Archive for October, 2008

Time for planning?

October 19th, 2008

because of the economic downturn, it must make lots of people worried about where to spend their money for projects and build new things, where there is still an endless supply of ideas. i think it would be a smart to spend a bit, maybe a fifth, fourth or third of that investment, on a plan – an explicit one that outlines what the idea looks like, how it could work, how it helps people, what the experience of using it would be and most importantly why it is different from other ideas.

i think this would help – just  a few that comes off the top of my head:

  • the business and investors to decide whether this idea is feasible and ask the right question. they have something tangible and something they can “see”.
  • the business to decide which parts of this idea to start working on
  • the designers to know what to focus on
  • the developers to clearly think of the architecture of the product or website or whatever the idea is
  • to add more to this list…

dawn of the age of the “newbie” consultant?

October 19th, 2008

i am not the best at coming up with names – but my question here is about what i am seeing in the last 6 months to be more and more in demand, in NZ anyway.

I think the time has come for those practitioners who have come through the ranks, walked the walk, by doing and really caring about the outcome of their effort, to start consulting at a business level.

Businesses are also getting smarter at picking up these people as well. They are getting more value for their money. this year, i have seen at least 4 our of 5 clients preferred to work with the same person again because “they know everything”, “they care” and “they get the work done” and talking to colleagues in the field say the same thing.

Trends amongst the newbie consultants. In no particular order, newbies:

  • care about the experiences of their clients and their clients’ customers and users
  • Collaborate closely with clients
  • Share
  • Encourage participation
  • Draw sketches and pictures
  • Empathise
  • Research
  • have stories of their own experiences
  • teach
  • network
  • refer other people if it means they get the job done
  • are happy to and are capable of getting their hands dirty if required
  • do not bullshit
  • are not scared to not know the answer
  • build work based on their brand “Me” attitude
  • focus on problems and opportunities, not features
  • facilitate conversations and work with clients to identiy and solve problems
  • can dig deep with the big picture in mind
  • absorb knowledge and learn from people around them
  • thrive on feedback

there are lots of people out there that need help with their businesses online. with so much technology available and articles and how-tos accessble through Google, you also get lots of people who bullshit their way through, selling features and tools to solve problems. there is a gap for those who dont know any better and i think its these new consultants who can help them.

I also think there are lots of things that newbies lack such as strong track record in business consultancy, experience in managing businesses, etc. but with the can-do attitude, perseverance and hunger to learn, i think its not hard to gain this experience. After all, you have to be in the game to win.

A lot of these “newbies” are still under the radar. Here are a few who have their profile on the web:

Chandima Kulathilake, Hayden Vink, John Clegg, Kate Insoll and Zac, Zef Fugaz, Ross Howard, Phillip Fierlinger



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