban. “We chose Intapp Billstream both because we liked the product and because it worked with both systems we were considering [Aderant and Elite 3E].”
And there was yet another consideration: ease. For Ban, it was critical that the new solution needed to be easy to implement and easy to use, to save time on both training and implementation.
Luckily, said Ban, “Intapp Billstream is straightforward and easy to implement.”
Enabling faster, easier follow-up and turnaround
As expected, with better visibility and compatibility came more efficient follow-up and turnaround for the firm.
“Before Intapp Billstream, follow-up on proformas or prebills was a manual exercise, and collating that prebill status information back into reporting was really difficult,” said Ban. “The efficiency of being able to see where things are has been paramount,”
E-billing, in particular, has become more efficient. “Those assigned to e-billing like that Billstream gives them visibility and shortens turnaround time so they can return information to billing coordinators as quickly as possible,” Ban said.
Keeping the billers in mind was paramount during this consideration. “A prebill might have four or five different approvers,” Ban pointed out. “Billing timekeepers need to know who it’s with and how long it’s been there — because they can’t manage the prebill process otherwise.”
Maximizing revenue potential
Ban knew that by prioritizing visibility, compatibility, and efficiency on his systems search, he could find something that benefited Seyfarth, its professionals, and its billing lifecycle. He found that solution in Intapp Billstream in the cloud.
The above insights were shared in a recent Intapp-hosted webinar, “Maximize your firm’s year-end revenue potential with Intapp Billstream.” For the full conversation, access the recording here.