Change Communications

I thought I’d share a small pearl of wisdom that I recently heard on a training course. It’s about the profession of consulting and it struck a cord with me.

Consulting was described using the concepts of Yin and Yang that originate in ancient Chinese philosophy and metaphysics. In short, these concepts are attributed to two primal opposing but complementary forces found in all things in the universe.

I’ve noticed that consulting is often a balance between the opposing, but complementary, forces of “leadership” and “servitude”.

Ultimately a consultant is hired to provide a service. The definition of servitude given by Wiktionary is: the act or state of being in service to someone. So, I guess that implies that the client is in the driving seat, they are requesting a service.

Yet, a consultant is hired to bring specialised knowledge of a particular domain and should lead a client to make the best choices in relation to his/her stated objective. In change management this often involves challenging a client’s own convictions and resistance to change.

Too much leadership or inappropriate leadership and the consultant will be perceived as arrogant and trying to force his view or theories on the client. However, too little and a consultant is seen as ineffective and not really providing any added value to the client, a kind of (expensive) hired labour.

I thought this was quite an accurate representation of the challenges that a consultant can face. It appears to me that getting this right has just as much to do with relational skills as pure expertise.

Personally, I find this a fine balance; I am interested in hearing your thoughts.

Nicholas