708 COLLECTIONS PERCENT

                                 Percent Collections affects Profit-Sharing Awards and Performance Pay

Associates in 2005 were getting Awards and Performance Pay commensurate with Group % Collections.  Shortly after that, such benefits were commensurate with their Individual % Collections because it was more fair and promoted accountability.  At that time and for the next couple of years, Paralegals worked primarily for one Associate and their Awards and Performance Pay was commensurate with their Associate’s % Collections. 

Then Paralegals began to work for more than one Associate so such benefits became calculated with Group % Collections.  Starting in 2019, Paralegals and Business Staffers got Awards and Performance Pay commensurate with their own Individual % Collections.  Because Individual % Collections bounced high and low and was too sensitive to the effects of one Client, the higher of Group or Individual % Collections began being used on a trial basis.  This costs the Corp more money in the long run but it tends to increase % Collections and has worked well from 7/1/19 – 6/30/20.  In that era, much “old money” was being finally collected and % Collections stayed above 100% for surprisingly over a year.

Because Awards are given monthly, a slow paying client can cause a Paralegal and a Business Staffer to have poor Individual % Collections for some months which makes them feel helpless because the lawyer can or even is compelled to continue to work for that Client.  Group % Collections relies on all Clients and therefore fluctuates less.  Although Parraguirre caused big discrepancies monthly for Chantel and Jackie in semester 1 of 2020, their % Individual Collections for Award purposes were temporarily on a trial basis calculated without his influence which gave them a much larger % Collections and less chance of losing monthly % Collections Awards. When such slow paying clients pay later than 3 months for Awards or later than 6 months for Performance Pay, they eventually pay with “old money” that improves the % Collections, potentially causing the Corp to double pay.  Removing all slow paying clients “old money” out of the calculations possibly for years like Arreguini is so not practical.  For Paralegals and Business Staff, 7/1/2020’s Performance Pay was calculated on the higher of Group or Individual % Collections without taking Parraguirre out against Chantel’s wishes and unfounded expectations which lead to hard feelings.  Chantel was told that slow paying Parraguirre “would not hurt her” which remains to be seen after 2 more semesters.

Therefore through hard lessons learned, to motivate and be more than fair to Staff, the following practice will be followed for semester 2 of 2020.  For Awards and for Performance Pay, the higher of Group or Individual % Collections will be used for Paralegals and for Business Staff.  No slow paying clients will be allowed to skew the calculations by taking them out temporarily or permanently for Awards or for Performance pay.  Over 3 semesters, this will surely create higher employee Awards and Performance Pay on average than if only Group % Collections were used as was done prior to 7/1/2019.  95% Group Collections is par, 98% is quite good, 100% or higher is not sustainable.  Individual % Collection can often go over 100% from “old money” which is Award and Perf Pay gravy-like perks for Paralegals and Business Staff.

Pertinent to this decision are the following facts:
1.  Marilyn is the owner, rainmaker, administrator, and the Client complaint department. 
2.  Good and bad reviews and reputations are tied to her name.  Therefore she is very reluctant to fire any Client nor be a hard ass, especially to high end or highly influential Clients.  She makes long term good decisions that are good for business
3.  This means it is always her call whether to let a Client pay slowly or not at all or part of what is owed. 
4.  Associates may refuse to work for certain Clients but it is always Marilyn’s prerogative to not fire those Clients and to take them on and keep them while shielding Staff. 
5.  The Court can refuse to allow a client to be fired and to keep petitioning the Court for such would create animosity from the Court.  A good working relationship with Judges is good business practice.
6.  Paralegals and Business Staffers may see this as taking Awards and Performance Pay away from them but that is short sighted.  Losing a little occasionally from a theoretical ideal in the short run is a gain for everyone in the long run.
7.  Marilyn and her policies create jobs, high pay, steady employment, perks and her Profit-Sharing Awards and Profit-Sharing Performance Pay shares the wealth mathematically, not emotionally and not by allowing Cherry Picking data to prejudice results which would be unfair by taking money out of her pocket instead of profit-sharing from actual profits.
8.  Make believe idyllic Utopian situations are for dreams.  A family law office is never going to be Utopia.
9.  The real world says that Staff has joined Marilyn’s crusade and policies which are extremely well thought out and tried and proven.  Latching onto Marilyn’s star is long term brilliance.
Please see the greater picture and be glad for generally great outcomes and not get caught up in the drama over an occasional temporary and small slightly detrimental event.