-
In our Let’s Talk tomorrow we’’ll be discussing all things related to managing clients – something that we get asked about all the time here at TPC
But before tomorrow’s chat we wanted to ask… what do you find most difficult about managing clients?
And if it’s something different to what we’ve listed in this poll, let us know in the comments
To sign up for tomorrow’s discussion follow the link here: http://staging.the-portfolio-collective.com/events/lets-talk-about-managing-clients/
What do you find most difficult about managing clients?8 Comments-
It’s taken me decades to come to these conclusions, Ella, but here’s hoping they might help the conversation:
– I prefer to work only with people I want to do life with. I’m less likely to fall out with them if I like them. And I’m more likely to fix issues because I’m invested in the relationship, not just the transaction
– This means ideally working with clients with whom I share values. Which demands my marketing attracts the right people to begin with
– I don’t manage clients: WE (me, collaborating alongside them) manage projects. So if any issues arise, they’re discussed around their impact on the project, rather than their impact on me. It’s so much easier on us both to have that selfless conversation
– Most importantly, I’ve been rubbish at setting boundaries for most of my career. This is because I’ve spent far too long thinking business is about chasing transactions instead of building relationships; money over connection. My project management skills have always suffered when I’m more concerned about losing money than I am providing a great service to someone I care about. So the biggest challenges I’ve had around managing clients have always stemmed from a failure to manage my focus, my priorities & my perspectives. As I’ve got clearer on what I stand for & communicated that better, clients are clearer on what they can expect…
-
I love this Rob Wright. Clients don’t give work to people who ’need a job’. They give work to people who love the journey they are on and want to make it more successful
-
I’ve found this is definitely true in smaller organisations where you’re working directly with the client. A lot of my work in the past on large change projects, which involved working with people in the organisation who weren’t the direct client. Their motivations could be ’somewhat different’. On one project I worked on in France, the senior manager assigned to the project from the exec team joined a strike against the project then came back to work on the project! This is an extreme example but we’d often have people trying to sabotage projects out of self interest.
The thing I’ve learnt from this is to make sure you keep that direct relationship with the main client as tight as possible and engineer it so that they’re seen to be visibly in control of the project, even though you might be doing the work.
-
I agree, Ben. Having said that, I’ve also been given work from people who, in response to me making myself vulnerable when I’ve been in a bind, have reached out to me with work.
Of course, this wasn’t charity: the work was well within my wheel house, so they knew I would do a good job, & they genuinely needed the work doing.
But again, this kindness at a time when I needed it most (they could have given the work to others) had more to do with making connections with people who share similar values. So my client was only doing what they knew I would do if the shoe was on the other foot…
-
-
Definitely agree with Rob Wright. If you have a bad feeling before you start working with clients, it’s never a good sign of things to come. A good project energises you for the next one.
-
I am probably going to rehash what Rob and Pete have said, but anyway. You have to look and think beyond it just being a project, with an invoice, to being truly invested with the client in the outcome. Although the contractual lines of responsibility, and liability, may be well defined in the paperwork, I think an aim is for you to be viewed by the client as a member of the extended team. And the kudos goes to the client.
Having portfolio careers gives us the opportunity to decide (I admit that we are all occasionally also driven by paying the bills and keeping the lights on) by and large who we work with and when we work. It is probably one of the biggest benefits of a portfolio career.
Finally, I find, and perhaps this is through years of experience and meeting 1,000’s of people, that if the chemistry is not there, and you don’t really get on when you first meet – that first 30 seconds or so – your gut is clearly telling you something and you are better off out of it.
-
Some great insights thanks for sharing James
-
-
-
It’d be great to hear from some of our experienced portfolio professionals about how they deal with managing clients – Alex Pitt, Pete Domican, Linh, Adarsh Nalam, Nicola Twiston Davies, Duncan Dalzel-Job, Silvia Janska, Zarir 'Zed' Vakil, Caoimhe Kelly,Rob Wright, Niall Brady, Jade Phillips, James McKerracher, Laura Kressmann, Lexi Radcliffe-Hart, Annabel Lee, Robin Ravi, Mike Richardson