Consulting Mindset
I have been working for Thoughtworks for almost 5 years now and I must agree that Consulting mindset is one of its core values. Every Thoughtworker has their own way of consulting . This article would explain few learnings from my experience, facts and examples on what consulting is . We will also see how to practise this mindset with few examples.
Consulting :
Consulting is a practise of providing expertise on a subject to clients. This could include advisory or the implementation services, sometimes both. For the consultant, taking an independent and unbiased stance on an issue is central to his/her role.
Why Consulting ?
Clients investments are moving towards building tech capabilities where agile practices and technology fast are becoming commodities. Consulting helps to deliver and succeed in multi vendor set up .Consulting also helps in building long running accounts.
Ground Rules for consulting :
- Listen listen and listen :
- Don’t block (No, But)
- Acknowledge (Yes and …)
- Ask open ended questions and don’t reply in questions
Always listen to what the client says . Sometimes what seems to be an issue / trouble to client is not at all an actual issue . Listening always helps to understand the other side of story . So listen everything the client has to say.
Often while communicating , we use “No, I don’t think this will work / But, I’m not sure” . Lots of No’s and But’s are treated as negative ways of expressing your thoughts . We can still convey the same message by reframing the sentance .
No/ But, this won’t work — I doubt if this works, we can still give it a try .
Acknowledge — When the client is trying to communicate what is not working for them , acknowledge . You might have disagreement to what the client said or you might have difference of opinion . Acknowledging to clients helps to ensure them that we understand the problem and we are here to help them.
During discussions, there could be multiple questions you have for clients . Always ask open ended questions and listen to what they have to say — Acknowlege. If the client asks any further question, do not try to respond with another question as an answer . First, address the query and then take the conversation accordingly.
Client : When are you going to deliver ?
You : Do you want us to deliver this week/ next ? — Answering back with a question
Instead ,you can answer by saying “We can plan something this week or early next . Let us know if you have any preferable date in mind.”
Believe me , this changes the way we think and communicate verbally or over mails. This has to be practiced consciously.
IT’S NOT ABOUT YOU :
Always remember that you are here as a consultant to make your client successful and there is nothing personal . While consulting, our goal is to strive for a win- win situation .
It’s NOT about you
As a consultant, it is really important to build trust amongst clients. Often times, this has resulted in a long running accounts not just because of the technical excellence but because they trust you. Building trust is risky and tough in the initial days of consulting . Every consultant tries to build their identity irrespective of what role they are designated for. Identity then builds trust and helps to carry the relation forward .
To Influence — be open to be influenced
If there is a problem that is being discussed , listen and acknowledge . Always engage with the problem, before moving to solutions. One of the basic things which happen during discusions is we assume . We need to make the implicit explicit and get the clear picture of the problem before building solution.
“The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place” — G B Shaw.
Goals of consultant :
- Primary goal :
●Solve problems so your clients can solve them later themselves
● Have a collaborative relationship
● Ensure attention to both the project and the relationships
2. Secondary goal :
● Developing Client Commitment in every consulting act
The Essence of consulting:
Let’s discuss the essence of consulting with some examples .
1. Listen : As said earlier listening is basic consulting skill and you need to listen as though it’s a first time interaction with your client .
2.Engage with problem first before jumping to solution : Be sure about the problem statement and don’t hesitate to seek clarity in case of ambiguity . You can ask your clients to
○Can you repeat…
○ Did you mean…
○ Are you saying…
You need to make sure that understood each other correctly. Always try to reiterate or summarise to get the gist / understanding right
○ Let me see if I’ve got this…
○ So, to recap / summarising …
When you need to challenge/ have clarity on certain matters
○ Probe…Are you sure you want this ?
○ Sound tentative…I may be wrong here, could this
not fail?
It’s always good to clarify any doubts with your client before starting to build the solution . This helps to build the collaboration and ensure trust on the go.
Receive, Acknowledge, Summarise, Ask — Julian Treasure’ s RASA
Social Styles :
There are 4 basic social styles mainly driver, analytical , amiable and expressive . There are further more permutations and combinations of these 4 styles such as driver and analytical, expressive and a driver etc.
Okay, so lets understand what these styles and how it can used to our use cases .
Driver : A driver is focused, one who looks out for results . They need choices and probabilities to decide and they always make effort to be efficient and saving time . Thrives more when there is commitment . Try to support their conclusions and actions
For Ex: This could be your BA, scrum master , Tech leads etc
Analytical : is systematic, one who looks out for respect. They need data and evidences to decide .They always make effort to be accurate .Try to support their principles and thought process.
Ex : This could be Product Owners/ managers (PO’s or PM)
Amiable : is supportive , one who looks out for approval. They need assurances and guarantees to decide .They always make effort to be agreeable .Try to support their relationships and feelings. Thrives when there is a support.
For Ex : Quality analyst QA’s / developers , BA’s etc
Expressive : is energyzing , one who looks for recognition.They make effort to be stimulating .Try to support their visions and intuitions. Thrives when there is a lot of collaboration.
For ex : HR’s / event’s team
Since we went through all the basic styles, try to associate your collegues / people you interact with amongst these styles by looking at their efforts and behavior. Once you have mapped them ,you now know what social style they belong to. You can derive which environment they thrive in , how to support them and what can we do to help them decide .
To me these social styles and identification of these styles have become so handy in discussing release deadlines.
Practice :
Situation : There is a release coming up and things are not going as planned . You need to convey to your client that release is not going to happen on the planned date . Request to move the dates .
Client : Analytical person
I will prepare myself to present with data and analytics as in why the release is not going as planned . During conversation , I will listen everything cleint has to say and support their principles and thought process.
Client : Driver
In this situation — I might actually explain why the delay is happening and ask him to pitch in if could push things. Since drives mostly focuses on result — I might bring up the current release quality and would stress upon why its not a great idea to release on planned date, instead take some more time and release a quality one.
Client : Expressive
Mmm, I might go with a sandwitch approach here . Based on clients vibe, I might touch upon easy conversations first , build that flow and them going to present for delaying the release. Keeping their vision and intuition in mind, I will talk about best solution that they can go for. With clients who is expressive — trust is all that matters. You can do everything with their trust and the vice-versa
I joined Thoughtworks as a lateral hire, hence I had to unlearn to learn . I consciously practiced listening , acknowledging , basic comminication intonations to sound positive. I worked on creating my own identity with clients. Understanding essence of consulting and social styles not only helped me in workspace but also brought lot of changes in my thoughtprocess and wellbeing.
I hope this article helps.
What’s next ? — Unlearn to relearn : Consulting Mindset Part 2
Happy Consulting :)
