Welcome Professionals…

…Our business world is complex. A proper judgment calls for a broad overview, joined-up thinking, and analytical rigor. Good solutions require experience as well as creativity. This is why our clients draw on the expertise of top management consultants in finding satisfying answers to their questions.

What the client will expect is a clear guidance. What will strain the clients patience are ambiguous statements like “on the one hand…, but on the other hand..”.

I went to a conference recently where two approaches to one problem were presented. After the presentation, one of the listeners went to see several consultants who had been in the audience, all of which called themselves an expert on the topic. The listener asked a precise question: “Which of the two approaches would you advise me to use?”

What he received time and time again was a fuzzy “Well, it depends. Both approaches have their advantages and disadvantages…”

I certainly do understand the dilemma of the consultant here. There is usually not just one way, there is no golden rule, there are always disadvantages and advantages to a specific approach. But this is no excuse to sneak out.

When the question is put as clearly as in the case above, the client is looking for a reference point from a trusted advisor. The client wants to hear an informed opinion. This is the time when the top management consultant has to take a firm stand.

These are some examples of taking a stand:

• Approach B is the best-practice standard and used by most of my clients!
• I would choose approach A because it safes precious time!
• If you look for speed take approach A, if you look for comprehensiveness take B!

We must all strive to develop the experience and skill level to make a judgment call in our area of expertise. Of course, we will never take a naïve guess. When we enter new terrain, it is much better saying: “To answer this question, I have to study your specific situation in detail”. That buys some time.

Encouraging you to take a stand,

Malte

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