1. The Topic of Trusted Advisor
Gary Heusner
5/16/2012

2. Overview of this Presentation
 Review what this presentation is not
about
 Provide an understanding of the Trusted
Advisor Concept
 Discuss the ramifications of being a
Trusted Advisor
 Review some real world situations that
provide insight into the mind set of a
Trusted Advisor

3. This Presentation is not…
 A disciple’s approach to sell other’s book.
 A detailed review of all of the concepts
espoused by the referenced experts and
their materials.
 A beginning of a movement
 A new concept
 A new way of selling
 An attack on what we are all doing today
 A viewpoint on the way all relationships
should be driven

4. This Presentation is…
 A very brief overview of elements of being a Trusted
Advisor that I think are truly relevant to IT services
companies working with their clients.
 Designed to show the differences between the
relationship levels we operate at with our clients.
 About the difficulty with making a transition to being
a Trusted Advisor
 A reflection of the personal challenges and rewards I
have encountered in changing my thinking and
behavior to better serve my clients.

5. Where did this come from
 Colleagues, peers, clients and noted
experts
 Personal Experiences
 Working to improve as a person

6. Background
 Technology Leadership background
 Leadership background
 Painful lack of Trusted Advisor
Background
 Learning to use new muscles and learning
to pick myself back up again each time

7. Levels of Relationship
Trusted Advisor
Partner
Consultant
Problem Solver
Vendor

8. Highlights
 The following slides highlight some
significant models, tools and implications
of being a trusted advisor.

9. Trust Equation
Trust = Reliability + Credibility + Intimacy
+ Character
Self Orientation
What Does this Mean for All of Us?

10. Trust Principles
 Focus on the other
 Collaborative Approach
 Medium to Long Term Relationship
Perspective
 A Habit of being Transparent
Are you aware of these ideas before you
engage a co-worker or a client?

11. Consulting Service Values
From Lencioni Getting Naked
 Humility
 Selflessness
 Focus on the other
 Transparency
 A Habit of being Transparent
 Collaborative Approach
 Medium to Long Term Relationship
Perspective

12. Trust Creation Process
• “Let’s Talk about…
Engage
• “Tell me more…”
Listen • The Rational and the Non-Rational
• “It sounds like issue is…”; “Maybe it’s just me but…<emotional issue>.”
Frame • Rational and Emotional framing not blaming
• “Let’s Imagine…”
Envision • Target, what it looks like, how will we know when we get there
• “I suggest we…”
Commit • Jointly describe actionable steps and implied commitments for both parties

13. Trust Skill Set
Listen
Improvise
Know Partner
Yourself
Risk

14. Lencioni’s Fears
Fears that Inhibit Service and I would
contend prevent us from being a trusted
advisor
 Fear of losing the business
 Fear of being embarrassed
 Fear of feeling inferior

15. Fear of Losing the Business
 Tell the kind truth
 Always consult instead of sell
 Give away the business
 Enter the danger

16. Fear of Feeling Inferior
 Honor the client’s work
 Make everything about the client
 Do the dirty work
 Take a bullet for the client

17. Fear of Being Embarassed
 Ask dumb questions
 Make dumb suggestions
 Celebrate your mistakes

18. So What?
 Far more depth than this
 Part of a journey
 Let’s review some situations

19. Situation Zero – Level Set
 You are not sold out for 12 months.You
could always use more business to
provide for your staff and family.
 You are in business development and/or
engagement management roles, or maybe
you are the owner.

20. Situation #1
 Client calls your office asking for your
services to start next Wednesday for a
project. If you can’t start on Wednesday
you can’t win the business. This might be
tough to pull off, but maybe if you stretch
you can do it.
 What do you do?

21. Situation #2
 You are trying to get to trusted advisor
status for a client you’ve been with for 6
months.You arrange a lunch with 2 division
heads with the goal of getting to know their
problems and issues better and to raise their
perception of you. First thing one division
head says as you sit down is “<your name
here> I have an opportunity for you!”
 What do you do?

22. Situation #3
 An existing customer asks to go to lunch.
At lunch they explain they have an idea
for a new innovation group and they want
to leverage your partners, who provide
similar services to yours to start it up.
 What do you do?

23. Situation #4
 Smaller client has a critical time sensitive
initiative. They ask if you can get started
right away and catch up on the paperwork
later. You’ve been burned before by other
clients in this situation. Whether or not
you can actually do this without signoff is
a question.
 What do you do?

24. Situation #5
 You have just finished an engagement.You
want to talk about next opportunities.
Client calls and says it is not right and that
something is off. You check with your team
and this was not in the scope or the SOW,
but it had been talked about conversationally.
To fix it will take 2-3 additional days for a
project that was 10 days in length. Client
pulls out the “When I was a lawyer, we
honored contracts…” speech.
 What do you do?

25. Situation #6
 You just signed an SOW for some work
that will help your company. You are
excited. When asked, your client is visibly
not excited and says that things could be
improved and that it is always a long game
but they are holding in there.
 What do you do?

26. Situation #7
 What’s a situation you have encountered?
 What would we do?
 (Group think)

27. References
 Green C. H. & Howe A. P. (2012). The Trusted
Advisor Fieldbook: A Comprehensive Toolkit for
Leading with Trust. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley
 Maister D., Green C.H. & Galford R.M.
(2000). The Trusted Advisor. New York, NY:
Free Press
 Lencioni P. (2010) Getting Naked. San
Francisco, CA: Jossey Bass
 Lee G. & Elliot-Lee D. (2006). Courage the
backbone of leadership. San Francisco, CA:
Jossey Bass