Convivio People

What does it mean to be professional?

Being professional is not about wearing a suit or throwing corporate buzz words into the conversation whenever you can. Being a Convivio professional is about building relationships, being open and honest, gaining trust, doing your job well and working with the client to deliver something you’re both proud of.

To be professional, or to be a good Convivio team member, there are a few things to remember at all times:

• Be prepared - know your client and your subject matter

• Be yourself - relax yourself and those you’re with

• Plan ahead - prepare in advance, don’t leave things to the last minute

• Know your limits - none of us know everything so use the knowledge and support of the team to fill any gaps

Being prepared

Prepare well for your meetings. If it’s the first time you’re meeting a client try to find out a little about them and the business so that your suggestions and ideas are well informed. Do your homework.

• What is the business?

• What is its history?

• Who are the competitors?

• What do you know about the person or people you’re meeting?

• What do you know about the client requirements?

• Has any work been started on this project?

• Recent press articles?

• Statistics related to the client, their business, their products or services?

Before meeting with the client talk your ideas through with some of the team. Many heads are better than one. The team can help you to explore your own and other ideas, the challenges you’re likely to face, the risks that stand in the way and the opportunities you can exploit. Exploring the different avenues will help to build your confidence going into your meeting with the client which will help you to relax and perform to your best.

Once you’ve established your relationship with the client the hard work doesn’t stop there. Continue to prepare in advance, whether it’s for a face-to-face meeting, a phone call or a hangout. Give yourself every opportunity to shine. Your knowledge will develop, your confidence will grow and you’ll build the trust and confidence you’ve already established with the client.

Relaxed but professional

We don’t strive to be another corporate behemoth. Our style is far more casual but professional. When you meet with a customer for the first or the hundredth time, be polite, courteous, ready to listen and confident in your suggestions and decisions. Approach the meeting as though you’re about to coach a good friend. You each have different roles to play but they're equally important. While the Product Owner has the overall responsibility for this change, it's up to you, as a Delivery Manager to listen to their needs, to understand what's really important, to identify the opportunities to deliver real value and to help steer the Product Owner in that direction. It can be easy to get caught up in the pretty stuff. Set your navigation for the true destination and avoid the unnecessary scenic route.

Plan ahead

The detail is in the planning and getting that done ahead of time. Preparing ahead of your meetings or workshops means that you start relaxed, you’re not wrestling with a projector or running around confirming who’s due to turn up. Use the time close to the meetings to welcome people and to introduce yourself and any other members of the team. That way you’ll start on time, relaxed with everything in place as it should be.

To make life easier we’ve prepared a series of Help Cards for you to use as a reminder to help with the little details.

Know your limits

We’re all human and we’re not expected to know everything. If you’re hit with a question that you don’t know the answer to then be open about that. Take time to speak with the team, to pool your knowledge with theirs and to prepare a well considered response. Clients prefer a well thought out response that takes a couple of days rather than immediate incoherent babbling.