Collaborate to Select Solutions

I really like the concept of the opening lines in chapter eight, lines I wish I could use as an advisor, “You advise, they decide,” this would not sit well in my profession. Unfortunately our students are “pampered” throughout their school years that when they reach our university, they expect the same treatment. Sadly, we give them that type of treatment, unlike a consultant; we advise and decide for our students. Another quote that made things a lot clearer is the “bicycle, car or limousine” comparison. It reminds me of something the author mentioned in chapter four; it went something like this,
If the client wants it good and fast, it won’t be cheap.
If the client wants it good and cheap, it won’t be fast.
If the client wants it cheap and fast, it won’t be good.
Here you have the choice of a bike, a car or a limousine, obviously, the bike would be a cheaper version and of course the limousine would be top of the line. A subject that was discussed in chapter eight that made a great deal of sense is presenting. Everything that was planned rides on how the material is presented. Days, weeks, maybe even months of work can be jeopardized by a bad presentation. The author made it clear; the presentation makes or breaks the relations between the client and the consultant. Yet, another very important point that the author makes is the use of technical jargon. I recently got assigned to maintain our webpage, during our first training sessions about the only thing I understood from the presenter was his name and the department he worked for. He gave the presentation as thought everyone in the room was a computer science major and did nothing but web paging. I sometimes think people use this type of language to feel like they know more than the rest of the world. Needless to say, we did not learn much more about web paging than what we already knew. I think that giving a good, clear and understandable presentation is the key to getting across to your audience.