Ideally, policies should be created by the team member who performs the tasks. This team member knows the policy better than anyone. If the policy is retrieving medical records, the medical records "custodian" should create the policy.
That said, I created most of the policies in www.Fisherpedia.com. Policy creation is a continual work in progress. When a new policy comes to mind, I document the policy, share it with our team and ask for their feedback. www.Fisherpedia.com will never be a finished product. We are always trying to improve our systems.
The Starting Point for a Systematic Law Firm
Where do you begin? Do you answer the same questions over and over again? Of course, you do. Every recurring question is a subject for a new policy. Everything that you do should be systematized, e.g., hiring and firing, responding to discovery responses, etc.
Join the private Facebook group, “Systematizing Your Law Firm for Growth”, created by the master policy-maker, Jay Ruane, Esq. Every week, Jay shares policies on his private Facebook group that you can copy and paste into your policies.
Our Open Door Policy
I have an open door policy. Whenever a team member has a question, I ask them, ."Do we have a policy for this?" If we don't have a policy, I ask the team member to create a policy in Fisherpedia. If we have a policy and the team member is not following the policy, I gently remind them of the existence of the policy.
Incentivizing Team Members to Create Policies
It is not easy to get team members to create policies. Some are simply not motivated or policy driven. We offer a $50 gift card for each policy created by a team member. This has resulted in some of our best policies. CELEBRATE AND REWARD whenever a team member creates a policy.
Over the last 5-10 years, Fisherpedia is the best thing I've done for my law firm. Our employees love the guidance that Fisherpedia provides.
