Overview
CARET Command now includes a Firm Administrator view that shows how your whole firm is tracking, not just your own work. It points you to the specific people and areas that need attention and lets you follow up right from the dashboard.
It's built for people whose job is managing other people's work: firm administrators, office managers, billing coordinators, and managing partners.
Why it helps
- See the whole cash cycle in one place: utilization, realization, and collection in one connected view, with the gap at each stage shown in dollars.
- Turn every number into a name: see which timekeepers, clients, or matters are behind a metric without running a separate report.
- Act right away: send a reminder to a timekeeper directly from their row.
- Focus on who needs you: the list shows only people falling behind right now, and it clears as the firm catches up.
Step in while it still matters: gaps appear while the period is still open, so a shortfall can be recovered instead of just reported after month-end.
How to get to it. Open Command, use the View As toggle in the top-right corner, and switch between Default and Administrator. Command remembers the last view you picked. Your step 1 says the view “appears alongside your usual dashboard,” which conflicts with this.
Before you begin
- Permissions: the Firm Administrator view appears only for users with dashboard administrator permissions. Everyone else sees Command exactly as before.
- Timekeeper Goals: goal tracking uses each timekeeper's configured Timekeeper Goals target. Make sure goals are set up for the timekeepers you want to track.
- Your view is your own: what you snooze or dismiss affects only your list. Other administrators at your firm see their own version.
What's on the Firm Administrator view
| Area | What it shows | What you can do |
|---|---|---|
| (Firm-wide) Needs Your Attention | Retainer at Risk: a matter is flagged when its retainer balance is low, and the flag also looks at whether unbilled time is getting close to the remaining balance. Each row names the responsible attorney. Data refreshes nightly, and there’s a refresh option in the widget. | Check matter options to enable evergreen retainers, or for CARET Pay firms, you can create Retainer Requests in the Accounting module. |
| Timekeeper goal tracking | Each timekeeper's progress against their goal, with a progress bar and a pace marker showing where they should be today. Sorted with the furthest behind first, ten per page. | Show only people behind pace; send a reminder; snooze or dismiss a row |
| Billing health funnel | Firm-level utilization, realization and collection in one connected view, with dollars lost at each stage. | Switch between month and quarter; view firm-wide or by timekeeper |
| Dismissed tab | Rows you've dismissed this period. | Review and restore dismissed rows |
How to use it
Find timekeepers who are behind on hours
- Open CARET Command. The Firm Administrator view appears alongside your usual dashboard.
- In timekeeper goal tracking, turn on the behind pace filter to see only the people running behind for this point in the month.
- Review each row's progress bar and pace marker to see actual hours against where they should be today.
- Click to the next page to see more timekeepers if needed.
Send a reminder to a timekeeper
- Find the timekeeper's row.
- Click the reminder (nudge) option on the row. The message includes their current hours, their goal, and the period.
- The row then shows when the last reminder was sent. To avoid duplicate messages, a timekeeper can't be nudged again right away, even by another administrator.
Snooze or dismiss a row
- To set a row aside for now, snooze it for a set amount of time. It comes back on its own when the time is up.
- To remove a row you've handled, dismiss it.
- To bring a dismissed row back, open the Dismissed tab and restore it.
Snoozed and dismissed rows reset at the start of each new period.
Check billing health
- Go to the billing health funnel.
- Choose month or quarter.
- View the numbers firm-wide or by timekeeper.
- Compare the dollars lost at each stage to see whether the gap comes from hours never logged, work never billed, or invoices never collected. Focus your effort on the largest gap.
Tips and FAQ
Why don't I see the Firm Administrator view? It only appears for users with dashboard administrator permissions. Ask your firm's CARET Legal administrator to check your permissions.
Why isn't everyone listed in goal tracking? With the behind pace filter on, you see only people behind for this point in the period. As timekeepers catch up, they drop off the list.
If I dismiss someone, does my colleague stop seeing them too? No. Snooze and dismiss only change your own list.
Can two administrators both nudge the same timekeeper? Reminders are rate-limited per timekeeper, so they won't get duplicate messages. Each row shows when the last reminder was sent.
What do utilization, realization, and collection mean? Utilization is the share of available time that's logged as billable. Realization is how much of that billable work gets billed. Collection is how much of what's billed gets paid. The funnel uses industry-standard definitions so you can compare your firm with industry benchmarks.
Does my list carry over to next month? No. Snoozed and dismissed rows reset when a new period starts.
Need help?
If you have questions about the Firm Administrator view or need help with permissions, contact CARET Legal Support.