Past Book Review (September 26, 2008): "The Trusted Advisor"
Past book review (i.e. posted prior to starting this blog) for The Trusted Advisor, by David H. Maister, Charles H. Green, and Robert M. Galford, The Free Press, 2000, reposted here:
Truly, the content that Maister, Green, and Galford provide in "The Trusted Advisor" is absolutely brilliant. The only other consulting text that comes to mind which meets the quality of this work is "The Secrets of Consulting", by Weinberg (see my review). And while "Secrets" is an incredibly informative and entertaining masterpiece, the three authors who collaborated for this piece have provided a great service to anyone involved with advising other individuals, regardless of profession.
The step-by-step path that this book offers starts with perspectives on trust, followed by the road to trust building, and how to proceed once trust is achieved. Unlike many books of this genre, the authors (and editors) of "The Trusted Advisor" do not simply rehash the obvious, and their explanations never assume the background of the reader. This book is so well put together that it is difficult to determine where to start in terms of this review. Each chapter is focused, designed to answer a specific question, such as "Do you really have to care for those you advise?" or "How do you ensure clients are willing to do what it takes to solve their problems?"
The introduction notes that the education of the authors "served [them] well, but nothing in it prepared [them] for the real world of trying to serve clients effectively. Along the way, [they] learned that becoming a good advisor takes more than having good advice to offer. There are additional skills involved, ones that no one ever teaches…that are critical to [one's] success. Most important, [they] learned that [one doesn't] get the chance to employ advisory skills until [they] can get someone to trust [them] enough to share their problems[.]" The authors also note in the introduction that the theme of this book is that "the key to professional success is not just technical mastery of one's discipline (which is, of course, essential), but also the ability to work with clients in such a way as to earn their trust and gain their confidence."
In order to do this book justice, a write-up for a New Yorker book review would be in order since there is simply not enough space to write here. One specific aspect of this book this reviewer appreciated is all the lists throughout the book (39 in total) that are also contained in a comprehensive appendix. For example, the first chapter immediately lists the 16 benefits one might obtain when trust is established with clients, followed by the 22 traits trusted advisors have in common. The figures provided in each chapter are also very effective, starting with Figure 2.1 that helps visualize the path from subject matter or process expert to trusted advisor that consists of increasing breadth of business issues and depth of personal relationship.
Many examples are presented to illustrate the discussions of each chapter, and suggested variations on how to word advice are also liberally provided to the reader. Chapters 15 and 16 were especially well done. The first lists some of the difficulties the authors hear about the trusted advisor role, followed by a point-by-point examination of each. For example, "Professional services firms often breed a culture of content expertise and mastery. (We're taught that content is all.)" and "My client wants me to focus on the work at hand; he or she doesn't want to see me about anything else." The latter chapter discusses 9 difficult client types, and how to respond, such as the "I'll Get Back to You" client and the "Just Like, You Know, Come On" client. Highly recommended.