The Seven Principles of Professional Services · A Field Guide for Successfully Walking the Consulting Tightrope by Anastasi, Shane -- Read -- Imperial Library of Trantor

Index

Acknowledgements Foreword INTRODUCING The Seven Principles

A Common Tale of Woe The Need for Balance It is A Dangerous Tightrope Accelerating A Consultant’s Learning Curve Maintaining Balance with Principles Learn From Other People’s Experiences Why Get Better at Walking the Tightrope? Nobody Is Perfect

Principle #1Adapt to Your Environment

Success From Adaptation Understanding the Engagement Environment

Step 1: The Pressure to Improve Step 2: Justifying the Return – The Business Case Step 3: Acquiring the Funds Step 4: Vendor Selection – Request for Proposal (RFP) Step 5: Vendor Selection – Commercial Negotiation Step 6: The Engagement Kick Off Step 7: The Engagement Step 8: Concluding the Engagement Step 9: Earning Repeat Business Summary: Understanding the Engagement Environment

The Basic Dynamics of an Engagement Environment

You Are the Hired Gun Most Customers Are Perfectly Reasonable Calmer Heads Usually Prevail Use the Hierarchy Beware of “All Care and No Responsibility” Quality Versus Time

Adapting to the Engagement Environment

Ask Questions Be Engaged with their Business Constructive Recommendations Summary: Adapting to the Engagement Environment

Chapter Summary

Principle #2Always Know What Done Looks Like

Visualizing the Outcome The Contract: The First Version of Done

Read the Contract Understand the Customer’s Desired Business Outcomes Embrace the need for Change Hold the Customer Accountable Escalate Freely Within Your Team

What If There Is No Contract? Field Example: Starting Without a Contract Prescribing Done Field Example: Prescribing Done Changing Done: Baselines and Change Management Preparing to be Done – Customer Acceptance Testing

Frequent Check-Ins Customer Written Acceptance Tests Partial or Conditional Acceptance

Leveraging Acceptance Field Example: Nobody Knew What Done Looked Like! Chapter Summary

Principle #3Manage Expectations

Great Expectations Managing Inherent Expectations Balancing Expectations: The Triple Constraints

Scope Effort Time (Duration) Quality The Exception?

Field Example: Misaligned From the Beginning How Do Expectations Become Misaligned?

Leaving Expectation Gaps Implicit Acceptance of Expectations

Field Example: TICK-TICK-TICK-BOOM! Who, What, When and the Three Hows

Who What When How Well? How Will It be Delivered? How Much?

The Importance of Estimates Chapter Summary

Principle #4Have Difficult Conversations Early

Step Up To The Plate The Cost of Doing Nothing

Direct Costs: The Cost To Fix The Misalignment Indirect Costs: The Cost to Your Reputation

The Distraction of Urgency Is It My Job To Have Difficult Conversations?

Proactive Escalation Correct the Misalignment Plant the Seed Say Nothing, but Escalate Internally Immediately Selecting an Approach

Getting Your Head Right

Remain Calm & Constructive Be Careful with the Truth

Empathy, Understanding and Resolution

Empathy Understanding Resolution

Selling the Resolution

Focus on the Outcome Be Prescriptive Yes, if…

Really Difficult Conversations

Leverage Failure Unfortunately, Sometimes You Have to Put a Bullet in it

Field Example: Tying it All Together

The Situation What Was Important? The Difficult Conversations What Was Unimportant? What This Field Example Illustrates

Chapter Summary

Principle #5Think F.A.A.S.T.

Keep Calm And Carry On Turning Quality Into A Habit Thinking F.A.A.S.T. Focus Attention to Detail Accountable

Accountability to Your Own Firm Your Firm’s Accountability to You You and Your Team’s Accountability to Your Customer Your Customer’s Accountability to You and Your Firm

Skilled Trustworthy Field Example: Crisis Mode Chapter Summary

Principle #6Participate in the Collective Wisdom

What Is Collective Wisdom? The Benefits of Using Collective Wisdom You And The Collective Wisdom Unpredicatable Reactions to The Collective Wisdom Field Example: Prescribing the Collective Wisdom Contributing To The Collective Wisdom An Introduction to Intellectual Property

What Is Intellectual Property? So What’s the Big Deal? How to Protect Intellectual Property

Chapter Summary

Principle #7Stay Engaged

You Only Have One Career The Generic Professional Services Career Map

How to Read the Career Map

The Professional Services Career Stages

Stage 1: Potential Stage 2: Competent Stage 3: Decisive Stage 4: Leader Stage 5: Results Stage 6: Reliable Summary: The Generic Professional Services Career Map

Engaging With Your Career

Participate in the Collective Wisdom Know Your Market Value Have an Active Career Plan Know What “Success” Looks Like Avoid Burnout Attend Company Meetings Engage With Those Around You Learning – Having Fun – Recognition Remember, Employment is a Mutual Agreement Summary: Engaging With Your Career

Understanding Salary Increases

The Salary Adjustment Process If You Aren’t Awarded an Increase Summary: Understanding Salary Increases

Field Example: A Real Life Career Path Chapter Summary

Conclusion:This is Only the Beginning

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