Thoughts on Effective Management Consulting
Tanmay Vora
Consulting is a trust game. The more trust you are able to build with your customers, the more you earn (money, respect and credibility). Consultants are hired because they have an expertise and deeper understanding of a particular area. Core expectation from any consultant is that they deliver results.
A few years back, when I undertook my first consulting assignment, I was warned, "Consulting has earned a very bad name. Please be careful." Why has consulting earned a bad name? Here are a few reasons:
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Perception is that consultants charge heavily to tell you things you already know.
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Consultants try to "sell" more (to an extent that those efforts to sell are visible.)
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They misguide the customer for their benefits.
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Understand best practices, but fail to understand a customer’s unique context.
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They are more concerned with “What I know?” than “How can it help customer?”
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Focus too much on preaching.
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Undermine people at times or just don’t get along well with others.
With all this, they might get the first assignment with a customer, but never a sustainable engagement. In my view, each consulting assignment is an opportunity to build a relationship, to bring about a big/positive difference into client’s business and more importantly to bring out their own best. It is entirely possible that clients may see management consultants as their valuable partners if they:
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Focus on execution. Do things and ship deliverables.
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Map their knowledge with "real" problems of customer’s business.
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To do that, understand customer’s unique context.
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Care for results being delivered, more than sales they do. (former may bring in the latter)
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Build Trust (Consultant’s Job #1)
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Put client’s interest before their own interest.
In fact, all professionals, whether they are employed or self-employed, are consultants. Seeing yourself as a consultant is a great way to have a right mindset and be conscious about the above value adds.
Bottom line: If management consulting has earned a bad name, it is high time to re-align our focus from “profit earned” to “value delivered”.
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Very truly and motivated mainly for those who has such experience in their business.
I think it’s not only business specific. Even it applies to human. Like if by some reasons someone’s name is bad in the community. He/she should take such action to improve that as well.