How We Work

Engagement: In order to deliver a sustainable solution, it is important to do more than "handover something that works". Solutions need to be reconciled to the environment in which they will be used. To do this, three things must be done:

1. See and Understand First: While seeking to understand the work to be done, the preferences of both the client and his/her customers as well as the prevailing organizational climate must be understood if the solution is to be properly aligned with the environment.
2. Take Challenges by the Smooth Handle: Thomas Jefferson used to say that problems can be taken by either the smooth handle or the blade (a less smooth handle). Understanding "what works" for both the client and our consultants will ensure we work together instead of at cross purposes.
3. Meet Clients Where They Are At: Clients come from organizations that differ along multiple dimensions: size, extent of process definition, degree of automation, modes of decision making, pace of change, appetite for risk, financial resources, and so forth. Instead of expecting you to conform to our methodology, we will align our service to your needs.

Steadiness: Change is what it is. Implementing new or improved capabilities is about change. Change means taking risks. All projects face risk from internal resistance, change control (either missed requirements or emergent needs), resource fluctuations, and the other necessary evils associated with change. These factors are constants....they vary only in degree. The pivotal issue is how you choose to manage this risk. For our part, we are committed to owning attainment of the business outcome you envision. While we will meet our specific deliverables along the way, doing so is not a substitute for achieving your vision.

Closure Orientation: Getting results is not a passive activity measured in relative terms. Results are the outcome of energetic leadership that expects deliverables that are concrete, fact-based, date-driven, and quantitatively measurable. To achieve predictable and reliable results, one must replace the common "Culture of Participation" with a "Culture of Delivery". While one focuses on high levels of "activity" that have the appearance of results, the other focuses on completing core deliverables that are "necessary and sufficient" for attaining the objective. The Culture of Delivery is expressed through our project management discipline. Among the principles this discipline emphasizes are:

1. Ownership: Everyone wants to own a project in the beginning, but when problems arise, the interest in owning the effort tends to melt away. You can count on us to be accountable from Plan to Delivery. .
2. No Short Cuts: We develop a plan and work the plan. If conditions change, we use proportionate change control to update the plan.
3. Conscious Decisions: No guessing. Whether dealing with perceptions, expectations, assessments, or status, we seek clarification as opposed to quietly “hoping for the best”.
4. Confirm Line-Of-Sight: Most consulting companies are quick to engage resources and give into the urge to “get busy” and “show activity”. We do the opposite by first ensuring we have clear "line-of-sight" to critical objectives, and then engaging resources.
5. Effective Status Reporting: What gets measured and reported gets done. We push status and issue information broadly and at multiple levels within the stakeholder community to avoid surprising folks at any level.
6. Constant Questioning: While project management tools and reporting are indispensable, they are not a substitute for inspection. Only by confirming that “done” means “100% done”, can the loose ends be tied up and project cracks covered.