The Find: A veteran consultant offers his top ten tips on how consultants can best serve their clients (even in spite of clients’ occasional irrationality).- The Source: The blog of software developer and occasional consultant, Chad Myers.
The Takeaway: Techie Chad Myers uses his blog to offer some advice on how consultants can best-serve their customers gained through his experience at a large government institution. Though his background is in IT, Myers’ insights could apply to consultants across the business spectrum. Among his top ten rules are:
- Don’t expect the customer to be rational. If the customer didn’t have problems, they wouldn’t have needed to hire you.
- ABS — Always Be Solving (problems). It’s better to solve a problem 80 percent correct and revise the 20 percent than wait for a 100 percent plan.
- If you don’t know how to solve a problem learn or hire someone who does.
- Deflect glory to your manager — that’s a big reason why they hired you.
- Never complain. Managers have enough of that, that’s why they need you. You’re their machete in the jungle of red tape. Try to affect positive change, or leave.
- Be a “yes man” in meetings and then do what’s right behind the scenes. Avoid confrontation in a meeting that might embarrass your customer. Defer arguments and confrontations until later.
- If you’re asked to compromise principles, find a way to avoid it or quit. Remember: Integrity is your main asset
Find the complete set of rules and other bits of wisdom (example: “Never assume that management actually wants your project to succeed”) on Myers’ blog.
The Question: Any tips for successful consulting that Myers missed?
