FIVE RULES OF STRATEGIC CONSULTING

A consultant should not disappoint a client and yet there are many pitfalls that can cause just that. According to Dr. Eric Threatt, BA, MBA, DBA, a strategy consultant for fortune 100 and 500 companies, including IBM^TM, there may be unmet proposal benchmarks, disorganized meetings, individuals with the wrong skill sets billing hours, among other disappointments. To the client, these are often perceived as broken promises on work that the consulting firm agreed to deliver during the sales pitch, notes Threatt, who has more than 20years of industry experience.

When a client hires a consultant firm they set an expectation that it’s going to provide the highest level of reliability and service” says Threatt. Consultants must deliver on that promise.

When they don’t, a service quality gap exists and consultants risk losing professional face and clients. Instead, Threatt recommends consultants following these five (5) tips to provide high-quality service.

Rule 1: Prove Your Worth

Consultants who write thorough proposals, offer a high-caliber (possibly MBA-degreed) staff and consistently meet their promises prove their worth as consultants, says Threatt.

Rule 2: Answer those last minute phone calls

Timely responses, or at least a perceived timeliness to attending to clients’ needs, not only placates the clients’ expectation’ but further enhances the consultant’s reputation as a reliable professional, says Threat. If the phone is ringing and you choose not to answer the phone because its 5pm,it immediately cast a cloud over the level of quality service you are going to provide.

Rule 3: Build the client’s trust

The highest level of achievement for the a consultant in terms of client relationship is, what we call in the industry, becoming a trusted advisor”, says Threatt. This means proving one’s competence time and time again keeping clients abreast of project developments and accomplishments and always remaining honest with the client about the firm’s skills.

Rule 4: Demonstrate empathy to the client

Clients can tell when a consultant genuinely cares about their company’s success, says Threatt. Empathy within itself is not worth much unless it is demonstrated to the client. Consultants can demonstrate empathy by taking the time to research the clients’ companies, their industries or those things that pose challenges to them such as pending legislation and then, advise accordingly.

Rule 5: Deliver the client quality tangibles

Providing high-quality service can be as simple as catching typographical errors before sending email correspondence. That also means coming to meeting organized, effectively communicating your advice, implementing strategies and executing change, or even arriving at work on time and keeping your in-house desk uncluttered.