Align is the first stage of all client relationships, and every project.
It’s also the first focus of the flexible, scalable Agency Project Delivery Framework.
Critical for:
- Building a team which includes the client stakeholders (sponsors)
- Starting to build trust in both directions
- Shifting client perspective from supplier/vendor, through exper to consultant/partner
- Getting internal buy-in, helping maximise project success and team motivation
- Reducing risk of misunderstanding and rework
- Maximise client engagement, and so time and energy investment
- Enable us to deliver something valuable very early, and then often
Alignment can start during, but often before, new business conversations. It needs the involvement of those beyond the classic sales team.
Initially, we aim to learn all we can about our client. We want to know them, their business, and all the relevant stakeholders. Who their people are, what the business is about, and what their current goals are.
We then move on to understanding the reasons behind the project. There are many questions worth answering before progressing, and they all focus on understand what the perfect outcome would be. Not how to achieve it, but what impact it would have.
During Align, we avoid solutions. They are actively parked. This first of four focuses is about Why, not How or What. It’s about alignment with the client, and the delivery team around value.
That’s not to say that clients don’t bring solutions with them, or want to discuss solutions. It’s common for clients to have made progress before a project reaches us. Scope documents or requirements lists may be shared.
It’s rare for even the greatest of existing clients to bring their agency only a big pot of money and a simple set of needs. It’s unheard of for new clients to do so.
But our job during Align is to rewind their thinking and planning process, until they share the reasons behind the project.
Knowing what makes the project so important to them is key to meeting their expectations and fundamental to making the right choices during Deliver.
If you’d like a chat about how your agency can get started, or you have questions, send me an email.
Before Progressing
Before a project progresses to Define, we must know:
- The budget
- How the client is judging success
- The client stakeholders
- Your agency team members
- The length of the project
- A shared list of unknown
- A shared list of risks
Related Concepts
- Stakeholder Mapping (or Emily Webber’s Team Onion)
- 5 Whys
- Vision Deck / Vision Board
- Project Charter
- Vision and Mission Statements
- Pre-Mortem