JOY TO THE WORLD – LAW PARTNERS’ YEAR-END MEETING

Joy to The world! Year-end has come,
Accounting has totaled the fees.
Let ev’ry heart
prepare him room
And all of the partners sing
And all of the partners sing
And all, all of the partners sing

Joy to the world! The year was good,
And now divide the spoils.
Misters Fields and Floods have a fight.
Misses Rock and Hill watch in fright,
Repeating the annual scene
Repeating the annual scene
Repeating, repeating the annual scene

At last there’s an end, some truth, no grace
Each one their worth to prove
The glories of righteous hours
The rain made with superpowers
And all go home with a check
And all go home with a check
And all, all go home with a check

Happy Holidays!

Knowledge Management

KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT – CREATING A MEDIATORS LIST

Every organization should have a process for creating a collective memory. It’s called knowledge management.

Knowledge management preserves team members’ experiences so everyone on that team can access them. This efficiency avoids mistakes and duplication of effort.

Still, it is not uncommon for people considering mediation to send an all-hands email asking, “Do you know a good mediator?” or “Who mediates these kinds of cases?”

Does your organization maintain a list of mediators? If not, start today. Ask team members to provide names of mediators and include comments, good and bad. It can be as simple as a shared Excel document. Column headers might be: Mediator, Contact Info, Cost, Outcome, Comment.

To keep information current, whenever someone mediates, that person should report their experience.

Whether you already have a mediators list or need to create one, make sure Teddy Snyder, SnyderMediations.com,  is on it.

Peace on Earth, Good Will to Men

You’re sure to hear this phrase repeatedly in December. What are you doing to make it happen?

Most readers of this message are professionals charged with managing disputes. You may spend a considerable amount of time strategizing how to annul the opposing party’s claims. That’s appropriate. It’s your job. But what practically every party involved in a conflict really wants is peace. Settling parties often say they are compromising in order to get peace.

It’s also your job to achieve the optimal result in a cost-efficient manner. Mediation is a way to achieve that outcome. A trained professional neutral will work with all parties to achieve their own bit of peace– not just at holiday season, but all year round.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS