FLEXIBLE IT IS KEY COMPONENT FOR EXPANSION AT LEADING LAW FIRM
Philip Lee’s transition to secure remote services proved invaluable during the pandemic, explains Mark Feldman, Strategic Relationship Manager, SureSkills
Philip Lee is one of Ireland’s fastest growing corporate and commercial law firms, and the company expects total staff headcount will grow to 200 people by the end of this year with the recruitment of 50 new lawyers. Earlier this year, the company moved into its new head office on Dublin’s Burlington Road, and it plans to open a new London office, in addition to its office in San Francisco. It was named as Corporate Law Firm of the Year at the 2021 Irish Law Awards. As Philip Lee has achieved these milestones during a time of rapid expansion, it has had the vital support of flexible IT together with the backing of various trusted service providers. The process began in 2018, when Jason McGovern joined as IT manager. Jason set out to modernise and secure the firm’s technology portfolio, and one of the first projects he led was to replace all enduser desktop machines with Windows 10 laptops, all with remote access capability while ensuring they used the latest in security standards.
TRANSITION TO REMOTE WORKING
“After that project, staff had the ability to work remotely, taking our whole IT systems with them to their home, court or client meetings,” says Jason. When Covid-19 struck, the firm’s staff were ready for the transition to remote working. “With the benefit of hindsight, the upgrade was a great move. We were able to move to a remote working model seamlessly,” Jason recalls. After the success of the early IT projects that Jason oversaw, Philip Lee swapped out its old IT disaster recovery systems for a fully hosted and managed technology infrastructure, cloud-based disaster recovery and backup, and desktop as a service.
ACCESS FROM ANY LOCATION
Instead of needing to buy new hardware and then manage the infrastructure on site, SureSkills monitors and manages the infrastructure 24/7 on behalf of the firm. This ensures the partners, lawyers and support staff can access files and stay in contact with colleagues and clients from any location – so their office is always with them wherever they are working. “Being able to pass any support issues to my team or to SureSkills is invaluable. Having that extra resource that’s familiar with our set-up is vital. SureSkills know our infrastructure almost as intimately as we do,” adds Jason. As a measure of how important IT has become to the firm, Jason was recently appointed IT director. He relies on the right combination of an in-house IT manager and two IT administrators, together with trusted external partners. SureSkills’ fully managed service means Jason can dedicate more time to focusing on the firm’s strategic direction and innovating with IT.
PROGRESSIVE APPROACH
“The partners in the firm are very progressive when it comes to technology,” says Jason. “Making sure our IT systems are reliable, safe, secure and an asset to the business can be a challenge, but we work hard to ensure the firm is cutting edge and innovative when it comes to technology.” Jason can see vast differences in the firm’s IT since he joined. “Now it’s not just IT support, but a service we provide – not just to the firm, but to our clients. The tools we can provide are secure and allow us as a firm to give our clients a class-leading service while reducing the cost for our clients through AI, automation and well as other cutting-edge technology.”
‘Having that extra resource that’s familiar with our set-up is vital’