Tag Archives | managing your business

Checking the Foundation

By Michael W. McLaughlin on January 10, 2012 in Managing Your Business, The Guerrilla Consultant

If you’ve ever bought or sold a house, you know that, as part of the deal, a home inspection will have to be done so buyers know what they’re getting into.

The inspector assesses the foundation of the house, the walls, floors, plumbing, and so on. Then, you get a report on ways to shore up the place.

As you kick off the New Year, take some time for a structural inspection of your business. In many cases, you’ll find that the key to better performance is in making small changes to how you do business, not in implementing some grand new strategy.

To find those opportunities, turn your attention to three parts of your business: your intellectual property (or content), your marketing approach, and your service offer.

Read the rest of the article in this month’s issue of The Guerrilla Consultant.

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Reflecting

By Michael W. McLaughlin on August 9, 2011 in Business Life, Managing Your Business

Photo by Swami Stream

It was just a few weeks ago that I finally underwent “minor” surgery on my ailing right knee. Even though the medical professionals consider the “procedure” routine, it still lays you out for a while. Simple things, like walking up and down stairs, become a challenge. And forget driving, walking more than a few feet at a time, or showering. Plus, I found writing to be a challenge.

Fortunately for most people who undergo this kind of surgery, these limitations aren’t permanent. You do have to live with some uncertainty about how well you’ll heal, and stay patient as you regain strength. But a forced break from everyday routines can result in renewed appreciation for the people and relationships that define your life.

You also have time to reflect on the big questions about your direction, business, and quality of life when the day-to-day stuff isn’t the only thing on your radar. Some people use vacations to take a step back and think about their grand plans, while others find different ways to achieve the same aim.

Whatever way you choose, be sure to find a regular opportunity to take a breather, reflect on where you are and where you want to be. If the circumstances demand it and the timing is right, set a new path for yourself. Some of my best long-term decisions came about when I wasn’t preoccupied with deadlines, clients, and my business.

I’m guessing that most of you recognize the value of down time, but how often do you really get it? I’m not waiting for the surgeon’s knife to reappear before I do it again.

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Services Industry News: Quick Takes

By Michael W. McLaughlin on July 6, 2011 in Business Life, Industry Trends

Here’s a brief roundup of links and news from around the services industry.

24% say they’d rather give up sex than sit through another PowerPoint presentation.

The Economist offers advice to consultants as demand for services rebounds.

Job market for consulting shows real signs of life.

What consultants are earning at 4,956 companies.

Accenture’s earnings beat expectations. Booz Allen’s profit surges.

PwC gobbles up consulting firm PRTM. The financial details are hush-hush, but you can bet some people will end up with bags of money.

Consulting Magazine selects its top 25 consultants for 2011. Mostly a vanity award?

According to the Boston Consulting Group, consumer sentiment is currently all over the map.

What do executives want from their CIOs? PA Consultants’ survey says cost savings, increasing operational efficiencies, and delivering consistent, stable IT performance.

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Retaining Top Talent in Professional Services

By Michael W. McLaughlin on June 14, 2011 in Industry Trends, Managing Your Business

For the last few years, consultants at many firms were barely hanging on. Some dodged layoffs, survived cost-cutting measures, and withstood client pressure for fee concessions. Now, many of them think it’s time for firm leaders to recognize their sacrifices.

In their report, Professional Service Firms–Re-engaging and Retaining Employees, researchers at Towers Watson have some advice for firm leaders wrestling with this issue. With retention levels creeping back to pre-recession levels, firms must put renewed emphasis on keeping their best people. According to the report, though, firms that simply throw more money at top performers are missing the boat.

Certainly, financial rewards play a pivotal role in retention. But firm leaders must also look at how they’re helping people with career development, work-life balance, and workload. Effective retention practices include an array of strategies, not just pay raises.

Equally important is for firm leaders to strengthen the bond of engagement between employer and employee. Better engagement, the report says, leads to improved retention. That’s not exactly an “aha” finding. But the research offers specific ways for firm leaders to boost engagement, including giving people a say in the selection of their work, fostering an environment in which people can express their opinions, and ensuring that all employees are treated with respect.

The report wraps up with a warning: Firm leaders who fail to recognize the seriousness of the retention issue risk losing their top talent. For some firms, the approach to employee engagement needs reinvention. And the time to do that is now.

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What Are You Getting Ready For?

By Michael W. McLaughlin on April 21, 2011 in Business Life

Everyone knows that building new skills (and improving existing ones) is table stakes in the game of work. Ignore this reality and the market will pass you by. Most of us have plans for getting better at what we do, whether it’s becoming a better communicator, writer, salesperson, or project manager.

The skills that improve your performance now are essential for the present, but what about tomorrow? What skills and capabilities do you need to thrive in the work you’d like to be doing in three years (or five or ten years)?

Ask yourself this: what new skills should I cultivate so I’m ready for the opportunities I’ll create in the future?

If you want to write a book someday, for example, it’s never too early to learn how to write a book proposal, refine your writing skills, or understand the intricacies of book marketing.

By focusing on the skills you will need down the road, you get better at what you’re doing in the present, and set the stage for the future you envision for yourself.

What are you getting ready for?

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A Blog You Should Read

By Michael W. McLaughlin on April 14, 2011 in Managing Your Business, Marketing, Selling

Ian Brodie

Ian Brodie, a UK-based consultant and coach, publishes a thought-provoking blog called Get More Clients in Less Time. If you are in the professional services business, there’s a lot to like about Ian’s blog.

He’s Been There and Done It

One of the things I like about Ian’s work is that he really knows his stuff—and sticks with it. He’s got real expertise in professional services and it shows. You can find other people writing about services marketing who mistakenly believe their general knowledge of marketing qualifies them to opine on the challenges facing services marketers. Ian’s not a pretender. He’s been there and done it.

Keeps It Fresh

Ian does a good job of posting on a regular basis. You’ll find fresh content every week, often with a counter-intuitive spin on conventional wisdom. Not long ago, he wrote an interesting post on Marketing Half Truths, which you’ll see challenges the “rules” of services selling.

Presents a Variety of Viewpoints

Recently, Ian added a podcast program called Authority Marketing. Each podcast is an interview with a leading consultant about how that person built an authority position in the market. He’s got interviews with people like Drayton Bird, John Seddon, Charles Green, and Tom Searcy.

Speaks Authentically

The blog’s intent is to support Ian’s sales process, but not in an in-your-face way. His writing style is authentic, engaging, and personable. Here’s an example from his bio:

“I’m far from a natural salesperson. But through study and experience I’ve learned what it takes for even the most reluctant of professionals to become highly effective at marketing and sales – and that’s what I teach my clients.”

Check It Out

Ian is doing interesting work and shares his expertise freely. If you haven’t seen his blog, it’s worth a look.

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Breaking Down Relationship Barriers

By Michael W. McLaughlin on April 11, 2011 in Business Life, The Guerrilla Consultant

Not long ago, I talked with a frustrated colleague. He’d been working with a new client for weeks, and everything was going well. But he was having no success meeting others in the client’s organization, even though he was sure he could help in more areas.

I knew exactly how he felt. I’ve been there more than once. Usually, we hit the relationship wall for one of two reasons: either the client intentionally blocks our attempts to branch out, or the client doesn’t know or fully understand what else we can do to help.

Quick Takes for Service Providers

By Michael W. McLaughlin on April 6, 2011 in Industry Trends, Managing Your Business

Is McKinsey & Co. the Root of All Evil? A catalogue of McKinsey-inspired strategies gone wrong.

Exposing the CULT in ConsULTant. A lawyer’s take on the myth of the business consultant.

How to Become a Management Consultant. If it was this straightforward, everyone would do it.

How to lose a client–fast. Some obvious points, but good reminders.

What do “social media” consultants actually do? Here are a few clues.

According to M2 Consulting, most independent consultants (76%) are satisfied or extremely satisfied with their career choice.

How much do management consultants earn? These numbers seem low.

Six Ways to Identify a Company in Decline. Add over-reliance on consultants to the list?

Good IT consultants can make bad employees. Is independent thinking an impediment to being a good employee?

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Blind-Sided

By Michael W. McLaughlin on April 5, 2011 in Business Life, Managing Your Business, Organizational Change

The Blockbuster video store that used to be down the street is now a credit union. Mega-bookseller Borders is mired in a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing. General Motors went belly up for a while, and so did consulting giant BearingPoint. The list of leading companies heading to court for bankruptcy protection goes on and on.

Many point to the unrelenting pace of change in these companies’ industries as the culprit. What really brought these companies to their knees wasn’t change itself, but the way company executives prepared for and reacted to that change.

In each of the cases above, you can find examples of executives who were content with the status quo, denied the truth of the emerging reality, and who bowed to the demands of self-interested investors for short-term profit.

These are problems of people, not organizations.

Noted futurist Dan Burrus tells us, “I believe the next five, short years are going to be called the great transformation.” That means more turmoil is on the horizon for those who fail to anticipate and adapt to change.

Now is the time to focus on the future of your business. How must your business change to thrive in the next five years? What new services will you offer? What services will you discontinue? How will your mix of clients change? How will your approach to marketing, selling, and service delivery evolve? What new skills do you need now and in the next few years to succeed in the emerging market?

You can be sure that the string of high-profile bankruptcies will continue. Executives in book publishing companies, media organizations, educational institutions, and many others are scrambling to find ways to remain relevant.

Anyone can avoid that fate by acknowledging the transformation in most every industry and planning for a new reality today, not down the road. Why wait to be blind-sided?

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What’s in a Name?

By Michael W. McLaughlin on April 4, 2011 in Client Relationships, Managing Your Business, Marketing

It’s easy to overlook little things that make a big impression on clients. The job titles we use on business cards, email signature lines, and web sites, for example, convey a world of meaning to others, some of which isn’t helpful.

Take the title Business Development Manager, which seems harmless enough. The problem is that many clients will get the clear message that your aim is to develop your business, not theirs.

The same holds true for Account Manager or Sales Executive. You’re sending clients a seller-centered message, when they’re looking for someone who puts their interests at the center of the conversation.

Some people recognize this problem but make it worse with their solutions. Instead of Client Relationship Manager, for instance, they go with something lame like Chief Synergy Detector or the Grand Marshall of Morale Boosting. Besides making people roll their eyes, these titles are less useful than the run-of-the-mill ones.

So what do you use instead? If you feel that you must use a title (which I’m not convinced everyone needs to), begin by thinking about titles that reflect what you do for clients, not what you do for your business.

Maybe you’re a Supplier Productivity Specialist, Online Marketing Strategist, or a Leadership Development Manager. With such a title, you can use your calling card or email signature line to help convey your value to clients.

If you’re not inclined to use this kind of title, you have two options. Either dump the title entirely, or use a simple one like Consultant, Associate, Principal, and so on. Whatever choice you make, be sure it’s for the benefit of the client, not you.

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