Leveraging Resources, Maximizing Utilization.

This paper is to provide an overview and general guidance towards identifying the appropriate consultant(s) for a project. And how a client can best leverage the knowledge and expertise that person brings to bear and maximize effectiveness. It is not the intent to write extensively on the subject herein, nor can we surmise all scenarios. The purpose is to possibly expose a new paradigm relating to necessities and expectations between a client and external consultant, and, towards strengthening that relationship and project success.

Notice we said appropriate consultant. Not best, or brightest, or versatile or even most experienced. Because each scenario and the associated tasks and activities require certain, specific attributes of the person who is going to perform them. And what are attributes derived of? Knowledge, skill sets, perspective and experiences, to name a few.

 

Paradigm 1:
Your reality is not necessarily everyone else’s reality. An individuals past experiences, knowledge, beliefs and values (to name a few) shapes the way we view and perceive our world and how we interact with it. It is unique to every individual on the planet. What the assignment is, what and how objectives and goals are to be accomplished, tasks and activities, communications, reporting and, most importantly, expectations should be clearly and unambiguously defined. Then freely discussed amongst all team members to reach mutual agreement and ensure everyone understands, is in agreement, can cooperate, will commit and is on the same page. Whether its the rose colored glasses or , better everyone understands what lenses your looking through.

 

Paradigm 2: Your expectations get what you communicated. As in any relationship, it falters when we shift from open and clear communication to “mind reading”. Through familiarity we start to assume the other person knows what is wanted, expected or what to do or is thinking along the same lines as you. And you know what happens when we assume. If you do not communicate the full breadth of your expectations, from the minutiae to your ultimate vision, your setting the stage and yourself up for disillusion and disappointment. As an aside, a great book on this subject is “Men are from Mars, Women from Venus”. Don’t worry about genders, its communication and expectations we’re going

You’ve defined the assignment, and the who’s, what’s, where’s, how, when and why’s. Clearly communicated, everyone’s on-board (except the consultant, but now you know what your going to communicate to him/her) and moving forward. Now is the time to define the necessary attributes of the consultant. And that means looking at not only the person him/herself but also in relation to the assignment and any ancillary work. Here is where leveraging and maximizing utilization comes into play.

A quick way to ascertain the type of person necessary can be found in the following 2x2 matrix. For this scenario we will say the customer has a problem that needs a solution (you can apply this to a project as well).

CUSTOMER CONSULTANT   Knows problem and/or solution Doesn't Know problem and/or solution Knows problem and/or solution Best & Brightest - has required knowledge, experience, skill-sets and expertise; implementing at peak efficiency Guru - brings unequivocal discipline knowledge, expertise, best practices & solutions Doesn't Know problem and/or solution Technician - implements solution as guided by the client Provocateur - questions / innovates to guide team towards solution

Knows-Knows:
For the top left box, the customer knows the problem and either knows or doesn’t know the solution. The consultant understands the problem and, knows the solution. This is a call to action. Hire the best & brightest consultant. He/she understands both problem and solution, and has all required attributes required to do what is right and the right thing to do. They can work independently and as a team member, needs little oversight and produces immediate and tangible results.

Knows-Doesn’t Know:
The customer knows the problem and knows the solution. The consultant understands the problem, but doesn’t know the solution. This is where the client leverages. It is hiring a consultant with at least the minimum attribute requirements. They can produce results and achieve goals and objectives, however they will need oversight and guidance by the client.

Doesn’t Know-Knows: The customer doesn’t know (realize) what the problem is, or the extent and doesn’t know the solution. The consultant understands the problem and, knows the solution. What your looking for is knowledge (information and insight). You hire the Guru. The guru knows how to get information, analyze and help the client understand the problem and presents viable alternative solutions. They can implement, remediate and solve. Note though, that the Guru may not in some

Doesn’t Know-Doesn’t Know: The customer and the consultant both are not sure what the problem is nor what the solution is. This is a call to question. What is sought is someone with the objectivity to unabashedly question all facets and at every phase. They provoke thought and creativity. Hence, the Provocateur. Whose value is providing clear and unambiguous definition of the problem and, guiding towards a viable solution.

 

Paradigm 3: When you pick up one end of the stick, you pick up the other. Leveraging and maximizing the resource – Dependent on your specific scenario, you may want a consultant that possesses more capabilities than required. Allowing you to achieve other tasks and activities with only one resource as opposed to many or, utilizing that one resource across different projects. Versus retaining multiple resources (or companies) cost-savings and benefits that may be realized are reduced learning curves, management & oversight and vendor incentives for continuous utilization.

Or, if tasks, activities or assignments are not conducive to being undertaken by one person, consider a multi-level teammate approach; applying specific individual levels of expertise as needed. Remember the Guru? He may be well suited for helping you understand the problem and telling you what the solution is, say, developing company policies, etc. You’re paying relative to that level of expertise. To then utilize the Guru to write specific procedures probably would not be very cost-effective, since you can get the “Best & Brightest” to do that or the “Technician” at a lower cost.

That’s the value of a multi-level consultant teammate approach. You bring different people of various disciplines [that you need] and levels of expertise in and out of the project as you need them and across assignments. You are then making the best use of what the person(s) have to offer and utilizing their talents efficiently within your organization.