Being "liquid"

by Evgeni on 2010-04-29

Aside from all the business talk this post might sound like, I just wanted to share something. I had a conversation recently about the different attitude a company might have based on the size of the client they are working with. Quite honestly you all know the management drill , right? "They pay us a lot of money so make sure they get extra treatment".

As usual there is always more than one side of the story, and it's never about the can opener. To me personally it boils down to structure and management. Every organization is in constant transformation towards it's next stage, and barely a vital business is ever in a position that you can take the perfect snapshot and call it a day, Quite honestly, looking at the IT industry we are in, this is the rule of thumb one should always stick to. The days of "perfect static" business models are over and done, unless you have a 20 year track of successful buisness practices, which I think only few do in the IT. I think it's safe to state that the new buisness model is, let's call it - "liquid". It can vary in structure, form and overall company attitude, but it is to my belief that this is the model that will prevail in the next years.

What does that mean to my organization?

Everything or nothing. Seriously. It all depends what kind of a company you work for and which side of the "fence" you are at. If you start from top to bottom, there are always different issues to solve. Management is trying to find written knowledge on the subject or rely on business models that worked 20 years ago. Well, here is the thing, it is good to understand basic principles of management, and it's always helpful, but if you find a book that's called "How to run a successful web company" I can tell you it's the biggest waste of paper ever.
Does it mean that when we are a "liquid" model company we need to bend our rules and practices every 5 months? No, it doesn't. From the client perspective I believe it means that to your smallest to your biggest client you should look exactly the same from the outside. If you have a client that respects your line of work, and you can deliver solutions to him in a reasonable price and time frame you should not divide your clients by the income they bring into the organization.

Pick your clientele.

You work with us because you like us, we like you too. Period.
Once the client-company relationship is good, both the client and the teams deliver better products, they feel happier and more satisfied of the work they do. Don't try to keep a client that is not the right fit for your organization for the single purpose of collecting the check at the end. Because trust me - your team will be pissed, the product won't be all that good, and the hours you are going to put in producing it will inevitably eat that same check you are thinking about getting. It might sound like a chimera, but at the end of the day trust me - pick your clients the same way they pick you. Clients want to be treated good, so do you.Mutual respect between company and client is as important as in any other human relationship. Don't forget that. Ever.

Being "liquid"

Being "liquid" is not about being able to bend your waste like a gymnast. It's about being able to adapt and change and roll with the punches of the market. The bigger the organization is, the slower that process becomes. Be more formal and make sure that the vertical communication works like a 100000 megabytes/sec network. Fast and reliable, without any data loss, or for that matter, data bending. Once you identify a problem somewhere in that chain, make sure it's gone / solved as fast as possible. The more you are hanging on it, the more data will start to be lost during the communication process, which is going to hurt your short-term productivity and goals.
Make sure you are a good speaker. Don't use 10000 words to say one big nothing to your teams. Honesty is always appreciated more, even when the truth hurts more than the many-words-lie.


Good relationships lead to good results.

Again, listen , listen, listen. Often the clients will give you hints without them even realizing that. Make sure you open your ears REALLY well, and listen for real. It's always an important part to realize what kind of a person your client is, and how to suit his needs the best possible. I have been into many meetings where people are trying to be so "business savvy", that at the end you are leaving the meeting without even knowing the real purpose or it's meaning. Make sure you listen to your clients at all times. It helps everyone in the chain.

Ok, enough preaching for today, I almost feel ashamed from taking your time, but if you got all the way to the end of this, maybe it wasn't all that bad :)

I will try to keep up with the series soon!
You can always reach me at evgeni.dimitrov@aggressione.com