March Madness continues here at Gimbal. OK, it’s not sports, it’s Matter Management Month!  A Kanban board is a simple, effective project management tool that’s adaptable to pretty much any environment. So how can you customize it in a way that makes the most sense for you and your practice?

Last week we talked about a simplified matter management board with three columns: to do, doing and done. This will work for basic file management, but to really manage workflow effectively, you’re going to need more detail, especially for your complex matters.

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So how do you customize your matter management board so it performs for you? We are sharing the #1 tip in our Matter Management Quick-Start Guide.

To get the level of detail you need, you just break up your single “doing” column into a number of columns, each one representing a phase that your matter moves through.

For example, you are a civil litigation attorney. Your board could include columns like “Documents to be drafted,” “Filing and service,” and “Mediation.” If you do wills and estates, your columns might include “Client information gathering,” “Initial consultation,” “Drafting,” and a column for things that are “Awaiting signature.” You do not need to be too detailed here. Most matters go through about eight to twelve phases.

Then put each matter in its respective column, depending on its progress. Now you can see all your matters at a glance and know exactly what’s going on. What is more, you’ll have a visual representation of the distribution of your workload and the allocation of work across your teams. When you know who is doing what, you can be sure that work is always distributed in a way that’s efficient and fair.

If you want to unlock maximum productivity with your matter management boards, go ahead and download our Matter Management Quick-Start Guide. We are sharing everything we know about successfully implementing this system in a law practice. We know it works because we have been relying on it for years. We have even included templates for different types of matters to get you started.

We love seeing pictures of your boards! After you have set your board up, why not snap a photo and drop it into the LeanLegal Community on Facebook! It is always interesting to see the different ways that these boards can be customized.

Next week, we will show you how you can use your board to simplify management of a single complex matter with multiple steps. Be sure to sign up here so you don’t miss a Tip of the Week.

Thanks a lot everybody!