PRINCIPLES: Set the terms
Why you need a client engagement process.
I spend a lot of time with clients, and also for myself, exploring where there is a need to step into or step back from responsibility. These days I’m decent at it at work, finding it to be an area I can navigate with clarity and steadiness. But I experience much anguish related to this in my personal life. It’s a work in progress.
In a service based business, a key responsibility of the service provider is to set the terms of engagement and carry them through. Easier said than done though huh. People are all kinds of blocked around this, from not knowing what it entails to worrying about being disliked or that the client will say no if they are too forthright. And sure, some clients may not like you or say no but you know what that is? A lucky escape. If the client doesn’t like clear terms of engagement that’s because they don’t know what they want or they want to take advantage.
Clear terms of engagement are like routine to a child. They create a sense of safety, build trust and strengthen the relationship. The point is not to stop flexibility and customisation (although it is a little bit). The point is to make it easier for you and the client to understand how to work together, if there is a good fit, what will be delivered, and what to do if things begin to veer off course. It is the responsibility of the service provider to put these guard rails in place, and then maintain them.
A good bare bones client engagement process needs three main parts:
A defined service offer.
This is a clear and concise articulation of the services you will provide, in language the client can understand. You get bonus points if you actually want to provide all of the services offered and have explained the impact and value of them.
A clear pricing strategy.
Both how you will charge (day rate/project fee/retainer etc) and how you will position your pricing (cheap, middle of the market, high end, luxury etc). This allows you to quote with ease and feel fairly remunerated for your services.
A contract or agreement that outlines the terms and conditions of engagement.
I’m not one to recommend a five page impenetrable contract in legalese. You need a simple document that at the very least outlines what will be provided, when it will be provided, ways of working, the associated fees and payment schedule, and makes clear how either party can exit the agreement.
Like all good processes, a client engagement process stops you from having to constantly re-do a repeating task or re-make decisions. You create your process, follow your process and leave more time for actually servicing the client.
Within this, the client also has responsibilities and they are just as important as yours are, but they are not the same as yours.
It is the client’s responsibility to:
Say yes or no to the terms of engagement
Provide the information, access, assets and so on that are needed to execute the work
Provide feedback when requested
But, it is not the clients responsibility to hold you to the process. That is your responsibility. In this vein, please do not expect your client to insist you stop over-servicing them or offer to pay you more for doing so, or more generally to respect your service provision when you disregard the terms of engagement and aren’t respecting yourself.
Sadly, even an excellent process does not prevent all issues. Service-based work is too humanely flawed for that. So what happens if you uphold your responsibilities and the client doesn’t? Then it is your responsibility to raise the issue and navigate a fix. If you raise the issue and get nowhere then it is your responsibility to fire the client. And if the client holds up their end and you don’t, you’ll likely get fired.
Navigating where our personal responsibility begins and ends is a complex concept to get to grips with and one that we are likely to explore for our entire life. I only have a very surface level knowledge of the works of the Stoics but I know that they saw focusing on what you can control rather than what you can’t as the way to an enjoyable life. I see it as the way to an enjoyable business.
I am a business and career coach, offering holistic professional coaching, business advisory and team training. If you need help defining your service offer or structuring your client engagement process you can book an intro chat to explore working together.
Love this advice!