When consulting becomes less like torturing the client

[HankHeath@xxxxxxx]

>From day one in these technology businesses, whether as an internal employee
or as an outside contractor, I've been a consultant. The experience has been
remarkably the same. Management needs something that their regular staff
cannot provide. They go to the techno-gurus to fill the gap. The techno-gurus
listen, make suggestions, and estimate the cost of implementing. The manager
reaches for an antacid before giving the go-ahead.

Now, admitted, we add more flourishes to the procedure, but the essence of the
interaction is much the same. There is no joy in dealing with technology
outside of the occasional virtual golf game. Instead we have applied some very
advanced tools of torture to manipulate the client: high prices, fitting the
business to the package, and constant churn.

High prices I don't have to explain. You know the rationalization of them. The
problem is that the client does not always see that we are earning them. As a
result, there is a constant battle over price these days. Tech analysts have
been rationalizing this battle as commoditization of the industry. I disagree.
We haven't proven that we are worth the dollar amount we charge. Do the
managers haggle over the price of a Rolex? No - it is a status symbol that is
worth the price. So should our work be.

Fitting the business to the package is the twentieth century version of the
Rack. I am watching this process unfold in an organization that opted to put
in an ERP system instead of fixing their Y2K problems. It was felt that the
Y2K work was too expensive for what they would be getting. Now, everyone in
the company is munching Tums, except the consultants.

Xerox copier salesmen are supposed to have been the ones who perfected the
concept of churn: get the machine in there at any price and make your real
money on supplies, service, and upgrades. The computer world has embraced this
as the key to making a living. I've seen companies that were willing to give
away Y2K analyses based upon getting into the client's knowledge base to
generate more and more business. The real churn occurs in the manager's
stomach when it is realized that the inexpensive solution turns out to be a
major dent in the budget - year after year after year.

Do I have a solution? If I did, I'd be working that instead of this
newsletter, you can bet. I do have some clues, however. They have to do with
the attitude of the client when working with a consultant. We have to provide
situations for clients to feel connected with the work and to feel positive
about the entire process.  

Right now, the client is disconnected from the action. The consultant is an
outsider dealing with someone who has been given the task of acting as liaison
between the client and consultant. The work is outside. The results are
technical. The implementation is mechanical. This all can be changed.

I'm working on solutions that can make the process better for the client -
and, hence, better for the consultants. I'd like your ideas.

Hank Heath
Project Manager
HLHeath consulting
home office: 801-733-9716
cell phone: 801-814-5387
7054 S. Ponderosa Dr.
Salt Lake City
UT 84121-3734
e-mail: HLHeath@IBM.net

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