Time Entry in Changing Times

Legal IT Show, London UK March 1st - 2nd 2011

2011-02-16T12:08:00.001-05:00

DTE Axiom and Phoenix (UK Partner) will be attending the Legal IT Show held at the Business Design Centre in Islington, London on the 1st- 2nd March 2011 to demonstrate the latest in time recording and capture.

Visit the Phoenix/ DTE Axiom stand #56 for the chance to win a Dell Inspiron Duo Tablet and to find out why firms such as Baker McKenzie, Taylor Wessing, Ince & Co and Bond Pearce have all moved away from traditional time recording to the DTE Solution.

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Advanced Productivity Software Celebrates 20 Years of Providing Time Tracking and Cost Recovery Software to Top Law Firms Worldwide

2011-01-25T11:21:00.000-05:00

Advanced Productivity Software (APS), a leading provider of time tracking and cost recovery software, announced the celebration of its 20-year anniversary. Since 1990, APS has provided time capture software to more than 50 percent of the AmLaw 100 firms, and in 2010, APS launched new mobile time tracking applications, DTE InHand Axiom and iDTE, and received recent industry recognition from Law Technology News.

For two decades, APS has met the needs of top law firms by offering reliable time tracking and cost recovery software—DTE Axiom and RollCall—to increase firm productivity and profitability. Moving forward, APS continues to look to the future with a focused approach on:

· Providing feature-rich technology that improves customers’ bottom line and delivers complete time tracking and cost recovery solutions.

· Maintaining a customer-centric environment through research, development and support—ensuring customer satisfaction and constant growth through APS’ software and service.

To read the rest of the press release please visit: http://pitch.pe/119419

Top Time Capture Tips to Increase Firm Revenue

2010-08-10T13:28:00.000-04:00

At Advanced Productivity Software we work with more than 100,000 users worldwide. We've offered the following tips to time keepers to enhance time capture and increase revenue:

1. Manage time globally – With the increasing number of global law firms and international clients, time keepers need time capture technology that offers multilingual functionality, including automated translation support and native language billing/invoicing tools.
2. Enable on-the-go time capture – Today’s ubiquitous smartphones have presented opportunities for time keepers to seamlessly record and bill time outside of the office, offering increased flexibility for a healthier work-life balance.
3. Leverage compliance and regulation features – Managing risk is still a top priority for law firms today. As such, firms are turning to advanced technology such as building ethical walls and e-billing to mitigate risk, ensuring compliance and preventing duplicate time entries.
4. Identify time capture trends – Increased visibility into billable hours allows for enhanced transparency, both internally and externally, individual accountability and the ability to spot billable and non-billable time gap trends.

Click Here to read more or view our video below.

New Ownership for LookUp Precision

2010-05-21T16:26:00.005-04:00

It's my privilege to share some very exciting news today. Advanced Productivity Software has been exploring a new partnership for LookUp Precision to further enhance the product and increase the level of service our clients receive. As a result, LookUp Precision has been acquired by SydneyPLUS International Library Systems.

Staff from both APS and SydneyPLUS will be working together to ensure a smooth transition that focuses on maintaining continuity for our customers. So while we are announcing a change in product ownership, you can still work with your current product contacts throughout this transition. Dave Arnold, the LookUp Precision Product Specialist, and I are still working with LookUp Precision as we transfer the product over, and LookUp customers will be able to benefit from additional team members from SydneyPlus as they get assigned to the accounts.

Both of our companies share a commitment to seeing LookUp Precision continue to meet its potential by listening to our clients and responding to their changing needs. LookUp Precision is already the premiere cost recovery, usage tracking, and password management tool on the market, and we're looking forward to even bigger and better things in the future.

The full press release can be found here.

2010.1 Feature: Expense Entry

2010-05-14T13:01:00.001-04:00

Since expense recording was a component of the legacy DTE systems, a lot of firms have been excited to see the reintroduction of this module in DTE Axiom. When version 2010.1 became publicly available in February, the wait was over! Today's quick post will just highlight a few screens to give an overview of what the new expense mode looks like (just click an image to view it in full).

For ease of use, much of the expense mode functionality uses an interface similar to time entry within DTE Axiom. Here is a screenshot showing a currency-specific user defined field:

This screenshot shows the main expense calendar with a currency filter in place limiting the visible records to Japanese Yen. This is a great way to release entries or perform other operations against a currency-specific record set.

Another impressive area of expense entry in DTE Axiom, Calculated Fields, will be explored in a subsequent post.

APS announces release of iDTE, DTE Axiom application for the iPhone

2010-04-20T12:18:00.000-04:00

Advanced Productivity Software (APS), a leading provider of time tracking and cost recovery software, announced the launch of iDTE, a mobile application of the company’s flagship time tracking solution, DTE Axiom®.

Designed exclusively for the iPhone, iDTE enables users—attorneys, legal staff, financial officers and IT administrators—to record billable hours, create entries, capture phone calls and track emails while on-the-go. iDTE improves productivity and profitability by providing law firm personnel with a mobile application to enter and edit critical time and expenses securely from anywhere in the world.

Read more here

New DTE Axiom Product Manager!

2010-04-01T11:15:00.001-04:00

I'm pleased to introduce Stacey Richardson as the new DTE Product Manager. As I transition into a role in new product development, Stacey will be setting the direction for DTE and leading the product team moving forward. His experience and enthusiasm will be a great boost for DTE and we're all expecting excellent results from his contributions.

I may continue to post on this blog in my new role, but as he gets up and running we will hear from Stacey on here with Axiom news on a regular basis.

RollCall Announces New & Upgraded Features. Check Out New Features at Free Webinar

2010-03-24T12:44:00.002-04:00

Join us for a free webinar to learn how automating your staff time and attendance with RollCall can save your firm time, money and resources.

Date: Thursday April 1, 2010

Time: 3:00 p.m. Eastern

RollCall is a staff time and attendance application that enables firms to track and process employee time electronically. From tracking hours spent organizing case files to managing sick leave and vacation time, both staff and administrators will benefit from the intuitive web-based program.

Highlighted new features are:

Payroll Report, which produces a detailed breakdown of employee's timecards, export batches and export dates;
Flex Daily Schedule Support, which enables flexible tracking of varying schedules that may differ from day to day; and
Custom Daily Overtime Rules, which offers support for a range of different

Click Here To Register

2010.1 Feature: Split Entries

2010-03-15T16:05:00.000-04:00

High volume time entry is an area that DTE Axiom continues to address with new solutions for different user types. Entries can already be instantly created from templates, the "Create from Recent Entry" function, the Duplicate All function on the entry form, as well as the "Create Entry on all Marked Days" ability. The most recent release has added a new tool to our high volume time entry arsenal, and it's called "Split Entries".

To show how it's used, I created an eight hour time entry to cover a whole work day. Then I went back and reviewed the entry on the short list, where the new "Split Entry" button resides. By clicking it, I'm able to designate how many entries to split the original entry into, how many hours each entry should have (it automatically splits them evenly, but the user can overwrite it to anything that is appropriate), and lets me change the client and matter information for the new entries. [click the screenshots for full-sized versions].

By clicking OK, I'm brought back to the shortlist, which now has four two hour entries instead of my single eight hour entries. I can then release them to the billing system or edit them further as individual entries.

It's that simple!

2010.1 Feature: Unicode time entry

2010-03-09T13:29:00.002-05:00

A problem with recording non-Western alphabets in time entry systems in the past is that even when it was collected, billing systems weren't able to interpret and store those time entries correctly. Now that billing systems are being introduced that do support Unicode language formats, such as Elite's 3E and SAP, that opens us up to collect Unicode data to be released to those billing systems.

So what does that mean, exactly? First of all, any Unicode data that comes from the billing system will be accurately represented in the DTE client, such as client names or notes associated with matters. It also means that we've added a setting in DTE Axiom that whe will enable users to record time entries in Unicode, which will allow for non-Latin alphabets to be used for time recording at the discretion of the firm. We've been looking forward to adding this feature into Axiom, and have set the backend database to be Unicode compliant from the beginning.

Here's a sample screenshot of how Unicode time entry in Axiom looks (click the image for a full size screenshot).

DTE Axiom 2010.1 release!

2010-03-03T16:56:00.000-05:00

It's been a while since I've updated the APS blog, but there has been a lot going on. Foremost would be the release of DTE Axiom 2010.1 last month. Over the next few posts, I'll review some of the exciting new features available with this release. I'd also like to stop and say thank you to all of the firms that partnered with us to spec out and test the new enhancements. We would never be able to keep our title the industry's premiere time entry solution if it wasn't for the dedicated firms who share their needs with us and collaborate on the new solutions.

So check back soon for the first in a series of posts about what's new in Axiom 2010!

Cozen O'Connor Keeps up the Pace with Advanced Productivity Software

2010-02-16T11:21:00.000-05:00

Cozen O'Connor boosts productivity by choosing Advanced Productivity Software, a leader in reliable time tracking and cost recovery software solutions, to implement a new firm-wide time entry system.

Click here to read the case study

APS Customer Appreciation Event

2010-01-14T10:54:00.000-05:00

Advanced Productivity Software is hosting a customer appreciation cocktail and appetizer reception on February 2, 2010 from 5:30-7:30 at Mickey Mantles in New York City. Stop by after work or after LegalTech 2010!

Sneak peak of major new features coming in the next DTE Axiom release!

Customers please R.S.V.P by clicking here

For more information on attending please contact marketing@aps-soft.com

Hope to see you there!

Diluting the Billable Hour

2009-12-18T09:40:00.002-05:00

Dilute: To make less concentrated by adding something else to the mixture.

The billable hour isn’t going away any time soon, but it certainly is being diluted. “A recent survey of 2,000 lawyers in the UK found that 69 percent of managing partners and senior partners – and 60 percent of 12 rank-and-file partners – believe that the current economic turmoil will force law firms to make radical changes to their business models” [Citi Private Bank / Hildebrandt Client Advisory – January 2009]. In addition, a US based survey found that “67% of large law firm leaders are expecting significant pricing model changes over the next 5 years” [LEB survey conducted in September 2009; n=33]. So, a large number of firms are going to change, but is it going to be a large or small change in their billing model?

To answer that, we can look at a Citi Private Bank Law Watch report that states “Experts are forecasting approximately a 1.5% increase per year in Alternate Billing Models from 2008 through 2010 (from 6.5% to 9.8%)” [Citi Private Bank Law Watch – September 2009].

Why are billing model changes needed? The current economic downturn is forcing clients to push back which leads to reduced billing realization numbers as well as falling collection realization numbers. For example, there has been a “20 hour per month (14%) drop in the average number of hours billed between 1Q07 and 1Q09” [Hildebrandt Peer Monitor 2009]. Compound that with new collection realization numbers like we see here “Realization has dropped 3% from 95.5 % in 4Q2006 to 92.5% 1Q2009” [Hildebrandt Peer Monitor, 2009] and you can begin to see why more firms are using alternate billing models.

Which billing methods are being employed by firms? This data from [September 2009 Survey of 2009 LEB conference participants] shows us that more than half the firms surveyed in September 2009 plan to increase the use of the following variations on the hourly rate model: Discounted hourly rates (100%), Fixed fees (88%), Fee caps (76%), Portfolio pricing (70%), Menu pricing (67%), Blended billing rates (58%), and Retainers (55%). The percentage represents the percentage of firms that plan to increase that particular model.

With so many firms employing so many models there is no question that the billable hour is being diluted. However, the numbers show this a relatively small dilution that will take place over years.
My recommendation is to use the current economic recession to influence more accurate and timely time tracking. Not only will this help with Billable Hour tracking, but it will provide the metrics needed to successfully assess and implement additional billing models.

- Matt McInerny APS CTO and Product Evangelist

Makers of DTE Axiom Present RollCall - Join us for a Free Webinar

2009-12-08T11:34:00.010-05:00

Join us for a free Webinar to learn how automating your staff time and attendance with RollCall can save your firm time, money and resources.

Date: Friday December 11th, 2009

Time: 12:00 p.m. Eastern

RollCall is a staff time and attendance application that enables firms to track and process employee time electronically. From tracking hours spent organizing case files to managing sick leave and vacation time, both staff and administrators will benefit from the intuitive web-based program. Join our webinar to learn how RollCall simplifies processes such as attorney confirmation of overtime, extracting paralegal time for billing and payroll, leave balance and accrual tracking and more. Other benefits of RollCall include, ability to automatically export approved time from single source to payroll, HR and billing systems, manage reports such as absence trends, overtime trends and attendance hsitory and track overtime specific to client/matter number.

Click here to register

DTE Axiom nominated for Best New Product, The Know List Awards

2009-11-12T12:14:00.001-05:00

DTE Axiom, our innovative and recently redesigned time entry software program has been nominated for Best New Product for the Know List Awards.

The Know List Awards are dedicated to the strategic implementation of technology within law firms, recognizing the success of key individuals, law firms and supplies who are constantly striving to add value using IT.

Please vote for DTE Axiom here: http://www.theknowlist.com/#/awards-shortlist/4535967788

The winners will be announced January 21st, 2010 at the Chancery Court Hotel London, UK

APS & Aderant Sponsored Webinar Wednesday Nov 11, 2009

2009-11-09T12:56:00.005-05:00

Advanced Productivity Software is joining with Aderant to sponsor a webinar dedicated to showing your firm the tools they need to capture more billable hours and increase firm ROI.

Visit: http://aderant.com/events/webinars.aspx to register.

The impact of capturing just one more billable hour and the tools your timekeepers need to increase firm ROI

Capturing just one more billable hour a month can lead to a significant increase in ROI for your firm. But how can timekeepers accomplish this efficiently and with ease? With DTE Axiom, your timekeepers will be poised with an arsenal of ways to capture more time quickly and easily. View a demonstration of DTE Axiom’s time capture arsenal (DTE InHand, our Smartphone extension of DTE Axiom, DTE’s new Planner View and TimeReview features) , reporting tools and the ROI calculator to see just how much more money your firm could be bringing in.

Nov 11	N. America & UK - Wednesday - 8:00 am PT / 11:00 am ET / 4:00 pm London
Nov 11	N. America - Wednesday - 4:00 pm PT / 7:00 pm ET

DTE Axiom 2009.4 released 10/31

2009-10-31T14:26:00.003-04:00

A new version of DTE Axiom, numbered 2009.4, is available today. This service pack contains a number of tweaks and performance improvements that address the few items that may have come up since the July release.

I wrote about one of the improvements when I posted about the conditional field display abilities earlier this month. Another one includes a tweak to Goal Tracker that brings back the tabular data that was available in legacy versions of DTE. We're glad to hear from firms that this was useful to end users, and we were more than happy to add it back in to DTE Axiom.

Review of the London Presentation

2009-10-23T20:04:00.000-04:00

The London presentation went very well, and it was a great chance to meet with representatives both of UK law firms and of London branches of US firms. Phoenix Business Solutions gave a nice demonstration of the the current version of DTE Axiom and DTE InHand, which was followed up nicely by Stuart Walters' case study about the deployment of DTE at Eversheds. The good experience they've had with the BlackBerry product has made Axiom a logical choice to replace their aging desktop time entry system, and the insights about their experiences to date were very interesting to the attendees. I then unveiled a sneak peak at the February release of DTE Axiom, which was the first time we've demoed the in-development product to the public. Afterwards was a reception with a great chance to talk with the firms' representatives for feedback and to answer questions. We're grateful to Phoenix for setting the stage for such a nice presentation.

Presentation with Phoenix Business Solutions, our partners in the UK

2009-10-18T17:33:00.002-04:00

I'm writing this post from the beginning of my UK trip, where I have the pleasure of being hosted by Phoenix Business Solutions, our London-based representatives. The anticipated highlight will be Thursday's presentation at St. Paul's, where Stuart Walters of Eversheds will be sharing his firm's experiences.

I doubt I'll have another opportunity to post again before this trip is through, but once I'm back I'll be sure to write an update as to how everything went. We're just two weeks away from the next service pack release, and I'll promise a post between now and then to talk about a much requested tweak to Goal Tracker that we're looking forward to.

More options for conditional field display in DTE Axiom 2009.4

2009-10-09T10:55:00.059-04:00

A lot of our focus this week has been on our upcoming 2009.4 release for DTE Axiom, scheduled for the end of this month. One of the exciting upgrades is for our system for intelligently displaying time entry fields.

Within DTE, client or matter selection is already able to trigger the display of sub-fields such as Task or Location, and those lists can easily be populated with user-specific options based on what groups the timekeeper belonged to, for instance.

It would be increasingly challenging to set up a conditional field display and user-specific lists if it involved multiple layers of determination. For example, if a Task field was only to be displayed for a certain client/matter combination but even then only for certain timekeeper groups, and only if the Location field contained one of a specific subset of values.

The handling of this logic inside DTE Axiom will now be much easier to set up and maintain, allowing for an arbitrary number of business rules to easily control the display of fields however a firm might want. This has been especially of interest to firms that are combining separate time entry installations for staff and attorneys into a single database, where multiple sets of business rules are needed concurrently.

Welcome to APS's "Changing Times" Blog!

2009-10-05T10:24:00.001-04:00

With the exciting pace of activity here at Advanced Productivity Software, a regularly updated blog will be a great way for us to share with our community everything that's going on. As the manager for DTE and liaison for APS's side of the LookUp Precision partnership, I will provide weekly updates on our upcoming releases, news, and events. We have so much to share, and this should be a great medium for us to use.

In addition to myself, we might expect to hear occasionally from Beth Bergman, our marketing manager, Alonzo Boddie, the RollCall product manager, among other members of our team. Once a quarter, we will present an in depth article from Matt McInerny, our product evangelist. We could even hear from Jim Tharpe, president of APS, when he has news to relate.

With the introduction to our blog and our contributors, I'll leave it at that for now. After all, we'll have our first regular post later this week.