In many cases, consultants reach the economic buyer but quickly find themselves out in the cold draft of the hallway again. They reach the summit, but then fall off.
The reason is that, instead of attempting to develop a relationship with the buyer, the consultant is too scared, too subordinated, too insecure, and doesn’t establish a peer connection. So the buyer says something like, “I’m not sure we can use your help or not, but why not talk to my HR director who knows more about this than I do, and see what she says?” And the consultant trots down to HR, hearing the “clunk” of the gates of the cathedral closing forever behind.
The buyer says these things for the following reasons:
- You are talking about deliverables, not results, and the buyer isn’t going to make decisions about commodities.
- You talk in jargon, which the buyer identifies as the unique vernacular of HR.
- The buyer legitimately believes that the HR people can provide advice and you do nothing to dissuade or counter that erroneous belief.
- The buyer is unimpressed with your language, approach, or look, and this is the easiest way to get you out of the office quickly.
All of this can be avoided, but you’ll have to “consultant up.” (I’m attempting gender neutrality here.) Here are your steps.
1. Focus on building the relationship. Don’t launch into a “pitch.” Never bring visual aids. Adjust to the buyer’s style.
2. Don’t feel as if this is a final exam. If the buyer says, “Well, what can you do for us?,” say, “I don’t know, why don’t we discuss your current challenges and priorities?”
3. Discuss “what” but not “how.” The former will stimulate interaction about key concerns but stop short of offering solutions, free consulting, or opportunity for the buyer to say, “That won’t work here.”
4. Provide value immediately. For example, tell the buyer, “In my experience there are three keys to retention of top talent. Are you using all three to your maximum ability here?” Or provide a diagnostic and ask which of three circles or four quadrants (or whatever) the buyer’s organization occupies, and whether it needs to maintain that position or change.
5. Stress that these are strategic issues not suited for subordinates, whose orientation is tactical.
6. Point out that whenever you suggest major change, people will resist it,unsure of their role, so their feedback is often more self-serving than organizationally oriented.
7. Indicate that HR people are often resentful because they are upset that they didn’t think of your intervention first, or hadn’t done it successfully themselves, or weren’t chosen this time.
In the worst case, here is the language to use:
I’m happy to interview whomever you like. I’ve found that what I hear is often different or antithetical to what you and I discuss, so let’s agree on a date for us to get back together once I see your people. How is next Thursday at 10?
This combination of preventive and contingent action should keep you safe from delegation.
However, there are times when “legitimate” delegation will be requested. The buyer may sincerely want you to talk to some senior people or front line people whom he or she believes can help in framing the proposal. In that case, agree to the steps (provided they are not laborious, lengthy, or quasi-consulting work) but absolutely insist on the debrief period so that you can finalize a true conceptualized agreement with the buyer.
But the overarching issue here is that consultants allow themselves to be delegated. Focus on these causes not from the buyer’s perspective, but from your own ability to reconcile them.
Low self-esteem: You feel that you don’t deserve to be there, that you’re not the equal of the buyer, that you’re an impostor. Therefore, you take whatever measures are necessary not to “divulge” who you really are, which means you accept virtually any buyer suggestion or direction.
Fear of losing business: Even experienced, successful consultants seem to think that they desperately need every piece of business and can’t afford to lose any “sale,” no matter how many concessions and compromises they have to make. This is seldom true, but these subordinate behaviors are what put you in that fearful position of not having enough business.
A love affair with methodology: You are so passionate about the techniques and approaches you’ve developed that your default position is to dive into it and discuss it from the inside out. Nothing, with the possible exception of vacation photos, bores others more. Focus on the other party’s results, not your inputs. Poor business acumen: If you can’t talk about ROI, margins, EBITDA, and valuation, then you can’t speak “executive.” You must acquaint yourself and become conversant in the language of the executive suite. (Stop using terms such as C-Level, which is a term used by lower level people, for example.)
Failure to be “in the moment”: Buyers can go in many directions, and you can’t stick with a script or choreography. You have to listen, understand why the buyer is going in a certain direction, and work to return to the port of call you have in mind. That may take a while. Listen for comments, which you can lever- age to make your points and cement the relationship.
Failure to set an agenda: Here’s a great opening line: “I know your time, like my time, is precious. I’d like to cover three things today and I’m sure you have some key issues, as well. Why don’t we agree on those and use our time accordingly?” This immediately makes you a peer, setting the agenda, and enables you to direct the conversation to your best interests. Many promising meetings simply run out of time because the consultant doesn’t properly man- age the time. You can always come back, but the longer things take, the more bad things can happen. Thus, it’s best to try to obtain a decent time frame (60–90 minutes) that is uninterrupted so that you can attempt to establish the proper relationship and trust, and gain conceptual agreement during that period.