Tweet

Business Advisors: Results Are the Top Priority

Written by: Andrew Neitlich

Article Overview: If you want to set your consulting and coaching practice apart, you should be able to explain exactly the results you get for clients — and those results should be compelling. But what exactly are results?

Business Advisors: Results Are the Top Priority

Business Advisors: Results Are the Top Priority

By Andrew Neitlich

If you want to set your consulting and coaching practice apart, you should be able to explain exactly the results you get for clients — and those results should be compelling.

What keeps executives up at night? I guarantee you that they are not thinking, “Gee, I wish I had another business advisor on my payroll.”

But they are thinking about how to increase cash coming in, decrease cash going out, stand out in a crowded competitive field, and raise the value of their enterprise.

Too many coaches and consultants get fuzzy when it comes to the results they provide. They focus on things like improving communication and teamwork, building leadership capabilities, introducing new and supposedly more effective behaviors, and serving as a sounding board to help executives test new ideas and feel more confident.

All of these things can be useful, but they are not compelling enough to get you hired. They are not primary benefits.

If you want to make it as top-tier coach and consultant, you need to be able to convey the results you get in terms that matter to busy, bottom-line driven executives. The closer you can come to showing how you increase revenues/cash coming in, decrease costs/cash going out, raise the value of the enterprise (for for-profit executives), make it easier to recruit and retain amazing talent, or help dominate the competition, the more successful you will be.

Don’t take real money for pretend results.

At the same time, there seems to be too much worrying among professionals about the differences among business coaching, executive coaching, consulting, training, facilitation, and mentoring. Your top priority should be getting results for your clients, not obsessing about distinctions that will always be a bit fuzzy around the edges.

To achieve results for your clients, you may need to wear multiple hats. Sometimes you are a business coach (e.g. focused on specific business performance metrics to improve profits). Sometimes you work with your client on leadership and communication skills, which are the traditional executive coaching domains. If the need emerges, you might conduct a research study or analysis like a consultant. You might also train your client to help the management/leadership team develop new skills, or facilitate a one- or two-day meeting to set priorities.

In other words, you structure your work to solve client problems with the right solution for that client. There is no cookie cutter solution for getting results. That’s why only seasoned businesspeople should step into the business and executive advisory role.

Related Articles
  Problem Solvers Earn More
  Debunking The Time Myth
  Surprising Facts About CAIM
  Huh? What?
  Lost Your Focus

Article Tags: bottom line, business advisor, business advisors, business coach, business coaching, business performance, consulting training, distinctions, executive coaching, facilitation, hats, improving communication, leadership capabilities, payroll, real money, sounding board, teamwork, top priority



Related Forum Posts
My entry - 1. The Best Business Books Ever: The 100 Most Influential Business Books You'll Never Have Time to Read - this is a fascinating book about the history of Business theory, and I'd recommend it to anybody. 2. The Big Book of Small Business: You Don't Have to Run Your Business by the Seat of Your Pants, by Tom Gegax. Ditto. 3. PADI: The Business of Diving Book Okay, so this book won't be of use to anyone who doesn't want to start a scuba store, but I did, and this book was of course invaluable to me in reaching that goal.
Exclusive: Interview with Results - Hi Forum Members, I'm helping start up a Business Coaching and Consulting company here in Toronto, Ontario, Canada (a Subsidiary of RSC Business in Los Angeles). As a Research and Development Intern I am required to practice my listening and interview skills by surveying Small and Medium Businesses on thier Business. This Survey is designed by RSC Business to also assist the Business being interviewed more insight into their own business. I am looking to interview about 30 businesses across North America over the span of 3 months. At the end of these interviews I will be publishing a report of the results and they will be made available for free to the Interviewees. The Report data will include responses from a minimum of 100 interviews. I would like to extend this opportunity to members of the Forum. If you would like to have this short 20-30 minute interview conducted on your Business and you reside in North America please send me an email or PM. Please contact me at andy[at]jvprosperity[dot]com to arrange our interview and to get free access to the results when they are published.
Re: Are Economic Recessions Good for Franchising? - All we can do is remain wide awake and pay attention to the ebb and flow. My strategy is to be prepared and go with the flow. There could be some rough times ahead... Interestingly, our business has remained strong. I believe it's because we're in such a tight little niche and we're well positioned to sign jobs nationwide, therefore we're not restricted to location. We also target affluent markets that have higher disposable incomes - this we do locally. Here are some Franchise Categories that could weather a good recession... Health and Personal Care Food services like Subway Debt Collection Tax Preparers & Advisors Any other recession proof franchise opps out there?
Re: HOw to market a B2B consulting company - [quote="zohahunt77":428owzbi]Hi, I was wondering if anyone can tell me the difference between B2B and B2C. I don’t know about b2b marketing but I have done marketing so know things about it. I will suggest you to take online services which will spread your business all over web network. Online marketing is the best way to market any business.[/quote:428owzbi] B2B = Business to Business - You are marketing to other businesses. B2C = Business to Consumer - You are marketing to consumers.
English teachers learn Japanese as Interns - Yasunori, what about the many students that leave N. America to teach English in Japan. They may want to learn Japanese (maybe Business Japanese is a bit different) and the Japanese Business Culture.


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Tweet

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

What is Give Back Marketing?

Stay Employed In A Down Economy

African Technology Development

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.