Know Your Client

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Coincidentally the first consulting tip, and quite possibly the most important.

You may argue that you know your client, but here’s a quick and easy litmus test: ask your consulting colleagues the following questions:

What is the client stock symbol?
What was yesterday’s closing price of the client stock?
What is the client company’s market capitalization?
How much revenue did the company generate last year? What was the profitability margin?
What is the client CEO’s name?

Ideally, you are able to answer all these questions. My own non-scientific observation has shown that 75% of the consultants surveyed did not know the answers to these very basic questions about their client organization.

Interestingly, I have found that even members of the client organization are not aware of basic financial information. With a little research and attention to basics, it is easy for the consultant to know the client and win their trust - certainly not a novel concept, and one that could reap real rewards.

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