How You Can Solve Tricky and Complex Problems for Your Clients as a Consultant on the Side
The variable-based, problem-solving framework helps us with our work and ultimately grow our 1-Man consulting practice
If I must pick one key (read: premium) skill set any consultant on the side must exhibit — This is it.
Think about it. We are hired to solve problems. That is it. When we fail to deliver this basic premise, our clients walk away. Forever.
Not just that. Unhappy clients help you build and stack a bad reputation. It is a rabbit hole that you may take years to climb out of.
If you are an aspiring consultant on the side looking to grow your 1-Man consulting practice, do one thing. Focus on developing your ability to solve complex problems.
This article shares how.
What is Problem-Solving, Exactly?
Good question. This is one way to think about it.
“If I had an hour to solve a problem I’d spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and 5 minutes thinking about solutions.”
There are 2 parts to the problem-solving exercise. Problem identification and solution proposal.
Sounds obvious? I know. But there is more depth to it.
Too many of us focus on the solutions. We want answers fast. We demand quick fixes from our consultants on hire. If you are the consultant, you need to spit solutions out of your teeth during the first client meeting.
Now, take a pause here. Go re-read what Good Ole Albert has to say.
The most successful Physicist of our era spends 95% of his time working on the problem definition. Appropriately defining the problem and identifying all variables at play is key.
And it takes time. Here’s the thing. Experience can help us save a large chunk of minutes in our work.
Now, The Variable-Based Problem-Solving Framework You Can Steal from Me
This problem-solving framework is a cumulation and distillation of practical knowledge over many years as a consultant on the side. It covers the following.
- People.
- Business process.
- Technology.
Variable # 1 — People
Go walk the ground. Silently observe the unseen human interaction.
You want to quickly identify how the client organization is oriented towards your work. I use the following questions.
Have they worked with different consultants on the same topic previously? What happened?
How many supporters do you have in your work?
How many non-supporters do you have on Day 1, even before you start work?
Experienced consultants on the side call this the Power Map. It allows us to put a success % on our work.
Understanding how and why previous consultants failed in their work allows us to avoid foreseeable landmines. Be smart. Ferret out information via coffee chats.
Supporters are like a rising tide. They lift you up.
Non-supporters, or enemies, are receding tide. You crash to the ocean bed.
Understanding the people in my client organization, how they think, and what they want to achieve is my full-time job during the 1st month of consulting engagement. I can get to the real problem without getting trapped in a smokescreen of perceived problems.
Variable # 2 — Business Process
This one is straightforward. How do our clients work?
Realize this question can be broken down into more granular ones, like the following.
Do our direct clients work in a team?
How do they connect with teams working on upstream and downstream activities?
How often do they meet and talk?
The process dimension requires us to connect dots with lines. One simple tip. If you are unclear about how the client organization operates after studying them for days, ask them for 2 things.
- Organizational Structure (Who’s who, who reports to who, etc.)
- Weekly status or executive updates (It tells you who is responsible for what and how they work to resolve issues).
Remember. You must be time-savvy as an individual consultant on the side. Always find ways to extract the maximum amount of information in the shortest possible time possible.
Variable # 3 — Technology
Are they paper-based? Paper less? Or paperless?
Look, it is not about trees and paper. We can understand how technologically advanced our client organizations are with their tools.
Imagine the Finance Office sending PowerPoint files containing confidential information flying around the email verse.
Imagine the Tender and Contracts Office going every single line of tender bid submission using highlighters instead of Ctrl + F on an electronic copy.
Your observations on their technology stack will influence how you frame a problem. And propose solutions to their problems.
Case Study: The Variable-Based Problem-Solving Framework in Action
This is a client organization I consulted months back.
They approached me for a solution to the efficiency problem. The Chief Financial Officer wants faster issuance of invoices, within 2 working days of Purchase Order receipt. They currently stand at 5.
It was a 3-month consulting engagement on an efficiency study. I plunged head in.
And then, I realized that efficiency is not the real problem. Here’s why.
- 4 accounts clerks are working full-time on invoices. They issue 50+ invoices per person per day. Mind you. They scream at sales and compliance teams over the phone to get their work done.
- The C.F.O. thinks the accounts team is lazy because they take more than 3 days to issue an invoice.
- The Accounts team lead is a Techno-Saurus Rex and wants nothing to do with digital transformation.
It took me 3 days at the client organization to sketch out this big picture and all variables in play.
I brought the Accounts clerks out for a cup of black. They told me that they are all-in for digital transformation. However, their team lead wants to stick to pen and paper.
In short, I chatted with the team lead on multiple occasions, pitching the idea (not the solution) that Invoicing Software is intuitive and easy to use even without training. I pulled the I.T. Director to my side and got him to say good things about software as a tool.
Jenny gave in.
So, I went straight to the C.F.O. and shared my findings. I worked to reframe the problem statement.
Efficiency is not the problem. Inhibition to software adoption is.
His eyes popped. I could tell he was genuinely surprised. He told me to reframe the problem statement and table an appropriate solution within a fortnight.
I did. And the solution for the adoption of invoicing software was readily accepted by all stakeholders 2 weeks later.
In Conclusion
Clarity is paramount when it comes to solving problems. Especially so for complex ones. Or unseen ones.
Work to identify all variables that can influence how you frame the problem. A good problem statement framing leads to relevant solutions.
And that is how you excel as a consultant on the side.
As a content contributor, I write my observations from daily life and my business exposure. Because our life experience is the bedrock of our unique perspectives.
