May 2020

Capital Connection is published monthly for members of the Capital Chapter of the Association of Legal Administrators to provide information for the education and benefit of legal administrators, law office managers, managing partners of law firms, and other law related associations. Capital Connection is not engaged in rendering legal, financial, or tax counseling or advice through this publication.  The contents of all articles, letters, and advertisements published in Capital Connection should not be considered endorsements by the Capital Chapter of ALA nor the opinion expressed therein of any products advertised.   Contributing authors are requested and expected to disclose financial and/or professional interests and affiliations that may influence their writing position. Articles and materials accepted for publication are subject to editing by the editorial team and become property of the Capital Chapter of the Association of Legal Administrators. Links to Capital Connection may not be shared without permission from the Chapter. 
Editors: Cindy Conover;  Beth Fowler
​Contributing Editors: Jackie Thomas; Zac Brown, Hilltop Consultants, Eric Lewis, JK Moving
Newsletter Designed By: Jessica Davis


In this issue:

President's Message: ​Before I “Zoomed” into Leadership, My Talk with Two ALA Past Presidents*

Me: This show is boring.
Boss: Again, this is a Zoom conference.

Raise your hand if you have Zoom fatigue. I imagine hands going up everywhere across the DMV in response. I have two hands up!  Ha!  But I am grateful for Zoom for many reasons; the most relevant to ALA is the ability to move forward with my plans to have coffee with past presidents, NextGen leaders and Business Partners for my newsletter messages.  Through Zoom we can still learn from our deeply-rooted Chapter history and branch outward with new ideas on how to lead our current members, our traditional legal administrators, and potential new members to the Chapter who have joined the legal field in newly adapted roles that we have never seen before (I will get back to that thought for next month’s newsletter article; so stay tuned).   Ironically we are being pushed into developing creative ways of reaching our members and providing relevant information and education for an ever-changing legal environment at a more rapid pace in this new virtual world.  This will be an absolute advantage to our profession, and also to our association on the other side of this “new normal”.  We will have to adapt or become irrelevant, and we definitely don’t want to become irrelevant.

What better way to start my coffee talks than to pick the brains and seek advice from two immediate past presidents; one from the Capital Chapter, and one from ALA International, both of whom had to deal directly with an ever-changing ALA environment this past year, learning not only to let go of control and what they thought things would be like, but also how to find a silver-lining and adapt to that adversity to come out better on the other side.   Hopefully this message will speak to you all on some level and will help you to find the “aha” moments in our current, unprecedented situation.  My sincere appreciation to Jenna Carter and James Cornell for your time to have coffee and collaborate with me and for these lessons learned that I now want to share with the Chapter.  

I set out asking them both questions on how best to manage the workload, lead the Chapter, things they were most proud of, things they would change, and their advice for me on how to advance the Chapter in my year of Presidency.  When I sat down to write this article, it all came together that the things I learned from our conversation are not just relevant to my time as your President, but to all of us learning to adapt in this time of social distancing and change.  These are the lessons I want to share with you from my conversation with two past presidents:

  • Be intentional about your time.  When asked how to find balance between volunteering, work and personal life, James recommended being intentional about your time.  Schedule a block of time to do all things ALA, so that the time is structured.  This is helpful advice while trying to navigate this “new normal”…has it actually become normal for anyone yet???  And when working remotely in this new world (whether you are at home and/or your team is at home, leading and managing a remote workforce or teaching your kids remotely), you will need to figure out the right division of work and home.  Set a block of time for things that you need to accomplish and set a boundary for when you will shut down for the day.  I know this is difficult when it seems to never end, but be intentional with your time.
  • Have a good support system.  Find your people, and surround yourself with them.  Just because we are social distancing doesn’t mean we need to be disconnected.  Jenna emphasized how important it was to have a good support system around her as President, and this continues to be relevant as we navigate our current circumstances.  Recruit help and be ok with admitting you can’t do it all on your own.  We are better together, so use that Zoom technology to connect with people; don’t stay isolated.  
  • Give yourself and others grace.   Remember that this is not a normal time and one that most anyone you know has not gone through before, so give yourself and others grace. We are walking through this together and learning as we go.  This was James’ response when asked for his biggest piece of advice to be successful in this role - let go of the desire to be perfect and to have all of the answers (clearly he doesn’t understand Virgos…and a type A one at that…). Rely on your support system - for me it is the Capital Chapter Board - it impedes your ability to grow and their ability to learn if you try to lead without leaning on them.  Jenna reminded me to remember the passion for the Association and my “why” when times may not go as I had planned. 
  • Don’t miss the lesson.  And speaking of things not going as planned, I asked Jenna and James what they would have done differently in their presidencies.  The resounding answer from both of them was that there may have been things they wish they had done better or handled differently, but they experienced so much growth during that time.   James said that the greatest lesson gained from the uncertainty of leadership is learning how to respond to circumstances, and that you do truly have everyone on your side during a difficult situation.You can say “I may not have all of the answers, but I am going to lead as best I can.”As your President, I promise you that is where I am – I may not have all of the answers, especially in this time of uncertainty, but I am going to do the best I can to lead this Chapter.  As leaders we need to adapt.  As Jenna said, things happened as they should have and you learn lessons that enable you to assist the next person; to pass on the knowledge, and I am personally thankful for that!  Hindsight is 20/20, but the important thing is to learn from our mistakes, and my friends, we are going to make mistakes as we navigate territory that is new for all of us.  Remember, give yourself grace and fact check yourself with your support system if you have doubts.  By working through mistakes, we also accomplish what we are most proud of -- personal growth and growth as a leader.  Jenna reiterates that resiliency is what a true leader needs; when your plan goes as intended, there is no need to adapt, but when your plans change, your growth flourishes.  James mentions in his article in the April edition of Legal Management – that during his Presidency, nothing went the way he envisioned it would, but he was able to react to what was needed at the time which resulted in a year of growth and opportunity.  Sometimes the best lessons are learned when we are forced to respond to unexpected circumstances (kind of like what is happening in this current environment for all of us).
  • Find the silver-linings, the “aha” moments as we navigate our way through the current situation.  Just like the medical and education fields have had to make rapid advances in order to adapt quickly to current circumstances, our Association and our Chapter need to think strategically to overcome rapidly changing circumstances.  We will face many challenges in the next 3 – 5 years:  continued social distancing, upcoming retirements of a large percentage of our members, using organizational pricing to leverage a growth in our membership, and how we develop  and deliver education to serve our new population?  We need to be sure we add value to our content.  As James and Jenna point out, we need to reimagine and change how we how we support the business of law which is in the middle of a big pivot.  Traditional practices are still  valuable, but what can we do differently for further value-add?

Finding silver-linings is finding the moments we can be grateful for.  I have started tasking myself with finding three things a day that I am thankful for, and I intend to be creative with that.  The leadership team and Board know, that has been my question to everyone when I talk to them -- what is the best part of the pandemic quarantine for you?  Jenna is thankful for the shorter commute, but also that she is able to leverage her passion for firm culture and creativity and utilize it firm-wide.  She is now leading weekly trivia across all offices; improving visibility and morale in an otherwise uncertain time.  James is thankful that this time has allowed him to have a reset personally and professionally to create better habits for self-care and to be the best version of himself.  I think a lot of us can introspectively say the same.  Our priorities are changing, and I would venture to say, for the better.  I hope that this message finds you healthy and safe and with some new things to think about, especially the silver-lining.  I would love to hear yours. 
Jackie Thomas

New and Returning ALA Capital Chapter Members

Bryan Benavides
Director of Administration
Relman Colfax PLLC
1225 19th St., N.W.
Suite 600
Washington, DC 20036
​bbenavides@relmanlaw.com

Do Organizations Really Value Employee Time?

Zac Brown
Senior Software Engineer, Apruvd

Today at work I had a brief (VERY brief, with one of those "we'll talk later" non-responses) conversation about our organization's PTO policy. This conversation didn't go as I expected, and the outcome got me to thinking. Do organizations really value the time and dedication that their employees put into their product and growth? Are employees just expendable resources that are only useful until their energy and motivation have been depleted?

The background: This conversation stemmed from a question I had asked during a training session on using the new HR portal software. The HR representative was showing us the section of the portal where we would submit requests for time off. She did a very good job demonstrating how to create and submit these requests, and how the accrued PTO breaks down for us to spend. During this time, she covered policy related things like our inability to go into the negative, and that our accrual is roughly 4 hours per pay period (thats about a day for every month of employment). This is when I asked the question.

The question: After the representative finished explaining how to use this section of the software, she asked if there were any questions. Naturally, there were several. I patiently waited my turn, and then simply asked: "How can we request additional time to compensate for the time we spend working beyond normal business hours?"

My team, as I'm sure many others do too, constantly spend evenings beginning database upgrades at midnight, or performing other mission critical maintenance tasks on the weekend, or even working production incidences on a holiday. To me, this was a very valid question on how we use this new software to request some of that time back.

The answer: "When you're a salaried employee, you do whatever it takes to get the job done. We'll talk later."

My thoughts: This surprised me. We put a huge amount of time into what we do even when we're not at the office. Constantly working on production bugs, or responding to emails, or addressing something on Slack. Even putting in crazy extra time to get a project done by it's deadline. For me, that's normal. I don't have any distaste about this because sometimes these things are just necessary to deliver the best product that you can.

The problem that I do have here is what that statement represents. What those words mean in terms of how the company values us as employees, and the time that we do put in.

When it's convenient for the company, "you're a salaried employee" and do "whatever it takes to get the job done" regardless of how many hours you take from your personal life to further the organization's goals. When they want you to work more, you're salaried. Which means you have unlimited time to dedicate to the company without additional compensation. When you need a moment to take a break and catch up, you're limited. Regardless of the number of hours you work each week, you are limited to the amount of PTO that you have been able to accrue.

To me, this speaks volumes about the way the organization views and values their employees. How can a company's official stance be that we need to be available to work as much as they need us to, but when it comes time for us to take a break and recover we can only work within the predefined parameters of PTO allowance that this same company decided we can have?

Conclusion: This is a problem that exists everywhere. Not just where I'm currently employed. The unfair balance between the amount of energy, dedication and time that employees contribute during any given week is almost always far greater than the time the company is willing to give back.

I wrote this article in hopes that one of two things would happen: 1). I would find that I'm not the only one thinking along these lines and that there is a lack of balance between the time employees put in and what they get out; or 2). I'm not making any sense and should just drop it.

​In closing, I'm going to pose this very simple question to the Internet to gather a sense of understanding about how people feel in regards to the topic: Do you feel like your employer values your time?

This article has been reprinted with permission from the author, and originally appeared here.

Document Management Systems: FAQs

Hilltop Consultants

Ease of use:

Why should I have a DMS for my firm?
​A DMS provides a great way for firms to organize, manage and index all the work product that a firm creates. Attorneys and support staff can find the documents they need with ease, improving efficiency. The built-in versioning provides change management for documents making it easier to review the document lifecycle. Firm administrators can also build in ethical walls and governance to support legal and client requirements through automation. A properly implemented DMS improves the efficiency of all the team members at a firm.

Who are the top-notch providers?
iManage and NetDocuments are industry leaders in legal DMS and integrate with many of the legal specific applications used within firm today. Both iManage and NetDocuments have a cloud first approach helping firms work from anywhere and on any device. 

How much work is it to move from a flat filing system to a DMS?
If your firm is already operating in a matter-centric faction, your implementation teams will be able to extract the data from the current structure. It is important to meet with your implementation team often, including key members of the firm, to ensure the buy-in of the DMS roll out. Your implementation team will then create scripts and leverage tools to manage the data-import process into your DMS. Once you have agreed on the data structure and process, test, test, test. Training is also key, so make sure to plan for adequate user trainings.  Make all training mandatory, as the users that need the training the most will undoubtedly be too busy to attend.

Will my IT team need to be trained or certified in the DMS platform? Will this be more work for them to manage?
Ongoing training should be part of all IT teams, as the continuing evolution of technology is always changing. Yes, they will need training but both NetDocuments and iManage can be managed though intuitive admin web portals and both vendors include support for when issues do arise.  Certification is not necessary, assuming your firm works with an outsourced IT vendor that has certified engineers on staff.

Does DMS integrate with my email and time & billing platform?
Yes, both iManage and NetDocuments support vast solutions to integrate with all aspects of the firm’s systems. You will want to work with your implementer to identify the firm’s platforms that should integrate and the workflows to improve efficiency and security. We have worked with firms to build automated processes to govern client or matter data and complex workflows.

Can multiple people work on the same documents at the same time?
Both iManage and NetDocuments support simultaneously editing documents when integrated with Office 365.

How are versions tracked?
Versions can be created by the end users or every time it is edited, depending on the firm’s desires.

Can I share documents with my clients through a DMS?
Yes, iManage cloud and NetDocuments come with integrated document collaboration spaces allowing users to send and receive documents securely. It is important to work with your implementer to ensure the correct configuration as not to jeopardize privilege. iManage does also support document collaboration for on-premises installations.

If I lose the internet, can I still get the documents?
Both iManage and NetDocuments support downloading matters for offline work and then syncing them back once online. This is very common for traveling attorneys.

Can you retrieve a document you accidentally deleted?
In both, users can delete documents, but an administrator can retrieve the documents though an administrative portal. An administrator can also purge documents from the DMS if required.

Does it have email integration and document encryption for attachments?
Both iManage and NetDocuments support e-mail management to capture all relevant communication for a matter and integrate with Microsoft Exchange and G-Suite. When the work product needs to be sent externally, it can be done so using HIPAA grade encryption methods. Governance can be extended as to whom, how long, and how many that external user can access the data.

Does it automate and enforce application of your retention policies?
Yes, both iManage and NetDocuments support integrations to extend the governance over the work product that is inside the DMS to meet the requirements or regulations to which the firm adheres.

Does it retain a complete revision history and audit trail for all documents?
Yes, you can force documents to auto-version and a complete audit trail is stored within the DMS. When a user creates a new version, they can then leave a comment on why the document changed. All this metadata is stored withing the DMS allowing you to see when and who edited a document and why.

Are all documents in the system accessible on a mobile device?
The iManage & NetDocuments web portal support all mobile platforms and scales to whatever screen the user is working on. Additionally, both iManage and NetDocuments have a dedicated iOS app that integrates with the Office 365 mobile app for easy, on the go editing of documents.

Security:

How secure is a cloud based DMS?
Cloud DMS is considered more secure than an on-premise DMS as there are much more robust access controls in place. Both iManage and NetDocuments have HIPAA / SOC2 / ISO 27001 environments that are regularly audited. The firm’s current MFA system should also be integrated into the new cloud DMS to prevent unauthorized access and, if needed, can be locked down to certain IP addresses for additional security. Going a bit deeper, both iManage and NetDocuments also support encryption key management to allow a firm to control the keys to the castle, the encryption keys for the documents stored withing the DMS. This provides an additional layer of security as the cloud vendor cannot unencrypt a document themselves.

Can I block people from accessing certain folders?
Yes, both systems support granular access controls. Additionally, both iManage and NetDocuments support numerous ethical wall solutions that can be integrated into the firm’s current systems to automate the process.

Support: 

Why is it important to work with a managed services provider that is certified in the system versus working with the DMS provider directly?
While both iManage and NetDocuments provide support for their own applications, DMSs normally integrate with the other legal specific applications that a firm uses withing a document’s lifecycle. Having a team that specializes in legal applications and workflows helps identify issues quicker, getting the user back to work faster. A legal MSP, like Hilltop Consultants, understands these document lifecycles and workflows and are well versed with how they work and where issues can arise. Hilltop Consultants has iManage and NetDocuments certified technicians on our helpdesk that support law firms’ users every day. 

No Doom, Just Zoom

Eric Lewis
Senior Partner, Lewis Baach Kaufmann Middlemiss

After 35 years trotting around the world in an international disputes practice, it is strange to be trying to do everything remotely. I have now spent about a month operating from my adult son’s boyhood bedroom. Of course, many people, predominantly women—because of centuries of sexist roles—have managed significant careers working from home while also raising kids, managing households, walking dogs, and doing myriad other tasks. So, to clarify, I did not want to suggest that it was difficult or unusual to work from home, just that it was very different from what I had been doing for my career. Having hopefully redeemed myself from any suggestion of “Mansplaining,” I wanted to share some thoughts about how things are going now that lockdown has hit the one-month point with at least another month, likely more, to go.

First, nothing focuses the mind on effective management of a law firm like being forced from your premises, finding that many of your clients are operating either remotely or under absolute shutdowns, or, unfortunately, in the hospital. New projects are delayed; deadlines are off the table; courts are shut down; and everyone wants to husband their resources to the greatest extent possible. So the first thing to do is identify what essential work must be done, can be done and what clients think should be done.

In a small litigation firm, management of the work of the firm comes from the quotidian interactions between associates, partners and clients. As senior partner, I have always wanted to assure that the firm is big enough to handle most every case, but small enough that I really know all my colleagues, talk to them reasonably regularly, and have a rough idea of what the caseload of the firm is and where most of the cases are in the litigation process. Usually, I can accomplish this without special effort; it just happens—in the halls, getting coffee, at lunch, when someone stops by to talk through an issue, sitting together at a ballgame.

Now, there are no hallway chats, no Keurigs, no ballgames, no group lunches, no one stopping by. In this environment, the risks of not knowing who is working on what; what is being billed; and what is being collected are too great. So, we have put in place procedures we have never had before. Every timekeeper must submit her time at the end of every day. In this way, we can tell in near-real time who is busy and who is not and make sure that we are balancing assignments and workloads. We also have advance notice if things are slowing down.

We also use our weekly work group video chats to talk about cases. We have six work groups with overlapping membership. Most litigators operate to deadline. The work group discussions allow us to think about our cases in a more holistic way and do necessary assignments now that don’t have an imminent filing date but are necessary and would otherwise have been done in a panic late at night. All those important projects that keep falling to the bottom of the in-tray because a court isn’t demanding something sooner, can now be done with forethought. Once a week, we move the usual work group meeting time to the end of the day and it is accompanied by beverages of choice.

Finally, by monitoring work-flow better, we can also watch our receivables and work in process in real time to make sure that lawyers are paying attention to the finances of the firm, getting their bills out promptly and monitoring collections. No one is too busy in trial or taking dozens of depositions to send out a bill. Managing cash flow is the key to emerging whole on the other side.

I think this experience has made us better managers; of course, the secret of law firms is that lawyers are generally good at being lawyers, but lousy at being managers. I also think in a strange way, operating this way has brought the firm closer together. The folks in the New York or Washington offices normally see their same-city colleagues every day, but their colleagues in the other office less often. Now we all see each other nearly every day, albeit by Zoom. We see and chat about our homes in the backgrounds (unless we put up our college football stadiums or the Great Wall of China as a background); we see each other’s kids and dogs.

We have always done a lot of human rights work and continue to do so. We have clients in Guantanamo Bay and on death row. We are very conscious that many of the people we serve, and many in our community, don’t have the luxury of social distancing or physical safety or health care or Zoom. We think about them and try to push their cases forward to the extent we can. We lawyers will be fine.

Reprinted with permission from Law.com © 2020 ALM Media Properties, LLC. All rights reserved. Further duplication without permission is prohibited, contact 877-257-3382 or reprints@alm.com.

Let’s Start Planning for Return to Office (RTO) Now!

JK Moving

The curve for the coronavirus is starting to flatten.  As such, many of our clients are shifting their focus to bringing employees back to the office.  This is also known in the industry as Return to Office (RTO).  So, what can we do now to plan, so that we are operationally ready when we get the “green light” to come back to work?

We first must make sure that our teams have a safe and healthy workplace to come back to. It’s not too early to start planning for the time when quarantines and shelter-in-place orders end. We will have a new distributed workforce ecosystem to get prepared for.

Gensler and HOK Architects have provided great tips for planning for Return to Office (RTO):
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Tip 1:  Enhanced cleaning
Hand sanitizer will still be needed.  Desks and doors still must be sanitized regularly, and more rigorous cleaning protocols should be established.

Tip 2:  Phased employee returns
Some companies are considering bringing their workforce back in phases.  This is to help limit the number of employees in the office at one time.  One consideration is offering an option for alternating days where employees work in the office and then work from home.

Tip 3:  Social distancing
More than likely the 6 foot social distancing rule will still be in effect until the threat of the virus is gone.  For you, this might include marking/taping off area on the floor as reminders to your employees.  Lounge chairs should be placed further apart. Conference rooms will be shrunk down to 10 people at a time.  There may be limits on the number of people who can enter an elevator at one time.

Tip 4:  Moving desks further apart
There may be the need to redesign the workstation/cubicle layout from its original configuration if the desks are less than 6 feet apart.  Consider adding glass partitions to low-walled cubicles to help block the potential transmission of the virus.

Tip 5:  Reduce hot-desking/benching
Many bench desks are not 6 feet wide and would not allow for the current social distancing guidelines.  Companies may have to pull desks apart or stagger employees, so they are not facing one another.  Hoteling stations or hot desking may need to be put on pause until the pandemic is over.

Tip 6:  Digital Imaging
While some employees will return to the office, others may choose to continue to work from home.  The need for digital information is a must when working remotely.  You may need to hire a digital imaging provider to digitally scan your most important files (especially for law firms) to allow for ease of access.

Tip 7:  Greater Demand
Finally, the pandemic has put some moving companies out of business, so the capacity will not be able to keep up with the demand.  Secure your moving resources now, even if your move date is not set in stone.

Given that time is of the essence to set your RTO plan in motion, consider enlisting the support of a moving and logistics company who can advise what steps to take.  And most of all, stay safe.

April 2020 Diversity Observances

May is Asian Pacific American Heritage Month in the United States. The month of May was chosen to commemorate the immigration of the first Japanese to the United States on May 7, 1843, and to mark the anniversary of the completion of the transcontinental railroad on May 10, 1869. The majority of the workers who laid the tracks on the project were Chinese immigrants.

May is Older Americans Month, established in 1963 to honor the legacies and contributions of older Americans and to support them as they enter their next stage of life. May is Jewish American Heritage Month, which recognizes the diverse contributions of the Jewish people to American culture.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month (or Mental Health Month), which aims to raise awareness and educate the public about mental illnesses and reduce the stigma that surrounds mental illnesses.

Click here to view the full list of May observances.

Administrative Committees

Communications and Media Relations
As members of the Newsletter and Media Relations Committee, Chapter members participate in producing the award-winning Capital Connection. Members gather to brainstorm new ideas for editorial themes for upcoming editions. The newsletter reports Chapter business activities such as Section and Committee news and provides information about upcoming educational and other events. It also includes articles of interest to members and other legal management personnel, collected, authored and/or edited by members of the committee. This committee also works with other legal associations and the media to ensure that ALA and the Capital Chapter are represented in the legal industry. The Newsletter Committee welcomes new members.
Contact: Cindy Conover (Chair), Cindy.Conover@Shearman.com; Beth Fowler (Co-Chair), bfowler@robbinsrussell.com
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Diversity & Inclusion
The Capital Chapter of the Association of Legal Administrators is a professional organization comprised of administrative managers from private, corporate and government legal organizations in the Washington DC, Northern Virginia and suburban Maryland areas.  ALACC embraces and encourages diversity within the legal profession. We value diversity and those initiatives that promote it and look to partner with affiliated professional legal organizations to advance diversity. We not only strive to raise awareness, but to increase our sensitivity in the area of diversity and more closely reflect the diversity of our community at large. Having a more inclusive and diverse legal community will improve the quality of our organizations workforce and respond to our client’s requirements for diversity. As a committee we are very interested in your thoughts, comments, and suggestions about achieving greater diversity in our Chapter, our profession, and in our firms. 

Contact: Beth Fowler (Chair), bfowler@robbinsrussell.com; Denise Verdesoto (Co-Chair), deniseverdesoto@eversheds-sutherland.com
Salary Survey
The Salary Survey Committee is responsible for maintaining, updating and running the local survey each year. They review the positions listed, the job descriptions, and the benefits questions to ensure that the survey remains relevant to the end users. The members of the committee also promote the survey within the Chapter to stimulate participation. 

Contact: Valerie Williamson (Chair), valerie.williamson@bassberry.com; Herb Abercrombie Jr. (Co-Chair), HAbercrombie@jenner.com



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Member Experience
The Member Experience Committee will establish a welcoming environment for new members to be integrated into the Chapter through a formal Ambassador Program. Ambassadors will provide support and guidance to new members through their first 12 months of membership, ensuring new members realize benefits of membership and become ambassadors of the Chapter. If you would like more information and/or are interested in becoming an Ambassador, please contact the Chair or Co-Chair.

Contact: LaVerne Anenia (Chair), LaVerne.Anenia@dbr.com; Kim Santaiti-Potter (Co-Chair), kim.potter@alston.com


Educational Communities

Small Firm and Branch Office Administrators
The Small Firm and Branch Office Administrators Community focuses on a broad range of topics of interest to local administrators who must coordinate with other offices of their firms, as well as to provide administrators of law firms with 35 or fewer attorneys educational opportunities through vendor presentations, idea sharing and open forums specifically designed for those who work in smaller firms.. The Community's monthly luncheon meetings, held on the fourth Tuesday of each month at 12:30 pm, provide a venue for members to discuss issues of common interest, share ideas, and network. Members are encouraged to raise topics and to recommend speakers. 

Contact: Joanna Hurt (Chair), jhurt@mccarter.com; Tabatha Harris (Chair), tsh@dwgp.com
Listserv: branch@lists.alacapchap.org and smallfirm@lists.alacapchap.org
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Office Operations Management and IT
The members of the Office Operations Management and IT Community represent a cross section of legal expertise from functional administrators to branch office managers. The Community meets on the second Thursday of each month at noon. We welcome all members to join the section, especially if you are an administrator in a small law office and you have to wear multiple hats. We can provide you with many best practices to run your operation smoothly.

Contact: Giovanni DiLuca (Chair), gdiluca@zuckerman.com; Janelle E. Rynes (Co-Chair), janelle.rynes@arentfox.com
Listserv: ooms@lists.alacapchap.org

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Intellectual Property (IP)
The Intellectual Property (IP) Community focuses on all aspects of legal management as it pertains to the IP Administrator. The group discusses the complexity of the ever-changing IP environment and how to effectively create and apply IP specific, non-legal procedures in both boutique and general practice firms.

Contact: Judi Heston (Chair), jheston@nixonpeabody.com
Listserv: ipadmin@lists.alacapchap.org
Human Resources
The Human Resources Community operates as a venue for educational information on global human resources issues.  While the Community is mostly comprised of HR professionals, any member is invited to participate in the meetings which typically take place on the second or third Wednesday of each month.  The meetings feature industry speakers or roundtable discussions on topics such as recruiting, benefits, strategic planning, performance management, career pathing, retention and other matters of interest.

Contact: Cindy Schuler (Co-Chair), cindy.schuler@hugheshubbard.com; Monique Terrell (Co-Chair), mterrell@foxrothschild.com

Listserv: hr@lists.alacapchap.org

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Next Generation Leaders
The mission of the Next Generation Leaders Community is to support our next generation of leaders and close the gap faced by our association and the legal industry as a whole by providing a community for Millennial legal managers and new managers in the legal field with a focus on mentoring, education, and networking. To accomplish this goal, the section hosts monthly meetings, pop-up events, and educational sessions, and provides 2-way mentoring opportunities. 
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Contact: Amy Walkowiak (Chair), awalkowiak@dcwhitecollar.com; Ana Sobalvarro (Co-Chair), asobalvarro@bomcip.com 
Listserv: nextgen@lists.alacapchap.org