© BrenDeBev (all publication rights reserved)

As a skilled court reporter, you’ve learned to cope with unexpected challenges without skipping a beat: the technical expert with the Martian accent, the attorney who speaks at 350 words per minute because he has a plane to catch at 3:00 p.m., the writer that suddenly refuses to connect with CAT software, the Wi-Fi connection that drops in the middle of a proceeding, the telephonic connections that snap, crackle, and pop. You came, you saw, you conquered.

But there’s one challenge that few are truly prepared for: the moment when the call comes in that tomorrow’s all-day job is now a daily.

Not to worry. By gathering a few items for your CMSE Prep Kit, you can meet this challenge as readily as you have all the others.

“But why do I need to prepare NOW? I may never need such a team. I don’t even work with a scopist/proofreader on a regular basis. What’s the point in spending time on it NOW? I’m sure I can just post on Facebook and find all the help I need at a moment’s notice.”

Maybe; maybe not. Most quality scopists and proofreaders keep a full calendar of work. Forming a good team is always a challenge, even more so at the last minute. And, as we all know, even the most “foolproof” technology can behave like an unruly child, especially when there’s no time to troubleshoot or learn.

So where do you start?

First, begin lining up a team of scopists and proofreaders NOW who have extensive knowledge and experience with daily and immediate turnaround work. Searching for quality help when there is no time for due diligence is a sure recipe for disaster.

Second, agree upon a form of communication that will afford all parties the fastest response time possible.

Third, notify your team as soon as you learn of an impending daily. Send your team any word lists, prior transcripts, or any other information you have that may contain spellings/terms/parties pertinent to the case.

Fourth, if using Connection Magic, set up a test session with your team of scopists and proofreaders, preferably at the location where the job will take place. Even if you can’t access the job location, a test from home will help you become more familiar with the necessary steps to help alleviate frazzled nerves on the all-important day.

Finally, relax. You now can accept with confidence that daily turnaround job, knowing that you are equipped with a secret weapon — a skillful team of scopists and proofreaders working alongside you with one goal in mind — delivering a finished, polished transcript in record time to your adoring fans – er, attorneys.

At Perfect Partners Transcript Brigade, we eliminate many of these steps by providing you with an accomplished team of professionals who are accustomed to working together, have processes already in place to facilitate communication with you and each other, are familiar with the most common technical pitfalls and how to surmount them, and who will work tirelessly with you to produce that beautiful transcript on time. For more information about our services, please contact us at transcriptbrigade@gmail.com.