I am excited and honored to be participating in SAP’s Pro Bono for Economic Equity program, which was launched in 2021 by the SAP Corporate Social Responsibility team in response to the social justice movement. With an aim to foster economic equity for Black-owned businesses and social enterprises, the program allows SAP employees to leverage their professional skills and expertise as pro bono consultants for these marginalized businesses and social enterprises, helping them to address systemic and business challenges.
Last week I was introduced to my host client FourthParty! FourthParty is an Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) solution aimed at supporting conflict resolution professionals, such as Mediators and Arbitrators, to optimize their dispute resolution process. Alongside two other SAP employees, I worked closely with Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of FourthParty, Melissa Brogdon, to learn more about the job of mediators in the US Justice System and how FourthParty aims to play a pivotal role in the legal technology marketplace.
The ease of use and responsiveness of FourthParty is just the tip of the iceberg, and I quickly understood the massive potential it unlocks for conflict resolution professionals. FourthParty addresses major industry inefficiencies, including constant changes in scheduling and complexities around invoicing, by providing a streamlined user interface that updates in real time, and accessible from anywhere. FourthParty also takes key functions of mediating, such as note taking and document storage, and provides a secure and HIPAA compliant solution.
FourthParty has earned the business of one of the largest ADR firms in the country, Miles Mediation & Arbitration, leveraging their strong trust-based relationship to gain valuable insights about FourthParty as they continue to scale. In just four months, FourthParty has enabled Miles to increase their overall efficiency, decrease unnecessary administration costs and will continue to support them on a rapid growth trajectory as they plan to expand from 65 to 100 mediators later this year.
The SAP team met with several key members of the FourthParty ecosystem, including Gino Brogdon Jr., Chief Strategy Officer & Co-Founder of FourthParty, Parag Shah, Chief Operating Officer of Miles Mediation and Arbitration, as well as Tiffany Green and Kamau Massey who both provide invaluable consulting and mentorship to the company.
I have thoroughly enjoyed participating in the first week of this program and look forward to supporting FourthParty through the end of this engagement, and beyond!
- Diana