High-Value It Consulting: 12 Keys to a Thriving Practice

465 Pages·2003·10.582 MB·English

by  Sanjiv Purba, Bob Delaney

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“These best practices provide the road map that is key to running a
world-classconsultingpractice.”
—DavidSmart,VP,SystemandTechnologyServices,TheCITGroup,Inc.
“Practical,actionable,and full of insight.If you are starting your
ownconsultancy,lookingtoadvanceinyourcareerasaconsultant,or
looking to take your consultancy to the next level, you will find the
hands-oninformationyou need in this book.”
—John Wyzalek,Principal,White Paper Group
“Thisbookprovidesaninvaluableroadmapforenterprisesthatfind
themselvescrossingoverintotheconsultingarena,butthatlackformal
consultingexperiencetodrawupon.”
—Charles Dow,Vice-President,SLMSoft
“Adigestablesummaryof theconsultingindustryandpowerfulkey
factorstoconsiderinbuilding,managing,andmeasuringasuccessful
practice.”
—James Fehrenbach,HR Director
“This is a comprehensive and thoughtful approach to helping IT
consultants get a solid perspective on how to establish or improve
their consulting practice.”
—John Davies,Independent IT Consultant
“Thisbookprovidestheinformationatechnicalpractitionerneedsto
knowinordertosucceedinaconsultingorganization.Italsonailsthe
business ofconsulting.”
—Nancy Stonelake,System Architect,Sprint
“This book should be required reading for experienced practice
managersinordertohelpavoidthegapsinprocessesthatcreepinto
existingoperations.”
—Paul Saunders,Vice President Consulting Services,
QUEUE Systems,Inc.
“Thisisahow-toguidetobuildingasuccessfulconsultingorganization
with key anecdotes as well as useful management and measurement
philosophiesgearedspecificallytowardtheconsultingenvironment.”
—Tanvir Mangat,Senior Consulting Executive
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“Frompre-engagementtopost-engagementactivities,thisbookprovides
keymetrics,practicalapproaches,andreal-worldexamplesforsuccess-
fullyrunninganITconsultingpracticeandensuringclientsatisfaction.”
—Silvy Picciano,FLMI/M,ACS,Industry Executive
“A comprehensive guide for any IT consultant looking to effectively
build,manage,or grow their practice.”
—Andrew Chow,MBA,Director ofTechnology,ninedots
“AnexcellentreferenceforITconsultanciestoremindthemofthetrue
value consultants provide to the market—something that is critical
with the economic climate we endure today.”
—Steve Engel,Business Integration Consulting Lead,EDS
“Consultingworkcanbefrustratingbecauseofthechallengesinvolved
inmanagingclientexpectations.Thisbookprovidessolidmaterialto
understand the intricacies of the consulting process and ways to suc-
cessfullydeliverconsultingprojects.Amust-readbookforconsulting
practitionersandbusinessusers.”
—Bharat Shah,Principal,McCann Computer Systems,Ltd.
“Thisisaveryusefulguideforconsultantstoprovidethemwithacom-
prehensiveandpracticalunderstandingofwhatconsultingisallabout.”
—Adel Melek,Partner,Deloitte & Touche
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High-Value IT Consulting:
12 Keys to a Thriving Practice
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About the Authors
SanjivPurbaisaninformationtechnologyexecutivewithover15years
of industryandconsultingexperience.Hehasworkedforthe“Big5”
consultancies,boutiqueconsultingfirms,andhasrunasuccessfulinde-
pendentcontractingbusiness.SomeofhisclientsincludeIBM,Deloitte
Consulting,ISM,GoldmanSachs,Perrier,CIT,Microsoft,SunLife,and
theRoyalBank.Hehasbuiltsuccessfulconsultingpracticesatavariety
offirmsincludingDeloitteConsultingandBlastRadius.Hehaswritten
over 10 books and hundreds of articles for such publications as The
Globe and Mail and the Toronto Star and is a frequent lecturer at
universitiesandcolleges.
Bob Delaney, MBA, has more than 25 years of experience as a
consultantandmanagerinmarketing,communications,andinfor-
mation technology. He manages a web development consulting
practiceandteachesInternetMarketingatRyersonUniversity.Bob
isaMicrosoftDesktopSystemsMVP.
About the Technical Reviewer
Marian Cook is a futurist,strategist,entrepreneur,and professional
speaker.SheisthefounderandpresidentofAgeosEnterprises,abusiness
andtechnologyconsultingfirmheadquarteredinChicagowithanoffice
inDenver.ShehasreceivedtheInfluentialWomaninBusinessAward
presentedbyTheNationalAssociationof WomenBusinessOwners,
andisamemberoftheAdvisoryBoardforLoyolaUniversity’sCenter
for Information Management and Technology.
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High-Value IT Consulting:
12 Keys to a Thriving Practice
Sanjiv Purba and Bob Delaney
McGraw-Hill/Osborne
New York / Chicago / San Francisco / Lisbon / London / Madrid / Mexico City
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High-Value IT Consulting: 12 Keys to a Thriving Practice
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To my wife Kulwinder,my children Naveen,Neil,
and Nikhita,and my mother Inderjit.
—Sanjiv Purba
To Frank C.Walden ofBritish Columbia:friend,
mentor,inspiration,and all-time favourite employer.
—Bob Delaney
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Contents at a Glance
Part I IT Consulting Best Practices
Chapter 1 Evaluate the Current Health ofYour
Consulting Practice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Chapter 2 Road Map for Building a High-Performance
IT Consulting Practice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Part II Selling Client Businesses and Engagements
Chapter 3 ImplementingaMarketingStrategy . . . . . . . . 49
Chapter 4 Account Development Strategy . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Chapter 5 The Client Account Pipeline and
the Decision-Making Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Chapter 6 The Client Decision-Making Process . . . . . . . 117
Part III Delivering Client Engagements Successfully
Chapter 7 Pre-Engagement Activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Chapter 8 Starting an Engagement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
Chapter 9 Maintaining Engagement Controls . . . . . . . . . 187
Chapter 10 Running an Engagement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209
Chapter 11 Testing,Deploying,and Closing
an Engagement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241
Chapter 12 WorkingMultipleEngagements
foraClient . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263
Chapter 13 Risk Mitigation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279
Chapter 14 Legal Considerations in IT Consulting . . . . . 297
Chapter 15 Quality Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 311
Chapter 16 Celebration,Communication,and Other
Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323
ix
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