Can I be a better client leader?

We’ve all been there.

You get caught up in the day and, next thing you know, there’s a client meeting you’re due to be in.

When it’s wrapped up, you find you’ve not met the ideal you have for client meetings – whether that’s setting and sharing an agenda; or taking meeting notes during the session that were easy to share.

There’s no time like the present to start being that ideal version of the client-facing professional you know you can be. When taking on the leader role – whether for a team, captaining a meeting or with client relationships – the best leaders learn from others through their actions and example. Let’s learn from the best to see what we can adopt for ourselves as client leaders.

Be, do, have.

We had the pleasure of talking with Vivienne Browning from The Gap about Being Intentional with Business Advice. Viv and her team are passionate about how business advisory can be delivered by accountants to ensure client success.

Learn more about how The Gap offers all the content, training, and support you need to market, sell, and deliver Business Advisory services, in one bespoke portal here.

The Gap focusses on bringing the ‘Be Do Have’ principle to business advisory. The usual ‘When I have’ mindset (that says: “when I have, I will do, and then I’ll be”) is flipped. The Gap advises clients think of what they want to be through actions first.

With ‘Be Do Have’, your starting point is your destination and work back from there. Switching your focus to the ‘Who must I be‘ mentality means you actively put the steps in place to reach success. (P.S. This is a very helpful philosophy for professional & business service companies to use with your clients too!)

They have captured this approach in the above graphic for you to take as a client-facing professional. Turning them into easily digestible (and easy-to-apply) tips.

Count me in!

Ok, so we’ve got your attention! Great, let’s talk about what you can do now that you’ve changed your mindset to “Who must I be.”

The Gap in their fantastic Guide to the Five Essential Meetings highlights 3 essential resources needed to achieve your goals: pre-work, the and meeting minutes.

Did you know that pre-meeting work (‘pre-work’) is the key to building strong client relationships? Find out more about ‘pre-work’ here.

Ideal self, ideal tech?

At Connect4, we know there is a gap in the technology offered to many client-facing professionals when working remotely with clients. Recently we discussed this in a blog post sharing a sentiment for those conducting the ‘new normal’ of remote meetings:

“Many client-facing professionals have realised there’s a gap in meeting tools’ offerings. We need digital tools that drive the most important components of relationship development – delivery, transparency, flexibility and consistency. Not just facilitating a video call.”

You might start your agenda planning in email. Shift into a presentation file to use during the meeting. Setup a calendar invitation to those attending with the video bridge connection & attach documents for review. Only to show up for the meeting struggling to find the correct materials in different places or lost in email – or other attendees will – causing a 10 minute delay to a 30 minute meeting.

No wonder “Zoom Fatigue” has become a top trending hashtag on social media – we’re exhausted just reading that!

We’ve been working with our customers to build a client relationship platform focussed on running productive meetings. Thanks to user feedback, a unique “pod approach” allows client facing professionals to tap into the workflows of meetings from agenda setting to delivery and post meeting accountability. We’re proud to be offering a new way to develop valuable relationships through consistent, productive meetings for both our customers and their clients to thrive!

Like what you’ve read here?

The Gap provides all you need to market, sell, and deliver advisory services to support your clients beyond compliance. Download their Guide to the Five Essential Meetings so that you can deliver successful and structured client meetings that enable you to provide enduring value. Then book a demo with their sales team to understand how else The Gap can help you accelerate small business success.

Hope you’ve enjoyed this read from our Connect4 team!

We’d love to hear your ideas and strategies for becoming a better client leader. Drop us a message on LinkedIn or send us a tweet on Twitter to connect and start a conversation with our team. We’re looking forward to hearing from you.