From Essie Allen, Consultant
Isn’t it just the worst when life throws you a curveball, you need urgent assistance and you’re hit with an “out of office” or “sorry, gone on sabbatical” autoreply, with no other point of contact?
In the world of eDiscovery, the stakes are often incredibly high, with legal outcomes and organisational reputations hanging in the balance. As such, collaboration, and seamless project handovers are not just important – they are essential.
Collaboration Leads to Success
eDiscovery Collab is a truly collective team. Each consultant collaborates on all projects, imparting our collective wealth of knowledge and leveraging on one another’s strengths. eDiscovery Collab’s team collaboration and communication is second to none, resulting in a high level of trust both within our team and with our clients. Having been employed in a variety of environments and teams, I have never felt more supported since joining eDiscovery Collab, fostered by these essential elements.
For seamless project continuity, our clients must trust the wider team as a cohesive unit, as well as our individual abilities and understanding. Trust with our clients is built through our responsiveness, consistency, reliability and demonstration of our knowledge and skills, whilst trust within our team has been achieved through consistently collaborating, and structured in-depth training on every aspect of eDiscovery and technical processes. I suggest you read Emily Simi’s article about eDiscovery Collab’s immersive training and CEO Kate Clark’s piece about why sharing knowledge within the team and with our clients is one of our key principles for a full understanding of how we embrace knowledge to build trust.
Engaging eDiscovery Collab, you will never feel adrift when the Lead Consultant on your project is not available for any reason. If your project lead has planned time off, we’ll let you know prior to the time – no nasty surprise autoreplies. Additionally, you’re already likely on first-name basis with our other consultants through their assisting with your project. We know the importance of an effective project handover, so you always have peace of mind knowing ‘they’ve got this’.
The Role of Collaboration and Successful Project Handovers at eDiscovery Collab
At its core, effective collaboration leads to successful project handover, and this revolves around clear and comprehensive communication. Documentation is key. To ensure a smooth project handover at eDiscovery Collab, we adopt the following:
- Comprehensive Documentation
This includes documenting decisions, workflows and the technical details of the data collection, processing, and review stages.
- Clear Communication and Collaboration
Open communication is essential for running a smooth project. Our clients are always apprised regarding their project’s progress and any challenges that may be encountered. The eDiscovery Collab team has regular meetings and check-ins to ensure that everyone is on the same page, and that nothing is overlooked.
- Handover Meetings
If a consultant has upcoming leave, we schedule in depth handover meetings between team members. These meetings include a review of the project’s status, as well as an overview of completed and pending tasks. This ensures the team is aware of any challenges or peculiarities to do with the project. This context is vital for ensuring that the incoming team can execute their tasks effectively.
In the world of eDiscovery, collaboration is essential to success, but it is the handover process that ensures that success continues from one task to the next. A smooth project handover is vital for maintaining data integrity, reducing risk, and ensuring compliance with legal requirements. By fostering a culture of teamwork and ensuring seamless handovers, eDiscovery Collab navigates the complexities of eDiscovery with confidence and success.
We know that no two matters are the same. We recognise the value in all our consultancy team members’ understanding what each is about, as well as the nuances to each matter, tasks, and varying review strategies. Client service is at our core, and it is important to us that our clients and team members always feel supported.
About Essie
Having obtained a combined Bachelor of Law and Bachelor of Business from the University of Technology, Sydney, Essie undertook a practical legal training clerkship at the Cancer Council of New South Wales. Essie also worked at Experts Direct where she was responsible for the management of all cases as the intermediary between clients and expert witnesses. Prior to joining eDiscovery Collab, she was an eDiscovery Consultant where she managed the overall direction, coordination, implementation, execution, control and completion of eDiscovery projects.