Thursday, June 26, 2014

Consultants Explained

Hugh MacLeod's cartoon today was about Consultants. There are many types of Consultants. I am not the kind looking to convert a project into a W-2 (employee).

"The most common killer of change management projects is lack of follow-through. Consultants come in, they write up a bunch of nice looking reports...and then they leave. Nothing against them, but that's just how the gig goes," Hugh writes. I don't usually hand in a report. I usually take a project where I get to execute the report, usually with the asisstance of employees of my client company. That in itself is usually tricky because employees mistrust consultants. And consultants usually don't have the authority to do much. Conjole, negotiate, explain, demonstrate, befriend employees to join up and affect change, but no real authority. It's a problem (that I am actually face today). Employees who won't meet with me; employees who want to complain but not take any responsibility or make any hard decisions. You can't affect change that way.

"Change fails when companies treat it like an emergency room visit. Run the sirens a bit, stop the bleed, send everyone home." Change is about the Urgent, the loudest, the right now. Change happens when you focus on the Important, the Goal, and yes, even on the Outcome.

If you spend all day putting out fires, you don't actually get to catch the firebug who is starting the fires, right?

It isn't about the symptoms, but the underlying disease.

At the end of the day, I want a win-win. I want happy clients, growing their business. Happy clients make the best referrals.

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