When I was Director of Client Engagement at a law firm focused on early stage technology companies, I was often asked by clients—both new and existing—how our firm would use technology to facilitate and enhance our work with that client. There were the obvious answers like data rooms and equity management software, but rarely did these technologies provide the collaboration and transparency our clients wanted. They weren’t unreasonable in their inquiries. Indeed, the legal services industry is undergoing a transformation in how clients view their lawyers’ use of technology to support the lawyer-client relationship.

Lawyers and accountants are in similar positions as this transformation occurs. Each of these fields requires specialized, technical skill and attention to detail. The people who work in these professions are considered important service providers who help companies achieve their strategic goals, and entrepreneurs know the importance of choosing the right service providers.

In researching client service trends, I found that about two-thirds of client buying decisions in these industries are based on the relationship that a client has with a particular individual. Law firms and accounting firms know this, and in response, they’ve put great efforts into making clients feel loved—through tickets to sporting events, client appreciation gatherings, and more. However, as can be seen by the adoption of technologies the entrepreneur can own, like Dropbox and Google Drive, people are eager for their service providers to adopt technology solutions to support and enhance these relationships, especially when these technologies facilitate faster, more accurate delivery of legal and accounting services.

In my eyes, entrepreneurs and the service providers who work with them have an opportunity to adopt technology solutions that help lawyers and accountants work with their clients in a more efficient and engaging way. New, robust tools exist that provide the accuracy and efficiency these professions require, and enable professionals in these firms to showcase their tech savviness to individuals and companies who are eager to use technology to work with their service providers. These tools are a perfect match for entrepreneurs who are short on time and eager to maximize their budgets for legal and accounting services, but who need certainty that their legal and accounting needs are handled correctly.

One example of software aimed at improving accounting processes is Botkeeper. Botkeeper has disrupted bookkeeping by automating data entry and accounting through the use of robotic process automation. Businesses appreciate the improved financial accuracy, real-time 24/7 accounting, enhanced visual reporting and analytics, and reduced costs associated with doing bookkeeping. Botkeeper also provides a skilled accountant to review financials, and to provide hands-on support and quality assurance to ensure accuracy and efficiency.

And if you’ve spent much time perusing the contents of this blog, you know that the Fidelity platform empowers entrepreneurs to understand more about their businesses and modernize the relationship between that entrepreneur and his or her lawyer. Entrepreneurs are busy building their companies, and they want to avoid unnecessary fees for legal services. Attorneys want to provide value to their clients by focusing on strategic guidance over standard documents. The Fidelity platform lets entrepreneurs leverage technology to more efficiently consume legal services, and it helps the attorney be the entrepreneur’s strategic counsel and go-to resource for complicated matters. Effectively, it’s the answer to the questions I got from entrepreneurs who wondered how my colleagues and I would use technology to support our relationship with that entrepreneur’s company.

The goal of companies like Botkeeper and Fidelity is to deploy technology to make businesses run better and more efficiently. My years of experience looking at how law firms understand client service has taught me that service providers supporting businesses can benefit significantly from adopting technology to work with their clients.

Want to use technology to transform the way you run your business? Let's talk about whether Fidelity can help.