One of the greatest perks of being a founder is the freedom to design a business from the ground up so that it reflects your purpose and personal values. Purpose and values come into play for decisions – big and small – every single day. The most important being whose work we support. Practical Insight’s purpose is to help our clients find their path to clarity, cohesion, and traction to achieve their mission. That means the client’s mission and purpose are the guiding force in our work together. So who we work with matters – a lot.
We only want to work with a client if we feel confident our facilitation, fractional leadership, and consulting work can help them achieve greater focus, track progress and, ultimately, results. As we get to know a potential client we are also evaluating: What is the company’s mission for themselves and their stakeholders? Do our values align? How are they living out their values and mission? Considering these elements help me as the founder ensure Practical Insight can achieve our own mission:
Guide mission-driven companies to find their unique path to functionality and profitability so they can achieve their vision without burning out their team.
How do you ensure a potential client is a good fit for not only your services but also your company’s own mission? Since we’re all about the pragmatic at Practical Insight, we’ll share what we do in the hope it helps you do the same.
Ask Directly
We’re not shy about who we want to work with, and we start the conversation early. The contact us form on our website asks just four questions. One of them (25% of the information we require) is to identify themselves as a B Corp, 1% for the Planet member, impact company, non-profit or N/A. We use the B Corp certification and 1% for the Planet membership first because both are third party verifications of a company’s commitment to being a force for good in the world. We include impact company for those businesses who have not obtained a third party designation, but self-identify in this way. While most of our clients are for-profit entities, we do serve non-profit organizations as well.
Our Contact Us form is just four questions with one asking that the person self-identify if their company is a B Corp, 1% for the Planet member, impact company or non-profit. This lets prospective clients know what matters to us.
Listen Closely
Every professional service says they listen to their clients, right? In reality, listening is a form of paying attention to what someone says. In the context of getting to know a potential client, we consider listening to include:
What Isn’t Said
As we talk with potential clients to learn about who they are, where they are as a company, and their goals we also have an ear for what they don’t mention. With our clients, their mission is central to what they do, how they make decisions, and who they are. Some companies refer to their impact or values rather than their mission, but the bottom line is they are working for more than their financial bottom line. Don’t get us wrong – profitability is key, and without it mission-driven companies will go out of business and the world will be without their contributions to a future that is more inclusive and sustainable.
When we don’t hear references to impact, mission, or values – we get curious about how these things rank in priority for the company. So we ask about long term goals – what are they, how are they progressing toward them, and how are they measuring progress. We ask what they use as guardrails to guide decision-making and goal setting.
Website and Social Media Content
That’s right, we’re checking them out too! Understanding the business and what they do is helpful, of course. In our review of their public facing information, we are also learning how the company talks about themselves, their mission, and their services. For example, certified B Corp Big Path Capital’s blog includes staff features celebrating their work anniversaries and what charity the employee has chosen for a donation from the company on their behalf. From this we get the impression the company is people-centered and philanthropic. Seeing that this wasn’t a one-off occasion shows consistency and commitment.
Big Path’s LinkedIn posts share content from the B Corp community and highlights the work of key partners such as fellow B Corp Climate First Bank, and non-profit 1% for the Planet. We can get a sense of who their community is, and what content they are willing to uplift. Having worked with Big Path, we have found these impressions to be accurate. The preliminary review of online content we do for new potential clients often helps us identify topics to explore further to better understand their mission and values.
Next Steps: Incorporate Rather Than Recreate
Your company already has a client vetting process and parts of it likely work quite well. Don’t feel the need to scrap everything. Incorporate elements into what you have to ensure everyone on your team is clear on who you want to work with. Before you can do that, though, be honest with yourself and the team about who you want to support as a client. With that, you can use our tips to enhance your current process. Ask clients to self-identify themselves as B Corps or other designations to convey what matters to you, pay attention to what potential clients tell you during meetings and use their blogs and social media for alignment with what they’ve shared.