First new customer installation of nFlow’s next generation digital dictation software version 5.0 an unequivocal success

nFlow, a leading developer of digital dictation software solutions for professional service firms, today announced that an installation of its widely reported next generation DDS 2.0 digital dictation system has been successfully completed for 100 users at leading top 50 accountancy firm Johnston Carmichael. nFlow DDS Version 5.0 has been deployed to users across 3 offices in Elgin, Inverurie and Huntly in just 2 weeks. A second phase will see the solution rolled out to an additional 90 users in December. In addition to rolling out nFlow DDS Version 5.0 Johnston Carmichael have also deployed nFlow Mobile for Blackberry to deliver remote dictation for users. The accountancy firm report that the software’s innovative web service architecture and modern Outlook 2007 .NET design has been a great success and delivered an excellent response from users.

Commenting on the project Johnston Carmichael IT Partner, Douglas Rintoul said, ‘Prior to selecting nFlow’s new Version 5.0 product we were already using a small installation of Winscribe over Citrix with our IFA team however there was interest in widening the use of DD so we decided to review the market. This led to a trial of both nFlow and Bighand in our Citrix environment as a comparison to Winscribe. Following this trial we decided to carry out a second trial of nFlow and Bighand with our executive team. Both suppliers were offering new versions so we started with a trial of Bighand however when we saw the nFlow Version 5.0 product we were completely blown away. We felt the excellent opportunities nFlow’s complete .NET design offered us in reducing administration of the application and the simple yet intuitive functionality combined with the modern Outlook 2007 look and feel meant it offered the best solution for us. It was also apparent during meetings that nFlow’s outstanding reputation for customer focus and technical capability was backed with very real passion and commitment, a reputation we saw reinforced during the installation. I can honestly say that nFlow have done an excellent job and that our choice of nFlow version 5.0 has been a great success.’

nFlow deployed the version 5.0 SQL databases and the .NET web services at Johnston Carmichael’s Aberdeen office. Plus they installed audio file repositories on local servers at each remote site. To complete the first phase of the installation the .NET component and driver management service was automatically deployed to all desktops and laptops with the servers prepared for the second phase of the rollout to a further 90 users in 6 offices, including Edinburgh, Glasgow, Inverness and Perth. The result of this was a fast and low cost implementation that saw the solution deployed to 100 users in just 2 weeks.

Tony Moxham, nFlow’s Technical Operations Director commented, ‘I believe the administration and maintenance functions in nFlow deliver an unbeatably low support overhead. Johnston Carmichael have a number of offices spread across Scotland so when they saw that the centralised .NET component and driver management service gave them centralised control of application maintenance at either a global and granular level they were very impressed. It means they don’t have the overhead of any 3rd party technologies such as SMS to achieve this. When you add to this the on demand service delivery of user configuration without needing additional technology like roaming profiles it all adds up to a very neat solution that suits mobility and hot desking across offices extremely well.’

nFlow DDS Version 5.0 provides a complete service orientated architecture that delivers everything a user needs to the PC when they log in. This is particularly relevant to user experience as rather than use registry keys to configure the experience as older technologies do, nFlow delivers all settings via the service to whichever PC the user logs on. It also delivers the specific dictation and transcription hardware drivers a user needs but is clever enough to automatically switch a user to an alternative device if it is available delivering complete flexibility in terms of hardware used.

nFlow Sales & Marketing Director, Rob Lancashire commented, ‘This project is significant as it not only represents a highly successful early adoption of our new generation DDS solution but it has been achieved in direct comparison with other leading technologies. This reinforces our belief that Version 5.0 represents a new generation of DDS system and validates the comments we have made in support of the DDS 2.0 concept. The success of this first installation is the result of a thoroughbred .Net solution designed in conjunction with Application Development Consultants from Microsoft and an nFlow team with an award winning commitment to customer focus and a deep understanding of customer requirements. We are very pleased the market reaction as it’s already resulted in competitive customer wins totalling nearly 500 users in just the first 2 months If there is a must have for Christmas then I believe nFlow version 5.0 is the DDS equivalent of the iPod.

nFlow Enables Digital Dictation via BlackBerry at Leading Regional UK Law Firm

nFlow, a leading supplier of digital dictation solutions, announces that Freeth Cartwright LLP, one of the UK's leading regional law firms, has chosen to deploy nFlow Mobile for BlackBerry application to allow fee-earners to dictate on case matters from their Blackberry devices when working from locations where it is not possible or convenient to use their laptops. This solution will be rolled-out across the firm’s five sites including Nottingham, Birmingham, Derby, Leicester, and Manchester, imminently.

Based on a very successful pilot, Freeth Cartwright has selected nFlow for the solutions flexibility and easy integration with ‘Case Viewer’, its award winning case management portal; and its simplicity. The implementation and integration of nFlow Mobile for BlackBerry application is straightforward and does not require expensive consultancy or additional investment in technology on the part of firms deploying the solution. In addition, as this solution is licensed per device instead of being monthly or yearly subscription-based, it is an inexpensive solution compared to similar other BlackBerry solutions or portable voice recorders available on the market.

Once fully implemented, all fee-earners at Freeth Cartwright will be able to better utilise their time when working remotely or on the move. Also, they will be able to expedite urgent client matters quickly and more efficiently. For example, fee-earners will be able to record a digital dictation on their BlackBerry through the installed nFlow Mobile and send to it the nFlow email gateway, where it will be imported into the firm’s case management system and automatically routed to the appropriate secretary for immediate typing.

The nFlow Mobile for BlackBerry application will deliver a professional digital dictation experience on the BlackBerry with features such as pause recording, playback, rewind, forward, insert, overwrite, save as draft, title and mark as urgent, making it very convenient, intuitive and easy to use.

Chris Nicholson, IT Manager at Freeth Cartwright LLP, commented, “Whilst we have a digital dictation system already in place, to facilitate further improved work efficiencies for our fee-earners with BlackBerry devices, who very often are away from the office, we were keen to explore if the BlackBerry could be used for digital dictation. On market investigation, we found nFlow to be competitively priced, straightforward and simple to implement along with comprehensive functionality to deliver increased productivity in a fee-earning environment. Also, we were able to see the company’s attention to detail when it came to customer support. They have been fantastic.”

Rob Lancashire, Sales and Marketing Director at nFlow, added, “We are always looking for ways to enable customers to extend the scope of their existing technology and in doing so, maximise their investment. Our solution’s open architecture allows it to seamlessly integrate with third party applications, facilitating improved workflow and therefore operational efficiencies for firms.

“Like us, Freeth Cartwright has a reputation for innovation and customer focus, which makes us a great partnership.”

nFlow Strengthens Leading Position in the Accountancy Sector With Another Customer Win

nFlow, a leading supplier of digital dictation solutions, today announced that Edmund Carr LLP, a leading South East based accountancy firm, has implemented nFlow as its Digital Dictation Software (DDS) solution of choice, replacing its traditional tape-based dictation system. Edmund Carr LLP chose nFlow for the solution’s ability to deliver immediate productivity benefits to the firm. In addition, the proven feedback from current users of nFlow’s DDS in the accountancy sector significantly contributed to Edmund Carr’s selection of nFlow.

The nFlow DDS solution is facilitating greater business efficiency and reducing operational costs due to better utilisation of staff resources, faster turnaround time of transcripts, and better management and control of dictation tasks, all of which is contributing to an enhanced customer service from Edmund Carr LLP.

Edmund Carr follows close on the heels PKF LLP, ranked amongst the UK’s top 10 accountants and business advisors; and Scott-Moncrieff, one of the leading Scotland-based firms, to deploy nFlow’s digital dictation technology.

Stewart Martin, Partner at Edmund Carr LLP, said, “Given the volume of transcripts that are generated in the firm, it made huge business sense for us to take advantage of modern digital dictation workflow technology to realise improved efficiency gains. We are already seeing a greater utilisation of our secretarial staff and are now able to use the extra resource for other important business activities such as business development and marketing. In fact, this is the best software we have taken on recently - it has delivered instant productivity benefits to the firm, which will give us a definite advantage in the current economic climate.

“When we started looking for a digital dictation solution, based on our market survey and dialogue with innovative technology users in the accountancy sector such as PKF, it became amply evident that nFlow is the leading choice of solution in this sector. However, during our interactions with the company, we were very impressed by nFlow’s understanding of the unique challenges in our industry, and the company’s articulation of its strategic focus on the accountancy sector for the long term. All this combined made nFlow the best choice for our business.”

The nFlow DDS solution is delivering significant efficiencies for fee-earners and secretaries alike at the firm. Fee-earners are able to prioritise tasks for secretaries based on client imperatives. Previously, secretarial staff were simply handed tapes with no idea of how long the transcripts were and what the level of urgency was. Now secretaries are able to view detailed information about the dictations provided and also receive Outlook-style alerts when tasks are due, significantly aiding efficiency and productivity. Also, because dictations are allocated in real-time, they are better able to organise workload and deliver more speedily, enabling fee-earners to offer an improved service to their clients.

These benefits will be even more pronounced during busy seasons such as January when tax returns are due. The bulk of dictations at Edmund Carr LLP are for letters and fee notes. nFlow will enable fee-earners to deliver personalised correspondence as opposed to standard letters, demonstrating attention to detail and a high level of customer care.

Rob Lancashire, Sales and Marketing Director at nFlow, commented, “There is a compelling business case for the adoption of digital dictation workflow technology in the accountancy sector, especially at this time when the pressure to reduce costs is at its greatest. In fact, the fixed fee nature of accountancy work makes the productivity gains from DDS solutions even more beneficial for accountancy firms than it does for law firms, where digital dictation technology is already mainstream. This is driving the adoption of DDS solutions in the accountancy sector.

“We understand the working practices of the professional accountancy sector, and will continue to evolve our solution to meet its changing business requirements. We are committed to this sector for the long term. This along with our attention to detail when it comes to exceeding client expectations is what differentiates us and is the key reason for our growing success in this sector.”

nFlow DDS is a work-flow based solution that includes microphone and headphone-related hardware, and offers an intuitive Microsoft Outlook-style interface. The solution can be deployed in both, Terminal Services or Citrix environments and utilises the industry standard Microsoft SQL Server. It also supports a wide range of mobile devices including BlackBerry and Windows Mobile.

nFlow Version 5.0 very positively received by legal sector, shipping to commence in October 2008

nFlow, a leading supplier of digital dictation solutions today announced that nFlow Version 5.0, its second generation Digital Dictation System (DDS), has received an overwhelmingly positive response from the legal sector. Shipping of the product will commence in October this year.

nFlow is already in discussions with a number of law firms currently using competing solutions, who are considering migrating to nFlow Version 5.0. In fact, one such leading UK law firm has already signed an agreement with nFlow for this new solution.

Through beta tests and road shows, nFlow has successfully demonstrated the business benefits of this solution for law firms including reduced Total Cost of Ownership (TCO), enhanced mobility and a future-proof technology.

Since August this year, nFlow Version 5.0 is being beta tested by a number of leading UK law firms, including Burges Salmon. In addition, nFlow is currently conducting a series of road shows across 13 cities in the UK, which are being very well attended by both customers and prospects.

nFlow Version 5.0 has been completely re-designed based on Microsoft Best Practice and the .NET platform. It truly represents a new industry standard in DDS and is the only enterprise-class solution in the market today.

Rob Lancashire, nFlow Sales and Marketing Director, commented, "We are extremely pleased with the performance of this product. Unlike most new product releases, nFlow Version 5.0 has required very few major fixes during beta testing. This clearly shows that our solution is well designed and stable."

"Also, we have had very interesting discussions with law firms on what they consider to be a second generation solution. We are delighted that there has been an unequivocal agreement that nFlow Version 5.0’s functionality is far superior to what the industry is currently using. Despite the current economic uncertainty, firms are looking to invest in technology that will enhance productivity, reduce costs and equip them for future growth. We are very confident of a successful year ahead."

nFlow Strengthens Foothold in Accountancy Sector

nFlow, a leading supplier of digital dictation solutions, today announced that it has successfully implemented its nFlow Digital Dictation System (DDS) at two of the UK’s leading professional accountancy firms including – PKF LLP, which is ranked amongst the UK’s top 10 accountants and business advisors; and Scott-Moncrieff, one of the leading Scotland-based firms. Since deployment, fee-earners, secretaries and administrators at these firms are benefiting from significantly reduced transcription and document turnaround time, increased support when working offsite from client offices, better management and control, increased client confidentiality and improved disaster recovery.

nFlow is seeing a definite demand in the professional accountancy sector for its digital dictation workflow solution, which is primarily driven by the need for increased support of staff at client sites, greater business efficiency, delivery of superior customer service and reduced operational costs.

nFlow DDS is a work-flow based solution that includes microphone and headphone-based hardware, and offers an intuitive Microsoft Outlook-style interface. The solution can be deployed in both, Terminal Services or Citrix environments and utilises the industry standard Microsoft SQL Server. It also supports a wide range of mobile devices including BlackBerry and Windows Mobile.

Rob Lancashire, Sales and Marketing Director at nFlow, commented, “Closely following the legal profession where digital dictation workflow has gained tremendous success to rapidly become a fairly well established technology, the accountancy profession is awakening to its benefits. For any professional services consultancy, the strength of client relationships depends greatly on the level and quality of service delivered. And especially in economically challenging times, speed and cost of service delivery become critical. We are seeing a lot of interest in digital dictation technology from the accountancy sector as it looks to explore digital technologies with a view to adopting industry best practices for enhanced business efficiencies and brand reputation whilst reducing and controlling overheads to become more competitive.

“Our solution has been expressly designed for fee-earning environments where time quite literally is money. We understand the business challenges faced by the professional services sector and coupled with our proven technical expertise, we are very well placed to provide innovative solutions to the accountancy sector. We look forward to long and mutually satisfactory relationships with PKF and Scott-Moncrieff.”

PKF has implemented nFlow DDS to replace its previous analogue dictation system for 455 users across the firms network of 23 offices in the UK. Now fee-earners are able to send their dictation for immediate transcription with the click of a mouse to a designated secretary, irrespective of either party’s geographic location. On the other hand, secretaries are able to share work load and grade jobs in order of urgency. This has enabled the firm to create a single secretarial resource, radically simplifying the administrative structure and reducing overheads in a multi-site firm.

In addition, users of the nFlow DDS are greatly benefiting from the mobility offered by the solution. They can easily submit dictations from anywhere, giving them tremendous flexibility whilst at the same time enabling them to speedily expedite client deliverables.

Scott-Moncrieff was previously using traditional analogue dictation systems. Faced with inefficiencies in the transcription process and the growth of flexible and mobile working practices within the firm, Scott-Moncrieff has implemented nFlow DDS. The most visible benefits of the solution are accuracy of transcription as a result of superior audio quality of dictation recordings, greatly improved secretarial efficiency, and fast turnaround of client documentation and correspondence. This is enabling more efficient utilisation of fee-earners’ chargeable time, whilst delivering more value for the money for its clients.

These firms chose nFlow DDS for its rich functionality, ease of use, scalability, ease of integration in thin client environments, robustness, nFlow’s reputation for service excellence and the solution’s affordability.

nFlow wins on functionality, customer focus and affordability

J.A. Kemp & Co, a leading firm of European and UK Patent Attorneys, has selected nFlow’s Digital Dictation System, to improve accuracy of dictation transcripts and streamline internal work flows in order to increase business efficiencies and deliver enhanced customer service to its clients. When fully deployed, the solution will be used by over 100 users including fee-earners, secretaries and workflow managers, across the firm’s offices in London, Oxford and Munich.

The nFlow DDS is a work-flow based solution that includes microphone and headphone-based hardware, and offers an intuitive Microsoft Outlook-style interface. The solution can be deployed in both, Terminal Services or Citrix environments and utilises the industry standard Microsoft SQL Server. It also supports a wide range of mobile devices including BlackBerry and Windows Mobile.

Philip Hall, Chief Operating Officer, J. A. Kemp & Co., commented, “We work with companies in hi-tech industry sectors including electronics & engineering and biotechnology. As patent attorneys, given the sensitive nature and the high level technical information we need to routinely record, it is imperative that not only are we able to transcribe dictations with speed and accuracy, but also that we have processes in place to ensure complete client confidentiality. nFlow’s solution will enable us to achieve this with ease. In addition, by using nFlow, we will be able to better manage internal workloads so that client commitments are always met and to the highest standard.

“We selected nFlow for its rich functionality and affordability, compared to other similar products. We were very impressed by the company’s approach to customer service too. As a client-led organisation ourselves, we felt nFlow would be a good cultural fit for us.”

J. A. Kemp & Co. will derive benefits from the solution in terms of reduced turnaround time of documents, geographical flexibility for fee-earners, improved secretarial efficiency, better management of internal workloads, and increased accuracy of transcription due to superior audio quality of dictation recordings. This will enable the firm to reduce costs by minimising the need for temporary staff. Additionally, the solution will enable more efficient utilisation of fee-earners’ chargeable time, delivering more value for money to its clients.

Rob Lancashire, Sales and Marketing Director at nFlow, added, “Our solution has been expressly designed for fee-earning environments within the professional services sector. As a customer-driven organisation, we are proud of the fact that our technical innovation has been led primarily by customer requirements. We are continuously evolving our product to meet the rapidly changing needs of our customers. In fact, our latest version, nFlow DDS Version 5, which we have recently announced, is evidence of this business philosophy. We are poised to change the definition of digital dictation and what customers come to expect of such solutions.

“We are delighted to have J. A. Kemp & Co as a customer and look forward to a successful and mutually beneficial partnership.”

Mullis & Peake Selects nFlow’s DDS for Functionality, Citrix Support and Affordability

nFlow, a leading supplier of digital dictation solutions today announced that it has successfully deployed its Digital Dictation (DD) system at Mullis & Peake, a well known Essex-based law firm. Mullis & Peake chose nFlow’s solution based on its rich functionality, ease of integration, exceptional performance in both standard PC and thin client environments, and affordability. This solution is currently being used by 45 users in Mullis & Peake’s Romford site on standard Windows PCs. The next phase will be to extend the implementation to the firm’s Chadwell Heath site, this will be deployed in a Citrix environment with a further 7 users who will benefit from the solution. Whilst rumours of a slowdown in new sales for DD workflow systems are rife nFlow is continuing to win new customers at a significant rate.

Michael Lambert, CEO, Mullis & Peake, commented, “Given our size and the broad range of expertise we have long provided to both the private and commercial sectors, deploying a digital dictation solution has been under repeated consideration as a means of further advancing our client service. When it came to making a selection, nFlow was at the top our list – it is undoubtedly the best solution available on the market. After discussions with the nFlow team, their experience and expertise became clearly evident. We felt confident that the deployment would be undertaken in a highly organised fashion backed by the necessary support and training. Whilst we had high expectations at the outset, the ease with which the solution was implemented surprised us all. It went exactly to plan, without a single hiccup – quite unusual for IT deployments. We just wish we had done it earlier.”

“In addition, the fact that nFlow was clearly able to demonstrate to us how it could easily integrate its DD with other systems gave us confidence that nFlow had the right approach. Also, nFlow doesn’t charge for its software developers’ kit, which speaks volumes in terms of the company’s attitude towards looking after the interests of its customers. We now intend to start looking at fully leveraging the solution’s features and functionality for maximum productivity and efficiency gains.”

Rob Lancashire, nFlow Sales and Marketing Director, added, “Customer focus is our key differentiator in what is a very competitive market place. Whilst competitors are reporting a slow down we are still implementing a growing number of solutions on-time, every time, ensuring zero disruption for clients. This is indicative of our pragmatic approach to delivering innovative technology in the most cost-effective manner, which is proving to be very attractive for prospective customers.

“Increasingly, we are finding that customers are still struggling to find digital dictation solutions that they can be certain will work in their thin client environment. The fact that our solution is proven, can be scaled and tailored to meet customer needs in Citrix environments is very appealing to law firms.”

Uks largest ever Microsoft digital dictation installation

nFlow, a leading supplier of digital dictation solutions today announced that Ashfords, one of the UK’s Top 100 law firms, has completed the roll out of nFlow digital dictation to 350 users throughout its 6 offices in the South West. The decision to select nFlow was largely based on the software’s unique ability to use distributed audio stores and localised caching in a thin client environment. This allowed Ashfords to run their digital dictation software solution entirely in a Terminal Services environment on link speeds that called in to question the viability of competing solutions. The installation is believed to be biggest Terminal Services installation of its kind and once again reinforces the unique strength nFlow have in enabling digital dictation to work in a thin client environment without requiring upgrades or affecting user experience.

Mike West, Ashfords IT Manager, stated “We evaluated all the leading suppliers on the market comparing functionality, cost, service and support. Ultimately nFlow were deemed the strongest supplier across many fronts but it was their unique ability and understanding in the thin client environment that swayed our decision. The distributed audio stores allowed us to centralise the application on our Terminal Servers without streamed audio data clogging up the bandwidth between the servers and remote sites. In addition the systems local caching technology means the user experience in terms response to handset or footpedal operation is unaffected by the loads on the links. In practice this means I don’t have users complaining about the reaction times of the system or the audio quality just because the link had been temporarily loaded with extra data. With all that said, nFlow’s reputation for customer focus also came out in selection and I have to say that we enjoy an excellent working relationship with them.”

Phase one of the project involved full roll out to 240 users with phase two then rolling out to a further 110 users. Prior to reviewing nFlow Ashfords believed they would need to install a digital dictation solution in their Tiverton office on the standard Windows desktop because of the available bandwidth or incur more cost by upgrading the link. nFlow digital dictation's ability to have distributed audio stores in the thin client environment gave the firm the option to run a rich application in their Terminal Services environment without incurring link upgrade costs. It has also demonstrated that the bandwidth availability, in the case of sudden peak loads on the link, does not impact user experience by introducing latency or audio degradation.
Ashfords have also installed the telephony dictation interface (TDI) component of the nFlow Mobile Suite for remote workers. This allows them to use any phone to call in and record dictations that get routed immediately for typing as soon as complete. Wendy Clarke, Ashfords Product Development Manager added, “The response from users has been very positive and application performance in the Terminal Services environment high quality and consistent. We have asked for tweaks to the system and found nFlow extremely flexible, friendly and cooperative.”

Rob Lancashire, nFlow Sales & Marketing Director commented “It has become evident that with little differential in the basic digital dictation functionality firm’s are now basing their digital dictation purchasing decisions on a few key areas including technology and reputation for customer service. Our ability to deliver an advanced and innovative solution in a thin client environment is unrivalled and is currently the reason behind a number of firm’s decisions. Head to head testing against a competitive solution in a virtual environment at accountancy practice PKF demonstrated nFlow’s ability to perform perfectly despite extreme network loading conditions and seamlessly recover when the link was purposefully broken. Ashfords joins a growing community of large Terminal Services sites who have chosen nFlow for the scalable and resilient way it can deploy in the thin client environment. Furthermore with a 100% client retention rate, excellent references, a demonstrable investment in new .Net technology, award winning customer support and most of all a straight forward, no nonsense approach, more and more firms are rejecting alternatives and choosing to join the nFlow user community.”

nFlow Launch 2008 Digital Dictation Conference

nFlow, one of the UK’s leading digital dictation suppliers today announced the launch of the nFlow Annual Conference kindly hosted by Reynolds Porter Chamberlain LLP, London. The conference is set to take place over the 4th & 5th June, with nFlow opening up the wide range of sessions and content to existing customers as well as law firms and those interested in understanding more about digital dictation, a unique stance for a software vendor. nFlow technology partners, independent industry consultants and journalists will also be participating in the event to ensure well rounded and unbiased content.



Central to the conference will be the launch of nFlow Version 5, the latest digital dictation offering from nFlow. Version 5, nFlow believe, is the future of digital dictation or ‘DDS2’ a phrase they have coined. Designed and developed in conjunction with consultants from Microsoft, Version 5 is an entirely new service orientated architecture built from the ground up utilising the latest best practice for .net, Neil Cameron, keynote speaker at the conference commented, “I am delighted to be hosting a keynote session on the future of digital dictation and looking forward to facilitating some interesting panel sessions on dictation mobility and the role digital dictation plays in disaster recovery. nFlow are a key player in the digital dictation space and the conference promises to be an excellent event for both existing and potential customers.”

Rob Lancashire, nFlow Sales & Marketing Director commented “This year’s conference is building on the success of our inaugural event last year. We have opened the event up to anyone interested in digital dictation as we want to share knowledge and expertise. Customers will have a separate user group session at the start of the conference and then mix in with the remainder of the conference delegates on day 2. I would urge anyone, regardless of existing digital dictation system, to come along as the conference is going to be a great opportunity to gain information and feedback from Microsoft and RIM, leading independent consultants and nFlow staff and user base. The conference also offers excellent networking opportunities, interactive sessions and the opportunity to talk to suppliers of complimentary solutions.”

Delegates can also take advantage of the excellent networking opportunities whilst enjoying an evening champagne reception and dinner cruise along the Thames setting the scene for what promises to be an excellent conference.

The conference will take place at Reynolds Porter Chamberlain LLP, London on the 4th-5th June 2008.

nFlow Digital Dictation Chosen Firmwide By Dickinson Manser

nFlow, a leading supplier of digital dictation solutions today announced that Dickinson Manser, a leading South Coast law firm and a member of the Law Group UK, has completed the rollout of nFlow Digital Dictation System (DDS) as their solution of choice. nFlow was selected following a review of the market, leading its rivals on cost, functionality and all round approach, particularly in a thin client environment. The project involved nFlow working with a number of 3rd parties including Tikit who provide Dickinson Manser with infrastructure support and Lexis Nexis Axxia, where a joint development project provided a live matter look up integration.

The nFlow project saw the installation of nFlow DDS to 61 users over 2 sites, Poole and Broadstone, with the former requiring installation on standard Windows PCs. The Broadstone site required installation on Citrix with nFlow’s unique local audio repository technology once again demonstrating the systems strength in thin client environments where limited link capacity between offices is an issue. This has resulted in users finding the performance of nFlow DDS in the remote office running on Citrix, to be equally as good as the performance on the PCs in the main office.

The Lexis Nexis Axxia integration provides a live matter look up with the Unix version of Axxia DES using the nFlow universal PMS look up module. This allows fee earners to simply but accurately attach live and validated matter information to each dictation.

Management information and reporting was of importance to the firm so enabling this was an important element of the project. nFlow’s unique reporting data warehouse technology allows Dickinson Manser to store unlimited job data and to interrogate it to gain access to information by any means and at any time.

The nFlow system at Dickinson Manser has also been implemented with nFlow portable device downloader technology providing an effortless download process for all users and a common device independent interface.

The results of Dickinson Manser’s investment in nFlow DDS are already being observed with the firm reporting a 2-3 day backlog having been completely removed and the turnaround time on large documents such as leases being halved. The firm says the ability with nFlow DDS to see work prioritised by both time and document type has empowered secretaries to be a lot more effective with their time.

Jean Kendrick, Dickinson Manser Office Manager commented on the project;” “The project was an ‘unknown’ to my colleagues and I, but I have to say it has all gone very smoothly and we are already recognising the benefits. For example my secretaries will now pick up a short job just before lunch or the end of the day whereas before they would have avoided starting a tape as they just didn’t know what was on it.” Mrs Kendrick continued, “The nFlow team were consistently helpful and supportive throughout the entire implementation process. We are very pleased we installed nFlow, in fact I now don’t know what we would do without it now.’

Rob Lancashire, nFlow Sales & Marketing Director said “Dickinson Manser are another innovative and ambitious regional law firm to choose nFlow DDS. The project was really interesting for nFlow, the technical requirements for the project were high and they drew on our unique technical ability and functionality, particularly in the Citrix environment. The project is a great reflection of how nFlow DDS has been developed to the highest technical standards and ultimately possesses unique functionality that allows firms to fully utilise their Digital Dictation investment whilst maximising the overall benefits and scalability of their infrastructure.”

Digital Dictation Software from nFlow

What is nFlow Digital Dictation Workflow Software?

• A managed system
• Has a controller — often a database
• Handles flow of work to users without needing lots of administration — avoids duplication and conflicts
• Low maintenance
• Simple to run — fire and forget
• Collects data on business processes
• Safe and robust
• Scalable
• Often provided as part of the solution — recognises the importance of dictation as a critical process

Can firms of all sizes benefit from nFlow digital dictation workflow software?

Any firm can benefit from;

Physical process improvements

• No lost or wiped tapes — better security!
• Clear dictation — less errors!
• Dictation immediately available for typing

Business process improvements

• Increased work sharing
• Time management without the effort
• Smaller chunks of work
• Visibility of dictation content type
• Prioritisation
• Cross office resource utilisation

Psychological benefits

• Empowerment of users
• Better information
• Greater control
• Easy workload sharing
• Sense of security

Management benefits

• Indication of activity — Current and Historical
• Staff performance indicator
• Resource requirement indicator
• Client response indicator

I don’t need workflow software. My firm is too small. But does size matter?

• Workflow proven to deliver benefits for as little 5 users
• Cheap products not always as cheap as they seem
• Lack support
• Inflexible generic products
• Much higher administration costs - More hassle
• Beware the salesman spreading doom
• Workflow does not need expensive servers and powerful computers
• Any business of any size can benefit from the flow of information - We all use email!

The commercial arguments for migrating from tapes to digital

• 40% increase in productivity is common
• Save money on tapes and tape machines
• Reduce backlogs
• Increase author to secretary ratios — lower secretarial overheads & Increase profit per sq ft of office space
• Remove need for temps
• Reduce staff turnover / retain good staff
• Improved disaster recovery planning

Proven Results

• Family team in 90 user firm — 8 day backlog to surplus typing resource in just 2 weeks
• 30 user firm — payback in as little as 9 months
• 400 user firm — saving of £150k in overheads in first year
• 28 user firm — 20% reduction in full time secretarial resource overheads
• Litigation team in 65 user firm — removed need & cost of recruiting new secretary
• 22 user firm — now cover all transcription across 3 small offices
• Newly formed 5 user firm — are already growing!

Open up new options for your firm with nFlow digital dictation software

nFlow Digital dictation software is proven to empower a firm to do business more efficiently

• Remote working for Authors & Secretaries — PDAs, Telephones, Citrix, Terminal Services
• Differing secretarial skill levels — simple text typed by non specialist secretaries
• Outsourcing — 360 degree integration between systems
• Integration with other office systems — Microsoft Office & Business Productivity Software
• Management reporting
• Disaster recovery options
• Many more!