One of the most prominent aspects that we promote on this podcast is the need for consultants to be client minded.  And while it’s true that those of us in any professional services firm should strive to put the client first and dedicate ourselves to the client’s success, we should also make sure that we keep our own firm’s interests in mind.  Last week we spoke about protecting confidential information, this week we'll talk about what a consultant should do in terms of protecting his own firm.

What does a consultant need to consider to protect his own firm

The consultant/client relationship should be a win-win situation. Obviously, a top consulting firm needs to deliver value and make their service worth the client’s money.
But with that being said, the consulting firm needs to be able to make a fair profit.  If they don’t, they cease to exist and that doesn’t help the client any either.
So in order to be profitable, the firm needs to be protected from the perspective that their own confidential information needs to be kept confidential.
Another issue a firm needs to be aware of is with what I’ll call dirty laundry.  This is the type of internal politics and turf wars that occur within the firm.
Exposing things like inner turmoil and firm politics to clients can damage a firm’s credibility not to mention the individual consultants that are working for the client.
Another thing that consultants need to do to protect the firm is when they disagree with firm decisions and policy.  A consultant is not going to agree with the direction the firm is taking at all times.
But there are times when you need to follow the company line whether you agree with the firm or not.

What are the ramifications when these things happen?

I think the biggest damage is to the firm’s credibility.  Consulting firms are hired to give companies advice.  If there’s evidence of internal strife within the consulting firm, then the client may wonder why they should follow the firm’s advice if they can’t even keep their own house in order.
It’s sort of like the marriage counselor that’s going through a divorce or a medical doctor that smokes.  You just begin to question their credibility as business consultants.
Another ramification is when there is internal strife within a firm, it becomes a distraction. If you as a consultant are dealing with a politically charged environment or any internal issues, that can prove to be a big distraction from the work you’re doing for the client.
And exposing that to the client will distract them.  Any time a mistake is made, they’re going to immediately assume that it’s because the consultants are focused on those internal issues.  So it’s a bit of a combination of distraction and credibility loss.

What does a consultant need to do to ensure that confidential information is kept confidential?

This is one of the biggest issues I see in protecting the firm.  I’m a big believer in consulting firms being open and honest with their clients.  Transparency is key to developing strong, long-term relationships with clients.
But there is some information that needs to be kept confidential.  For instance, you never want to reveal the consulting salaries and some firms don’t like to publish their individual billing rates.  They may price projects based on a fixed bid for the entire project or provide a blended rate for the entire staff so that you don’t know anyone’s specific billing rate.
This protects them from their rate schedule getting into the wrong hands.  You never know when a client may share that information with a competitor or even if a client employee leaves their company to join a competing consulting firm.
The firm may subcontract with another firm or with individuals and the rates the firm pays those consultants should remain confidential as well.
One other aspect of this is when you have multiple clients, and that’s the case for mos