What Makes a Great Consultant?
High Tech Connect has successfully matched hundreds of consultants on complex projects over the past 13 years, and we’ve learned a thing or two about what demanding clients need. Here are five things we know our clients expect when hiring a consultant:
Stick To What You Do Best
Clients are paying top dollar for an expert, not someone who requires a learning curve. Consultants should be honest about their strengths and previous experience, including limitations. If you want to broaden your expertise beyond your sweet spot, learn by watching your client’s internal experts (on unbilled time), take courses, or trade services and advice with a fellow professional who’s already mastered that skill set.
Let Your Passion Show
It’s so obvious when you meet someone who truly loves what they do. They aren’t watching the clock or waiting to be asked for the next instruction. Clients love working with consultants who exude confidence and have a zeal for their profession. Consultants who are clearly “in the zone” will endear themselves to any overworked client by helping to anticipate needs and suggest creative yet cost-efficient solutions.
Communicate, Communicate, Communicate
Over the course of our business, there have only been a handful of times when we needed to swoop in and salvage a project. In almost every case the problem was simply mis-communication, or no communication at all. It is the consultant’s responsibility to over-communicate and provide regular updates in the manner most preferred by the client (email, phone, weekly 1:1, written report). There should be no surprises!
Proactive and Professional
Anticipating the needs of your client is an essential element of successful consulting that requires maturity and sensitivity. And moving-target clients who never have time to meet or non-communicative managers who can’t make decisions require heroic tenacity to keep the project rolling on track. Conversely, when a consultant will be unavailable while volunteering in a classroom or tending to other family needs (which is why consultants become consultants), clients should be notified well in advance of schedule conflicts. The best consultants remain professional all the time, offer great flexibility and accessibility, and limit the personal details.
No Prima Donnas
Contrary to some beliefs, consulting is not about the consultant. It’s not about showing off, whining, back-stabbing, making excuses or generating awe and admiration. It is about taking away the pain for clients and making them look great at all costs. Consultants who put their client’s needs first have long-term fans who happily and promptly pay invoices.
What do YOU think the best consultants do to become indispensable? Post your comments here. Next month, look for our thoughts on What Makes a Great Client?
Agree with all of these points. But one you left off is that a great *independent* consultant needs to be able to work *on* their business while working *in* their business. In other words, to not only deliver for their current client(s) but also be constantly marketing themselves for future clients. This is often the most difficult and time consuming task independent consultants face – which is why it’s such a delight to sign up with HTC and let you guys do the marketing for us!