The Executive's Guide to Consultants - 9780071801928

Maximize Your Return on Expertise

Research shows a high proportion of consultants fail to deliver results on time, on budget, and on target. Rare is the project that exceeds your expectations.

But help is here. The Executive's Guide to Consultants explains how to ensure that every project delivers measurable benefits every time. This book will help you find experts, invest wisely, accelerate change, and achieve your most important goals by tapping into the genius of others.

The Executive's Guide to Consultants contains breakthrough ideas covered by no other book, including:

• Sophisticated new contract structures that maximize your ROI
• Essential methods for reducing project risk
• Cutting-edge techniques for making change stick after the consultant leaves

You will also learn to:

• Spot "chameleons" and other low-quality consultants who peddle tired ideas and deliver disappointing outcomes
• Get better results faster, while lowering fees
• Find the ideal consultant, coach, agency, or advisor for your precise situation
• Enforce accountability with outside experts and your own internal team

Imagine if you could collect the wisdom of dozens of the country's top CEOs, combine it with the experience of a hall-of-fame consultant, and add a bucketful of unconventional thinking. You'd have The Executive's Guide to Consultants.

Easy to read and packed with examples, checklists, templates, and guidelines, this book is the ultimate toolkit for maximizing your ROI from outside experts.

Get extraordinary results from every consultant you hire

"An extraordinary book. Clear, comprehensive, and eminently readable, it is THE book on how you can extract true business value from outside experts." -- Scott Cotherman, Chairman, TBWA\WorldHealth, subsidiary of Omnicom Group, Inc.

"This is the Master Class for those who are smart, innovative, ahead of the pack, and who intend to stay that way. If you're not yet in that league, you should readthis book twice." -- Alan Weiss, author, Million Dollar Consulting and The Consulting Bible

"A terrific guidebook, with much of the advice equally applicable in managing your organization's internal talent. It's an easy, engaging read with a wealth of insights and detailed action steps--I highly recommend it." -- Brian Walker, President and CEO, Herman Miller, Inc.

"A powerful antidote to the strained relationship between consultants and clients." -- Garry Ridge, CEO, WD-40 Company

"This book shows you how to make your consultants' work stick. No more major investments in experts or programs that evaporate after only a few months or years." -- De Lyle Bloomquist, President, Tata Global Chemicals

"Fields's messages are delivered in the way that all executives would like our outside resources to do it: capably, with straight talk and incredible insight." -- Ralph Scozzafava, Chairman and CEO, Furniture Brands