It's Still About Customer Service

A few weeks ago, a former colleague of mine back east shared a story about a consultant who had recently made the transition from academia to consulting. This individual was given the assignment of writing a summary of the project purpose and objectives. She based the document on existing documentation and what she had been told about the project by colleagues. She would submit one draft after another to the client who kept rejecting them.

As usual, I could only shake my head at this story. This anecdote supports my observation that the simple but valuable practice of meeting and talking with the client seems to be going the way of the dodo. Only through meeting and talking with the client can a consultant really understand their situation and their concerns from their perspective. Also, how else are you going to connect with the client and establish a relationship?

I am seeing more and more evidence that many consulting firms have forgotten or choose to ignore that consulting IS STILL ABOUT CUSTOMER SERVICE; therefore, many new consultants never learn this. No wonder there is a strong tendency among consultants today to rely completely on the documentation, such as the contract and proposal, or what they can find on-line for information on the client's organization.

Getting to know your client and establishing a relationship CANNOT be done via documentation and email. Would you expect a faceless entity to know enough about your business and situation to give you good service without talking to you? No. What level of confidence would you have in that person? Little.

Good consultants treat their clients like customers. They meet and talk with the client frequently. It's a basic practice, and well worth the time.