The contracting meeting

Chapters 5 & 6 - Peter Block

Tim Arnette and Jonathan West
Consulting Skils, Virginia Commonwealth University – Fall 2009
Agenda

    Intro and Review (10 min)

    Practice contracting meeting I (15 min)
    Feedback I (5 min)
    Practice contracting meeting II  (15 min)
    Feedback II (5 min)
    Debrief (20 min)
 b e r
em
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It’s about collaboration
things to remember

 Who is the client?

 It’s a 50/50 Relationship
 You can’t get something for nothing
 All wants are legitimate
 You can’t contract with someone who’s not in the
room
 Be ready to renegotiate at all times
The contracting meeting

 Make it comfortable – personally acknowledge

 What I understand the problem to be
 Client wants and offers
 “So, what do you want from me?”
 “Do you have any specific ideas about how I should
proceed or what constraints there are?”
Consultant Wants

 Put your wants into words!

 Essential wants
 Enough time to do the job
 Access to key people
 Access to records and docs
 Two way communication - respond to phone & email
 Commitment of top person to proceed
 No individual performance eval of co-workers
Consultant wants

 Desirable Wants
 Someone from client org to work with
 Manager to personally inform people about project
 Top mgmt to get personally involved
 Time schedule
 Cooperation
 Will spread the word if project goes well
Consultant offers

 Be realistic & authentic

 State clearly what we need and want from the client
(overstate)
 Being cautious about results we will deliver
(understate)
 Remember the 50/50 relationship
Reasons for weak or faulty contracts

 Client entered agreement under coercion

 Ask: “Is this something you really want to see
happen?”
 Client agreed, but felt they did not have adequate
control
 Ask: “Do you feel you have enough control over how
this project is going to proceed?”
Key points in the Bonner case

(Pg. 118)
Alan: “That’s why I want you to get on this –today. Dave
I’ve given you all the info I have. I want you to put
together a proposal on this for me. I’m really bogged down
right now. I can see you Wednesday.”
Dave: “Hold it, Alan. I can’t write a proposal in the dark.
I’ll need some data. Look, I don’ think we can work on this
on the phone. Why don’t I come over and we’ll talk.”
Bonner Case – point 2 (p. 120)

Alan: “OK, Dave. I think we have it. There is enough for

you to write a proposal.
Dave: “Alan, we have a good start, but we’re not
finished… More important, for me, is that this has to be
your proposal – not mine.”
Alan: “Look, Dave, you can take it from here… You can
write it up and present it to the staff.”
Dave: “Hold it. I thought I was working with you on this…
If I present, it puts me in the middle – it’s a ‘can’t win’
position… It would be a mistake for me to lead on this.”
Bonner Case – point 3 (p. 122)

Dave: “There may be some misunderstanding about my

role in this project. I was asked to help Alan develop a new
meeting format…
“It’s important, to me, that I not be seen as pushing
for a change. I am not. I think it would be out of line for me
to do so. I am here to answer your questions about the ideas
that Alan and I put together, which were based on this
objective as given. I need to hear a clear signal from all of
you. Is this your objective?”
Negotiate and renegotiate…
Bonner case – summary
 Dave sticks fast to the 50/50 relationship
 Dave is not a pair-of-hands or an expert
 Be ready to constantly renegotiate
 Who is the Client –
 first it was Alan,
 then it was the Managing Team
 By modeling behavior, client can learn (how they dealt
with questions)
Relax and enjoy!