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Tracey Solicitors LLP (Tracey’s) is often described as “not a typical law firm.” One of the reasons for this is that the firm, now operating for more than 37 years, has always been run more like a business than a traditional legal practice.

Overseeing the operational engine behind the scenes is Sandrine Greene, Operations Director at Tracey’s. With a background in process management, Sandrine is passionate about having robust systems in place across every area of the organisation. She believes the company-wide approach to best practice systems is as a key factor behind the firm’s achievement of a 100% score in the Legal Quality Standards of Ireland (LQSI) Q9000 audit for nine consecutive years.

Firms with the LQSI Q9000 accreditation have been independently audited and rank among the highest quality law firms in Ireland.

“Processes are not just about passing an audit,” Sandrine explains. “They’re about delivering a consistently high standard of service to clients.”

Building a business, not just a law firm

Unlike many firms in the legal sector, around 30% of Traceys’ workforce is non-legal. That structure has shaped how the firm operates.

“We need processes for everything, IT, marketing, HR, training, strategy, planning and finance,” Sandrine says. “Those systems allow us to take a proactive approach rather than constantly reacting to problems.”

She describes these processes as the firm’s foundations. By embedding them deeply across the organisation, Tracey’s has created an environment where teams can focus on outcomes rather than dealing with internal issues.

“Our clients come to us at very stressful moments, usually when they have suffered a personal injury,” she explains. “The last thing they need is a firm that’s firefighting internally. Our job is to be calm, structured and focused on getting them to a resolution as efficiently as possible.”

The long game: foundations built over decades

One of the firm’s key advantages, Sandrine notes, is that this operational discipline is not new.

“We’re in a very fortunate position because our core processes have been bedded down over decades,” she says. “This isn’t just nine years of work; it’s 20 or 30 years of consistent culture and ethos.”

Rather than constant reinvention, Tracey’s focuses on refinement. Sandrine uses a simple analogy: “It’s like a house. From time to time, you change the furniture or make an improvement. you don’t rebuild the whole thing.”

That mindset allows the firm to adapt without disruption. New risks, technologies and regulatory changes are addressed by layering improvements onto existing systems.

Cybersecurity is one recent example. “Cyber risk is becoming more challenging for every business,” Sandrine says. “We’ve had to introduce new policies and safeguards to stay ahead. That means adapting what exists and sometimes creating entirely new processes.”

From process to practice

Sandrine is clear that process documents alone don’t create operational excellence.

“It’s easy to write a policy,” she says. “What’s harder is designing the process properly, implementing it, and then reviewing and monitoring it.”

At Tracey’s, the focus is on making sure processes are actively used, understood and embedded across teams. “We don’t want documents sitting on a shelf,” she explains. “We want people to be living the process.”

That approach reflects the firm’s broader philosophy of continuous improvement. Change, Sandrine says, is not something to fear, it’s simply part of running a modern business.

“Employment law changes, technology evolves, client expectations shift,” she says. “Staying on top of that isn’t a challenge, it’s the job.”

By the time the annual Q9000 audit arrives, most of the work has already been done. “It’s not a scramble,” Sandrine adds. “It’s a confirmation of what we do all year.”

Practical advice for other businesses

For SMEs looking to improve their own systems, Sandrine offers practical advice.

“Start small,” she says. “If you don’t have strong foundations yet, trying to fix everything at once can be overwhelming.”

Instead, she recommends a disciplined, focused approach: identify the biggest weakness and address this properly. “If IT is holding you back, for example inefficient systems or security risks, then focus on that for six months. Get the right experts in. Do it properly. Then move on to the next priority.”

Trying to tackle too much at once, she warns, usually leads to poor results. “There’s no point focusing on 20 things and doing a bad job in all of them.”

The same applies to policies and handbooks. The Tracey’s HR handbook now runs to more than 100 pages, but it evolved gradually over time. “It’s about progress, not perfection overnight,” Sandrine says.

Pride, performance and prevention

Asked what the nine consecutive 100% audit results mean to her personally, Sandrine doesn’t hesitate.

“Pride,” she says. “I’m proud to work for a firm that is efficient, effective and forward-thinking. And I know that pride is shared across the business.”

While Tracey’s is an SME, Sandrine describes it as one that performs with confidence. Decisions can be made quickly, but not recklessly. “We favour steady growth over radical change,” she explains. “We think things through because we don’t like going backwards, only forwards.”

Ultimately, Sandrine believes strong systems enable smoother day to day management of the business. “Our processes, procedures and technology allow us to stay out of stress mode,” she says. “They allow us to focus on what really matters: delivering justice for our clients when they need it most.”