Nishat Ruiter presented to over 200 lawyers, some of Fortune 500 companies at the Argyle Forum in New York on the topic of Bridging the Gap: Using WIki Technology for a Non-legal Audience. The audience heard about consultation, creative ways to educate their clients, how truly listening to clients and becoming partners allows the greatest impact. Ultimately these steps allow us to move from the current silos adversarial mentality of legal vs. business to a more collaborative approach.
“All solutions start with communication. This is even more important for in house lawyers who work with clients and need to assess the legal risks from a business perspective, not only legal. Consultation is key in this in collaborating on solutions to help both sides make a difference.”
In one of her LinkedIN Today post she adds “Working in house for 15 years had made me realize a few things. Expertise is not always known, but its gained on the job. Trust is something earned only when you treat your clients as equals, and understanding risk intuitively stems from experience and knowledge woven from mistakes, risks and lessons learned. But one thing that I have seen work ironically across the board, are the lawyers that succeed in adding the most business value are the ones that understand how to communicate and speak not like a lawyer but a person who is thoughtful, understanding and gets the business yet all the while can sort behind the scenes the legal issues in a flash without making anyone see the difference. Here’s to those lawyers who day by day may help us change the way legal is viewed and turn us into partners and business advocates, not just the gatekeepers.”
Nishat Ruiter
Comentários