This month, we profile the fifth and final stage of the Relationship Capital Continuum. At this level of engagement, you are known as an indispensable partner to the enterprises and stakeholders you serve. You are a rare individual, sought after for your guidance, insights and superior judgment.
You are recognized for your wisdom, intuition and ability to cut through the clutter in such a way that the complex becomes understandable. You have the ability to relate to others regardless of position, offer a fresh perspective and envision things with the end in mind.
You are able to influence and impact strategy and engage in matters of extreme importance to your client. You have a seat at the table and serve as a catalyst for advancing your business. You are deeply entrenched in your client’s business matters and are asked to provide guidance well beyond your area of specialization.
A closer look
A family business was contemplating the idea of forming an advisory board, yet was somewhat reluctant to pull the trigger given both the investment in time, as well as the transparency that goes into sharing all of the confidential information associated with the process.
The company’s business adviser understood the nature of the concern and proceeded to broker a meeting with another family business that had gone through the process of successfully engaging an advisory board. Additionally, this consultant truly understood the concerns and invested the time to ensure that the specific issues were addressed.
As a result of this meeting, the idea of forming a family council was also introduced and a number of other lessons learned were shared.
This conversation served as a catalyst to move forward with the formation of the board and the family was appreciative of how the consultant went above and beyond to ensure they were comfortable with the overall process and intent.
By truly understanding the stated and unstated concerns of the client, this adviser spent the requisite time to leverage his extended network and properly calibrate how best to advance the dialogue in a natural and comfortable manner. This resulted in the establishment of a multi-disciplinary board that has contributed to the further professionalization of the enterprise.
Maximize your contribution
It is important to recognize that our sphere of impact is determined by the depth and breadth of our collective experiences. We must be willing to invest the requisite time and energy to surround ourselves with those people who have walked down a path that others will need to learn from. By adopting this mindset, we are in a unique position to maximize our contribution and be viewed as an indispensable partner.
I close with a great quote that captures the essence of how the indispensable partner views the world:
“Instead of thinking that you always need to do bigger things, learn to do the small things in better ways.”
— Adam Kirk Smith ●
Marc Rosen is co-founder at The Client Experience Institute and president of the Vector Group, LLC
