Consultants Are Buyers Too
By Michael W. McLaughlin
Some memories fade with time, but a project that goes wrong can return to haunt you. We tend to relive those profitless sinkholes, kicking ourselves anew each time.
Even though consultants learn quickly from debacles, in many cases, it's possible to sidestep such headaches entirely by heeding the clues clients give us. Sometimes it’s better to pack up and walk away from a project than to pursue it at all costs.
You Should See It Coming
"Here's one project I wish I'd never taken on. They never even paid me," griped Steve as he waved a three-year-old client invoice at me. "And," he added, "I should've seen it coming." Steve's project "blew up" according to the client and, in a fit of pique, the client withheld his final payment.
Even though he had toiled long hours to deliver a great outcome, when the results fell short, he took the fall. Sadly, this happens more than most consultants care to admit.
Some misfires happen because of circumstances beyond your control, like turnover among key project sponsors. Other fatal blows are self-inflicted. But most project failings are avoidable, especially if the consultant thinks like a buyer during the sales process, which is when most project disasters actually begin.
Prospective clients send unmistakable signals about how they'll work with you and how the project is likely to unfold. Watch for the early clues to decide whether you should "buy" what the client is offering, or you're better off moving on to the next opportunity.
Canned Goods
Consultants often walk into initial client meetings with sheaves of canned sales questions that are intended to "spur a dialogue on the issues." Such questions, the theory goes, demonstrate your analytical prowess while revealing the client's needs. Unfortunately, over-reliance on sales questions can sow the seeds of a project meltdown.
Naturally, you want to know the client's vision for the future, the obstacles the client sees, and how the project will facilitate the client's goals. But determining client need based on a series of open-ended sales questions is like treating a broken leg with a band-aid.
When one consultant asked a client to "describe the problem your company is facing," the client laid out the shortcomings of the company's supply chain. And that became the focus of the project. After weeks of effort, the consultant discovered that inaccurate data from the company's accounting system was causing the problem--not inefficiencies in the distribution centers.
The biggest drawback of such open-ended queries is that they are sales questions, not diagnostic ones. The answers you get can lead to a false sense that the client and consultant understand and agree on the definition of the problem. As a result, you might unintentionally end up treating symptoms instead of causes.
There is no magic set of questions to ask in every situation, but you do have to be a dogged detective. It's fine to ask sales questions as long as you follow up and dig deeper on every point. If you and the client aren't pushing past generic questions to the substance of the issues, it's likely that your understanding of the objectives will suffer--and so will the eventual project.
Yeah, Yeah, Whatever
I don't know any clients with lots of time to jawbone with consultants, but some clients are just too hard to reach, and that should be a red flag. When your client is rushed, or doesn't have time for you during the sales process, the project isn't a priority. When that's the case, expect trouble down the road.
Once the project gets moving, you'll find access to client executives just gets more difficult. When review of your work becomes complicated, the schedule can slow to a crawl. Take on a disengaged client at your own risk. Someone will be responsible for working with you, but it may not be the decision maker you need. Once the baton is passed to another person, expect shifts in the project.
When faced with a disengaged client, you have four choices: You can wait until the client focuses on the project, which may never happen. You can find your way around that person to a committed sponsor. You can proceed with the project in spite of the handicap. Or, you can walk away.
In my experience, it's rare for a disengaged client to suddenly jump on the bandwagon once a project is launched, but it does happen. If you do go forward, just make sure you have a plan for inevitable project delays.
Fussy over Fees
A disengaged client isn't the only warning sign. When you find yourself in endless fee negotiations, that's a clue about what's ahead. Lots of clients understand the relationship between value and fees, and they are willing to spend more as their perception of value increases.
Unfortunately, some clients never see that perspective. Instead, they will always haggle over fees, regardless of how fair they are. And some clients focus on unexpected aspects of costs. I know one client executive who wanted to negotiate an expense cap on seven specific categories of business expenses, but didn't bat an eye at the project fee.
It's also more common now to find yourself negotiating final fees with someone other than the buyer. Some clients believe that distasteful fee discussions can strain a professional relationship, so they prefer to let someone else handle the chore.
In either case, don't expect the tendency to fuss over fee details to go away when the project gets underway. It's more likely to show up again and again in challenges about invoices, requests for detailed expense documentation, and slow payments. To the consultant, this can feel like worrying about chipped paint on a house with a crumbling foundation. Look before you leap into this type of relationship.
Hired Help
Some clients will specify from the get-go exactly what they want you to do, regardless of what you think. In fact, I've talked to clients who were only vaguely interested in an assessment of the problem--never a good omen. When clients believe they have the answer and only need help putting the solution into place, you are no longer a business adviser, but contract labor.
Nothing is inherently wrong with taking on such work--if it suits your practice. But once clients have settled on a solution, their expectations may outpace your ability to deliver. You'll have implied responsibility for ill-defined results with minimal control over how those results are achieved. That's what happened to Steve, and he ended up holding the bag.
The key to success in this situation lies in your ability to influence the project scope and approach to create better alignment with desired results. This often means lobbying for changes to the client team composition, the timing of achieving benefits, or tightening project scope.
Without that level of influence, expect to be simply a hired hand and to assume a disproportionate share of responsibility for the project outcome. You are, after all, the expert.
Follow Your Instincts
The last thing anyone wants is a failed project, and it's easier to avoid than you think. It's true that some client relationships just don't work out, and that's hard to predict until a project gets started. But pay attention during the sales process and you will see problems coming a mile away.
Use sales questions judiciously, focus on the root causes of the client's problem, and decipher clues from the client's behavior. And don't ignore your own instincts as you decide whether or not to take on the client's problem. Remember, the client isn't the only buyer. You're one too.