For management consultants, one of the basic credos is “know who your client is.” This is drilled into us as professionals.  If you don’t know who your client is, then you can’t determine how best to serve their interests. That can lead to all sorts of problems.

Yesterday, I discovered during the contracting process that who I thought was the client, isn’t the client, and who I thought was a stakeholder is the client – at least in their minds.  Sound confusing? It was. But I also realized that I could potentially use this contracting conflict as an opportunity to force the issue around roles and responsibilities and get it resolved. That would help both “clients” become much more productive in their relationship with each other. Assuming, of course, they are willing to go through that process. The question is: Are they both open to re-defining their relationship?

Stay tuned. This will be interesting!

Next blog article: “Managing Tough Conversations“