1. business and industrial

February 2015
Columbus Chapter, Association of Legal Administrators
COLUMBUS CHAPTER NEWS
February 2015
Gold Sponsors
Affinity Consulting Group
Commercial Works
Express Employment Professionals
Silver Sponsors
ComDoc
Precision Discovery
Ricoh
Ritter’s Office Outfitters
Robert Half Legal
Bronze Sponsors
Fireproof
LexisNexis
Equity Sponsors
AMO Office Products
Kinol Sharie Leyh & Associates
Legacy Maintenance Services
Premier Office Movers
Rippe & Kingston LLC
On-Line Sponsors
Canon Solutions America, Inc.
GoGreen Business Products
Veritrak Systems, Inc.
Media Sponsor
Encore Delivery Systems
The Columbus Chapter, Association of Legal Administrators, appreciates the support of our Business Partners. Business
Partners are Vital to Our Success. Visit our Business Partner page on the Columbus Chapter website: www.alacolumbus.org
Visit the Business Partner Resources tab on the ALA website: www.alaent.org
2
February 2015
3
February 2015
IN THIS ISSUE:
ARTICLES
9-11
16
Resources: ALA Information
Future Proofing Your Back Office Operation
By Rob Mattern
In this continued age of economic uncertainty
and transition for law firms, the back office and
support services functions have become an
increased target of opportunity. Firms are
thinking more strategically about how to
reduce and recover back office costs, increase
efficiency, and implement newer technologies,
all while maintaining or increasing services to
the end users. This is indeed a tall order for any
firm to achieve.
ALA 2015 Educational Offerings
18
ALA Updates
19
ALA Volunteer Opportunities
6
Knowledge: Articles
Future Proofing Your Back Office Operation
Retention Interviews
9-11
16
Business Partner Information
Retention Interviews
By Mel Kleinman
First, a retention interview is not a
performance appraisal; it is not about how the
person is doing his or her job. It is not a job
satisfaction or employee engagement survey. A
retention interview is about what the company
is doing (or not doing) that frustrates their top
performers.
Affinity Consulting Ad
7
Business Partners
2
Commercial Works Ad
3
Express Employment Professionals Ad
5
Chapter Information
2015 Columbus Chapter Meeting Dates
15
Chapter Officers
20
Committee/Event Chairs
21
Ed Schultz
13
Election of Officers
17
Meeting Minutes
12
Member Anniversaries
11
Member Change Form
23
Partner Lunch
Partner Lunch Reservation Form
24
Photos from the January Chapter Meeting
22
Scholarship Program
Speaker Recap
Upcoming Events
4
6
17, 25
14
8
February 2015
5
February 2015
PARTNER LUNCH
Tuesday, February 24, 2015
Don’t forget to invite your partners to our annual Partner Luncheon on Tuesday, February 24, 2015,
beginning at 12:00 pm at the Columbus Club, 181 E. Broad Street, Columbus. Each member may bring
two partners free-of-charge. The deadline to RSVP is February 18, 2015.
We are pleased to announce that our speaker will be Dr. Roger Blackwell, who will discuss “Helping
Law Firms Grow Revenues by Helping Business Clients Grow from Small Firms to Large Fortunes,”
based on his new book Saving America: How Garage Entrepreneurs Grow from Small Firms to Large
Fortunes. Dr. Blackwell is an established writer and educator with an extensive career in educating
people on how to grow their business.
The reservation form can be found at the end of this newsletter. We hope to see you at this year’s
Partner Lunch.
ALA Leadership Volunteer Opportunities
The Association of Legal Administrators is seeking
volunteers to serve on the following committees:
Association Nominating Committee: The Association
Nominating Committee (ANC) is responsible for selecting
individuals for each vacant position on the ALA Board of
Directors in the coming year.
Regional Nominating Committee: The Regional
Nominating Committee (RNC) is responsible for selecting
individuals to fill Regional Representative positions that
will be open in the coming year. The RNC will also identify
alternate candidates who could serve in these positions if a
selected individual withdraws or if a vacancy occurs during
the term of office.
Human Resources Conference Planning Committee: This
committee plans the educational content for the annual
Human Resources Conference for Legal Professionals.
Interested parties should complete the application on the
ALA website and submit to ALA Committees no later than
March 16, 2015.
6
February 2015
7
February 2015
UPCOMING EVENTS
M ARCH 2015
F EBRUARY 2015
Sat
Sun Mo Tue We Thu
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
5
6
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
12
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
Sun Mo Tue We Thu
Fri
5—Thursday—3:00 PM
ALA Webinar
Leadership Styles (Clarified!)
18—Wednesday—3:00 PM
ALA Webinar
Partner Compensation: Developing
Effective Compensation Plans
23-24—Monday/Tuesday
ALA Managing Partner/Executive
Director Forum
Aloft Orando Downtown, Orlando, FL
24—Tuesday—3:00 PM
ALA Webinar
Balancing Risks & Benefits: A Fresh
New Approach to IP Outsourcing
Fri
A PRIL 2015
Sat
3—Tuesday—3:00 PM
ALA Webinar
Power Editing and Inside Grammar:
Enhancing Your Credibility with
Colleagues
6-7—ALA Association Leadership
Institute
Hilton Rosemont, Rosemont, IL
18—Wednesday—3:00 PM
ALA Webinar
Building Engagement & Motivation in
Your Team
26—Thursday—12:00 PM
Chapter Board Meeting
Ice Miller LLP
Sun Mo Tue We Thu
Fri
2
3
4
7
8
9
10
11
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
2—Thursday—3:00 PM
ALA Webinar
What the Future of the Legal Profession
(Really) Holds
15—Wednesday—3:00 PM
ALA Webinar
Succession Planning: Is Your Firm
Financially Prepared?
21—Tuesday—8:00 AM
Chapter Breakfast Meeting
Kegler Brown Hill & Ritter
65 E. State Street, Suite 1800
2014 in the Rearview Mirror—an
Employment Law Retrospective
Larry Feheley, Speaker
30—Thursday—12:00 PM
Chapter Board Meeting
Barnes & Thornburg LLP
24—Tuesday—12:00 PM
Columbus Chapter Annual Partner Lunch
The Columbus Club
181 E. Broad Street, Columbus
Helping Law Firms Grow Revenues by
Helping Business Clients Grow from
Small Firms to Large Fortunes
Dr. Roger Blackwell, Speaker
26—Thursday—12:00 PM
Chapter Board Meeting
Ice Miller LLP
*ALA’s 2014 Webinars are being provided in conjunction with the West LegalEdCenter. If you would like to host a webinar, and at least five
chapter members attend, the Columbus Chapter will pay for the webinar. Please contact Sara Leech at sara.leech@icemiller.com if interested.
8
Sat
1
February 2015
Future Proofing your Back Office Operation for the
Next Five to 10 Years
By Rob Mattern
I
n this continued age of economic
uncertainty and transition for law
firms, the back office and support
services functions have become an
increased target of opportunity. Firms
are thinking more strategically about
how to reduce and recover back office
costs, increase efficiency, and implement
newer technologies, all while
maintaining or increasing services to the
end users. This is indeed a tall order for
any firm to achieve.
Firms have increasingly learned the
importance of significantly driving costs
downward through a competitive
request for proposal process; now is the
time to also prioritize this momentum by
additionally controlling and decreasing
costs going forward.
As neutral consultants, Mattern &
Associates is exposed to every kind of
back office scenario, including both
outstanding in-house operations and
equally outstanding outsourcing
operations. We’ve noticed that the
outstanding in-house operations we’ve
seen do three key things:
Law firm decision makers now need to
consider how the systems they put in
place today will function strategically in
five to 10 years. According to the Altman
Weil Law Firms in Transition Survey
1.
2014, many firms realize that they need
to plan better for their future:
2.
“Since the recession, when law firms
were planning in six month or one year
increments (if they were doing so at all),
the planning outlook has stretched out
again. Sixty-nine percent of firms now
say they have a basic planning horizon of
three to five years.”
The best way to guarantee that the work
you do today will be relevant far into the
future is to “future proof” your
outsourcing contracts and the associated
services that support these areas. This
means structuring your contracts and
services so that the work you do today is
in place in five to 10 years, even with
changing demands and market
conditions. Firms that fail to do so risk
relapsing back into service mediocrity
and/or perhaps most damaging,
escalating costs.
3.
Pay their people competitively for
the position;
Procure their equipment and
technology intelligently; and
Proactively manage the operation.
Unfortunately, most in-house operations
fail in one or more of these areas. If this
is the case, outsourcing might very well
be the right solution. Rather than ceding
control over operations, as some firms
may fear, we’ve found that a proven
benefit of outsourcing is that it places
you in the driver’s seat, with the ability
to maintain, control and decrease costs.
Of course, this is possible in-house as
well, but it can be much more difficult to
accomplish while dealing with the
potentially sensitive staffing and labor
aspects of the operation.
Contract Structure
The contract structure you have in place
is paramount to keeping your
outsourced situation competitive. Too
many firms select a vendor and simply
just renew after the initial term without
9
first checking market pricing. Based upon
the data from the Request for Proposal
processes we have run for firms that did
not seek competitive proposals during
their last renewal, the average savings
these firms achieved by going through a
competitive renewal process for their
current contract is in excess of 30%.
In order to structure your contract
correctly, what’s included is just as
important as seeking the best terms and
prices. As Peter Drucker stated, “you
can’t manage it if you can’t measure it.”
Your monthly or quarterly reporting
package should always include a detailed
analysis of volumes, headcount, service
levels and recommendations based on
this data.
Your contract should include the
following.
Monthly and Quarterly Reporting
Quarterly Scorecard Process
Based upon the agreed-upon
performance standards, every contract
should have a scorecard with penalties.
Obviously the goal is not to collect the
penalties, but rather to make sure the
vendor is keeping its eye on the ball.
Vendors will argue that penalties are
counter-productive and prevent them
from focusing on solving the issue (yes, a
vendor actually argued this point). In
actuality, if a vendor is doing its job
correctly, it should welcome a scorecard
process because it protects the vendor
from instances of one-off complaints
(e.g., “yes we did make a mistake but
our on-time performance is 99.99%”). It
Continued on page 10
February 2015
Profit Building
Future
ProofingBand-aids
Your BackforOffice
Troubled
Operations,
Firms, continued
continued from
from Page
Page 14
9
Is a quarterly reminder of how the vendor is performing, and if it is performing well and creating additional opportunities with the
client.
Guaranteed Implementable Yearly Savings
Every contract should have yearly savings goals with penalties for the vendor to deliver implementable savings. If a vendor is doing
its job, it should constantly be monitoring your operation and services to find ways to reduce your costs. This may involve modifying
service levels, adjusting volumes and changing equipment configurations. If your vendor is not bringing these document
recommendations to your attention, you have to consider that it is not doing the best job for you.
Capped Yearly Price Increases with Options
Every contract should contain a capped yearly increase keyed off of CPI. In addition, this increase should only apply to the labor
aspect of the contract if it is an outsourcing contract. Too many firms allow increases across all areas that are — for example,
equipment leases.
Another area to consider is an optional fixed labor contract. Part of the outsourcing vendor’s responsibility and sales pitch is that it
manages the labor force it supplies as part of the agreement. Too many vendors are not proactive in this regard and are either
placing warm bodies to fulfill the contract, or not promoting good employees up through the ranks, thereby increasing your labor
costs. A good vendor should be constantly recruiting and placing talented, trained people into your operation, allowing the vendor
to promote its most experienced (heavily compensated) people out of your account into more substantial roles in its organization
or other accounts, and replacing them with lower-compensated employees—in other words, managing its workforce to keep your
costs static. Granted there are other factors (healthcare, etc.) that may warrant increases, but by removing the salary component,
we are addressing the largest aspect.
Flexibility
The concept of flexibility without cost in regards to services, labor, volumes and equipment is another key component of your
contract. Part of future-proofing is setting your firm up to adapt to any future disruptions in technology or changes in the market
without increasing costs or interfering with operations.
Services
You should be able to add or delete services at any time throughout your contract, and your costs should be adjusted appropriately,
preferably with unit costs already outlined in your contract.
Labor
Firms outsource labor in order to get out of the business of managing the labor. Why would you agree to severance or any penalties
associated with that outsourced labor force? You should be able to add or delete labor at any time through the contract at your
discretion.
Volumes
Your contract should be structured so that it accurately reflects the services provided on a month-to-month basis. This means a
zero-based contract for equipment or any outsourcing contract that contains equipment. Stay away from minimums, regardless of
the certainty of hitting the volumes.
Equipment
This is another area where maintaining flexibility and control is crucial. A portion of your equipment fleet should be able to be
added, deleted or right-sized at any time throughout the life of your agreement. To accomplish this, you should avoid signing
leases, or if you do, there should be a percentage of the fleet (30%-40%) that can be managed. Will vendors offer this up without
being asked? No. Will there be a slight cost for this flexibility? Yes, but it will be less expensive over the long run if you are forced to
buyout equipment due to an office closing or your volume decreases.
Continued on Page 11
10
February 2015
Future Proofing Your Back Office Operations, continued from Page 10
Semi-Annual Compliance Reviews
According to Gartner, “70% of outsourcing engagements fail and 90% fail to reach their financial goals.”
How many times have you gone back and revisited a contract you negotiated and updated it or made sure the original projected
savings came true? These semi-annual reviews can be invaluable in determining if what you thought was going to work is, in fact,
working and delivering the savings to the firm and services to the end user you originally scoped.
Early Renewals
In professional sports, when an athlete signs a contract and has a good year, sometimes that athlete re-negotiates his contract due
to the fact he “outperformed” it. For law firms, if your targeted spend rate is $1 million dollars a year in office supplies, and you
execute a five-year agreement, and hit that $5 million spend in year three—you should absolutely look at an early renewal. Will the
vendor approach you first? Chances are it will not, because the pricing it submitted to you was based on your spend level, not at the
higher rate at which you currently run. When shouldn’t you? When a vendor approaches you and you still have years left on your
contract and your services and volumes have stayed the same.
Vendors push clients to renew early because they want to dissuade you from talking to other vendors and comparing pricing and
terms. In fact, they will do everything in their power to keep you from checking the market. What is the vendor worried about? If its
pricing is fair, it is doing a good job and its terms are competitive, the vendor should have nothing to fear from an open competitive
request for proposal process. The vast majority of contracts that law firms sign should be out to bid every time they come up for
renewal due to the basic fact that they are not structured to maintain costs for an extended period of time.
Conclusion
When was the last time a vendor came to you and said that it was able to modify services without impacting the end users and, in
addition, reduce its price without you approaching it first? Probably when Nixon was still in office. If your contract is structured
correctly, the mechanisms are still in place, and you are managing it effectively, then the vendor will have no choice but to do it on
a proactive basis.
To guarantee that the work your firm does today will be relevant tomorrow, you need to future-proof your contracts. Each
individual situation is different, but by structuring your contract correctly and maintaining it properly, you will be two huge steps
toward that goal.
Rob Mattern, a member of the Law Journal Newsletters Board of Editors, is President and Founder of Mattern & Associates, LLC.
Mattern & Associates assists law firms in developing an unbiased strategic direction for their business processes while improving
both the cost-effectiveness and the recovery of expenses for these services. For more information on Mattern & Associates, visit
matternassoc.com, check out their blog, matternoffact.com, or follow them on Twitter @MatternOfFact.
ALA February Anniversaries:
Marty Eisenbarth
Beth Hoeft
Mo Keifer
15 years
7 years
13 years
11
February 2015
J AN U A RY 2 0 , 2 0 1 5
Chapter Meeting Minutes
January 2015 Chapter Meeting Minutes
January 20, 2015, Luncheon Meeting at Barnes & Thornburg
Attendees: 14 members in attendance – Kelly Coholich, Jack Green, Brandi Hahn, Denise Herald, Beth Hoeft, Lisa
Justus, Michele Martin, Lori Muetzel, Jane Ossege, Kathy Rosenberry, Jennifer Rosengrant, Cara Tammaro, Becky
Von Ohlen, Donna Williams
Business Partner Guests: Gordon Pepper, President, and Don Grubenhoff of Ritter’s Office Outfitters
Non-Member Guest: Mario Napoli from Isaac Wiles, Jason Womack
Speaker—Rob Mattern, President at Mattern & Associates







Vice-President Kelly Coholich welcomed everyone to the meeting.
Don Gruebenoff and Gordie Pepper from Ritter’s were introduced and thanked for hosting the event. Don
spoke about the company and products they offer. Ritter’s is a local company headquartered in Mansfield
and employee-owned. Ritter’s Office Outfitters supply office furniture, kitchen supplies, office products and
promotional products.
A motion was made to approve the November chapter meeting minutes. Minutes approved by Beth Hoeft,
seconded by Jennifer Rosengrant.
Kelly informed the members to be aware of the location for the upcoming events. Other law firms have
committed to host monthly chapter meetings therefore the location will vary.
Upcoming Events:
th
♦ Partners Lunch – February 24 @ The Columbus Club – Speaker Roger Blackwell
♦ Business Partner Event – March - Date and Venue TBD
st
♦ Chapter Meeting – April 21 – Breakfast @ Kegler Brown
th
♦ Chapter Meeting – May 19 – Lunch @ Hahn Loeser
th
♦ Clippers Game – July 30 - Reserved larger suite
Kelly reminded the members to read the newsletter, it is a good resource full of valuable information. She
also suggested to members to reach out to any of the board members if they have any questions regarding
ALA.
Kelly Coholich introduced speaker Rob Mattern. Topic for presentation Strategic Expense Management and
Successful Cost Recovery.
Respectfully Submitted,
Lisa A Justus, Secretary
12
February 2015
ED SCHULTZ
I
t is with sadness that we report the passing of Ed Schultz on Saturday, January 24, 2015.
Ed was President of the Columbus Chapter, ALA from 1996-1997 and stayed active and
involved in the Chapter following his retirement from Vorys Sater Seymour and Pease LLP.
Ed was a good friend to the Columbus Chapter. He had a great sense of humor, referring to
himself as the “Revenue Enhancement Manager” when doing collection work at Vorys. The
story of Ed almost being left behind on a dinner cruise at the ALA Annual Conference in
Boston will long be remembered.
The Columbus Chapter will be making a donation in Ed’s memory.
13
February 2015
J AN U A RY 2 0 , 2 0 1 5
Speaker Recap
Strategic Expense Management & Successful Cost Recovery
January 2015 Chapter Meeting Speaker Recap
January 20, 2015, Luncheon Meeting at Barnes & Thornburg
Rob Mattern is president and founder of Mattern & Associates LLC, a consulting firm dedicated to decrease law
firm overhead expenses through developing in house and outsourcing strategies which streamline support services
and increase net billable realization of soft cost recoveries.
Highlights from presentation:



Typical soft cost recovery = 40%-50%
What cost is resisted the most, legal research
Hard costs have an average 90% recovery rate
Strategies for Expense Management:
 Create more value with contract negotiation
♦ Ask for signing incentives
♦ Extend length of contract, 3-5 years
♦ Know the costs in your contract, (i.e. don’t pay permanent withdrawal fees for storage)
♦ Yearly incentive savings
♦ Use RFP to negotiate
♦ Have to ask to receive
 Eliminate Inefficiencies:
♦ Staff; Look at back office functions, evaluate if they are needed, can outsource move to
different location
♦ Equipment capacity; Identify if equipment is truly needed, is it at full capacity
♦ Review antiquated practices
 Evaluate & Coordinate Cost Recovery:
♦ Know the impact of cost recovery; Increase billable % vs. decrease expense will put more
money in your pocket.
♦ Track larger clients cost recovery; Can identify costs to improve recovery percentage
♦ Outsource vs. in house; Clients will generally pay hard costs so turn soft costs into hard costs
♦ Look at location for back office services, is there a more cost effective solution
 Monitor Contracts:
♦ Know your contract costs going forward, 3-7 years (i.e. records)
14
February 2015
2015 COLUMBUS CHAPTER MEETING DATES
(dates and locations subject to change)
Date
Meeting Type
Venue/Speaker/Topic
24—Feb (Tuesday)
12:00 pm
Partner Luncheon
Columbus Club
Dr. Roger Blackwell, Speaker
Helping Law Firms Grow Revenues by
Helping Business Clients Grow from Small
Firms to Large Fortunes
March (date TBD)
Member/Business Partner Event
TBD
21—April (Tuesday)
8:00 am
Breakfast Meeting
Kegler Brown Hill & Ritter
Larry Feheley, Speaker
2014 in the Rearview Mirror—An
Employment Law Retrospective
19—May (Tuesday)
12:00 pm
Luncheon Meeting
Hahn Loeser
Jeff Young, Speaker
LinkedIn
16—June ( Tuesday)
8:00 am
Breakfast Meeting
Barnes & Thoruburg
Camille Habayeb, Speaker
The State of Records Management in the
Legal Industry
30—July (Thursday)
First pitch 12:05 pm
Columbus Clippers Outing
Huntington Park
18—August (Tuesday)
8:00 am
Breakfast Meeting
Ice Miller
22—September (Tuesday)
12:00 pm
Luncheon Meeting
Hahn Loeser
20—October (Tuesday)
8:00 am
Breakfast Meeting
Barnes & Thornburg
17—November (Tuesday)
12:00 pm
Luncheon Meeting
Barnes & Thornburg
15—December (Tuesday)
4:30 pm
Holiday Gathering
TBD
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
We value your comments/suggestions and even your submissions. After all, this is your Newsletter! If you
would like to write a Letter to the Editor, make a suggestion that would enhance the newsletter, or would
be willing to write an article for the newsletter (either about a committee event or an educational topic
that would be of interest to our members), please e-mail Cindy Wesney, Newsletter Editor at:
cwesney@bricker.com.
15
February 2015
RETENTION INTERVIEWS
Mel Kleinman
First, a retention interview is not a performance appraisal; it is not about how the person is doing his or her job. It
is not a job satisfaction or employee engagement survey. A retention interview is about what the company is
doing (or not doing) that frustrates their top performers.
If you’d like to create your own retention interview, here are a few pointers to keep in mind:
1. A retention interview is not about talking to everyone. It is about talking to the key people you want
to keep on-board.
2. One purpose of this interview is to make the people you talk to feel important and included.
3. It has to be a conversation, not a form to fill out.
4. Create your question set. (You may be hesitant to ask some of those suggested below, but better to
ask before they leave than trying to close the barn door after the horse is out.)










Why did you leave your last employer?
Why did you take this job (or come to work for us) in the first place?
Is your job living up to your expectations? Is it better or worse than you thought?
How has the job/department/company changed since you joined us? Is it better or worse
now?
In your opinion, what is the dumbest or least sensible company rule or policy?
If we could do one thing to make your job easier or help you be more productive, what would
it be?
What is the one thing about your job that frustrates you the most?
On a scale of 1—10, how would you rate the company’s management team? Why did you give
them that rating?
Fill in the blank for me: “I would start looking for another job if _________________.”
What would it take for one of our competitors to hire you away from us?
Now, identify your key players and schedule what may well prove to be some very enlightening conversations.
Mel Kleiman, Certified Speaking Professional, is an internationally recognized consultant, author, and speaker on strategies
for hiring and retaining the best hourly employees. He is the president of Humetrics, a leading developer of systems, training
processes, and tools for recruiting, selection, and retention of the hourly workforce. Mel is also the author of five books,
including the best selling “Hire Tough, Manage Easy.” You can reach Mel at (800) 218-0930 or (713) 771-4401,
mel@melkleimancom or www.kleimanhr.com.
16
February 2015
C
ongratulations to Kathy Rosenberry who won the Chapter’s scholarship to attend the ALA Conference &
Expo in Nashville in May. Kathy’s name was drawn from among those members who met the chapters
criteria and were interested in attending the conference.
If you don’t know how our scholarship program works, take a look at the last page of this newsletter. You too can be
on your way to earning enough points to have a chance to win a scholarship to one of ALA’s conferences. The more
you participate in Chapter activities, the more points you earn. The more points you earn, the greater the chance
that you will be one of the top 15 Columbus Chapter members in terms of your participation in chapter events. One
name is then drawn from those 15 participants to win paid registration to the annual conference, and another name
drawn for paid registration to one of ALA’s fall conferences. It’s easy to earn points—for example you’ll earn 4
points just for attending the Partner Lunch on February 24!
For more information about the scholarship program contact Kelly Coholich at kelly.coholich@btlaw.com.
ELECTION OF OFFICERS
The Columbus Chapter, ALA election of officers for the 2015-16 chapter
year will be held at our networking event in March. If you’ve ever
considered getting more involved in your local chapter, here’s your
chance! We will be installing the 2015-16 officers, including a new
Secretary, for the term beginning April 1, 2015. You are welcome to contact any board member, listed on
page 20 of this newsletter, to get more details about roles, timeline, and responsibilities.
The only “official” criteria for becoming a board member, per the terms of our by-laws, is that you must be a
current, Regular member of the Association of Legal Administrators and must have been a member of the
Association for at least one year at the time of the election (which will occur in March 2015). That’s it!
Otherwise, we’re looking for someone who is active in the chapter, is enthusiastic, has great ideas, has a
commitment to the chapter, and a willingness to serve. If you think you want to throw your hat in the ring,
please contact Janie Jude-Askew at jjude-askew@bjglaw.net.
17
February 2015
18
February 2015
ALA UPDATES
Join Anytime for a Full Year of Webinars. Get a webinar
subscription any time of the year—and enjoy a full year of
32 webinars packed with essential education. Whether you
renew your current subscription or start a new one, you get
12 consecutive months of learning from the date of
purchase. With a new price of $450, your subscription will
pay for itself in three webinars—with even more benefits.
To sign up go to http://www.alanet.org/webi
Law Firm Leadership Forum: The Managing Partner/
Executive Director Forum, February 23-24, 2015, in
Orlando, is now open for registration. This new
educational event is a partnership between ALA and
Nesso Strategies. Its goal is to help elevate the working
relationship among law firm leadership, essential for
success in the new legal marketplace. For more
information or to register, visit http://www.alanet.org/
mpedforum/.
2015 ALA Member Needs Survey: Want to help ALA
improve its current programs and services and develop new
benefits that will help you succeed? All you need is 15
minutes and your ideas. Please complete the survey,
emailed to you on January 15, by February 17, 2015. Email
marketing@alanet.org with questions.
2015 ALA Conference & Expo: Leading the Business of
Law: The 2015 ALA Conference & Expo is scheduled for
May 17-20 at Music City Center, Nashville, TN. The
Keynote Speaker is Alison Levine, a polar explorer and
mountaineer. She served as team captain of the first
American Women’s Everest Expedition, climbed the
highest peak on each continent and skied to both the
North and South Poles, a feat known as the Adventure
Grand Slam, which fewer than 40 people in the world
have achieved. Look for more details in the upcoming
months.
19
February 2015
2014-15 Columbus Chapter Board
EDITORIAL POLICY
The Columbus Chapter News is published
monthly for the education and benefit of
legal administrators. It is not published for
the purpose of rendering legal, accounting,
or other professional services or advice.
Nothing contained in this newsletter should
be construed as legal, accounting, or other
professional services or advice. Reprint of
articles contained in this newsletter requires
the written permission of the Editor of the
Columbus Chapter News.
SARA LEECH
President
Ice Miller LLP
614.462.5042
sara.leech@icemiller.com
KELLY COHOLICH
Vice President
Barnes & Thornburg LLP
614.628.1430
Kelly.Coholich@btlaw.com
ALA MISSION STATEMENT
JENNIFER ROSENGRANT
Treasurer
Kegler Brown Hill & Ritter, Co LPA
614.462.5449
jrosengrant@keglerbrown.com
The Association of Legal Administrators’
(ALA) mission is to promote and enhance the
competence and professionalism of all
members of the management team; improve
the quality of management in law firms and
other legal services organizations; and
represent professional legal management
and managers to the legal community and to
the community at large.
LISA JUSTUS
Secretary
Hahn Loeser & Parks
614.233.5162
ljustus@hahnlaw.com
JANIE JUDE-ASKEW
COLUMBUS CHAPTER, ALA
MISSION STATEMENT
Immediate Past President
Brosius, Johnson & Griggs, LLC
614.464.3563
jjude-askew@bjglaw.net
The Columbus Chapter, Association of Legal
Administrators, provides educational and
networking opportunities to administrators
with varied legal backgrounds in the Central
Ohio area. We are committed to increasing
awareness and building relationships,
upholding the integrity of our profession,
giving back to our community, contributing
to the ongoing training of our membership,
and supporting one another in our chosen
careers.
KAREN A. SCURLOCK
Vice President of Membership
Calfee, Halter & Griswold LLP
614.621.7767
kscurlock@calfee.com
CYNTHIA L. WESNEY
Vice President of Communications
Bricker & Eckler LLP
614.227.8962
cwesney@bricker.com
BETH HOEFT
Vice President of Business Partner Relations
Fishel Hass Kim Albrecht LLP
614.221.1215
bhoeft@fishelhass.com
20
February 2015
Committee/Event Chairs
Community Service
Sonja Kondas, Chair ........................... 614.224.5205
Peck, Shaffer & Williams
skondas@peckshaffer.com
Jane Ossege ....................................... 614.233.5154
Hahn Loeser & Parks LLP
jaoeesge@hahnlaw.com
Angela Vecchio .................................. 614.223.9321
Benesch, Friedlander, Coplan & Aronoff
avecchio@beneschlaw.com
Past Presidents’ Council
Janie D. Jude-Askew, Chair ................ 614.464.3563
Brosius, Johnson & Griggs, LLC
jjude-askew@bjglaw.net
Public Relations
Cynthia L. Wesney, Chair .................... 614.227.8962
Bricker & Eckler LLP
cwesney@bricker.com
Region 3 Representative
Randall P. Headley, CLM, Chair .......... 614.229.3256
Bailey Cavalieri LLC
randy.headley@baileycavalieri.com
Business Partner Programming:
Beth Hoeft, Chair................................ 614.221.1216
Fishel Hass Kim Albrecht LLP
bhoeft@fishelhass.com
Janie D. Jude-Askew .......................... 614.464.3563
Brosius, Johnson & Griggs, LLC
jjude-askew@bjglaw.net
Salary Survey
Janie D. Jude-Askew, Chair ................ 614.464.3563
Brosius, Johnson & Griggs, LLC
jjude-askew@bjglaw.net
Membership/Mentoring
Karen A. Scurlock, Chair ..................... 614.621.7767
Calfee Halter & Griswold LLP
kscurlock@calfee.com
Kelly Coholich ..................................... 614.628.1430
Barnes & Thornburg LLP
Kelly.Coholich@btlaw.com
Michele Martin .................................. 614.280.1127
Weston Hurd LLP
mmartin@westonhurd.com
Social Media
Jennifer Rosengrant, Chair ................. 614.462.5449
Kegler Brown Hill & Ritter Co., L.P.A.
jrosengrant@keglerbrown.com
Website/Online Membership Directory
Marty Eisenbarth, Chair ..................... 614.227.8888
Bricker & Eckler LLP
meisenbarth@bricker.com
Randall P. Headley, CLM ................... 614.229.3256
Bailey Cavalieri LLC
randy.headley@baileycavalieri.com
Cynthia L. Wesney ............................. 614.227.8962
Bricker & Eckler LLP
cwesney@bricker.com
Newsletter
Cynthia L. Wesney, Chair ................... 614.227.8962
Bricker & Eckler LLP
cwesney@bricker.com
Partners’ Event
Janie D. Jude-Askew, Chair ................ 614.464.3563
Brosius, Johnson & Griggs, LLC
jjude-askew@bjglaw.net
21
February 2015
PHOTOS FROM THE JANUARY CHAPTER MEETING
L to R: Kathy Rosenberry, Donna Williams,
Denise Herald, and Mario Napoli
Kelly Coholich and speaker
Rob Mattern
Jennifer Rosengrant with our friends and
meeting hosts from Ritter’s Office Outfitters
22
February 2015
Columbus Chapter Partner Lunch
Tuesday, February 24, 12:30 pm, at the Columbus Club
Columbus Chapter Member Change Form
If any of your information changes, please complete this form in its entirety and e-mail or fax to:
Cynthia L. Wesney, Newsletter Editor, Bricker & Eckler LLP,
E-mail: cwesney@bricker.com
and
Jennifer Rosengrant, Treasurer, Kegler, Brown, Hill & Ritter Co., L.P.A.
E-mail: jrosengrant@keglerbrown.com
Name: ______________________________________________________________________________
Title:
______________________________________________________________________________
Firm: _______________________________________________________________________________
Address: ____________________________________________________________________________
City, State, Zip: ______________________________________________________________________
Telephone Number: ___________________________ Facsimile: _____________________________
E-mail: _____________________________________ Number of Attorneys: ____________________
23
February 2015
2015 COLUMBUS CHAPTER PARTNER LUNCH
Helping Law Firms Grow Revenues
by Helping Business Clients Grow
from Small Firms to Large Fortunes
Tuesday, February 24, 2015—12:00 pm
Dr. Roger Blackwell is Principal of
Blackwell Business Advisors in
Columbus, Ohio, helping small firms
grow into large ones. After retiring from
an award-winning career as Professor of
Marketing at The Ohio State University,
he currently serves as consultant to
business and professional organizations
developing strategies for increased
growth and profitability. He is the coauthor of Consumer Behavior, now in its
tenth edition, used in multiple languages
by business firms and universities
throughout the world. He also wrote
Customers Rule! And From Mind to
Market and other books pioneering the
process of changing supply chains to
demand chains and adapting digital
techniques to brisk-and-mortar
operations.
The Columbus Club
181 E. Broad Street, Columbus, OH 43215
Each chapter member may bring two partners
free-of-charge. Cost for members and
additional guests is $35 per person
Roger received his Ph.D. from
Northwestern University and B.S. and
M.S. degrees from the University of of
Missouri. In addition to teaching in both
the Fisher College of Business and the
Medical College at Ohio State, he was
Visiting Professor at Stanford University,
lectured on six continents around the
world and has written over 100 scholarly
and trade journal articles. His newest
book is Saving America: How Garage
Entrepreneurs Create Jobs While
Building Fortunes for Families and
Investors.
Financial
Management
Human Resources
Management
PARTNER LUNCH SPONSORED BY:
Please RSVP to Jennifer Rosengrant,
jrosengrant@keglerbrown.com, no
later than Wednesday, February 18, 2015
(please include the names of your
partners/guests, including any dietary
restrictions, when you RSVP)
Legal Industry/
Business Management
Operations
Management
Collect Buckeye Leaves and be on your way to being entered in a drawing to win a
scholarship to ALA’s national conference or a fall educational conference (scholarship amount will
not exceed the actual cost of the early-bird registration fee). Activities must occur in current
calendar year.
Buckeye Leaves
Possible
Qualifying Event
Attend Monthly Meetings*
2
Attend Partners’ Luncheon
4
Bring a Partner to the Partners’ Luncheon
2
Renew Chapter Membership
2
Serve on the Board
5
Serve on a Committee*
3
Chair a Committee*
5
Attend Chapter Social Event*
2
Attend Community Challenge Event*
3
Attend Past Presidents’ Annual Workshop/Seminar
3
Refer a New Member (must join chapter)
5
Write Educational Article for Newsletter*
3
Take CLM Exam
5
Pass CLM Exam
10
Refer a Business Partner (must purchase business partner sponsorship)
5
Total Buckeye
Leaves Awarded
TOTAL POINTS AWARDED
*Points awarded per activity
The Chapter board will compile points during the year. The top 15 members with
the most Buckeye leaves will be entered into a drawing for the ALA Annual and
Fall conferences. Annual conference drawing will occur at the January chapter
meeting; fall conference drawing will occur at the June chapter meeting
Member must be in good standing at time of drawing and the conference, and must
plan to attend the conference. Committee chairs and members must be active and
accomplish the goals of the committee.
For more information contact Kelly Coholich at kelly.coholich@btlaw.com.