Clients Matter; So Put Your Team First

We're often so preoccupied with keeping our clients happy that, as project managers, we never calculate the true cost of losing the confidence of our teams. Without them, we're sunk.

When we put our teams first, our clients can let go and trust the process. How do we get there? We can learn the scripts, build trust with our teammates, and get them scoping, giving feedback and vetting prospect leads. As PMs, we have more power in our pinky fingers than a thousand clients.

Together we can make this digital industry better. We just have to know where to start. And it starts with our team.

Transcript

1. Clients Ma er; So Put Your Team First Wednesday, 16 October, 13
2. Who needs to win this? Wednesday, 16 October, 13
3. 1. Wednesday, 16 October, 13
4. Students, clients, teams. Wednesday, 16 October, 13
5. Students, clients, teams. We teach people how to treat us. Wednesday, 16 October, 13
6. 2. Wednesday, 16 October, 13
7. Our clients and our teams need us to win. Wednesday, 16 October, 13
8. Why? How? What? Wednesday, 16 October, 13
9. Wednesday, 16 October, 13
10. Get in. Wednesday, 16 October, 13
11. Why are clients happier when we drive? Wednesday, 16 October, 13
12. When we put our teams first, we put ourselves in the driver’s seat... Wednesday, 16 October, 13
13. ...clients can let go and trust the process. Wednesday, 16 October, 13
14. “ e price of anything is the amount of life you exchange for it.” ― Henry David oreau Wednesday, 16 October, 13
15. e True Cost: Losing Our Team Wednesday, 16 October, 13
16. Happy teams = Happier clients Wednesday, 16 October, 13
17. Wednesday, 16 October, 13
18. Gut Check Do you put your team first? Wednesday, 16 October, 13
19. $ Budget Wednesday, 16 October, 13
20. ✓Short cuts hurt the team ✓Working for free Wednesday, 16 October, 13
21. !!! Expectations Wednesday, 16 October, 13
22. ✓Scope creep ✓Watered down feedback ✓Solutioneering Wednesday, 16 October, 13
23. 00:00 Time Wednesday, 16 October, 13
24. ✓ No parameters or consequences ✓Clients set project pace &... Wednesday, 16 October, 13
25. 40:00 Wednesday, 16 October, 13
26. Does your team trust you? Wednesday, 16 October, 13
27. Defensive Responses Wednesday, 16 October, 13
28. Dead Air Wednesday, 16 October, 13
29. Haters Wednesday, 16 October, 13
30. You are a lifeboat. Wednesday, 16 October, 13
31. is is trust... Wednesday, 16 October, 13
32. You have something in your teeth. Wednesday, 16 October, 13
33. Step 1. Assess e Gap * Ask. Listen * Find a baseline * Be vulnerable Wednesday, 16 October, 13
34. Step 2. Meet e Need * Check in * Provide air cover Wednesday, 16 October, 13
35. Step 3. Measure e Growth * Fine tune * Reassess direction Wednesday, 16 October, 13
36. Teams First Wednesday, 16 October, 13
37. ✓ Get Team Feedback Wednesday, 16 October, 13
38. ✓Vet leads together ✓Critique client requests ✓Get input on direction Wednesday, 16 October, 13
39. ✓ Let Teams Scope Wednesday, 16 October, 13
40. ✓Practice with past projects ✓Estimators are producers ✓Learn every role Wednesday, 16 October, 13
41. ✓ Do Post Mortems Wednesday, 16 October, 13
42. ✓ Share successes & failures ✓Fine tune process ✓Re-scope project Wednesday, 16 October, 13
43. process.ngenworks.com Wednesday, 16 October, 13
44. Warning: Not every teammate is a fit Wednesday, 16 October, 13
45. Voices From e Shadows Wednesday, 16 October, 13
46. Take e Wheel Wednesday, 16 October, 13
47. Take e Wheel Wednesday, 16 October, 13
48. Power Moves Wednesday, 16 October, 13
49. Learn e Scripts Wednesday, 16 October, 13
50. Wednesday, 16 October, 13
51. No we can’t just ‘add a blog’ for nothing, you nincompoop. That shit costs money. ❝A blog? That’s a great idea. Let’s go back to the team and find out how much time that will take and how much it will cost.❞ Wednesday, 16 October, 13
52. You’ve been late on three payments and you want us to ‘keep moving’? I’m going to mail you a dead fish out of sheer frustration. ❝We’ll restart your project just as soon as we receive any outstanding payments.❞ Wednesday, 16 October, 13
53. Wednesday, 16 October, 13
54. I’ve asked you a thousand times to put your idiot requests in Basecamp. ❝I think the whole team would get a lot out of this conversation. Would you mind posting it in Basecamp so we can take some time to respond?❞ Wednesday, 16 October, 13
55. You want a giant, shiny robot to pop out and deliver your vision statement? On the home page? Terrific. ❝Let’s go back and see how this idea supports or hurts your business goals. If it makes sense to do it, we’re on board; otherwise, let’s brainstorm a few other ideas, too.❞ Wednesday, 16 October, 13
56. Wednesday, 16 October, 13
57. Wednesday, 16 October, 13
58. Why the f%@# would you ask us to launch tomorrow after your approval was two weeks late?? ❝Unfortunately, no. We need your help & commitment to approvals to launch on time. We’ll work as fast as we can, but we can’t compromise the quality of our project. Thanks for understanding.❞ Wednesday, 16 October, 13
59. You’re setting our meeting dates within a day and expecting my team to be on board? Nope. ❝We’d love to chat about the project direction. Let us look at some times that are available for the whole team and I’ll reach out to you ASAP.❞ Wednesday, 16 October, 13
60. [insert colourful exclamation] ❝[your expert response]❞ Wednesday, 16 October, 13
61. rachelgertz.com Wednesday, 16 October, 13
62. “Charlie bit me.” Wednesday, 16 October, 13
63. Summary Wednesday, 16 October, 13
64. Clients are happy when we drive — Wednesday, 16 October, 13
65. We drive when when we work hand in hand with our teams Wednesday, 16 October, 13
66. We put our teams first by: ✓ building trust ✓ ge ing team input ✓ practicing the scripts Wednesday, 16 October, 13
67. We teach people how to treat us Wednesday, 16 October, 13
68. Take e Reigns Wednesday, 16 October, 13
69. ank you. rachelgertz.com louderthanten.com @thestraymuse Wednesday, 16 October, 13