Surviving the Consulting Life Series – Volume 2
Consulting | Mohit | April 28, 2009 at 5:52 pmAlso read Surviving the Consulting Life Series – Volume 1
An integral part of being a consultant is having excellent interviewing skills, most of the times consultants depend on information provided by the client to come up with innovative solutions.
Getting the right information from the client is an art; Consultants who are good at it always stand out in a crowd. Though each conversation is unique, there are certain things that help. I’ve tried to list down a few good-to-do things while dealing with client personnel.
1. Setting the Meeting: When you are setting a meeting makes sure you specify the agenda and duration of the meeting. It is imperative that both parties are prepared for the meeting. First impression goes a long way in a consulting engagement. If you can set the right tempo with the client personnel, you instantaneously win half the battle.
2. Start with an Icebreaker: Compliment the weather, talk about the traffic etc. The process owners can often feel intimated during the interviews, it is important to make the process owner understand that you’re part of the solution and not the problem. If you can do this effectively, half the problem is solved.
3. Never say No to Coffee/Tea: This trick is especially relevant for Indian engagements and works well for meetings where you are allotted very little time. As the Indian tradition goes, no one can ask you to leave until you finish your coffee.
4. Carry a business card: As a consultant, you don’t want to be caught without you’re visiting card. The visiting card is you’re identity. It is always advisable to offer your business card at the start of the meeting. Usually you get a card in return, it gives you the contact details of person you’re interviewing, this comes in handy for setting up future meetings/clarifying things etc.
5. Questioning Process: Starting with an open ended question is usually a good idea if you’re interviewing a process owner for the first time, for example, start with a basic question like Can you explain the financial management process at your company?.
6. Funnel Interviewing: You may also follow the concept of funnel interviewing, two open ended questions followed by a close ended question and repeat.
7. Avoid asking double questions: Avoid asking two questions at one go, for example how is my tie? How is the weather outside? In most cases, the other person would answer just one of the two questions.
8. Gauge Negativity: Always be alert to gauge negative signs, during an interview one often gets the signs where one knows the interviewee is agitated/uncomfortable. These are usually times to ease the conversation.
9. Silence: Sometimes, silence can be a consultant’s best friend, silence comes in handy, when you want the other person to give you more detail. Just look at the other person and remain silent. This gives the other individual a sign that you expect more; key here is to maintain the eye contact. Thing with silence is that it is not the duty of the person who has asked the question to break the silence.
10. Take Notes: It is always a good idea to rely on you’re notepad rather than you’re memory, the catch is, always ask before you stick out your pad and start scribbling away.
Keep watching this space for more insights on the consulting lifestyle
These were some of the key thing’s i’ve learned during my consulting life.Email you’re tips for aspiring consultants to mohit.kant@consultingnetwork.co.in and we would be happy to publish them in future Surviving the Consulting Life Series
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Tags: Consulting, Life, lifestyle, Surviving the Consulting Life
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