Guide

Reading stagnation charts

4 min read · Team leader Partner Principal / Firm owner Team Efficiency Stagnation Efficiency

Team leader

Priya Sharma runs a weekly meeting with her team. They open with targets to check if they are on track, move to the Unrealised Cashflow page to clear outstanding WIP, then open the stagnation page. Priya clicks through each rule card, selects the bars for her team members, and the context panel surfaces the specific matters that need attention. By the end of the meeting, every stagnant file has an owner and a next action.

The stagnation page shows every open matter caught by a stagnation rule, broken down by rule and filtered by the dimension that matters most to you. It is designed to be used regularly — in team meetings and one-on-ones — to keep files moving and nothing overlooked.

What this shows you

All open matters currently flagged as stagnant, organised by rule and broken down by team member, matter type, team, or matter relationship.

What you're looking at

View by

Controls how the chart breaks down stagnant matters — by matter type, team, matter relationship, or other dimensions available for your Practice Management Software (PMS) configuration.

Assigned To filter

Multi-select filter that limits all rule cards to matters assigned to specific staff members.

Matter opened within

Date range filter applied across every rule card on the page.

Collapse all

Folds all rule cards down to show only the rule name and matter count — useful when you have multiple rules and want a quick overview.

Rule card

One card per stagnation rule. Shows the rule name, total matters caught, a summary of the rule's actions, timer, and matter types, and a bar chart broken down by the selected View by dimension. Each bar shows a matter count and its percentage of the total.

Context panel

Slides open when you click a bar in the chart. Shows all matters in that selection with matter name and date opened. You can select multiple bars at once to combine results. Each matter name links directly to the matter in your PMS.

Download button

Exports the matters currently shown in the context panel to an Excel file.

Optional

How best to use this page

Use it in your weekly team meeting. Work through each rule card alongside your Unrealised Cashflow page and team targets. Click into the bars to surface specific matters and assign actions before the meeting ends.
Use it in one-on-ones. Filter by a staff member's name using the Assigned To filter and step through any stagnant matters with them directly.

Key takeaway

Used regularly, the stagnation page keeps every open matter front of mind and gives your team a clear point of action each week.