I-BN 3.1 - Client Advocates - I-Business Network

What is Client Advocacy?

The role of a “client advocate” is to advance the vision, mission and objectives of the client’s organization, business journey or project. In 2023, we re-imagined I-BN after shedding “hosting” as our foundation and replaced Software as a Service (SaaS) with championing for our customers. We replaced physical infrastructure with knowledge as the core of our services.

Client advocates do not represent a company or a product. Advocates represent your best interest as a neutral third party or as a member of your team. The outsider’s experience and objective perspective help you make the best decisions for your business.

I-BN is a network of independent consultants, executives and advisors with a passion to Make Powerful Business Technology Simple.

Replacing Profit as Primary Motivation

Let’s face it, companies are in business to make a profit. Customers and vendors get in conflict when the perceived value received is lower than the cost. This is rarely either party’s intention, but can arise due to:

Billing Practices – Traditional time and materials billing practices specify value based upon time although the time itself has no value.
Conflicting Priorities – Consulting partners are measured by their software partners based upon revenue generated. This incents the sale or subscription of licenses without relation to costs and benefits.
Licensing Rules – Software publishers sell perpetual licenses or subscribe licenses with terms that often do not benefit the customer. For example, perpetual licenses require annual maintenance for updates and bug fixes but most do not include return policies or mechanisms to reduce those maintenance charges in times of declining usage. Similarly, subscription licenses are sold with up front payment for one or more years rather than pay as you go.

I-BN does nor represent any software publisher. We have no publisher quotas, internal revenue growth metrics or conflicting agendas. Our principals have been successful business owners, senior level executives and highly successful consultants who work for the challenge and joy of helping businesses succeed. Don’t get me wrong, we expect to be compensated for the value we provide; however, we have the luxury of being selective in the engagements we choose to participate in. We seek long term partnership with our customers by focusing on client outcomes.

The Power of Community

For over 20 years I-Business Network has helped companies improve operations by combining the power of technology with a process orientation while understanding the key human element. In the digital age we are able to provide services through a community of individuals, partners and software publishers. The power of community comes from unlimited resources through networking.

Our community is led by senior executives with an extensive network. Baby boomer executives at retirement age continue to seek challenges and purpose. These experienced executives serve as engagement managers to identify the most appropriate resources to bring the solutions required by our clients. During an exploration call we identify requirements, industry and culture as part of the matching process. For example, we recognize that a process oriented manufacturer looking for a new business management platform will have wildly different requirements than a discrete product manufacturer. Engineer to order, make to order, continuous flow and hybrid manufacturers also require expertise in those disciplines to help you make the right decisions for your business.

Onced matched with the right executive your Engagement Executive will help you provide the best tools, techniques and service providers for your business:

Without product affiliation, quotas, or sales tiers for margin attainment we are software agnostic.
Because we are virtual, we are everywhere and strive to be where you are when you need us.
Contract oriented and payroll free, we only staff to your required levels.
As facilitators we match or recommend service providers who engage in a manner that matches your culture

Client Advocacy is our Business

The worst thing a salesperson can say to a prospective client is “trust me!” Trust is something that must be earned over time and can be lost in an instant. We believe our client’s have faith in us from decades of ethical behavior and consider trust one of our most valuable assets. The only way to maintain our reputation is to think and act as a member of our client’s team.

We have restructured our go-to-market strategy to focus on Client Advocacy. Our services are now packaged with fixed fees and periodic payment with the ability to cancel at any time. Packages are tailored to the unique needs of the client and project to provide clear and measurable benefits in excess of cost. If we do not believe that project will be successful, we will decline the opportunity. No engagement is designed for I-BN. It is never about us, and always for the client.

How a Client Advocate Adds Value

Engaging with a client advocate improves the probability of success and maximizes the return on investment for a variety of reasons:

Risk Reduction– An experienced professional knows what to expect and how to react to unforeseen circumstances. Similar to driving a car, when you first start you think you know the mechanics, but often you have no idea how to really drive. New drivers do not anticipate the person who thinks they own the road or how the car will hydroplane over a puddle. Client advocates have the vision that comes with experience to anticipate and mitigate risk.
Connections – When project complications occur an advocate can effectively escalate problems to hasten resolution. Advocates know executives at publishers, third party developers or consulting organizations and can call or message their connection in a way a single customer cannot.
Liaison and Communicate – Service providers often talk in TLAs (Three Letter Acronyms) and technobabble without even thinking about it. A client advocate can translate technical terms into English and visa versa. A “client side” professional who comes onsite and interfaces with the local client team can also translate business requirements into technical specifications.
Cost Savings – The experience and connections can combine to create cost savings. For example, smaller businesses often do not have available resources for tasks which do not require extensive technical expertise, but benefit from familiarity with the product. Rather than relying on expensive consultants a client advocate with experience can suggest independent contractors, offshore resources or direct college interns for data cleansing and conversion or report and script development.

When Should You Engage a Client Advocate?

Client advocates have specific knowledge and expertise in areas which are not core competencies of a business. Companies utilize client advocates for projects and initiatives on an as needed basis to streamline projects and reduce their risk.

I-Business Network provides CxO Services (Chief [Fill In the x] Officer) utilizing the breadth of experience within our community. Project examples include:

An ERP implementation is a perfect candidate for engaging a client advocate. Typically, a company changes business management systems once per decade, or hopefully, even less frequently. Internal resources may have changed systems once or twice in their career. Client personnel often have their regular job duties to attend to during the project. In large enterprises, a full time project manager is assigned, or specifically hired for the duration of the project. Unfortunately, small to mid-size businesses rarely have the available resources or the appetite for a six figure project manager for a one time project. Our executives have each participated in hundreds of implementations and can help manage and guide a project and streamline communications between a company and its ERP implementation partner.

For a free consultation with one of our principals, complete our CxO Explore form.

I-BN 3.1 – Client Advocates