Many industries have wrestled with the question of how to manage their corporate data. Do they opt for on-premises or cloud-based servers to host their data?

The legal industry has rapidly incorporated modern technology into its operations and procedures. Legal entity management systems are one example of modern technology that helps law firms centralize client data and minute book records in one convenient platform.

When entity management platforms were first developed, they were built using on-premises servers. In recent years, entity management systems have been developed on cloud-based servers. What’s the difference between the two server types, and how are cloud-based solutions more beneficial to the firms that use them?

What’s the difference between cloud-based and on-premises servers?

The most notable difference between on-premises and cloud-based servers is where they’re located. This is one of the biggest factors for any firm to consider when deciding how best to incorporate legal entity management technology into their workflows.

On-prem servers are operated on hardware infrastructure, and they’re located in a dedicated server room within the office. Cloud-based servers are managed by the internet provider and stored within the provider’s own offices. The servers are accessed through the cloud using web browsers or a third-party interface.

Top benefits of cloud-based entity management solutions

Now that the distinctions between the two servers are broken down, let’s break down the benefits of cloud-based servers and outline why they’re the best option to help law firms modernize legal entity management.

Cloud-based servers enhance accessibility to corporate data

During the COVID-19 pandemic, remote work was how most organizations kept their businesses running in response to health-induced lockdowns. Though the health crisis has passed and the lockdowns have been lifted, the demand for flexibility and remote work remains as strong as ever. It’s not just employees who want more flexibility and autonomy; business leaders themselves want the ability to review corporate documents from remote locations.

Cloud-based servers give anyone with access to entity management platforms the flexibility to access corporate data from any location. Enhanced accessibility to minute book records makes it easier for firms to secure client sign-offs and approvals on legal documentation. It speeds up the process so that firms can be more proactive while supporting their clients.

Operating in the cloud creates efficiencies and boosts productivity

Using cloud-based entity management systems, all clerical and administrative tasks become more streamlined. Since the average law firm has fewer than three full-time employees, bandwidth is always a pressing challenge for firms.

Cloud-based entity management platforms have built-in templates to help firms streamline the creation, organization, and finalization of all minute book records and corporate documentation. Inputting minute book data takes only a few seconds, and the platform’s intuitiveness automatically transcribes that data into structured PDF-style documents.

These records are stored securely in the cloud, enabling anyone with administrative access to the platform to view the documents at their own convenience. Edits or revisions can be quickly completed, and the platform functions as a single source of truth for all members of the team. This makes entity management more efficient, more productive, and more scalable.

Law firms are not required to technically maintain cloud servers

Remember how we mentioned that on-premise servers are stored and managed within the office space itself? Someone on your team with technical expertise is required to manage those servers to avoid any malfunctions that risk crashing your operating systems. Since the average firm only has three people on staff, it’s highly unlikely that one or more of them will have the technical capabilities to manage those servers.

In contrast, cloud-based servers are managed by internet providers, who have entire departments of technical gurus on-hand to manage those servers. Your legal team can focus solely on entity management to support clients instead of worrying about the technical challenges that come with server maintenance.

Cloud-based servers add no additional costs to your office budget

Picking up on the previous thread, on-premise servers that are stored in your office space take up valuable office real estate. You need a dedicated server room for storage, requiring a larger office space that increases monthly office rental costs.

Cloud-based servers are not your firm’s to manage, which means you don’t need to account for that additional real estate when selecting an office for your firm. This is one of the main reasons a growing number of firms are choosing cloud-based server storage.

In a cloud data security report, which includes surveyed responses from 720 participants, 80% of respondents said they use cloud-based servers for data storage. Even more telling is that 61% of respondents said reducing office operating costs was one of the driving factors that led them to adopt cloud-based technology.

Legal teams operate faster and can devote more time to servicing clients

Since cloud-based servers create faster and more streamlined workflows, legal teams can spend less time on routine clerical or administrative tasks. Cloud-based entity management systems centralize any previous disparate operating systems and allow all members of the team to make faster decisions from one centralized platform.

As a result of this modern workflow, teams can devote more time to the work that ultimately matters: servicing clients and boosting Legal Recurring Revenue. Client satisfaction rates are one of the key metrics to earning repeat business from clients, as well as generating more referral business through word of mouth advertising from satisfied clients.