Consultant's Rules of Engagement

I was chatting with a colleague a while back and we were discussing ways to make our consultants feel more comfortable when they are dropped into a customer site. The biggest factor in their comfort-level seems to be how prepared they feel they are.

This totally makes sense to me as I realize now that the nature of the engagement is always one of the first things that I start investigating when I know I will soon be working with a customer. Ideally, the investigation yields enough details that I can begin establishing some expectation that focus on preparation appropriately. So what sort of expectations should I be looking for to maximize my preparedness?

That's where the Rules of Engagement come in. Here at Visiphor Consulting Services (VCS) we often use a military metaphor for our engagements. We are 'air-dropped' in, we are 'marines' who build the objective and move on, or we 'establish a beach head'. So, given the military context the concept of defining Rules of Engagement for our consultants seems natural. I know this term is not 'new' to consulting (as a quick Google search shows) but it very applicable to our consulting work.

Consultant's Rules of Engagement

1. Objectives
   
   
   1. What is the vision or 'big picture' of the engagement?
   
   
   2. What are the shared goals that constitute a successful conclusion?


2. Expectations
   
   
   1. What are the customer's expectations?
   
   
   2. What are our expectations?


3. Technical
   
   
   1. What are the skills required to achieve the objectives?
   
   
   2. What are the technologies involved?


4. Diplomatic


1. What is the political climate?


2. Who is the project sponsor?


3. What are the profiles of key players in the engagement?

A consultant provided with these Rules of Engagement should be armed with enough information to maximize their potential for success.