Product Description

In today's fast-paced networked economy, professionals must work harder than ever to maintain and improve their business skills and knowledge. But technical mastery of one's discipline is not enough, assert world-renowned professional advisors David H. Maister, Charles H. Green, and Robert M. Galford. The key to professional success, they argue, is the ability to earn the trust and confidence of clients. To demonstrate the paramount importance of trust, the authors use anecdotes, experiences, and examples -- successes and mistakes, their own and others' -- to great effect. The result is an immensely readable book that will be welcomed by the inexperienced advisor and the most seasoned expert alike.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2843 in Books
• Published on: 2001-10-09
• Released on: 2001-09-25
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 256 pages

Amazon.com
David Maister, Charles Green, and Robert Galford--consultants on professional-service management and customer-relation issues--believe nobody can become successful as a business guru until they first gain the confidence of their clients. In The Trusted Advisor, the authors effectively build their case through anecdote and illustration, then relay a solid series of relevant suggestions applicable to both would-be consultants and those already active in the field. Among their most potent suggestions is a practical, five-step development process that encourages outsiders to engage clients by focusing attention on the issues and individuals at hand; listening both to what they say and what they leave unsaid; framing the immediate problem from their perspective; envisioning with them how a solution might appear; and committing jointly to the actions and resources that will bring it about. Also particularly useful is the examination of trust-building during four phases of a client-advisor alliance: at the time the relationship is consummated; during the assignment; after the assignment; and when "cross-selling," or establishing affiliations with the customer's associates. Boosting its utility, the book is filled with concise, easily adopted tips like "return phone calls unbelievably fast" and "always tell the truth and not what the client wants to hear." --Howard Rothman

Review
Carl Stern CEO, Boston Consulting GroupAn invaluable road map to all those who seek to develop truly special relationships with their clients.

Tom Petersauthor of The Professional Service 50This is a brilliant -- and practical -- book. In our "world gone mad," trust is, paradoxically, more important than ever.

William F. Stasiorsenior chairman and former CEO, Booz-Allen & HamiltonThis book is engaging, enjoyable, and absolutely on target. It is packed with truth. The Trusted Advisor will guide success not just in the advisory professions but in leadership and life as well.

Professor Charles FombrunLeonard N. Stern School of Business, New York University The Trusted Advisor gets to the heart and soul of the advice business. This path-breaking book is a must-read.

George Colony, Chairman and CEO, Forrester Research
Our company's development has been guided by and benefited from The Trusted Advisor concepts--and they work!

Customer Reviews

Nothing New
Odds are, if you read books like this, you have read all of this before. Most of it is common sense as well.

Sales vs Advising
There's a lot more to selling than sales skills. You can study all the closes you want, but if you can't bring value to your clients, you better find a new profession. The Trusted Advisor educates true consultants on how to bring value in what you can offer to your clients, The Trusted Advisor takes you from salesperson to valued resource, and it all starts with trust. The old line, "what's it going to take to get you to buy" is for sales people that won't be selling this time next year, invest in yourself, invest in what The Trusted Advisor teaches you.

Recommended for all Consultants
Excellent book by the master of consulting firm management. Addresses and gives insight into the goal of all management consulting engagements - to become the trusted advisor of the C-level management - on the issues related to your expertise. I recommend this book and Maister's other books to all senior level consultants and professional services personnel.