We live in an exciting time of technical innovation, but there is a wide gap between high-quality technology consultants and those who hold the title but do not provide the best solutions to their clients. Companies need trusted advisor sources for those technical individuals. They typically pick a brand company such as Pariveda, Credera, or Headstorm to fill the need. These types of companies have enough critical mass and experience in various marketplaces and have developed executive trust.
However, if you look at where innovation and technology is taking us, we live in a time of sharing and connecting. Realistically, companies need one trusted advisor who can lead them through the jungle of tech speak and complicated jargon. That trusted advisor no longer needs to work for the “brand” company. If you are able to bring quality talent to a company because of his or her relationships, they will trust you.
We operate in an increasingly networked economy. One can still deliver the same type of value as a branded company through the relationships developed and maintained. There is a premium value on developing a trusted network and deploying those resources to your customers without having to directly employ those resources. Remember, your customer trusts you. If one makes a recommendation or brings an independent consultant on board, the client trusts that you will make sure the project succeeds.
This becomes even more valuable as technology companies have a tough time keeping their star employees. Said employees often branch out into small groups of independent consultants specializing in some type of solution set. Imagine how powerful it would be if you could be the conduit for connecting the talent of these smaller teams to clients who have specific needs! As an independent consultant, one still needs connections at the brand companies. This is because, inevitably, proposed projects will be of sufficient scale to require an introduction to the trusted people at the branded company.
Since this is the case, as a larger brand company, what if all your employees took responsibility for selling? What if they were regularly in the marketplace connecting with others? How could you lose? It all comes back to competence, trust, and a solid network.
My mission in Connect for Life is to unlock the power of human relationships. It is meant to enable technical individuals to make and keep trusted relationships and then leverage those relationships to deliver value in the marketplace. If you are a technologist, the book will open your eyes to things you have never been taught. Technologists, engineers, accountants, and lawyers tend to be more introverted by nature. If you want to become a trusted advisory for your clients, learning how to network, connect and sell is critical to being assigned the title, Trusted Advisor. Get crackin!