Taking Action in Ayora Manage

Ayora Manage is designed to help users move from review to action. The dashboard shows the matter position; the action controls help you update budgets, plan billing, triage risk, record follow-up, and coordinate the team.

Use this guide when you have found a matter that needs attention and need to decide what to do next.

Related Docs

Read Manage Overview first if you need a broader introduction to the dashboard and core surfaces. 

Before You Start

Start from the dashboard when you want to compare matters visually. Use the Matters view for matter-level actions, or use Clients, Matter Groups, or Partners when you need a broader portfolio view.

Some dashboard labels can be customised by organisation or user settings. Some controls only appear when the relevant matter data or organisation settings support the action.

Triage an Alert

Use the Flagged and Monitored tabs when Ayora Manage has surfaced matters that need attention.

For an active trigger, you can:

1. Review the matter, client, matter ID, total time booked, top timekeeper, and trigger details.
2. Filter the queue by all, debt, WIP, or budget flags.
3. Search by matter, client, or ID.
4. Use Remind me later to reschedule the trigger.
5. Add a reason for the reschedule.

Use Remind me later when the issue is valid but does not need immediate action. The matter is silenced until the chosen date.

Update Financial Planning

Use financial actions when the matter budget, billing plan, or forecast needs to be corrected.

You can update:

1. Matter budget.
2. Monthly budget reset.
3. Next bill amount.
4. Billing cadence.
5. Expected next billing date.
6. Expected completion date.
7. Matter status.

Use budget updates when the agreed financial plan has changed. Use next bill amount and billing cadence when the matter needs clearer billing follow-up. Use expected completion date and status when delivery progress has changed.

When you update a matter budget, Ayora Manage reminds you to update the client where appropriate and can notify the relevant finance business manager.

Review Time and WIP

Use the Summary and Alarms actions in the time area of the dashboard when you need to understand WIP movement or prevent WIP from building up unnoticed.

You can:

1. Open a time summary.
2. Review time entries.
3. Filter time entries.
4. Create a custom WIP alarm.
5. Update or delete an existing WIP alarm.
6. Apply a WIP alarm to the matter or to the client.

Use WIP alarms when you want Ayora Manage to highlight a matter once actuals reach a fixed value, a percentage of budget, or a recurring step value.

Run Discount Simulation

Use discount simulation when you want to understand the effect of a discount before committing to a commercial position.

You can run discount simulation for:

1. A single matter from the dashboard.
2. Multiple selected matters from the bulk action bar.

Use this when a matter or portfolio is under fee pressure and you need to model how a discount may affect the financial position.

Generate an AI Matter Summary

Use the Summary column when you need an AI-generated matter digest before deciding what to do next. The summary is designed to help you understand the matter quickly by organising the available matter narrative into a consistent structure.

AI matter summaries contain these sections:

1. Matter Classification
2. Matter Overview
3. Client Profile
4. Transaction/Matter Structure
5. Value & Commercial Terms (if applicable)
6. Core Workstreams & Principal Documents
7. Key Parties & Stakeholders
8. Chronology of Notable Events
9. Legal & Commercial Complexities
10. Current Status & Next Anticipated Steps
11. Additional Observations

If a summary already exists, the Summary column shows VIEW. If no summary exists, it shows GENERATE. Open the Matter Summary modal to read the summary, then check Final Time Entry Date and Created At to decide whether it is current enough for the decision you are making.

Use REFRESH in the Matter Summary modal when more time has been recorded or the matter position may have changed. If a refresh succeeds, Ayora Manage updates the summary shown in the modal. If generation or refresh fails, Ayora Manage shows an error and leaves the previous matter information unchanged.

Coordinate the Matter Team

Use team actions when responsibility for follow-up needs to be clear.

You can:

1. Delegate lead decision-maker responsibility to another fee earner.
2. Remove a delegated lead.
3. Add collaborators.
4. Remove collaborators.
5. Add comments or updates in the matter activity.
6. Delete your own comments.

Use delegation when another fee earner should receive matter notifications or make follow-up decisions. Use comments when the matter team needs a visible record of an intervention, decision, or next step.

Manage Matter Groups

Matter groups help you manage related matters together. Use them when several matters should be reviewed as one portfolio or billing set.

You can:

1. Select matters from the dashboard.
2. Assign selected matters to an existing matter group.
3. Create a new matter group while assigning matters.
4. Rename or delete a matter group.
5. Remove matters from a group.
6. Set matter group billing cadence.
7. Update matter group budget.

Use matter groups for coordinated monitoring, especially where related matters share a billing rhythm, budget view, or client-level follow-up.

Link Quotes and Review Pricing Context

Use quote actions when a live matter should be connected to its original or supporting Ayora Quote Builder quote.

You can:

1. Link a quote to a matter.
2. Open a linked quote in Ayora Quote Builder.
3. Update the matter budget from the linked quote's maximum fee where available.

Use this when the matter budget should reflect an approved quote, or when the team needs to move between matter management and quote detail.

Communicate with the Client

Use the client email action when a flagged matter requires client communication.

You can:

1. Create a draft email to the client.
2. Select which flagged topics to include.
3. Add extra context.
4. Regenerate the email draft.
5. Edit and save the draft content.

Use this action when debt, WIP, budget pressure, or delivery progress needs to be explained externally before the matter can move forward.

Instruct a Write-off

Use Write-off when the matter should be written off and the action is available for that matter.

Ayora Manage asks for confirmation before sending the instruction. Once confirmed, it sends an instruction to the finance business manager and the matter appears silenced in the console.

Use the Ayora Manage Agent

The Ayora Manage Agent can help you search, analyse, and act on live matter data using natural language.

Use the Ayora Manage Agent when you want to:

1. Search matters by practice area, department, status, fee earner, WIP level, budget threshold, or matter characteristic.
2. Analyse WIP balances and time-entry patterns.
3. Check budget against actual hours and fees.
4. Identify over-budget, at-risk, or healthy matters.
5. Surface alarms, delays, fee pressure, and other early-warning signals.
6. Apply write-offs, discounts, billing adjustments, delay notes, scope-change commentary, assignment updates, or fee earner allocation changes.
7. Send or review matter messages.
8. Log intervention notes or updates for the matter team.

Start with the dashboard when you need to scan and compare. Use the Ayora Manage Agent when you already know the question you want answered or the action you want taken.

Recommended Workflow

1. Start in the dashboard and identify the matters that need attention.
2. Use filters, flags, metrics, and WIP or budget columns to understand why the matter needs action.
3. Choose the action that matches the issue: reschedule, update budget, run discount simulation, generate an AI matter summary, set billing cadence, delegate, comment, link quote, create email, set alarm, or write off.
4. Record a comment or matter message when the team needs context.
5. Use the Ayora Manage Agent for broader search, analysis, or multi-matter follow-up.

Troubleshooting

If an action is not visible, check that you are in the right dashboard view and that the matter has the data required for that action.

If a write-off action is not visible, the matter or organisation settings may not allow write-off from that surface.

If a matter cannot be assigned to a matter group, check whether it already belongs to another group.

If an update does not save, refresh the dashboard and try again. If the issue continues, contact support with the matter name and the action you were trying to take.