Migrated from eDJGroupInc.com. Author: Mikki Tomlinson. Published: 2014-05-26 20:00:00Format, images and links may no longer function correctly.
After a long journey over the last six months, I am now ready to get back in the eDiscovery saddle. Just after Thanksgiving 2013 I went on family medical leave. Coincidentally, eDJ Group also went through a lot of changes during that time. In this blog I will address both.
I 
took leave to support my husband while he is fighting the fight of his life. He was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia and shortly after learned that his only chances of survival would be an allogeneic stem cell transplant (also referred to as a bone marrow transplant). After many months in the hospital and subsequently undergoing the transplant, requiring another month-long hospital stay, I am happy to report that he is doing well. Although there is still a long road ahead as his new immune system develops over the next two years, he is doing well enough – and I am more than ready – for me to once again focus attention on my clients and career.
As you can imagine, and perhaps have personally experienced, going through an event that requires you to face your own or a loved one’s mortality triggers a lot of questions and self reflection. This is natural. Am I satisfied with how I spend my time? What is my current legacy and what do I want my future legacy to be? What am I accomplishing? Is it time to start anew and find a completely different path?
For me, these questions came up as to many aspects of my life – including my career. Again, this is only natural. After quite a bit of soul searching I realized that this is exactly where I want to be. I love consulting, I love my clients, I love the legal industry, and love working in the eDiscovery niche. I’m back and I’m here to stay.
I give a very heartfelt thank you to eDJ for being understanding, caring and generous beyond belief. I also commend them for picking up my slack in managing through the restructuring changes at eDJ. As Greg Buckles explained in his blog published in March, eDJ has disbanded the analyst side of the company and we are now fully focused on strategic consulting for corporate and law firm clients. Our consulting services practice is best explained as follows (excerpted from Greg’s post):
What We Do:
- Independent strategic consulting for large corporations and law firms supporting eDiscovery and Information Governance initiatives
- Surveys and research on demand on focus topics driven by client inquiries
- Host the evolving eDJGroupInc.com site as a research and perspective portal that will continue to generate blogs, eDJ Matrix, eDJ Notes, Surveys and Research Reports
What We Don’t Do:
- Directly manage cases, discovery or investigations
- Make referral money on client provider selections
- Provide managed services such as training, collections, processing or similar open ended relationships
- Cover or comment on consulting service providers or that market segment
I very much look forward to reconnecting with all of you and making new connections as I re-enter the work force. Please feel free to reach out directly to me with any new projects requiring expert guidance.
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As a postscript, I would like to take advantage of having your attention to encourage you to sign up as a stem cell donor. What can be better than saving someone’s life? Thousands of people require stem cell transplants each year, but many die waiting for a donor match. My husband was lucky enough to have a sibling donor. The chances of having a sibling match are only 25%. Individuals that do not have a sibling match rely on complete strangers. The stem cell donor registry, however, is fairly small compared to the number blood and platelet donors. In my opinion, this is due to misconceptions in the general public.
Many of you probably think that you would have to undergo surgery to donate. You might also think that donating is done up front. Untrue. First of all, it is a simple DNA cheek swab to get into the registry. If, and only if, you are an HLA (human leukocyte antigen) match to a patient in need you will be asked if you are willing to move forward. You can always chicken out at this point. In some circumstances, medical teams may prefer to go the old fashioned route of surgery for stem cell harvesting. However, in many cases today the stem cells are harvested through the peripheral blood stream; the process is much like donating platelets. Many lives are also saved with cord blood stem cells and I would encourage you to donate umbilical cord(s) upon giving birth. For more information, here is a link to Leukemia & Lymphoma Society publication on blood and marrow stem cell transplantation that explains the harvesting process. You may also contact me directly and I can point you in the direction of additional resources.
Mikki Tomlinson can be reached at mikki@eDJGroupInc.com for offline comment, questions or consulting