Independent Management Consultants often use Umbrex and other staffing firms to obtain projects. This resource is a guide to help you increase your chances of winning a project through a staffing firm, while optimizing your time investment.
Contents
You can click any section to go directly there:
- Understand the value proposition and approach of the staffing firm
- Prepare before applying to projects
- When the staffing firm reaches out
- Make good use of bullet points
- Provide your rates and contact information
- Meeting with the client
- While on the project
- After the project
- Other ways to strengthen the relationship
Understand the value proposition and approach of the staffing firm
From the onset, it’s important to understand the value proposition of the staffing firm. They differ — some firms may focus on speed, others a larger pool of suggested candidates, others the lowest fees.
For example, the Umbrex value proposition is:
- Exceptional talent
- High-touch
- Curation
- Speed
Prepare before applying to projects
When you begin working with Umbrex or another staffing firm, there are some best practices that will prepare you to potentially edge above other candidates and win more projects. All of these professional tools help establish your credibility and expertise to staffing firms and their clients.
Let the firm know your availability
Right away, apprise the staffing firm of your:
- Availability
- Capacity
- Location
Particularly if you are available right away for projects, letting the staffing firm know that is helpful. You can also let them know your capacity in terms of full/part time, hours per week, etc., as well as the geographic locations you work in or are willing to travel to for projects.
Craft your Fishing Line
Develop your succinct statement of who you work with and what problems you solve for them. David A. Fields coined this phrase, and discusses it in detail in Episode 411 of the Umbrex Unleashed podcast.
This is also discussed in detail in the Umbrex Resource: How to Find Clients. If you have a Fishing Line that is memorable and hooks us, chances are we’ll remember you and your project fits — and so will clients.
Optimize your LinkedIn profile
The LinkedIn profile is the single most important professional marketing space for an independent consultant. It’s important to help you:
- Get discovered
- Establish your expertise
Therefore, it’s essential that your profile clearly communicates your value proposition and positioning, and tells a compelling, coherent story that establishes your credentials and expertise.
A section-by-section guide on creating the best possible LinkedIn profile is found in the Umbrex Resource: LinkedIn Best Practices to Optimize Your Profile.
Update your resume
Just like your LinkedIn profile, it’s vital that your resume be as strong as possible.
This is discussed at length in Episode 253 of the Unleashed podcast, covering all sections of your resume and formatting tips.
Create or update your Project List
Every independent consultant should maintain an exhaustive list of all the projects they have worked on, and keep that list updated.
The Umbrex Resource, Project List Tips & Templates, offers an in-depth look at building your Project List, with examples of other consultants’ lists and a template you can customize for your own use.
Your Project List may need to include sanitized samples of your work — it’s far more compelling to show, rather than tell. Episode 121 of Unleashed delves into building a portfolio with sanitized work samples.
Make sure your Project List highlights the diversity of clients you’ve worked with. For example, if you’ve worked with both profit and nonprofit organizations, or large companies and small companies, be sure to include both.
Create a consulting firm overview
Consultants — and staffing firms — are often asked to send a potential client a one-pager. It’s helpful for independent consultants to have a consulting firm overview document that clearly and succinctly presents their services, qualifications, and offerings for potential clients.
The Umbrex Resource, How to Create a Consulting Firm Overview, covers the most common key elements of firm overviews along with additional sections you may want to consider, and samples of other consultants’ Firm Overviews.
Build or update your consulting firm website
It’s highly recommended that independent consultants have a professional website for their practice. For staffing firms, it’s extremely helpful to be able to point clients to a candidate’s website.
The Umbrex Resource, How to Build a Consulting Website, is a step-by-step guide on how to build a website in one day, including identifying your goals for the website and your positioning, deciding what content to include, and selecting what platform to use to build your website.
To inspire your thinking, we’ve also included examples of more than 90 websites built by independent consultants for their practice, as well as a directory of web design professionals recommended by members of our community.
Start a podcast
If you have content you’ve created, that helps establish your knowledge and expertise. It also helps win projects through staffing firms, particularly at the margin. If there are two potential candidates who are equally qualified, and one has a podcast library on their industry, that candidate will likely be the more attractive one.
The Umbrex Resource, How to Start a Podcast, leads you through fifteen steps for launching your own podcast.
Start a newsletter
Likewise, a newsletter is an excellent vehicle for an independent professional to demonstrate their expertise and experience to staffing firms and potential clients.
The Umbrex Resource, How to Create a Newsletter, is a 12-step checklist on how to start your own newsletter. We’ve also included examples of dozens of newsletters published by other independent consultants.
When the staffing firm reaches out
You’ve initiated the process with the staffing firm, prepared, and started building the relationship. Now they’ve reached out to you about a project.
Congratulations! There are a number of best practices you can implement at this stage to increase your chances of winning the project.
Respond in a timely fashion
The staffing firm has reached out to you proactively and is likely waiting on your response — and so is their client. Getting back to them in a rapid manner is essential, whether you are available for the project or not.
Likewise, respond in a timely manner to any follow-up or clarifying questions.
Let them know if you aren’t interested
If you are not available or not interested in the particular project, don’t leave the firm hanging.
Respond to let them know if you aren’t available; this helps build a solid relationship and cement your professionalism and response time. Likewise, if you aren’t interested in the particular project, let them know that as well — perhaps even provide some specific reasons it isn’t a good match for you, to help guide the firm on matching you to future projects.
Introduce another independent consultant who might be a possible fit
When you aren’t interested in or available for a project, but you know another professional who might be a good match, offering to introduce that person to the staffing firm is a great practice.
You’re helping out the firm, and you’re paying it forward to another consultant who might be perfect for the project.
We cover other tips in the Umbrex Resource: Best Practices for Working with Staffing Firms.
Make good use of bullet points
Often, staffing firms will ask you to share bullet points that detail your relevant experience. This is a great opportunity for you to shine — in fact, effective use of bullet points can be even more important than your resume or LinkedIn profile.
Keep in mind that the bullet points are for the staffing firm, and the more help you can give them, the better your odds. The job of a bullet point is not to get you hired, but to demonstrate credibility and convince a busy reader to check out your resume and LinkedIn.
Bullet points help the firm think through who to curate and select for the project. Some best practices are:
Lead with your most powerful bullet first.
Provide experience that is relevant to the project.
Share just 2-3 bullets that are right on target, instead of including additional points that are less relevant.
Include context regarding your role, the situation, and outcome.
For a detailed guide to bullet points, check out the Umbrex Resource: Better Bullet Points to Win More Projects.
Provide your rates and contact information
Don’t fail to provide one of the most important pieces of information: all the methods with which a staffing firm can get in touch with you. Be sure you provide your email, telephone number, LinkedIn profile, and any other contact method.
Likewise, do provide your rates. Staffing firms prefer an actual number, rather than a range or saying it’s “negotiable.” If the firm asks for your daily or hourly rate, provide that exact rate. A staffing firm already knows it may be flexible or will come back to you if it needs to be discussed.
For help setting rates, check out the Umbrex Resource: How to Set Consulting Fees.
Meeting with the client
Now the staffing firm has reported that the client wants to meet with you. There are some important practices to implement at this stage that will help you win the project.
Respond in a timely manner
Just like with the staffing firm, it’s vital that you reply to the client in a timely manner.
Offer availability and a scheduling link
Let the client know when you are available for a meeting — the sooner the better. It’s helpful to share a scheduling link, such as Calendly, to make it easier for the client to see your open times and schedule the meeting.
Take the initiative and send client a meeting invite
You might take it one step further and send a calendar invite to the client for the time they proposed, and include a Zoom link. Every step you can take to make it easier for the client, and make time of the essence, increases your likelihood of getting hired.
You should also follow up after a day or two if the client hasn’t accepted or responded. Clients get busy and things can fall through the cracks.
Don’t miss the meeting
This should go without saying, however, it actually happens and when it does, it reflects poorly on the staffing firm. Likely, you will never be contacted by them again.
Life does happen — if an emergency arises, be sure to let the client and the staffing firm know asap, extend your apologies, and proactively reschedule the meeting or let them know if you are no longer available.
Have a professional Zoom background
You should always have a professional background in your Zoom settings. Your office may work perfectly well, but if the room you’re conducting the meeting from is a mess or doesn’t present professionally, adopt a virtual background in your Zoom settings. Think of it like you would wearing a suit to an in-person meeting.
Remember the 70:30 Squared rule
This rule states that the client should do 70% of the talking, and you should be speaking only 30% of the time. And of that 30%, 70% of that time should be spent asking insightful questions of the client.
Episode 159 of the Unleashed podcast discusses this rule.
Hold a Context Discussion
The term “Context Discussion” was created by David A. Fields in his book, The Irresistible Consultant’s Guide to Winning Clients.
A Context Discussion should cover the following six topics:
Why is the prospective client looking for assistance?
What are the desired outcomes?
What are the client’s indicators of success?
What are the perceived risks and concerns?
What’s the actual business value in dollars and cents?
What are the parameters in terms of people, time, money, and possibly geography?
The Context Discussion should be approached as an opportunity to start solving the client’s problem, together. If you can actually make progress towards potential solutions in this initial meeting, rather than just pitching yourself, you have greatly improved your chances of getting hired.
Delve more into the Context Discussion in the Umbrex Resource, How to Write a Consulting Proposal.
Don’t discuss rates with the client
When working through a staffing firm, it is the firm’s role to set rates, not the consultant’s. Please reserve all fee discussions for the staffing firm, not the client.
If the client brings up rates or the fee model, simply refer them back to the staffing firm for that discussion.
Don’t offer to introduce other consultants to the client
The staffing firm’s role is as the intermediary between consultant and client. When a candidate proposes other consultants to the client, it disintermediates the firm and creates confusion for the client.
If you know someone who might be a great fit for the client, introduce them to the staffing firm.
If the client asks for a proposal
Affirm that a proposal will be sent to the client in a timely manner, and then discuss this with the staffing firm for guidance or important information to mutually create a proposal.
Let the staffing firm know how the meeting went
Follow up with the firm after the meeting to give feedback from the discussion. Be sure to share whether you have continued interest in the project at this point.
While on the project
Onboarding
Be low friction to do business with. Try to make the onboarding process as smooth as possible. Be easy to deal with by being on time with providing required paperwork, signing the contract, invoices, etc.
Give the staffing firm updates per their requirements
Most firms do not need weekly updates. The firm will tell you the frequency and depth of updates they’d like to have from you during the project; if not, ask. Be sure to update them as needed, but don’t go overboard with too many or too much detail.
Inform the staffing firm early if there are any issues
Sometimes, an issue will arise with a project or a client. If this occurs, inform the staffing firm at once so that they can work to resolve the issue if that is possible, or to move to a professional termination if not.
Do amazing work and ensure the client is delighted
This is by far the best way to get more projects and solidify a great relationship with the staffing firm. Above all, do an outstanding job for the client.
Provide a great client experience
Part of the above point is giving the client a top-notch experience working with you. By being more deliberate and thoughtful about improving the client’s experience of working with you — before, during, and after the project — you can take your consulting services to an even higher level, so that clients and staffing firms remember you and want to work with you again.
The Umbrex Resource, How to Improve the Client Experience, offers a checklist and detailed guidelines to help you provide a consistently excellent experience to clients.
After the project
Discuss next steps with the staffing firm
Once the project is wrapped up, talk to the staffing firm about who will follow up with the client and when. This could change on a case-by-case basis depending on the firm or project, so get clarity on the next steps and follow through on any action items needed from you.
Other ways to strengthen the relationship
Refer projects to the staffing firm
If you come across a project opportunity that you aren’t a fit for, refer it to the staffing firm. Most firms will share a referral fee.
Attend events
When possible, attend in-person and virtual events hosted by the staffing firm. This strengthens the relationship and helps keep you top of mind with the firm.
Introduce potential consultants
Again, refer other possible consultants that might be a good fit for the staffing firm.
Additional Resource: Unleashed Episode 50: 45 Tips on Working with Staffing Firms
Additional Resource: Best Practices for Working with Staffing Firms