WO2019209171A1

WO2019209171A1 - Method and system for managing accolades

Info

Publication number: WO2019209171A1
Application number: PCT/SG2019/050206
Authority: WO
Inventors: Timothy Julien SMITH
Original assignee: Trident Corporate Services (Singapore) Pte Limited As Trustee For The Oneplace Unit Trust
Priority date: 2018-04-23
Filing date: 2019-04-15
Publication date: 2019-10-31
Also published as: SG10201803392QA

Abstract

A method and system of managing a billing record for a record management system, where an overall accolade or metric is presented based on a combination of key metric indicators from the billing system and a list of goals and targets.

Description

METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR MANAGING ACCOLADES

TECHNICAL FIELD

[001] The present invention relates to a method and system for the managing of billing records. More specifically, the present invention relates to an overview display regarding the state of a client account.

BACKGROUND

[002] Within a record management system for understanding and communicating with clients, both prospective and past, contacts and the like, client records are populated with information that can be used by the users for various purposes. Client records are either created or they are fed through an associated billing system that is communication with the record management database. These client records contain various fields and information relating to a client, for example where the company is located, details of the contact person(s) at the company, activity with the company (e.g. meetings, emails, phone calls, tasks, etc), pipeline opportunities (to convert into work), matters currently working on, amount of revenue generated, etc.

[003] These fields can be used to gauge the state of affairs or relationship with the client, and one way of providing snap shot information is through a direct feed from the firm's billing system mapped based on the client, for example a unique client code. This generates snap shots such as total billings by year, total matters by year, billings broken down by practice group, etc. Combining this information with other snapshots like total non-billable by year, total write-offs by year, total work-in-progress (WIP) by year, average time to pay invoices, and comparing it against data captured elsewhere such as total marketing spend by year and total return on investment (ROI) by year. Other deeper metrics can also be generated using data such as which users billed the most for a particular client by year (top time keepers by year), leaderboard reports, and dashboards accessible using a personalized page or tab for each user. A pipeline opportunity record, which are entered or created by users of the system to record the details of a potential client after meeting the client or after being referred the work from another company. These are linked to matter records once the potential client becomes a client.

[004] The source of the data can be internally captured data or via external systems connected to the billing system. However it is difficult to present the information from so many sources in a format that is easy to read and understand without having to trawl through the many records and fields within each record.

[005] Hence, there is a need for a billing record management system and method that is able to provide snap shots into the accounts of a client to allow the user to make a decision or to have an overview quickly and efficiently, and have this information presented in a meaningful way.

SUMMARY

[006] The above and other problems are solved and an improvement in the art is made by a method and system in accordance with this invention. A first advantage of the method and system in accordance with this invention is that it provides a snapshot into a client, especially before a meeting. This allows the user to gain insight into the state of the client, the status of the relationship with the client, and how to move forward. A second advantage of the method and system in accordance with this invention is that the relevant managers can be alerted when the overall indicator has been red for a period of time. Preemptive remedial action can then be taken to prevent the loss of the client and the business. A third advantage of the method and system in accordance with this invention is that it makes the user more efficient as relevant information is presented and highlighted according to needs.

[007] The present invention provides a system and method for managing a billing record for a record management system. In one embodiment in accordance with the invention, there is a method comprising accessing a billing record with a plurality of fields including a first field and a second field, comparing a first field of the billing record against a first predetermined list of thresholds, generating a first outcome that satisfies the first predetermined list of thresholds, comparing a second field of the billing record against a second predetermined list of thresholds, generating a second outcome that satisfies the second predetermined list of thresholds, generating an overall outcome based on at least the first outcome and the second outcome, and displaying the overall outcome, where the overall outcome is generated by comparing the overall outcome against an overall predetermined list of thresholds. In other embodiments, the overall outcome is generated by comparing a first outcome with a second outcome with a third outcome, wherein the third outcome is generated by comparing a third field against a third predetermined list of thresholds. In further embodiments, the overall outcome is highlighted using colours to display the overall outcome achieving the overall predetermined list of thresholds. In alternative embodiments, the overall outcome is highlighted using fonts to display the overall outcome achieving the overall predetermined list of thresholds. In yet further embodiments, the overall outcome is highlighted using text styles to display the overall outcome achieving the overall predetermined list of thresholds. In yet other embodiments, the first outcome and the second outcome are selected from one of a metric of client credit score, revenue, pipeline opportunities, pipeline conversions, feedback, activities, and cross-selling.

[008] In accordance with an embodiment, there is a system for managing a billing record for a record management system, the system comprising billing system including a processor and memory, a database module including a processor and memory configured to process and store a plurality of billing records, a data processing system including a processor and memory, the data processing system configured to access a billing record with a plurality of fields including a first field and a second field, compare a first field of the billing record against a first predetermined list of thresholds, generate a first outcome that satisfies the first predetermined list of thresholds, compare a second field of the billing record against a second predetermined list of thresholds, generate a second outcome that satisfies the second predetermined list of thresholds, generate an overall outcome based on at least the first outcome and the second outcome, and display the overall outcome, where the overall outcome is generated by comparing the overall outcome against an overall predetermined list of thresholds. In other embodiments, the overall outcome is generated by comparing a first outcome with a second outcome with a third outcome, wherein the third outcome is generated by comparing a third field against a third predetermined list of thresholds. In further embodiments, the overall outcome is highlighted using colours to display the overall outcome achieving an overall predetermined list of thresholds. In yet other embodiments, the overall outcome is highlighted using fonts to display the overall outcome achieving an overall predetermined list of thresholds. In alternative embodiments, the overall outcome is highlighted using text styles to display the overall outcome achieving an overall predetermined list of thresholds. In yet further embodiments, the overall outcome is highlighted using text styles to display the overall outcome achieving an overall predetermined list of thresholds. In yet other embodiments, the first field and the second field are selected from one of client credit score, revenue, pipeline opportunities, pipeline conversions, feedback, activities, and cross-selling.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[009] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein and form part of the specification, illustrate various embodiments of the present disclosure and, together with the description, further serve to explain the principles of the disclosure and to enable a person skilled in the pertinent art to make and use the embodiments disclosed herein. In the drawings, like reference numbers indicate identical or functionally similar elements. [0010] Figure 1 illustrates a representation of a network of data processing systems in which aspects of the disclosed embodiments may be implemented;

[0011] Figure 2 illustrates a schematic view of a software system for carrying out an embodiment;

[0012] Figure 3A and 3B illustrates a method of managing a billing record in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0013] The various configurations discussed in these non-limiting examples can be varied and are used to illustrate at least one embodiment and are not intended to limit the scope thereof.

[0014] Figure 1 shows a record system in accordance with an embodiment of the invention is illustrated. The system 1 10 includes a server 1 12. In other embodiments, the server 1 12 can be any processing device including a processor and sufficient resources to perform the process of providing a rebate to a customer. The server 1 12 can be any processing device including a processor and sufficient resources to perform the process of providing a rebate to a customer. The server 1 12 is connected to an HTTP server 1 14. HTTP server 1 14 uses HTTP or any other appropriate stateless protocols to communicate via a network 1 16 such as the Internet, with any other device connected to the network 1 16.

[0015] In the illustrated embodiment, user devices include personal computers 1 18, CE players, and mobile phones 120. In other embodiments, user devices can include consumer electronic devices such as televisions, set top boxes, video game consoles, tablets, and other devices that are capable of connecting to a server via HTTP and playing back encoded media. A storage unit 130, which can be in the form of memory, databases etc, is in communication with the network 1 16. Although a specific architecture is shown in Figure 1 , any of a variety of architectures including system that perform conventional processes can be utilized that enable playback devices to request portions of the top level index file and the container files in accordance with embodiments of the invention.

[0016] Some process for providing methods and systems in accordance with embodiments of this invention are executed by a user device or user mobile device. The relevant components in a playback device that can perform processes including adaptive streaming processes in accordance with embodiments of the invention are shown in Figure 2. One skilled in the art will recognize that user device 200 may include other components that are omitted for brevity without departing from the embodiments of the invention as described. The user device 200 includes a processor 205, a non-volatile memory 210, and a volatile memory 215. The processor 205 is a processor, microprocessor, controller, or a combination of processors, microprocessor, and/or controllers that performs instructions stored in the volatile 215 or non-volatile memory 210 to manipulate data stored in the memory. The non-volatile memory 210 can store processor instructions utilized to configure the user device 200 to perform processes including processes in accordance with embodiments of the invention and/or data for the processes being utilized. In other embodiments, the user device software and/or firmware can be stored in any of a variety of non- transitory computer readable media appropriate to a specific application.

[0017] The communications network refers to any contact between the parties described and is accomplished through any suitable communication means, including, but not limited to, a telephone network, public switch telephone network, intranet, Internet, extranet, WAN, LAN, point of interaction device, point of sale device, personal digital assistant, cellular phone, kiosk terminal, automated teller machine (ATM), etc.), online communications, off-line communications, wireless communications, satellite communications, and/or the like. One skilled in the art will also appreciate that, for security reasons, any databases, systems, or components of the present invention may consist of any combination of databases or components at a single location or at multiple locations, wherein each database or system includes any of various suitable security features, such as firewalls, access codes, encryption, de-encryption, compression, decompression, and/or the like.

[0018] Figures 3A and 3B illustrates a high-level flow chart of operations illustrating logical operational steps of a method 300 for managing a billing record for a record management system, in accordance with the disclosed embodiments. It can be appreciated that each of the steps or logical operations of the method 300 depicted in Figures 3A and 3B can be implemented by executing a program instruction or a group of instructions in the record management system. Figures 3A and 3B are connected or linked by the circled C indicated on both diagrams. [0019] In an embodiment, the system provides an overview or a snapshot and to group companies by revenue, sector, location, or value to the firm (e.g. Key Client program). A goals tab also allows users to create a Firm Vision and correlate it to Goals, and assigning Measures and Progress against those Measures. This is one form of Key Metric Indicators, which allows an overview of an individual client account or the accounts of a group of clients to highlight whether the client's relationship with the firm was on track or required attention. A workflow engine would then provide users with email notifications of clients whose relationship with the firm required attention. By configuring the goals and targets for each client, this tab or snap shot can show this information in a useful way, and allow the user to track progress for each client, either from within the system or actual billings from the billing system.

[0020] In some embodiments, the Key Metric Indictor is displayed at a prominent position on the screen, for example on the top right-hand-side of the display. Multiple metrics can be combined to arrive at the Key Metric Indicator.

[0021] These simple to understand metrics were a scaled back approach derived from the reports and dashboards feature available on the Home Page or Reports tabs. The Key Metric Indicators were designed for users who are extremely time poor to disseminate this information in the quickest approach possible.

[0022] Some examples of common Key Metric Indicators are described in the following paragraphs: [0023] Credit Watch Score labelled “Credit Score”. The billing system can be integrated with external systems to provide users the ability to determine whether the clients are able to pay their invoices that they will generate for legal services, and whether they should continue to act for the Client.

[0024] Revenue for the Quarter labelled“Revenue”. This can take the form of a number 140, which indicated $140,000 for the quarter, and this is highlighted in red because it is below the quarter’s target of $200,000. The same number would be highlighted in green if it is above the target amount, and orange if it is below the target amount but within 10% of the target, although this percentage can be predetermined by the user.

[0025] Qualified Pipeline Opportunities for the Quarter labelled“Pipeline”. This can be a number derived from the Pipeline Opportunities tab compared against the number set by the Goals tab. The system would highlight or indicate this as red if the target was not met, green if the target was met, and orange if the target was within 10% of being met).

[0026] Pipeline Opportunity Conversation labelled“Pipeline Convert”. This may be a percentage of Pipeline Opportunities won, where the system would indicate or highlight in red for a conversion between 0-50% (which can be deemed a failure), indicate orange for a marginal success of 50-60%, and green for success cases for a 60-100% conversion. These algorithms or bands or categories or thresholds are configurable by the user, possibly via the Goals tab. [0027] Average Feedback for the quarter labelled “Feedback”. This can be derived from feedback captured from a Feedback tab, and gathered from the client at various points of the matter, possibly midway through the matter or even after the matter has been completed. Ad hoc client feedback can also be collated together. All the feedback is averaged and driven out of the Goals tab and is indicated red for a feedback of 0-50%, orange for 50-60%, and green for a feedback in the range of 60-100%. These values can set or configured by the user as well.

[0028] Activities for the Quarter labelled“Activities”. This can be driven by the Goals tab with a number 5, which means 5 meetings, phone calls, tasks, etc for the quarter, where 0-10 is red, 10-20 is orange and 20+ is green - the algorithm is driven out of the Goals tab and Activities recorded in OnePlace),

[0029] Cross-selling Referrals for the Quarter labelled“Cross-Selling”. This may be driven out of the Goals tab and by the number of cross-selling referrals. This is typically displayed as a number, where 0-3 is indicated in red, and a number between 3-5 is orange and while any number above 5 is shown or indicated as green. The algorithm is driven out of the Goals tab and Cross-Selling Referrals captured on Pipeline Opportunity, as well as Matter records in the system, etc.

[0030]The overall Key Metric Indicator algorithm can also be configured for a single“average” Client Key Metric Indictor to describe the health of that client. In an example, the Overall Indicator would show or indicate Green if 4 of the 5 metrics on the page are Green; the Overall Indicator showing Orange if 3 of the 5 are Green; and the Overall indicator highlighting or displaying in Red if only 2 or less of the 5 are Green. An overview can be done each month for any clients whose Overall Indicator is red, which would call the user's attention to the particular client and to instigate remedy actions or improvements. Email Notification can also be sent to staff or the firm’s Client Relationship Managers to alert them of this.

[0031] In Figure 3A and 3B, the method 300 starts when one or more of the Key Metric Indicators are used. For Key Metric Indicator 1 "Credit Score" or the credit watch score is obtained from the billing system 310. This is sorted into an outcome or a result based on the credit watch score and an indicator is displayed 312. This can be differentiated in the form of colours, shapes, font, style, numbers or any other form of graphic or text that renders it easy to refer to in a glance. Based on the indicator, the system may send a notification 314 to the relevant users to inform them that the credit score watch has reached or fallen below a threshold, limit or score, and this can be via email, system alert or any other form of notification.

[0032]Another Key Metric Indicator 2 "Revenue" is based on the revenue for a time period 320, and this can be obtained from the billing system. A predetermined target revenue for the particular record or client is obtained from the Goals Tab and compared against the actual value in terms of time and billing amount and display an indicator accordingly 322. This indicator can be the actual amount highlighted in a colour for easy reference. Based on the indicator, the system may send a notification email to the relevant users to inform them that the revenue for the time period has reached or fallen below a threshold, limit or score compared to the predetermined target 324. The user can vary or change the target, as well as the time period for which the system to report. Some embodiments also show a progress value or bar that would display the amount, time or percentage value required to achieve the target.

[0033]The Key Metric Indicator 3 "Pipeline opportunities" can be for a set time period like a month, a quarter or a year, and the number of pipeline opportunities created during that period of time and this can be obtained from the billing system 330. Based on the number of pipeline opportunities set for each client in the goals tab, the system compares the actual count value against the target and indicates accordingly 332. This indicator can be the actual number highlighted in a colour or any other graphic indicator for easy reference. Based on the indicator, the system may send a notification email to the relevant users to inform them that the pipeline opportunities for the time period has reached or fallen below a threshold, limit or score compared to the predetermined target 334.

[0034]Another Key Metric Indicator 4 "Pipeline conversions" can be created for a time period defined by the user and created from the billing system 340. A set of user predetermined percentages or thresholds from the goals tab can be used to compare against the actual value of percentages and the system displays an indication or outcome, either using the actual figure in a particular colour corresponding to the thresholds or any other graphic indicator 342. The system may also send out notifications to the relevant or selected users based on the thresholds reached, breached, or exceeded by a number 344. [0035]A further Key Metric Indicator 5 "Feedback" can refer to an average of an amount of feedback for a time period, for example a month, a quarter, or a year and is obtained from the feedback tab 350. The user can define a predetermined target, percentage or threshold that can be used to compare against the average feedback obtained and the system displays an indication or outcome, either using the actual figure in a particular colour corresponding to the thresholds or any other graphic indicator 352. Based on the indicator, the user can also be notified by the system 354.

[0036] One more Key Metric Indicator 6 "Activities" can be the number of activities a time period and this can be correlated from the billing system 360. The system then compares the count against the target number of activities from the goals tab and provides an indicator 362. The indicator can be the actual number highlighted in a particular style, colour or format. The system can notify the user based on the indicator 364.

[0037]Another example of a Key Metric Indicator 7 "Cross-Selling" can refer to the number of cross-selling referrals for a time period and can be obtained from the billing system 370. The system determines the count of cross-selling referrals driven out of the goals tab and provides an actual value or an indicator or both, where the actual value is indicated in a particular colour, font, or style 372. Again the system can provide a notification to the user based on the indicator 374 based on user preferences. [0038] The overall Key Metric Indicator or overall health indicator can be displayed based on some selected Key Metric Indicators. In some embodiments, five or more of the Key Metric Indicators 380 are used to determine the overall Key Metric Indicator. The relevant user can be notified by the system when the overall health indicator falls below, reaches, rises above a threshold or colour, and this notification can be in an email format, an on-screen alert, a system message, or any other form of messaging.

[0039] As understood by one of ordinary skill in the art, the present invention can be implemented with special purpose computers, devices, and servers that are programmed to implement the embodiments described herein. Further, the system according to the embodiments disclosed herein is able accommodate many more combinations and permutations, or any other future electronic payment methods. For example, the system according to the embodiments disclosed herein can accommodate cloud based or app based record management system as well.

[0040] Thus, the present invention has been fully described with reference to the drawing figures. Although the invention has been described based upon these preferred embodiments, to those of skill in the art, certain modifications, variations, and alternative constructions would be apparent, while remaining within the spirit and scope of the invention. In order to determine the metes and bounds of the invention, therefore, reference should be made to the appended claims.

Claims

1 . A method of managing a billing record for a record management system, the method comprising: accessing a billing record with a plurality of fields including a first field and a second field; comparing a first field of the billing record against a first predetermined list of thresholds; generating a first outcome that satisfies the first predetermined list of thresholds; comparing a second field of the billing record against a second predetermined list of thresholds; generating a second outcome that satisfies the second predetermined list of thresholds; generating an overall outcome based on at least the first outcome and the second outcome; and displaying the overall outcome; wherein the overall outcome is generated by comparing the overall outcome against an overall predetermined list of thresholds.

2. The method of claim 1 , where the overall outcome is generated by comparing a first outcome with a second outcome with a third outcome, wherein the third outcome is generated by comparing a third field against a third predetermined list of thresholds.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the overall outcome is highlighted using colours to display the overall outcome achieving the overall predetermined list of thresholds.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the overall outcome is highlighted using fonts to display the overall outcome achieving the overall predetermined list of thresholds.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the overall outcome is highlighted using text styles to display the overall outcome achieving the overall predetermined list of thresholds.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first outcome and the second outcome are selected from one of a metric of client credit score, revenue, pipeline opportunities, pipeline conversions, feedback, activities, and cross-selling.

7. A system for managing a billing record for a record management system, the system comprising: a billing system including a processor and memory; a database module including a processor and memory configured to process and store a plurality of billing records; a data processing system including a processor and memory, the data processing system configured to access a billing record with a plurality of fields including a first field and a second field; compare a first field of the billing record against a first predetermined list of thresholds; generate a first outcome that satisfies the first predetermined list of thresholds; compare a second field of the billing record against a second predetermined list of thresholds; generate a second outcome that satisfies the second predetermined list of thresholds; and generate an overall outcome based on at least the first outcome and the second outcome; and display the overall outcome; wherein the overall outcome is generated by comparing the overall outcome against an overall predetermined list of thresholds.

8. The system according to claim 7, wherein said overall outcome is generated by comparing a first outcome with a second outcome with a third outcome, wherein the third outcome is generated by comparing a third field against a third predetermined list of thresholds.

9. The system according to claim 7, wherein the overall outcome is highlighted using colours to display the overall outcome achieving an overall predetermined list of thresholds.

10. The system according to claim 7, wherein the overall outcome is highlighted using fonts to display the overall outcome achieving an overall predetermined list of thresholds.

1 1 . The system according to claim 7, wherein the overall outcome is highlighted using text styles to display the overall outcome achieving an overall predetermined list of thresholds.

12. The system according to claim 7, wherein the overall outcome is highlighted using text styles to display the overall outcome achieving an overall predetermined list of thresholds.

13. The system according to claim 7, wherein the first field and the second field are selected from one of client credit score, revenue, pipeline opportunities, pipeline conversions, feedback, activities, and cross-selling.