Professionalism: Has technology changed what clients expect?

Professionalism:
Has technology changed
what clients expect?
What You Need to Know to Build
Business Success!

Presented by Diane M. Harris
D. M. Harris Associates

Our time together
 How this topic arose
 You’ll take the short survey
 Explain the research conducted
 Findings of research conducted with clients &
suppliers; data and qualitative
 Tips to improve how clients view you as a
professional

June 5, 2012 D. M. Harris Associates 2

Professionalism
 Professionalism Committee’s annual
presentation
 Change it up and get more practical
 My personal observation over my career
 We’ve gotten more casual
 Was it because of the speed of business?
 The Internet?
 Or just what?


Let’s see what you
think
Let’s do the survey!

About the research
 Did Qualitative prior to Quantitative
 Sources of respondents – not random
 My clients, QRCA friends and their clients
 LinkedIn – nine different groups
 Responses from around the world
 Asia, Romania, France, Spain, United Kingdom,
Australia, Mexico, South Africa and Canada


About the survey
 244 responses
 59 clients and research buyers (55 actual
qualitative research buyers)
 185 research suppliers
 45 pages of comments!
 Many e-mailed or left appreciative comments
 Hypothesized younger would react differently
 I was wrong


How much has the face of
professionalism changed
throughout your career?

Jack Welch


Supplier Viewpoint

13.5%
44.9%
26.5%
10.8%
4.3%


Client viewpoint

11.9%
52.5%
20.3%
8.5%
6.8%

Comments
 It seems like time & money is an excuse to
forget professionalism
 People are more casual now, which isn’t
always good
 Expectations of instant response have led to
communication without critical thinking
 “Formalism” has changed, but not
professionalism


This was my hypothesis
that the Internet was the
cause
So this was a key question

With the inception of the Internet, has
the increased informality in
communication been
a help or a hindrance
to professionalism
in our work society?


I blame
Jerry Springer


He gave the green light
for bad behavior to be
acceptable


Supplier Viewpoint

49.7%

50.3%


Client viewpoint

39%

61%


Comments
 I appreciate the more efficient information
transfer . . . More details come faster
 When done properly, the informality invites
engagement, but the lack of discipline has
hindered quality of thinking and quality of
communication
 It can tend to not be respectful of another’s
time/schedule, is interruptive and undermines
professional presentation.

If you receive written
correspondence from a supplier that
has typos, text/Internet abbreviations
or incomplete sentences, does that
affect your decision
to do business
with them?


Supplier Viewpoint

89.2%

10.8%


Client viewpoint

89.8%

10.2%


Comments
 Demonstrates sloppiness, a lack of
thoroughness and commitment
 If I KNOW them, I can forgive some typing
errors. If I DON’T know them, typos can cast
a bad impression
 Mrs. Roland is still whispering in my ear that
“your writing is a reflection of your
competence.” I believe it!


Tips for You
 Type e-mail like a business letter
 Keep it short and simple
 Don’t just use spell check; proofread it
 Don’t send an e-mail when angry
 Don’t send anything confidential via e-mail


When having a face-to-face
conversation with a business
associate or supplier and they
take a cell phone call that is
not an emergency or text
during your conversation,
does this affect your
impression of their
professionalism in
a negative way?

Supplier Viewpoint

96.8%

3.2%


Client viewpoint

96.6%

3.4%


Comments
 That would be the last conversation I had
with them
 When you are in the meeting, you are IN the
meeting
 It tells me they don’t have good manners and
I’m not important to them
 I’ll ask the person to leave the meeting
 Non-urgent calls are unforgivable, but it’s
important to be flexible and allow urgent calls

Tips for You
 Be ALL there
 Keep it private
 Learn to vibe
 Alert them if expecting an urgent call; excuse
yourself


If the following business actions occurred,
would it affect your decision to do
business again with a supplier?
 Deliverables and deadlines were
not on time
 Costs were +10% higher
than bid
 Quality of deliverables
did not meet your
expectations


Supplier Viewpoint

2.2% 21.4% 3.2%

97.8% 78.6% 96.8%

Deliverables Costs Quality

Client viewpoint

8.5%
23.7%

91.5% 76.3% 100%

Deliverables Costs Quality

Comments
 If a study runs long, the recruit more difficult,
etc. first check then add 10% is okay, but
deadlines and especially work quality is not
negotiable.
 Sometimes higher costs are justified by client
actions
 Higher costs I can live with as long as I’m
informed while the study is going on and
given options

Tips for You
 Keep your word; Integrity, integrity, integrity
 No surprises, inform client of changes before
the fact
 Return phone calls and e-mails promptly
 Take ownership and responsibility for your
work
 You don’t know if your client will be the
forgiving type, so strive for 100% on time, on
budget.

How important is the
appropriateness of a supplier’s
clothing attire and grooming in
your decision-making about what
supplier to use?


Supplier Viewpoint

28.1%
57.3%
14.1%
0.5%


Client viewpoint

18.6%
52.5%
25.4%
3.4%


Comments
 Don’t smell bad or have dirty fingernails
 First impressions mean something. They don’t need
to come in a suit and tie but they need to look neat
and know what they are talking about.
 I consider it very demeaning if the supplier is not
appropriately dressed
 “executional distractions” are not helpful, if all else is
equal, then certainly the one with fewer wardrobe
malfunctions would get the business.


Tips for You
 You are a brand; anchor yourself in a stable image
 Business casual; think business first, casual second
 Dress for the job you want
 Err on the side of formality
 Mirror or better the client’s dress code
 Invest in quality not quantity; shoes, pens, briefcase,
handbag
 Showing up unshaven, wet hair etc. signals
unorganized, lazy or lack of respect


If you travel by air and the supplier
upgrades to first class because they
have a premier frequent flier status and
you sit in coach, does that affect your
impression negatively of them?


Supplier Viewpoint

68.1%

31.9%


Client viewpoint

27.1%

72.9%


Comments
 It shouldn’t matter but it does
 It would be nice to have the time to discuss
business, but I wouldn’t begrudge them the
upgrade
 I would love it if they would offer me their seat
or to switch halfway; nice and professional
gesture
 Personal manners count
 Good for them!

Tips for You
 Think of the relationship first
 You don’t know which viewpoint your client
might have
 Err on the side of generosity (who is paying
the bill)
 Use your judgment


How important is a person’s
etiquette in your decision-making
about what supplier to use?


Supplier Viewpoint

50.3%
45.9
3.8%


Client viewpoint

39.0%
57.6%
3.4%


Comments
 You have to sell yourself! You are the
product you are selling.
 I will not do business with a slob no matter
how good the person is
 It’s very important that a vendor know how to
conduct or participate in a meeting, e.g.
weirdness is a death-knell
 Similarly to clothing, if it were really bad, it
would make me wonder about them

Tips for You
 Dining & Entertaining
 Go with what you know
 Choose table in advance
 Settle the bill early
 Talk business later
 Don’t order food that’s hard to chew or cut
 Don’t overindulge in food or drink
 The guest orders first
 All guests should be served before eating

Formal Dinner Place
Setting
1. Napkin 6. Dinner Plate 11. Butter Knife
2. Fish Fork 7. Dinner Knife 12. Desert silverware
3. Main Course Fork 8. Fish Knife 13. Water Glass
4. Salad Fork* 9. Soup Spoon 14. Red Wine Glass
5. Soup Bowl and 10. Bread and Butter 15. White Wine Glass
Plate Plate


Tips for You
 Proper etiquette
 Ask open-ended questions
 Don’t start sentences with “I” continuously
 Send a thank you note, hand-written
 Don’t interrupt
 Profanity=less about the language and more
about caring about others
 Ask, “May I give you my card?”


Client Respondent Information

93.2% 6.8%


Supplier’s work experience

1.1%
8.6%
8.1%
82.2%


Client’s work experience

5.1%
10.2%
18.6%
66.1%


Let’s be PROS
 Put others first
 Relationships are the key to success
 On your honor, on time and on budget
 Show respect for yourself, it instantly shows
respect for others


Thank you!
Diane M. Harris
D. M. Harris Associates
dmharris@zoomInternet.net

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