Maestro-level leaders, even those with a long history of planning and accurate market forecasting, are at a new horizon of organizational and personal development when they launch into their last rounds of building future value while focused on succession and legacy. Process Consulting has much to offer in walking alongside the board and C-Suite at such a critical time.
A blog Philip C. Bergey and I wrote a few years ago speaks to this…..
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We are not persnickety. We do not like to tell someone no. Still, there are times "No" is a proper response.
We aren't going to take your money just because you say you need a consultant.
Because they focus on Client success, Process Consultants work hard to design context and process-based services focused on the Client's clearly stated goals and deliverables. To do this successfully, developing a Consulting Agreement with a client must address fundamental questions:
Many Clients do not have definitive answers to these fundamental questions. Perhaps this is why they are looking for consultative help.
Working with the Client to answer these questions is often the first way we help them find organizational clarity and direction as they move into adaptive change. By coming to a place of clarity, we can jointly design a Client Consulting Agreement with an above reasonable chance for success. When there is resistance on the Client's part to find clarity at this basic level, we say "No." At that point, outside intervention is the only service we can bring, and then only if the organizational system is ready for it.
Why would an organization or its leaders struggle to clarify these basic questions? Usually, it is because the system is too broken to arrive at answers. For example:
When we walk the Client through this discovery process, we can write a solid Client Consulting Agreement, or these deficiencies--if they exist--quickly come to light. If we find the Client is unwilling to address them, we say "No."
If we find they are clear but do not have ready answers, we often suggest completing a Process Design with crucial players as our first step. That way, they are not on the hook for services that are likely to fail due to lack of clarity, and we begin helping them gain momentum in a good group process so that they can tackle the presenting issues that led them to call us.
We offer this post in the spirit of helpfulness rather than salesmanship. Many organizational leaders would be helped if they worked with this simple declension they learned in high school English class to determine what they are tackling and how they will proceed. Clients are helped not just because they are improving organizational clarity but because they can more easily determine whether they have the skills in-house or would do better to acquire consultative help. Armed with that clarity, no one's time gets wasted by saying "Yes" to what should have received a firm "No."
-Philip C. Bergey and mark l. vincent