What Are You Here to Do?

It's always useful for clients to let people know why they have hired you, especially when you need cooperation to get the job done. But some introductions work better than others.

Have a look at this excerpt from a memo to the company from Jerry Yang, former CEO of Yahoo!, about his decision to hire a consulting firm:

"As we look ahead and to position us for success in 2009, we're continuing the work already underway to get fit as an organization: actively looking for ways to make process and structural changes to our business that will allow us to work more efficiently, with more scale. We've enlisted the help of Bain & Company to work with the leadership team on identifying ways to leverage our strengths, and to improve and accelerate our performance."

When people read euphemisms like "get fit," "structural changes," and "work more efficiently, with more scale," they think layoffs. Most consultants know that working in a tough environment is part of the job. But sometimes it's better for the client to say nothing at all than to send an evasive, jargon-laden message that raises more questions than it answers.

What's worse is that this type of introduction sets the consultant up as the bad guy when executives make the hard decision to downsize the company.

Not long after the above memo went out, Yang announced, "We anticipate we will reduce headcount by at least 10 percent" by the end of the year. Yang was later replaced as the Yahoo CEO.

Whenever possible, make a substantive contribution to the message your client uses to introduce you or your firm. Emphasize clarity over corporate-speak and brevity over bloviation.

If your firm's introduction has the client team members scratching their heads in confusion or stifling laughter, be ready for a slow start to your project.