Document Management for VA Claims with Law Firm Werner Hoffman & Greig

Services Provided

• Business Process Optimization
• Document Management Services
• Workflow Automation
• CRM Migration & Systems Integration

Background

Werner Hoffman & Greig (WHG), formerly Valor Firm, is a legal firm that specializes in processing VA benefits claims. It’s critical work — but the firm’s operating processes were in seriously bad shape.

For one thing, their manual process for managing new client-attorney agreements was extremely slow. Clients filled out 4 distinct forms, which all had to be processed, categorized, organized, and stored. 

But because of all the manual touchpoints, errors crept in. This slowed things down even further, upsetting WHG’s clients.

And on top of that, it was nearly impossible to track compliance with all that manual, physical paperwork.

As a firm committed to helping its clients process claims more efficiently, WHG’s manual processes weren’t living up to their goals. To succeed, they needed more modern, efficient processes to reduce or eliminate reliance on manual tasks, like data entry and document management.

Project Goal

To solve these issues, WHG needed more than 1 service. But solving each problem without looking at the larger issues would only make things worse. 

The right answer was a comprehensive solution that could: 

• Provide automated document generation
• Handle physical documents, including contracts and incoming mail
• Deliver a smooth e-signature process for clients
• Streamline asset storage in their CRM

Beyond that, WHG needed a scalable solution that would solve these challenges for now — and continue to solve them as the firm grew.

The only way to solve this mountain of issues? We had to start with an in-depth analysis of existing processes, systems, and top challenges, leaving nothing out.

After examining every aspect of the business, we devised a fully customized network of integrated automations to solve each challenge they faced, from intake to “case closed.”

Key Challenges

To create the perfect solution, we had to be mindful of these factors:

• Client Satisfaction: The firm depends on happy clients, but errors and clunky processes made that difficult. We needed to devise solutions that simplified things for the internal team AND its clients. 
• High-Volume Document Management: With 4 distinct forms for every client, plus loads of physical mail incoming daily, WHG’s document volume — both digital and physical — was through the roof. We had to ensure nothing got lost.
• Integration Across Multiple Processes and Systems: WHG’s issues originated at client intake but didn’t stop there. We needed to create connections that would allow data to flow from end to end — securely and in compliance.

Product Development

For WHG, there was no “easy fix” — no single product or automation that could solve all these challenges. Instead, we had to develop a network of interconnected systems and automations. 

Business Process Optimization (BPO) and Software Analysis

WHG already had a well-defined standard operating procedure (SOP) for sending client intake documents. So, it was easy to identify opportunities for automation here.

But before developing a comprehensive solution, we dove into an in-depth analysis to identify all issues upfront. 

Here, we learned how much they struggled to sort, capture, and document huge volumes of incoming mail. Since their processes weren’t working well, there wasn’t much that tools and systems could do to improve things. Before tinkering with systems, WHG needed a solid SOP for mail processing.

As we learned more, we realized we could use AI/ML tools to train a model to recognize and match individual pieces of mail to specific clients and categories.

Project Management Design

To effectively address every challenge, we decided on an agile development approach with phased delivery. 

We’d build individual components to solve each problem while keeping our eye on the larger picture at all times. As each phase came to life, we’d progressively integrate systems. And by the end, each piece worked together seamlessly.

Technical Architecture & Software Development

Our software engineering background was essential to designing a strategically phased rollout for WHG.

For optimal simplicity, effectiveness, and efficiency, we chose a variety of no-code and low-code platforms that would seamlessly integrate. Plus, the tools would port their existing data over from legacy systems, making implementation simple and worry-free. 

This would create a comprehensive solution with maximum impact — plus a low learning curve for the team.

Phase 1: Document Management Automation

We started with document management. That’s because no other part of WHG’s processes, from client intake to organizing and storing data, would function properly without strong document management processes.

We chose:

• Make.com as the powerful automation engine for securely orchestrating the holistic system
• Formstack Documents for document creation, data merging, and task automation
• PDF.co for secure document conversion
• Nanonets for unmatched document management, including AI-powered OCR technology that allows WHG to automatically extract info from physical documents
• Parseur for another level of data extraction

Phase 2: CRM Migration

• Lawmatics for tracking referrals and leads, which would integrate with...
• Salesforce for more scalable CRM capabilities 

Phase 3: Client Intake Automation

• DocuSign for simplifying the client signature process

Results

Ultimately, we delivered a fully integrated system that could:

• Automate the generation, signature, and storage process for client documents, both physical and digital
• Reduce manual work in-house
• Improve the client experience
• Grow with the firm as it scales

WHG reaped the benefits of our integrated automations quickly:

• Improved accuracy, making both clients and staff happier
• Major time savings throughout the client intake and document management process
• More satisfied staff — with fewer manual tasks, they could focus on high-value work
• Positive impact on revenue and the bottom line, enabling significant growth
• Business growth to support significant expansion — growing their team size by nearly 7x in 1 year!
  • From the 3 original partners up to 20 employees

Empowering WHG with Scalable Success

Since implementing our system of automations, WHG has been able to focus on strategic expansion — as you can see by that 7x team growth! 

But if they were still slogging through outdated processes, manual tasks, and legacy software, things could look a lot different for them today.

Instead, employees can now focus on meaningful and impactful work, driving business growth, team growth, and happy customers for years to come.

Client Feedback

"We highly recommend Crispy Software for their expertise in business automations. Their solutions have saved our employees countless hours and allow us to focus on the most important tasks of the day." - Matthew Greig, Werner Hoffman & Greig

Conclusion: Document Management Workflows Lead to Happier Clients & Happier Employees

With huge improvements in speed, agility, accuracy, client satisfaction, and employee satisfaction, this project completely transformed operations at WHG.

In fact, the project was such a success that Crispy and WHG continue to partner on additional projects together! We’re elated to be a strategic technology partner in their success and growth. 

Is Your Firm Suffering Because of Outdated, Error-Ridden Processes?

You’ve just seen that it takes a unique blend of strategy, software expertise, and partnership to truly solve these challenges once and for all. 

So, ready to fix what’s broken and watch your business grow? See how our custom development solutions — custom workflow automation, app development, and AI/ML — can help.