Independent Consulting:Reinventing Your Business Model
Judith L. Glick-Smith, Ph.D.© 2014770-633-5582www.mentorfactorinc.comjudy@mentorfactorinc.comTwitter: @jglicksmith#stc2014
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Independent Consulting: Reinventing Your Business Model
AgendaO Introduction
O A little about meO A little about you
O The Current State of Contracting and Consulting
O The Process of Reinvention
O Building Clarity: The Business Model Canvas
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Independent Consulting: Reinventing Your Business Model
Expectations
O NameO CompanyO Tag lineO What you want to
get out of this workshop
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Independent Consulting: Reinventing Your Business Model
The Current State of Contracting and Consulting
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O DefinitionsO ContractingO Consulting
O Then vs. NowO Temporary vs.
permanent workersO Commoditization of
TechComO Rates
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Independent Consulting: Reinventing Your Business Model
The Reinvention Process
O Step 1: Increase your awareness
O Step 2: Identify opportunities
O Step 3: Align opportunitiesO Step 4: Organize and
stabilize your infrastructureO Step 5: Execute your planO Step 6: Continue to monitor
and grow
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Independent Consulting: Reinventing Your Business Model
Step 1: Increase Awareness
O Identify your personal mission and goals
O Identify your business’ mission and goals
O Take the time to acknowledge what tasks you both love and at which you excel
O Know what gives you joy
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Independent Consulting: Reinventing Your Business Model
Step 1: Increase Awareness
O Acknowledge how you like to work
O Acknowledge your level of knowing how to run the business of what you do
O Acknowledge how you feel about delegating
O Be totally honest with yourself
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Independent Consulting: Reinventing Your Business Model
Step 1: Increase Awareness
O Go back to the beginning of your career and work your way forward
O Identify the following:O The projects you enjoyedO The tasks within those projects
you enjoyed and excelledO The people you enjoyed working
withO Identify WHY you enjoyed the
projects, tasks, and peopleO Articulate your value proposition
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Independent Consulting: Reinventing Your Business Model
Step 2: Identify Opportunities
O In what industries or customer segments do you prefer working?
O What is the state of those industries or customer segments?
O Where are these industries headed? What are the long-term goals and outlook for these industries?
O What is the “pain” they are feeling in moving forward?
O Do a deep dive into what is causing the “pain”
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Independent Consulting: Reinventing Your Business Model
Step 3: Align Opportunities
O Match your strengths (the tasks which give you joy AND at which you excel) with the “pain” in the industries you identified
O Fine tune your value proposition
O Identify the people you know in those industries
O Identify additional channels into those industries
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Independent Consulting: Reinventing Your Business Model
Step 4: Organize and Stabilize Your Infrastructure
O Identify exactly what key activities you, individually, want to be doing every day
O What can you job out to others?O Who are your key resources?O Who are your key partners?
O Identify what certifications/education you might need to increase your credibility
O Build the appropriate infrastructure do facilitate your ability to respond to clients
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Independent Consulting: Reinventing Your Business Model
Step 4: Organize and Stabilize Your Infrastructure
O Create your marketing plan
O Document your processesO Put the appropriate
technology into placeO Determine alternate
forms of revenue streams and ways of billing
O Get the appropriate insurances
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Independent Consulting: Reinventing Your Business Model
Step 5: Execute Your Plan
O Join the organizations of your potential clients
O Attend the conferences where your potential clients attend
O Participate in the conversations
O Develop and nurture relationships with key players
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Independent Consulting: Reinventing Your Business Model
Step 5: Execute Your Plan
O Follow up on potential leads immediately
O Keep your social media/website/blog relevant
O When a potential project presents itself, collaboratively develop a detailed, written statement of work prior to executing a contract
O Work the projectO Keep working the pipeline
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Independent Consulting: Reinventing Your Business Model
Step 6: Monitor Your Progress
O Pay attention to your goalsO PersonalO Business
O Measure productivity, if possibleO Helps with project
estimatingO Gives you knowledge
about your employeesO Stay acutely aware of
your financial situation
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Independent Consulting: Reinventing Your Business Model
Pricing ProjectsO If you are comfortable with
estimating, consider doing fixed bidO Companies generally like
thisO It is an easier sellO You must be able to manage
scope creepO If you are not comfortable
OR you feel there is too much opportunity for change, avoid fixed bid
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Independent Consulting: Reinventing Your Business Model
Rate DecisionsO Prime = retailO Sub-contracting =
WholesaleO Determining your
wholesale rateO Determining your
retail rateO Allowing for profit
margin
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Independent Consulting: Reinventing Your Business Model
ConclusionO If you like a regular paycheck,
chances are that you won’t like entrepreneurship
O Cultivate a deep understanding of yourself, your product/service, and the relevant markets
O Strive to maximize and facilitate flow experiences (your own and those around you)
O Pay mindful attention to your goalsO Continue to learn: Being prepared
opens you to new opportunities
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Independent Consulting: Reinventing Your Business Model
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ResourcesO Strengths Based Leadership by Tom Rath
& Barry ConchieO Business Model Generation by Alexander
Osterwalder & Yves PigneurO The E-Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber