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Flawless Consulting summary

Name: Flawless Consulting
Rating: 3.8 (77 reviews)
Author: Peter Block

Peter Block

A Guide to Getting Your Expertise Used

3.8 (77 ratings)

15 mins

Brief summary

Flawless Consulting by Peter Block is a guide for consultants who want to build better relationships with clients and deliver meaningful results. It provides practical advice for improving communication, engaging stakeholders, and overcoming common obstacles in consulting projects.

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Coaching Entrepreneurship Strategy

Table of Contents

Flawless Consulting
Summary of 7 key ideas

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Key idea 1 of 7

What’s in it for me? Discover the skills and strategies of top-quality consultants.

Every day, somewhere in the United States, a business in trouble makes a call. The people who answer this distress signal are the superheroes of business strategy, the consultants.

Yet as important as consulting is to the business world, few know exactly what sort of role a consultant really plays in a struggling organization.

For many managers, a consultant is hailed as an expert troubleshooter, providing helpful answers to a company’s myriad problems. Yet no matter how much a manager wants a consultant to provide that quick fix, a consultant can only advise and teach – not take over.

These blinks show you the strengths and limitations of consulting work and exactly how top consultants go about doing good work every day.

In these blinks, you’ll discover

why every consultant must practice what they preach;
why consultants seem to spend most of their time chatting; and
why the meeting is a consultant’s greatest weapon.

Being rational is good. Focusing on interpersonal dynamics and emotions is even better.

Many believe that being rational is the key to making effective decisions. So managers often try to suppress their more impulsive, emotional sides and focus on being logical.

But really, this isn’t always the best approach. If you’re a consultant, being cold and rational will only take you so far.

Consultation happens on two levels: the technical, business level and the interpersonal level. And even amid the most technical, complicated systems, we can’t forget that every employee is a human, too!

The bottom line is that a consultant can’t truly grasp the problem if she doesn’t understand the emotional and interpersonal dynamics of the situation at hand.

Consider a hospital where many different types of doctors and specialists see a single patient. An internist may draw blood; a nurse administers medicine; and so on. Although database software could streamline and help organize this multilevel process, this would only happen if everyone involved in the process used the software properly.

Thus as a consultant, you have to realize that introducing a new efficiency tool isn’t just a question of adequate terminals or software proficiency. Each doctor or specialist will need to adjust how they work on a personal level, too. If you ignore this variable, the introduction of new technology is all but useless!

And while interpersonal dynamics are important, as a consultant, don’t ignore your own feelings. Pay attention to your first response to a situation; it might shed light on a deeper issue, as well as effectively highlighting a potential solution.

So if you get the sense that management is too hard on employees, it’s a sure bet that the employees feel this, too. Armed with this bit of intuition, a consultant can then discover ways to improve communication between staff and management, ultimately building a better team.

To sum up, don’t ignore your feelings and instincts. Instead, use them as data to better understand the situation in front of you!

Top consultants not only talk the talk, but walk the walk. Be authentic and follow your own advice.

Let’s imagine a consultant – a confident individual in a sharp suit, strutting around your office taking notes. Although this person might look important, in reality, he has very little direct power.

A consultant can do two things: advise people and try to motivate them to implement new ideas.

A consultant is an independent advisor, not a surrogate manager.

So your company has a huge problem that you as a manager can’t solve. The light bulb goes on: I can call a consultant and let him figure it out! Maybe you could even go on vacation while the consultant goes to work.

A dream scenario, sure, but the reality is different. Consultants and managers are both needed; a consultant comes up with a good solution, but a manager is the one who actually puts the solution into action.

Each new job needs to be tackled in a series of stages before a successful solution is discovered.

Each consulting opportunity is built on a series of stages, from setting expectations at the beginning of a job to collecting feedback once a successful solution has been implemented.

The first stage is the contracting phase. Here is where a consultant and her clients establish the scope and general expectations of a project. This is an important step, as managers often are concerned that a consultant will exert too much control over the company.

Resistance is a natural response to the consulting process. Be open and deal with it directly.

You know the saying: you can’t make an omelette without breaking a few eggs. Well, a consultant can’t change things at a company without upsetting a few people.

People can be scared of change, but consulting is all about change! Resistance is only natural.

To effectively communicate your ideas, you have to create space for people to share their fears.

Having the best ideas in the world doesn’t make a difference if you can’t communicate them to other people. And that’s especially true in the world of consulting.

After all, even if a consultant develops a correct solution using sound logic, if she can’t convince people to implement her solution, the consultation is basically a failure.

A great consultant teaches a company how to do things on its own; or, how to not need a consultant!

Good consulting is like raising a child. You deal with a lot of problems in the beginning, but if you do things correctly, eventually you’ll have raised an adult that can resolve issues independently.

But unlike a parent, a consultant only spends a bit of time with each company. And she needs to have as much of an impact as possible in that very short time frame.

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What is Flawless Consulting about?

Flawless Consulting (second edition, 2000) gives you an inside look into the art of consulting with a step-by-step guide to all the phases of a professional consultation. Whether you’re a consultant just starting your career or a business leader working with consultants, this book will show you how to successfully manage consultant-client relationships.

Flawless Consulting Review

Flawless Consulting (1980) is a book that offers valuable insights and guidance for consultants and anyone in a role that requires consulting skills. Here's why this book is worth reading:

Packed with practical tips and strategies, it equips readers with the tools to navigate complex consulting situations and achieve successful outcomes.
By emphasizing the importance of building trust and rapport with clients, the book highlights the human element in consulting, making it highly relevant and relatable.
With its emphasis on collaboration and partnership, the book offers a fresh perspective on the consulting process, making it engaging and thought-provoking.

Best quote from Flawless Consulting

Happiness is when what you think, what you say and what you do are in harmony. – Mahatma Gandhi

—Peter Block

Who should read Flawless Consulting?

Junior-level consultants
Business owners considering hiring a consultant
Project managers who want to better understand consulting strategies

About the Author

Peter Block is a well-known American consultant and has authored many books on consulting, empowerment and social issues. He won the 2008 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Organization Development Network.

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