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- Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
- Kategorie: Fachliteratur
- Sprache: Englisch
World-renowned client relationship authority shows you how to dramatically grow your business by mastering fourteen critical client development challenges Andrew Sobel, author of the international bestsellers Clients for Life and Power Questions, offers a proven,100-day plan for conquering 14 tough client development challenges and growing your client base in any market conditions. He's encapsulated 25 years of unique research, including personal interviews with over 8000 top executives and successful rainmakers, into a practical roadmap for winning more new clients and growing your existing relationships. You'll learn specific strategies to move confidently and predictably from a first meeting to a signed contract, and discover the agenda-setting techniques that create a steady stream of sole-source business. You'll master the art of reframing client requests, leading to broader, higher-impact engagements. You'll dramatically sharpen your ability to ask the powerful questions that can transform your client relationships. And, you'll learn to develop advisory relationships with influential C-suite executives. Andrew illustrates each weekly challenge with real-life examples drawn from thousands of executive meetings. He shares success strategies from having grown and led three highly successful professional service businesses. Andrew has taught these strategies to over 50,000 professionals around the world, and they're now available to you in this highly readable, portable masterclass. Whether you are early in your career and need a comprehensive guide to grow your client base from the ground up or are a seasoned practitioner who wants to accelerate your business growth, It Starts With Clients will take you to the next level.
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Seitenzahl: 304
Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2020
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“It Starts with Clients is an impressive greatest hits compendium, distilling Andrew's many years of experience and powerful insights into one highly readable volume. Whether you are new to his material or refreshing your knowledge, by following these eminently practical recommendations you will build better relationships whatever the stage of your career.”
—Myles Corson, Markets Leader, Financial Accounting Advisory Services, Ernst & Young
“I love this book. What sets it apart from imitators is the way Andrew Sobel combines decades of experience with fresh new perspectives to give us actionable insights. It Starts with Clients delivers the definitive success formula for winning and keeping clients.”
—Dave Bencivengo, President, Weichert Workforce Mobility
“A treasure trove of practical advice based on deep experience and research. Andrew Sobel provides a powerful roadmap for relationship building that I have seen both new and experienced people learn from and translate into real results. Sobel's insights are as relevant to the social sector as they are to business. I highly recommend it.”
—Jeff Bradach, Managing Partner and Co-Founder, The Bridgespan Group
“Our business begins and ends with clients, and Andrew Sobel's It Starts with Clients builds on his earlier works—All for One and Power Questions—by providing the reader with a roadmap for building and sustaining long-term client relationships. Andrew's practical, hands-on experience with clients across the globe gives him a unique perspective that allows him to stand out as a coach extraordinaire. It Starts with Clients is a solid framework for success, I recommend it for everyone who is looking to develop clients for life!”
—Michael Guralnik, Managing Director, Citibank, and Global Head of Marketing, Intellectual Capital Management, and Digital Client Advisory, Treasury and Trade Solutions
“Andrew Sobel is truly a global expert on building client relationships. He focuses on bringing value to every relationship. In this latest work, Andrew breaks down the complex issues of building client relationships into a step-by-step action plan that is both easy to understand and follow. Well done!”
—Karen Greenbaum, President and CEO, Association of Executive Search and Leadership Consultants (AESC)
“When looking for sound, practical advice that actually works in building client relationships, I've never found better than Andrew Sobel's wisdom. His mentorship and expertise are laid out in meaningful and actionable approaches in this latest stroke of genius.”
—Colin Dominish, Global Market Development Leader, GHD Digital
“This is a comprehensive, practical guide for every professional who wants to succeed at consultative sales and grow their client base. It Starts with Clients provides a systematic and programmatic approach, rich with detailed, how-to strategies for winning new clients and earning their long-term loyalty.”
—Nagaraja Srivatsan, Chief Digital Officer for R&D Solutions, IQVIA
“In It Starts with Clients, Andrew Sobel has given us a powerful how-to guide for the next generation of client advisory professionals—but it's so much more than that. Sculpted from a mountain of experience, it is as inspiring as it is instructive; and as easy to read as it is to put into action.”
—Adam Reeder, Partner and Global Building Products Co-Head, Rothschild & Co.
“Many of us have benefited from the lessons in Andrew's bestsellers. It Starts with Clients sets out an entirely practical and wholly digestible 100-day plan which, while especially useful for younger professionals, has relevance for all of us as advisors. I highly recommend this book, with its anecdotes and their powerful messages—and the novel illustrations.”
—Sir Win Bischoff, Chairman, JP Morgan Securities, plc
“It Starts with Clients just reaffirms how much I appreciate and value Andrew Sobel's unique perspective on how to build strong relationships. The roadmap he lays out is authoritative, practical, and actionable, making this a must-read that will dramatically accelerate the growth of your clients and your business.”
—Nichole Jordan, National Managing Partner, Growth and Performance, Grant Thornton
“This book is tremendous! Based on decades of experience, renowned client relationship expert Andrew Sobel shows us why he is such a respected thought leader in this field. His powerful wisdom, strategies, and practical ‘how-to's' on building client relationships are priceless. This kind of advice is rare. I highly recommend it!”
—Stephen M. R. Covey, New York Times and #1 Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The Speed of Trust and Smart Trust
“A very powerful, concise, must-read guide for any professional who is seeking to build lifelong, profitable client relationships. Andrew has thoroughly mastered the knack of sharing great lessons in a wonderfully easy and enjoyable read!”
—Diana Brightmore-Armour, CEO, UK and EMEA, ANZ Bank
“Andrew Sobel's ideas are a master class on how to build client relationships with senior decision-makers. It Starts with Clients should be required reading for anyone whose career success depends on them.”
—Stuart Jackson, Global Managing Partner, L.E.K. Consulting
“Andrew takes the big principles for building strong client relationships and boils them down into clear, practical steps that achieve big results. I also love the 100-day approach, which adds urgency to these important challenges. A great read.”
—Michael Hertz, Chief Marketing Officer, White & Case
Andrew Sobel
It StartswithClients
Your 100-Day Plan
to Build Lifelong Relationships
AND REVENUE
Copyright © 2020 by Andrew Sobel. All rights reserved.
Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.
Published simultaneously in Canada.
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:
ISBN 9781119619109 (Hardcover)
ISBN 9781119619123 (ePDF)
ISBN 9781119619116 (ePub)
Cover design: Wiley
Cover image: © Gaurav Paswan/Shutterstock
Chapter illustrations by Elizabeth Cupich
Graphics by Lauren Ball
To the great relationships in my life, starting with my extraordinary wife, Mary Jane; my children Chris, Elizabeth, and Emma; and my friends and clients. And to the late Jerry Panas, my co-author and dear friend, who inspired me to see the cup as always completely full.
CONTENTS
Cover
Day 1: The Star of Your Show
This is your playbook
It starts with clients
The mindset shift that yields remarkable results
When clients are just friends
The essential combination
Week 1: Choose Your Target
Know your value proposition
Screen for strategic fit
Screen for relational fit
Screen for your ability to have an impact
The magic word
Week 2: Get Recognized
You need recognition and renown to attract clients
Climbing the recognition ladder
If you can't write it, can you really think it?
Typical challenges you may encounter
It's not just about meeting the right people
Week 3: Find Your Clients
Turn conversations into relationships and revenue
The hierarchy of client calls
Week 4: Master the First Meeting
The first meeting formula
Pre-meeting: Prepare smartly
Objective one: Build rapport
Objective two: Establish your credibility
Objective three: Understand their issues
Objective four: Go deep and add value
Objective five: Get a next step
What clients say about first meetings
Week 5: From Contact to Contract
Two simple rules to sequence your sales conversations
Identifying and managing the key stakeholders
Moving from contact to contract
Wait! Don't submit that proposal just yet
Week 6: Free Up a Stuck Sale
The five preconditions to a sale
When the preconditions are missing
The four archetypal objections
Five real client scenarios you will face
Week 7: Anticipate and Agenda Set
Do you really understand your client's agenda?
Don't be a walking cliché
How agenda setting works
Week 8: Reframe for Maximum Impact
Using the compass method for incremental reframing
Radical reframing strategies
Two tools for reframing
Week 9: Grow Your Relationships: The 10-Minute Plan
The power of focus
Eight essential questions
No plan survives contact with the client
Week 10: Use Power Questions
What separates good questions from mediocre ones?
Four types of power questions
More power questions
Questions you should never ask
Ask, don't tell
Week 11: Be a Brilliant Big-Picture Thinker
What is big-picture thinking?
Ten strategies for generating new ideas
Using big-picture thinking with your clients
Week 12: Get Clients to Root for You
Are you creating personal promoters?
The loyalty sequence
Week 13: Build Senior Executive Relationships
Gaining access to the C-suite
Add value for time
Developing an ongoing relationship
Week 14: Become an Irresistible Person of Interest
What you know
Who you know
Who you are
Strategies to become a person of interest
Getting even better at what you do
Day 100: Keep Your Clients for Life
The beauty of staying in touch
Treating old clients like brand new ones
Get rid of “me”
The final secret
About the Author
End User License Agreement
List of Illustrations
Day 1
Figure 0.1 The rainmaker zone
Week 1
Figure 1.1 Are they a good fit?
Week 2
Figure 2.1 Activities that drive recognition and renown
Week 3
Figure 3.1 Your sales leads
Figure 3.2 Client development priorities
Week 4
Figure 4.1 Client development objectives
Week 5
Figure 5.1 Four types of client development conversations
Figure 5.2 The trust equation
Figure 5.3 Three levels of the sale
Week 7
Figure 7.1 Agenda setting
Week 8
Figure 8.1 Reframing client issues
Week 9
Figure 9.1 The seven characteristics of healthy client relationships
Figure 9.2 The relationship-building process
Week 10
Figure 10.1 Using power questions
Week 11
Figure 11.1 The client growth matrix
Guide
Cover
Table of Contents
Introduction
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Day 1The Star of Your Show
On the third day at my new job, something stopped me dead in my tracks. It happened as I walked to the coffee machine.
I stood in the hallway outside of Scott Cunningham's office, entranced. Staring through the half-open door, I watched Scott take a phone call from the CEO of one of the firm's best clients. His feet were up on his desk, bathed by the morning light from his window. He was like a confident jungle cat, basking in the sun. For Scott, work wasn't just interesting—it was downright fun.
I had just finished business school, and that August I began work for a leading management consulting firm in Boston. Scott was a senior partner and former Harvard Business School professor. Still in his 40s, he had big bushy eyebrows and an absurdly thick head of unruly, dark hair. He oozed relaxation. As he spoke on the phone, he periodically crumpled up used Post-it Notes and pitched them into his waste can.
Why was I so taken by this scene? Because Scott was a supreme rainmaker. He had been instrumental in growing the firm from its early days. He knew lots of CEOs and other top executives, and they frequently called him for advice. When Scott wrote proposals, the project was already sold—the proposal was just a memorandum of what he had already agreed upon with the client. No competitive bids, no torturous “Requests for Proposal” (RFPs) to endure.
Scott's office was a nexus of important people who wanted to hire him and our firm. No wonder, as he had an uncanny ability to quickly grasp clients’ key issues and conjure up an incisive, original strategy for them. Once a project was sold, he then marshaled other consultants to help deliver the work. These included young associates, like me, as well as other partners who—sadly—just could not attract enough of their own clients.
I immediately knew I wanted to be like Scott, not one of those partners who was consigned to execute what Scott sold. I coveted his mojo. I recognized I had to first learn the business and become a skilled consultant. But I never took my eye off that picture of Scott: thrown back in his chair, fielding important calls, and shooting little yellow basketballs as he gave sage advice to powerful businesspeople.
This is your playbook
I became a student of Scott's playbook with clients, and carefully watched others like him. I made a lot of mistakes, for sure. But by intentionally putting what I learned to work, I became the youngest partner in our firm at age 31. By 36 I was a senior vice president and country chief executive officer. Then, I started my own successful management consulting company, and embarked on over 20 years of proprietary research to codify the strategies, skills, and techniques that enable you to consistently succeed with clients. Along the way, I've published nine books on developing enduring client relationships, including the international bestsellers Power Questions and Clients for Life.
In building your own client or customer base, you will invariably face a series of difficult challenges. Many professionals get discouraged and even broken by them. I've selected the 14 most important ones, and I'm going to share with you exactly how to overcome and master each of them. As we go through them, you'll learn proven strategies to consistently develop, grow, sustain, and multiply your client relationships. I've worked with over 50,000 professionals around the world who have successfully used these very same techniques. Put them to work yourself, and they will have a dramatic impact on your success.
If you apply the ideas from each week of this 100-day program, no matter where you are starting from today, you'll grow your client base and revenues. You'll also be in huge demand as a “bankable star” who can reliably start up, grow, or resuscitate any kind of business. You will be indispensable. A rainmaker.
Remember, however, that the real star of this movie is your client, as shown in the illustration at the beginning of this chapter. You become a bankable star only because you've put your clients in the footlights on center stage, and helped them succeed. As soon as you start making it all about you, and how clever you are, people will whisper behind your back. And what they say won't be pretty.
It starts with clients
Whether you're in the early stage of your career, starting your own business, or are already an experienced practitioner who wants to work more at the C-suite level, this book will save you years of time.
In 100 days you will develop a plan and sharpen your skills to build lifelong relationships and revenue. The core content consists of 14 weeks, one challenge per week. If you spend a day on the introduction and conclusion, and a week on each of the 14 challenges, this adds up to 100 days of reading, analyzing, planning—and acting. Regardless of your level of experience, I am certain you will discover meaningful opportunities to grow your business.
Each week can be read on its own, so feel free to gravitate to those sections most relevant to your particular development needs. As the book progresses, the challenges become more advanced.
The bar is now much higher
Simply put, selling to and serving clients, especially large corporate clients, is a challenging business. It requires a higher level of skill and business acumen than it used to. Clients are growing increasingly more sophisticated and demanding. So no matter how good you are today, tomorrow you will have to be just a little bit better to get the same results.
The mindset shift that yields remarkable results
Your expertise and domain knowledge are essential to your success with clients. They are your ticket to entry. They help you add value in the very first conversation with a prospective client. And they often earn you the right to a second meeting. If your clients perceive you can help them, then they will be drawn toward a relationship with you.
However … an excessive “expert” or “product” focus can get you into trouble. For example, a very successful firm asked me to coach one of their executives. Every year, her sales had been declining, and she was now at risk of being demoted or even let go. She was highly intelligent and very personable. When I asked her about her approach to client development, she said, “My clients know what I do and if they need me, they'll call me.” That was my first clue that she had a self-limiting mindset that was the cause of her deteriorating performance.
Another client of mine started out each meeting with a new prospect by walking through a very slick, detailed PowerPoint presentation of his company's background and services. If the client interrupted or tried to shift the conversation away from his presentation, or asked too many questions, he got flustered. He would just obliviously power on with his slide deck. He believed that more product information and more displays of expertise would build more credibility and trust with his clients. But they didn't.
The limitations of the “expert” mindset
Both of these individuals had what I call the “expert-for-hire” mindset. It is a narrow, me-centered, limiting mindset that will hold you back and even sabotage your success. It can lead you to overwhelm clients with breathless serenades about your products and services, your methodologies, and the details of your resume.
It also gives you tunnel vision. In 1980, for example, the old AT&T commissioned a top consulting firm to estimate the market for cell phones in the year 2000. Their answer: there would be 900,000 cell phones. They were only off by 108 million! The experts lacked the imagination to see the potential for mobile phones, and AT&T missed a huge opportunity to be an early entrant in this fast-growing business.
Harry Truman, who was president of the United States after Franklin D. Roosevelt, foreshadowed this when he quipped, “An expert is a fellow who's afraid to learn anything new, because then he wouldn't be an expert anymore.” This gets at the notion that when we're experts, we want to stay within our narrow expertise at all times.
The expansiveness of the “advisor” mindset
To see possibilities, you need the wide-angle lens of what I call the advisor mindset. With it, you provide clients with an expansive outlook on their problems and the potential solutions. Experts see themselves as specialists. Advisors also have deep expertise, but they layer breadth on top of their depth. They develop a robust knowledge of their client as an individual, of the client's business and organization, and the industry they operate in. They always frame their solutions in the context of the client's overall goals, strategies, and plans.
When you have the expert mindset you tend to talk at your client and focus on your extensive expertise. Your selling approach is to enthusiastically pitch your solutions With the advisor mindset, in contrast, you ask thought-provoking questions and listen deeply. You engage others in a discussion about their most critical issues. While experts strive to demonstrate professional credibility, advisors cultivate deep, personal trust. Experts are for hire, but advisors will push back and say “no” when it's appropriate to do so.
Experts usually accept the client's definition of their challenge. Where possible, however, advisors work with their clients to reframe it in order to define the total problem and the total solution. The result is greater impact and more value. All in all, when you have the expert mindset you tend to focus singularly on the transaction. Advisors takes a broader outlook, putting great value on the long-term relationship. Even when there are no fees coming in, they still add value to their client and behave like a trusted counselor.
The risk of not making this shift is grave. You'll be a tradable commodity who is one of many solid “experts” or product salespeople that clients can choose from. A plumber instead of a doctor. You'll think small, be reactive, and settle for a diet of small sales—of little mice.
A lioness, however, cannot live on mice alone—she simply can't catch enough of them each day to survive!
When clients are just friends
I had a very savvy client who was a national managing partner for one of the Big 4 accounting firms. We were having dinner once, and he bemoaned the fact that some of the partners who worked for him had lots of relationships but never sold much. “They are always telling me about the great meetings they have with their client, and how terrific the relationship is,” he confided. “But they never meet their revenue goals!”
He added, “I call that a ‘friend,’ not a client!”
So my final point is this: You absolutely need a relationship orientation if you want to succeed with clients and build consultative relationships with senior executives. But you also need a will to win. This is reflected in a drive to do your utmost for each and every client. It's what pushes you to work late into the evening to make sure you are delivering the best possible quality or writing the most effective proposal. This will to win doesn't allow you to feel neutral about a competitor beating you out for a client contract. In fact, you hate it when that happens.
If you have a will to win, you are also motivated to study and train so that when you're in the crucible with your client, you're as prepared as you can possibly be.
My client summed it up at the end our dinner: “You need a certain hunger to succeed with clients. Some people don't have it—it's just not there. Without that hunger, even if you've got good skills, you're not going to truly shine.”
The essential combination
Figure 0.1 illustrates four combinations of these two essential attributes: a relationship orientation and a will to win.
Figure 0.1 The rainmaker zone
If you're passive and simply react to individual client requests as they come along, you're an order taker.
If you have a strong will to win, but lack a relationship focus, you're in the upper-left quadrant. You'll act like a strident, win-at-any-costs salesperson. You can do well here. But over time, you won't build the long-term trust and relational resilience that help anchor a great career.
Perhaps you have a relationship orientation but struggle to move the conversation along and identify a problem you can help your client solve. That can become more like friendship. You're in the lower-right quadrant, where the commercial relationship is weak or nonexistent.
If you powerfully combine a will to win with a strong relationship focus, that puts you in the upper-right quadrant. In that position, you assiduously develop deep, trusted relationships with your clients. You are driven to add great value to them. You frequently ponder what you can do to improve their business and how you can serve them better. When you find a critical issue to latch onto, you are tenacious. Here, you act as a true rainmaker.
The will to win, of course, must be equaled by the will to train to win. I know lots of people who want to succeed, make an impact, and become wealthy. But some of them are not willing to put in the time and effort to learn the skills that will get them those things.
If you love working with clients in the first place, you can develop and strengthen your hunger to succeed. Often, when we are empowered with the right skills and tools, it frees up our passion. After you read this book, I think you'll know where you stand.
Additional Free Resources for You
Download my free Client Growth Guide at www.andrewsobel.com/growth-guide. It includes the self-assessment, Do You Have the Expert or Advisor Mindset, as well as dozens of other practical strategies and tools for growing your client base.
Week 1Choose Your Target
A client of mine, a large global bank, decided to conduct a review of their corporate banking relationships. This bank had been in business for over 100 years, and as you can imagine, had accumulated all manner of clients around the world. They discovered they had over 30,000 of them. Many were not profitable, however. Others were with companies that were a lousy fit with the bank's new strategy. Yet another group of these clients had developed marginally acceptable risk profiles. My client had become a hoarder of relationships. The result was a hornet's nest of problems.
Another client I worked with had a different but equally vexing problem with their client base. Over a three-year period, two large companies they served had dramatically increased their demand, and they now accounted for 60% of my client's revenue—a dangerous dependency. In addition, they turned out to be exceedingly difficult clients to work with. They demanded steep price discounts and treated my client poorly. Just as we set out on a strategy to broaden their revenue base, one of the two large clients came on hard times and cancelled half their orders.
My client survived, but it was a tough blow. The incident made them realize that their ideal client was a mid-sized company, not a large public corporation. When they refocused and also broadened their revenue base, their growth and profitability began to dramatically improve. And, their people were much, much happier.
As these examples illustrate, the composition of your client base is often the result of historical accident and short-term decision making rather than intentional strategic choice. Doing business with anyone who will write a check is an appealing strategy when you need to pay the bills or meet your sales target. But it's a formula for big trouble further down the road.
Good client relationships are like good meals—if you start with fresh, high-quality ingredients, you'll usually end up with a delicious dish. But try making a salad in January with those rock-hard winter tomatoes you buy in the supermarket—you know, the ones that are like golf balls. Ugh. It's not going to be great.
Pick your clients wisely from the start. Your chances of building long-term, rewarding relationships will vastly improve. The sale will go faster. Trust will quickly develop. You'll partner well together. Your client will get the results they seek. And you'll have a rewarding experience.
Let's walk through four simple steps that will help ensure you end up with the right clients.
Know your value proposition
To know which clients make sense for you, you must understand the value you are offering the marketplace. So step one is to develop a clear value proposition. Can you succinctly articulate how you help clients? What outcomes do they achieve when they use your services or products? Sometimes we forget that what clients actually buy is a business result that is delivered by the solutions you sell.
Michelin tire company is a case in point. In 1947 they introduced the long-wearing radial tire. Michelin heavily promoted the technological superiority of radials, but the new tire never gained traction in the US market—it was a flop. Finally, in the 1970s they began focusing their advertising on the fact that you could drive many more miles on a set of radial tires. Radials quickly displaced standard bias tires and now account for virtually 100% of the market. Drivers didn't really care about the technology in the tires—they wanted more mileage on them, and they were willing to pay extra for it!
Examples of value propositions
How would you articulate your or your company's value proposition? My principal one is this: I help companies and individuals build their clients for life.
Here are a few examples of value propositions (or in some cases, missions) from well-known organizations:
“We help organizations across the private, public, and social sectors create the change that matters.” (McKinsey & Company)
“Remember everything.” (Evernote)
“To organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful.” (Google)
“We empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more.” (Microsoft)
“We ignite opportunity by setting the world in motion.” (Uber)
“Accenture solves our clients’ toughest challenges by providing unmatched services in strategy, consulting, digital, technology and operations.” (Accenture)
Some of the these are fairly broad, because these companies do many things for their clients and customers. The more focused your service offering, the more specific your value proposition can be. My friend Marshall Goldsmith, the executive coach and bestselling author, says, “I help successful people achieve positive, lasting change in behavior; for themselves, their people, and their teams.”
Next, you have to identify your target clients. You should use three sequential screens or filters to assess whether or not a client makes sense for you.
Screen for strategic fit
Strategic fit refers to a set of criteria you have established to define your target market—that is, the clients who really need what you offer. These criteria could specify:
Types of industries
Company size
Private, public, or governmental organizations
Geographic location
Wholesale (B2B) or retail (B2C) businesses
Companies with certain well-developed functions that you specialize in (e.g., operations, IT, logistics, etc.)
Other characteristics that would make these clients heavy users of your solutions and value (e.g., capital intensive vs. labor intensive, domestic vs. international, companies that spend a lot on training versus those that don't, how often they relocate their staff, etc.)
If you aren't clear on which prospective clients fit your strategy, you'll tend to take on any client who will pay your bill. The result will be a mélange that will eventually dilute your performance and impact.
One of my clients decided to use their reward system to encourage adherence to their target client definition. They made a list of 1,000 companies, and their people only got credit for sales to those organizations. That sounds harsh, but it dramatically focused their efforts and improved their profitability.
Large multinationals with comprehensive offerings can, of course, go after a broad range of clients. But if you're a smaller firm or solo practitioner, you need to think through your screening criteria pretty carefully. Otherwise you'll end up like my bank client, a hoarder of relationships.
The deeper your knowledge of a particular industry, market, process, or type of company, the more differentiated your expertise will be and the stronger your ability to compete. As an example, I have spent decades deepening my knowledge of an important process—how to develop and grow client relationships—and so I screen for clients who are trying to build trusted, consultative relationships with senior executives. Someone else's focus would likely be completely different and, I hope, uniquely matched to their particular strategy.
What types of clients represent the best strategic fit with you and your firm, given the type of value you add and the solutions you provide?
Screen for relational fit
Because I believe strongly in the importance of relationships—in business and in life—I want to know whether I can have a positive, trusted relationship with a prospective client. I also want assurance that the client's reputation will enhance—or at least not diminish—my own! Here are some questions you should ask to test for relational fit:
Does the client have a history of building productive, long-term relationships with external providers?
Wouldn't you prefer a client who has a healthy relationship orientation, versus one who treats everyone like an arms-length, disposable vendor?
Does this organization have a good reputation?
Your own image is strongly affected by your clients’ standing in the marketplace. If you find a client taking ethical or legal shortcuts, head for the door.
Are the leadership and the company culture aligned with or at least not in conflict with your core values?
Every three or four years I encounter a client whose values and general outlook are so at odds with my own that I have to diplomatically wind things down or let the engagement peter out.
