IT providers love to talk about the idea of the trusted advisor. While there are many legends about the source of this moniker in IT, the one I tend to believe is that when Microsoft was building their SMB market and targeted small business consultants with a line of products devoted to the SMB, the design team believed that the product would be recommended and installed by what they described as a “trusted advisor” rather than by an internal IT staff member. Much of this was based on the fact that it was believed that the organization wouldn’t have an IT staff. What’s interesting about the statement is that the design team never believed that the advisor would ever call themselves that, but instead would use their own branding to describe their services.
It’s then interesting that a term that was never intended for external use became the model for describing service delivery. What is even more interesting is that the terminology is now becoming outdated and outmoded.
The trusted advisor has two flaws in the name itself. First, trust is not something that can be sold. Instead, it must be earned. This is a bold and powerful statement and something that must be examined in the context of positioning. It is not enough to state one’s position if the reality behind that statement is not true.
Second, positioning as the advisor implies an external role, and doesn’t show investment in the customer’s business. MSPs must increase the quality of their business consulting services in order to remain competitive as customers come to expect more value from their relationship with a provider beyond that of an external advisor. By developing these skills and paying attention to customers’ key business drivers and goals, MSPs can develop stronger relationships with existing customers and make their own business more attractive for prospects. The relationship moves from an external one of advice to one of an internal CIO role as an extension of the company’s own staff, not only managing tools and solutions, but also providing guidance on how to best align IT investments and projects with the organization’s core business drivers.
By offering business consulting services, MSPs can work with clients to identify their unique business goals and choose services and tools that will be necessary to achieve success. These services bring closer engagements, align MSP and solution provider goals, and ultimately benefit both. With forward planning happening with business and technology goals in alignment, the customer will see faster results, innovation integrated more quickly, and higher profits.
This is a much stronger position for the solution provider to engage with. I believe that the statement around CIO is stronger, bolder, and clearer than Trusted Advisor, and thus I have been recommending it. Because trust is earned and not sold, a promise to be the CIO – focusing on business outcomes, engaging at a C-level, and delivering higher value – is a genuine, simple position statement, and leads to greater success.
