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February 2006

Question

I have been looking for a set of guidelines or principles by which to live as a consultant. Any ideas of where I can find such a list? What are the principles of conduct that differentiate great consultants from others?

Answer

I would first check the web site for the Institute of Management Consultants (IMC) at  http://www.imcusa.org/. It lists 15 items in its Code of Ethics. In addition, Keith Merron has recently written Consulting Mastery, published by Berrett-Koehler. He believes that self-authority, self-knowledge, and self-acceptance allow the great consultant to effectively live by a set of principles. These principles form the basis of the character of masterful consultants, and guide them in whatever they do. He includes the following in the masterful consultant’s Principles of Conduct:

1.      Always tell the truth, at the deepest levels.

2.      Commit to learning—for self and for the client.

3.      Bring your whole self in full partnership.

4.      Play a big game.

He believes that following these principles allow great consultants to find themselves significantly more effective.

Question

Elaine, you made an offer during the ASTD Training Certificate class that we could always write to you if we needed help with anything. I need to take you up on this offer.  I am excited to report that I am scheduled to interview with a large training company. The interview consists of a 20-minute presentation and I have questions about my preparation.  The topic is "Customer Service" and they have provided me with a participant’s workbook and a brochure about the seminar. I am to refer to the brochure, and find the bullet points that pertain to the area I have selected from the workbook which will allow me to demonstrate my expertise. I am to use the information from the brochure and workbook as the framework for the presentation. They want a slice of an actual 20 minutes of training and I am to create my own overheads.  My first most important question is, do you think they are asking me to make up my own content? If I make up my own it will not follow the workbook, and it's hard to know exactly what content the writers had in mind when they developed the training. There are lots of things, content wise I could do, but it would not necessarily follow their workbook, and obviously my expertise is from my head and experience not a formalized program. My first instinct is to address mindset and attitude. Should I just make it up?

Also, they said there would be three people evaluating me at the presentation and they will play the role of participants. I thought I would start with a brief welcome and self introduction and go directly to an icebreaker and ask them to form a circle in the center of the room, and have them introduce themselves: name, company name, position, state, and expectations in their best or worst ”customer service persona." When they return to their seats, do ground rules, agenda review, and go directly to content. I was hoping to develop something like the relay race we did. That is as far as I have gotten and I don't have that much time to prepare so any input you can give me will be appreciated.  

Answer

First, congratulations! The company you mentioned is a good place to get some early experience. Here are a few quick observations:
  • Pare down your presentation. You have a great design, but too much to do in 20 minutes. Skip the agenda, and ground rules. Skip the intros. Imagine that you are in the middle of the session. So your first sentence should be something like, “We just finished _________, and in order to do that you need to _________.” Then MAYBE you could start with having them use their worst/best persona to give you one item they want to learn about the topic you have chosen. If you do this, remember you should probably refer back to it later in your presentation. (This is a GREAT activity, but a bit tricky for an interview situation—it may take more explanation from you than you want to do. Try it out on some friends first.)
  • I recommend using their materials and referring to them—even if you don’t have it quite right. Add additional information that you know to show your depth. You could use one page of their content as your guide. (I expect that they will want you to show that you can follow their material, but add your experience and knowledge. Use a short story example if you can.)
  • RE: overheads, I would bet that if the OHs and pages are the same, you need to follow the rules we discussed in the class. VERY few items on each page. Add some clip art for interest. No full sentences. Perhaps you could interject a 3-question quiz OH to get interaction.
  • Get lots of input. Use questions to get involvement.
  • Be sure to practice this out loud so you can time yourself. The way you had this described, it could take more than double the 20 minutes you have allowed!

Good luck! (Editor’s. Note: She got the job.)