I first discussed C-SIG member Wendy Chretien's suggestion about producing deliverables sooner than the client expects in the April issue of Connections. This suggestion quickly fueled additional thoughts from other C-SIG members. Wendy recently clarified that she still supports the early delivery, but only by a day or so, not weeks or months. Further, her clients' projects typically have a completion date as the overall milestone, and her team sets the interim milestones. This is different from very complex projects that have several phase or gate milestones.

Context is important, and so is communications. Further, I believe they go hand-in-hand. As project management consultants, we frequently mention the relative merits of repeat business vs. acquiring new clients. In hindsight, I think a part of this is that we can better understand the context of communications with our clients, and thus better understand and manage expectations. Perhaps if I had several email exchanges with Wendy to clarify my understandings, the C-SIG dialogue this past couple of months would have been different. But, it was, and continues to be a rich dialogue. Further, it reiterates an old lessons-learned for me - effective communications is so difficult. I recently told my wife, "I don't know what you said, but I know what I heard."

Another reminder that emerged from all of this dialogue is the importance of the consultant-client relationship. Intuitively, effective communications and effective relationships seem to be positively correlated. But it takes work in both areas. C-SIG member Tim Draughon recalled a former colleague's philosophy about how earlier-than-expected deliveries lead to ever-increasing client expectations to the point that on-time deliveries would be perceived poorly. Then Tim neatly tied together context, communications, and relationships: "Bottom line: If you really know your client and your project, you'll know what to do if the situation should ever arise."

I didn't get any responses to the management fads question. A recent issue of Business Week (June 11, 2007) discussed Six Sigma as part of its cover story. One article noted: "Six Sigma: So Yesterday? In an innovation economy, it's no longer a cure-all." I think the key word here is "cure-all." Sometimes, management fads are treated as solutions in search of a problem. As someone once noted, if your toolbox only has a hammer, then every problem tends to look like a nail. So now, here are this month's questions. What are your experiences? Perhaps more importantly, what do you recommend to a new project management consultant who is just beginning to fill his or her toolbox?

I am enjoying all of the dialogue generated through the Connections articles. Please continue to send me your thoughts and questions at chair@pmiconsultingsig.org. As always, thanks.

Bill Craddock, PMP
Chair, Consulting SIG

Several C-SIG members (and some potential members) met recently in Budapest for a networking reception. This was at the end of the first full day of the 2007 EMEA Congress. In the picture to the right, you can see most are still wearing their Congress nametags.

It was great fun to meet members and "attach faces to names." The countries represented included Belgium, Canada, Germany, Hungary, Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Portugal, South Africa, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and United States.

We hope to have a similar C-SIG networking reception in Atlanta in conjunction with the 2007 North America Congress in early October.

C-SIG to Re-Launch Mentoring Program

We are currently undertaking a review of the C-SIG member mentoring program launched in 2006 in order to strengthen it. The key feedback points from some of the participants (roughly half of the 50 pairs) includes:

The local event held a business card raffle with books kindly provided by the Consulting SIG as prizes. Matt Dunlap and Kevin Turner plan to enjoy their books, each receiving Turning the Future into Revenue: What Businesses and Individuals Need to Know to Shape Their Futures. An added perk: the author, Glen Hiemstra, autographed those copies.

And Richard Jackson was delighted to receive the classic Bringing Out the Best in People: How to Apply the Astonishing Power of Positive Reinforcement by Aubrey Daniels, a volume he said was a clear fit with his passion for motivating people.

Matt Dunlap	Kevin Turner	Richard Jackson

The group is looking forward to the next event, considering ideas for a fall function.

Interested in working with the Puget Sound C-LIG or starting a C-LIG in your area? Contact C-SIG board member Phil Marriott, who is leading the effort to organize Consulting interest groups at the local level.