About Us

Strategic Automation Consulting, founded in 1992 by Deborah Novachick, is a management consulting firm that specializes in planning for, selecting, implementing, and managing complex software applications and technologies for law firms, corporate legal departments, business, and government. For information about some of our consultants and their backgrounds and qualifications, consult our Consultants page.

Strategic Automation in the News

Selected Speeches and Seminars:

  • Imaging, E-Filing, E-Briefs, Electronic Discovery, and Case Management, Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego
  • Trends in Practice Support and Imaging, ALA Mile High Chapter, Denver
  • Office Operations Management (Technology, Records Management, Space Planning, Project Management, Working with a Consultant), Essential Competencies for Legal Administrators - Association of Legal Administrators National Program, Boston, San Francisco, Phoenix, Denver and Orlando presentations
  • Case Management - Ask the Experts Program, ProLaw Annual User's Conference
  • Case Management Systems and Benefits, Required Technologies, Inc.
  • Case Management to Improve Profitability, Client Profiles, Inc.
  • Legal Technology Applications, St. Mary's College of California, Paralegal and BA in Law Studies Programs
  • Financial System Features, Lawnet, Northern California Region
  • Working with a Consultant, Lawnet National Conference
  • Implementing a New Financial System, Lawnet National Conference
  • Hot New Features of Financial Systems, Lawnet National Conference
  • Automation Tools for Leverage, California Association of Black Lawyers
  • Automation Decision Making, Association of Legal Administrators, East Bay Chapter
  • Office Automation Decisions for Small and Medium-Size Practices, Washington State Bar Association, Young Lawyers Division
  • Automation for Attorneys, Novell, Corel, US Connect Partners
  • Profitably Practicing Law Using Computers, Barrister Group, Contra Costa Bar Association
  • Implementation Management, Elite Information System National User Conference
  • Project Management, Elite Information Systems National User Conferences
  • WordPerfect Word Processing - Ask the Experts, American Bar Association, Annual Meeting
  • Word Processing System Features, American Bar Association, Technology in the Law Practice Program
  • Law Office Automation, Increasing Productivity and Profitability, Computer Consoles, Inc.

Published Articles:

  • Conflict Avoidance Strategies: An Update, American Bar Association, Law Practice Management
  • New Features Ease Billing by Computer, California Law Business
  • Automation Should Be Handled Like a Merger, California Law Business
  • No Longer a Back-Office Function, Legal Times
  • Strategies for Automation Management and Staffing, The Connecticut Law Tribune
  • New Strategies for Automation Management and Staffing, The American Lawyer Management Service
  • Accounting System Audit May Boost Profitability, California Law Business
  • 'Dream' System Should Respect the Way Attorneys Work, California Law Business
  • Wide Variety of Programs Available for Macintosh, National Law Journal
  • Computers Aid in Attorney's Practice of Law, National Law Journal

Appearances in Publications:

  • National Law Journal
  • California Law Business
  • The American Lawyer Management Service
  • Law Practice Management
  • Legal Times
  • California Lawyer
  • The Recorder
  • Word Progress

Professional Affiliations

  • Technology Advisory Group (TAG), Founding Member. Founded in 1993, the Technology Advisory Group, is an exclusive group of leading, principal-level office automation specialists. Members' collective expertise is brought to bear on joint projects that focus on the full and careful selection, implementation and on-going management of sophisticated, integrated technologies. Services include system selection, integration, and user training.

Members:

 

Charities

Annual Season of Giving Project. Each year we reflect about our good fortune, and what we can do to show our gratitude and to help people less fortunate than ourselves. To give something back to our community and to help provide resources to others in need, we have given our time and made contributions to several worthy causes that have personal significance for one or more of us. Picking worthy causes from so many, and taking action, no matter how small are some the best "projects" we do all year.

The following are some causes that we have supported:

  • Aid to Artisans - www.aidtoartisans.org -- Nonprofit organization dedicated to creating economic opportunities for crafts people in developing communities around the world.
  • Bay Area Breast Cancer Network - www.babcn.org -- To find the cause, prevention, and cure for breast cancer through education and advocacy, and to support women with breast cancer.
  • East Bay Community Foundation - www.eastbaycf.org -- Nonprofit charitable organization through which individuals, families and businesses carry out their charitable giving and nonprofit organizations and programs seek funding.
  • Equal Rights Advocates - www.equalrights.org -- Protect and secure equal rights and economic opportunities for women and girls through litigation and advocacy
  • Lutheran Social Services of Northern California - www.charitablechoices.org -- Provides caring, nonsectarian services to people in need.
  • St. Vincent de Paul Society of San Francisco - www.vincent.org -- "To accomplish through charity what justice alone cannot do."
  • St. Martin de Porres House, San Francisco - www.stmartindeporres.net -- Food and fellowship for people in need.
  • St. Mary's College Paralegal and BA in Law Studies Programs - www.stmarys-ca.edu
  • San Francisco Food Bank - www.sffoodbank.org "Feeding the programs that feed the people"
  • Doctors for Global Health -- www.dghonline.org -- Among other things, provide health and humanitarian support for indigenous people of the Peruvian Amazon who are facing extinction. Also provide medical rehabilitation services in clinics in El Salvador for children and families with Downs syndrome, cerebral palsy, Bells palsy and Asthma. They are also involved in education for the prevention of AIDS.
  • Project Open Hand -- www.openhand.org -- Provides the very real and immediate support of feeding people who are ill.
  • The American Cancer Society -- www.cancer.org - Helps our women friends with breast cancer, and supports the search for a cure.
  • Habitat for Humanity International -- www.habitat.org - Works with families in need and their communities to build new homes.
  • Tall Ship and Maritime Organizations. Making solid automation and management decisions is often referred to as steering a ship and navigating difficult waters. Staying ahead competitively is often described as winning the race. Our logo is taken from a fine historical photograph by a master photographer, James Burton, taken at the turn of the century. It depicts two beautiful topsail schooners in an early America's Cup Race. As always, one of the racers is in the lead. We like to think she represents organizations made more competitive and profitable by following the advice of Strategic Automation Consulting consultants: winning the race with the help of our winning team. The image in our logo is INGOMAR and ELMINA, 1907, by James Burton, acquired in honor of Jack Aron for the Rosenfeld Collection of images at the Mystic Seaport Museum, Mystic, CT, www.mysticseaport.org/rosenfeld. This image was licensed from the Mystic Seaport Museum for use as our logo. For other wonderful images of historical tall ships and America's Cup boats, see the many pictures hanging in our San Francisco offices. We support the work of organizations such as Sail San Francisco, OpSail, ASTA, Sail Boston, the Mystic Seaport Museum, and the San Francisco National Maritime Museum and Library to bring tall ship sailing events to San Francisco and cities around the world, and to preserve the history and majesty of the golden age of sail.