We explore how determine the best entry point into new client organizations and how to position your firm for repeat business.

To have a successful consulting practice, it's really all about how you cultivate the client relationship. This episode explores the two most common relationship types.

IT'S ALL ABOUT THE RELATIONSHIP

How do you view the relationship with your clients before offering staffing or discreet outsourcing services? Have you developed a strong, deep and meaningful relationship with your clients? Or is it more transactional if you're providing consulting or advisory services and not staffing or outsourcing? What's relationship like with your clients? Are they rating fans? Are they active promoters of your consulting firm? Do they make referrals to others without you having to ask? Well, to have a successful consulting practice, it's really all about the relationship. There are several interaction methods and relationships with clients. The transactional relationship focuses primarily on completing the work, collecting money, and moving on to the next project or the next client. The focus of the caring relationship is on the wellbeing of the organization and the people. This is how long lasting, deep and meaningful client relationships are developed. So I'd like to give you a few examples. 18 years ago, I was brought into a hospital health care system that had 20 hospitals in the Midwest to help them develop a strategy plan and implementation for a new digital diagnostic system in their hospitals. This replaced the legacy film based imaging in the radiology departments with filmless digital technologies for X ray, MRI, Cat scan and ultrasound. The initial fourmonth phase was to develop the strategy, detail the project plan, and build out the cost in the budget for this, which ended up being about $68 million. During this initial phase, which had a consulting fee value of about $125,000, I reported to a VP and also a director in the Information Services department. They loved the deliverables of the strategy and planning so much that they signed a two year agreement for me to manage the implementation teams. Well, the relationship continued to develop, and not long after, the two year project was completely asked me to manage another large program for several hospitals in St. Louis. My direct clients shifted their careers a little, and a few years later, they requested assistance for the acquisition and integration of a major academic medical center into their healthcare system. So by developing solid, meaningful relationships 18 years ago during that initial planning, it turned into a little more than $3 million in professional fees over a decade. So after this episode, you may want to explore our no cost accelerate consulting course at Consulting Ten X.com. That's right. There's no cost to it. It's free. Here's another example. Five years ago, we were requested to develop here's another example. Five years ago, we were requested to develop the strategy and planning to bring three hospitals in a close geographic area into a unified healthcare system. Again, we developed the strategy, planning, and budgets for funding. During that six month period, we developed deep relationships with the CIO COO and CEO of the new healthcare system. The following two years, we were invited back to assist them with system selections and more planning. Then we were awarded a two year implementation program of seven projects with a total consulting fee value of $8 million. So, developing a caring relationship is always much more impactful and longer than any transactional relationship. Hopefully, your consulting practice and consultants are developing caring relationships. If not, it's recommended that you take some actions to create a culture, shift the caring side, and remember to continually deliver excellence. You will excel. Join us with our free Accelerate Consulting course at Consulting10X.com

Learn how a technology services leader transformed into a consultant and advisors, while discovering a new passion.

 FINDING YOUR PASSION

Having true passion about what you do is critical for your satisfaction… success in your career… and your financial success. 

I would like to share with you how I transformed, developed a deep passion in my work and the impact to my career.

Nearly 30 years ago I was supporting technologies for General Motors in South America and later in Asia. After living the international expat life for 6 years I decided to move back to the U.S. so that my kids could attend and finish high school. 

So, coming back into the U.S. market, I was a little burned out from the manufacturing business and culture. I wanted to find an industry or business sector that I could get involved with to support from a technology perspective and provide consulting related to operational effectiveness. 

Back in the 1950s and 60s, my grandfather had been a hospital administrator, well now they're called hospital CEOs, and once he retired, my he became the President of a physicians and surgeons association in New Jersey. So being exposed to some healthcare speak and hearing about hospitals when I was young, I always had an interest in it. After some soul searching and research across various markets, I decided that healthcare consulting was the right place for me. But I didn’t quite yet have a passion for it. 

So, 24 years ago I jumped into healthcare technology consulting. This was not outsourcing, it wasn't staffing, it wasn’t selling any software or products… it was true consulting… providing operational performance assessments, providing IT strategy, conducting technology assessments, and assisting clients with implementations. 

My first major projects were at Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Beverly Hills CA. you’ve probably heard of that one… it’s where a lot of the movie stars go to for medical care. After a few years I realized that truly found the career change that I wanted and developed deep passion for what I was doing. 

Over the next few years, I worked with numerous clients on the West Coast and also some on East Coast. Children's hospitals, large health systems with 6 hospitals and other one with 52 hospitals, some faith-based Catholic and Jewish healthcare systems… I truly had passion for war I was doing and that became my profession and my career. 

There's not been one day in the last 24 years that I ever felt like I was getting up in the morning and going to a job. Having a passion for something and what you do for your career is very important. It provides you with much more satisfaction and success. And working as a consultant… it was almost like working as an entrepreneur. My first seven years, I was working in the healthcare technology consulting firm that had about 430 consultants when I started and  it grew quickly to more than 2,200 consultants in 2006 when I left. Even though it was a good size firm, I never viewed what I did as being a job. I enjoyed what I did… was promoted several times and truly enjoyed helping healthcare organizations provide better health care for people.

This brings back a very interesting memory. Twenty years ago, I managed various projects at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles in Hollywood, California. At first it was difficult for me to see young children with so many illnesses. I clearly remember one day in the first month working at this hospital, I walking into the main lobby with my consulting uniform on, you know… the suit and tie… the will shined shoes… and a hospital ID badge… and a young boy… probably about 7 years old… in a wheelchair with an IV attached to him… and he had no hair… it was clear that he was being treated for cancer… He looked up at me and with a huge smile and says “good morning sir”. Here’s this 7-year-old probably thinking that