Page 195 - The McKinsey Mind

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170 The McKinsey Mind

of some inefficiency in order to involve the client in a greater role.
Bob Garda, now a faculty member of Duke University’s Fuqua
School of Business, elaborates on the benefit of sharing the deci-
sion-making process:

When it comes to client management, I always remember a
phrase from McKinsey—“cover from behind.” That means,
when you get some analysis done, you go to the person who
gave you the data and let them help you interpret it. You
build a lot of friends and you build a lot of allies.

This also relates to previously discussed themes of client buy-
in. The premise is that clients (internal or external) who were
involved in the problem-solving process make the best advo-
cates. This method also ensures that an eventual transfer takes
place, which was facilitated by the sharing of the overall process
throughout.
Make the client a hero. Jeff Sakaguchi, now a partner at Accen-
ture, learned a valuable lesson about the importance of including
clients in the problem-solving process so that they can share in the
glory:

One area where McKinsey and Accenture excel is matching
client structure. We recognize how important it is to have a
steering committee at the top, but you have also got to design
a complementary team that involves the client at all levels.
Clients are so much more capable than many people believe.
The key is to introduce accountability and exposure. They
will be just as committed to achieving success. They will take
ownership, and it is our job to help them get the job done.

If you view your job as a challenge to help clients win, rather
than focusing on how you win, good things will happen. This does