Tech That Works the Way You Work: How Clio Fits B3sixty’s Model

Tech That Works the Way You Work: How Clio Fits B3sixty’s Model

Clio is designed for law firms, but its features and functionality can also bring remarkable efficiency to other non-law-firm business models. Just ask B3sixty.

While they often work with legal practices, their directors and associates are investigators, not lawyers.

As B3sixty grew, manual administration became overwhelming. Office Manager Diane Smith and Director Clive Bane sought a better way to manage sensitive cases, collaborate across locations, streamline workflows, and scale — and Clio delivered.

A growing business needs the right tools to scale

B3sixty’s growth over the past four years presented a positive challenge: more assignments, but increasing inefficiencies in how they were managed.

Previously, the team had relied on a mix of spreadsheets, Dropbox folders, and physical files—suitable for a smaller operation, but increasingly cumbersome as they scaled.

“It became very clear to us that we couldn’t sustain that level of business on the basis of spreadsheets and Dropbox, which is what we were using,” Bane shares. “We needed something much better, solid, and with better infrastructure.”

Plus, as an investigative firm handling sensitive data, B3sixty also required granular control over access and file management.

“From time to time, we get subject access requests under data protection, and I used to have to spend a lot of time working with the person who then maybe had stuff on their desktop, or bits in Dropbox,” Bane explains.

Why B3sixty chose Clio

After recognising the need for better systems, B3sixty worked with an IT consultant to explore options. They wanted a solution that offered both case management and CRM functionality.

Clio made that shortlist, and it was soon apparent that it was the best fit.  

“We had all along thought that we needed two things to help us,” Bane explains. “One was a customer relationship management system, and the second was case management. Clio offers both through Clio Grow and Clio Manage, and so we went for that whole piece.”

How Clio’s software helps businesses thrive

As Bane shares, Clio not only meets B3sixty’s needs in terms of features, but they have also been impressed with how it can be customised to their needs as a non-law firm.

“What swayed it for us with Clio was not only that you have Clio Grow and Clio Manage, but that we were able, for the most part, to customise it to suit a non-law firm model. I think that was quite an important factor in choosing it.”

Now, after using Clio for over a year, the benefits of secure, cloud-based software are clear and plentiful. With Clio, B3sixty can work more efficiently, securely, and collaboratively.

Fast, guided onboarding—and ongoing support

For B3sixty, getting up and running with Clio was a smooth process, thanks to both onboarding and ongoing support.

“The onboarding was absolutely excellent,” says Smith. “Clio drove us to deadlines and to certain programs. They obviously were giving us free advice as we were going along. It was excellent because it pushed us, but kept us quite content with how we were doing it, and it did migrate very well.”

Now onboarded, the responsive support hasn’t stopped. Smith shares how Clio’s customer support is easy to access and beneficial when questions arise.

Remote access from anywhere

With a distributed team of directors and associates across the UK, remote access is essential for B3sixty. Clio’s cloud-based platform supports the team—no matter where they are.

Time savings across multiple workflows

Clio has transformed workflows across B3sixty—simplifying processes and unlocking efficiencies in multiple areas, including client intake, reporting, and HR tasks.

For example, Bane shares how Clio has transformed how he handles intake forms.

“I use the quick intake form, which is brilliant and really easy to fill in. And, if it’s an existing company or contact, that all comes up immediately. It’s a reminder. It’s very straightforward, and a major advantage over what we had before, which was kind of nothing. I had some spreadsheets, but it couldn’t all be in my head or in Dropbox. It had to be in one place where you could call it up.”

Overall, Smith says that the difference in how they were working before Clio is significant.

Efficient reporting

With Clio, B3sixty can quickly and easily generate useful reports, which unlocks further efficiency and time savings for the team.

“They’re really valuable, the reporting to the directors, because it used to take me a long time to produce those reports which we can now do at the touch of a button,” Bane says.

A secure, scalable partner for your business growth

B3sixty’s investigations drive its success, but Clio provides the infrastructure to support future growth.

Like many legal teams, B3sixty depends on secure case management, client visibility, and operational efficiency—Clio helps them deliver all three, efficiently and compliantly.