Flawless Consulting: A Guide to Getting Your Expertise Used 2nd Edition

by Peter Block (Author)

125 ratings

ISBN-13: 978-0787948030

ISBN-10: 0787948039

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The second edition of the "consultant's bible" is here!

For over fifteen years, consultants--both internal and external--have relied on Peter Block's landmark bestseller, Flawless Consulting, to learn how to deal effectively with clients, peers, and others. Using illustrative examples, case studies, and exercises, the author, one of the most important and well known in his field, offers his legendary warmth and insight throughout this much-awaited second edition. Anyone who must communicate in a professional context--and who doesn't?--will use the lessons taught in this book for years to come!

"Who would have thought the 'consultant's bible' could be improved upon? Count on Peter Block--the consulting profession's very own revolutionary--to push us to confront and struggle with the paradoxes inherent in our work."
--Candace Thompson, organization development consultant, First Chicago NBD--A Bank One Company

"Block has distilled years of experience into a wise, down-to-earth, and eminently practical guide to excellence in consulting. If you are new to the practice, Flawless Consulting will chop years off your learning cycle. And even if you're an old pro, Block's insights will elevate you to new levels of effectiveness. Flawless Consulting is not simply about becoming a better consultant; it is about using consulting as a path toward becoming a better person."
--Barry Oshry, president, Power & Systems, Inc.; author of Seeing Systems and Leading Systems

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The second edition of Peter Block's Flawless Consulting gracefully updates what many consider the best resource of its kind. New chapters on implementation, "whole-system" strategies, and ethics are included, but in general it simply fine-tunes Block's proven advice to match the transformations that business and society have undergone since initial publication two decades ago. "The days of long studies and expert-driven answers are passing," the author proclaims in his new preface. "The task of the consultant is increasingly to build the capacity of clients to make their own assessments and answer their own questions." He then subtly modifies his established recommendations accordingly for every step, from the initial client meeting and problem diagnosis through data collection and the execution of solutions. In the section on "Conducting a Group Feedback Meeting," for example, he advises: "Treat the group as a collection of individuals.... Ask each person what he or she wants from the meeting. This will surface differences and force the group to take responsibility for some of the difficulties that may arise." --Howard Rothman

Review

"Who would have thought the 'consultant's bible' could be improved upon? Count on Peter Block -the consulting profession's very own revolutionary-to push us to confront and struggle with the paradoxes inherent in our work." (Candace Thompson, organization development consultant, First Chicago NBD - A Bank One Company)

"The first question to ask any consultants: Have you read Peter Block's Flawless Consulting? If they say no, don't hire them. Peter Block's advice is flawless!" (Barry Z. Posner, dean and professor of leadership, Leavey School of Business, co-author of The Leadership Challenge and Encouraging the Heart)

"Block has distilled years of experience into a wise, down-to-earth, and eminently practical guide to excellence in consulting. If you are new to the practice, Flawless Consulting will chop years off your learning cycle. And even if you're an old pro, Block's insights will elevate you to new levels of effectiveness. Flawless Consulting is not simply about becoming a better consultant; it is about using consulting as a path toward becoming a better person." (Barry Oshry, president, Power & Systems, Inc., author of Seeing Systems and Leading Systems)

"For external and internal consultants alike, Peter Block provides the roadmap to travel what always seems like unchartered terrain. The power behind Peter's work lies not only in the compass he provides but in helping us see how truly a forceful and powerfulinfluence one person can be." (Jack Lerner, vice-president of organization development & learning, The CIT Group)

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Pfeiffer; 2nd edition (September 29, 1999)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 371 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0787948039
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0787948030
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.98 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 8.35 x 1.33 x 9.39 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #454,159 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #220 in Business Entrepreneurship
- #305 in Business Consulting (Books)
- #1,336 in Reference (Books)

Customer Reviews:
125 ratings

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Top reviews from the United States

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Author Don Massenzio

A great reference

Reviewed in the United States on January 26, 2015

Verified Purchase

A number of years ago, I found myself without a job for the first time in my adult life. At 40, this was scary until I woke up one morning, created a subchapter-S corporation and became a consultant. This book, along with others by Peter Block, was a significant help in getting started and having the confidence to persevere for two years independently. Now I'm a consultant in a big four firm and the things I learned from this book still ring true.

10 people found this helpful

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TOC consultant

Essential reading for consultants and everyone else!

Reviewed in the United States on April 21, 2021

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This book is an invaluable guide to managing interactions with consulting clients. It describes situations which I had experienced as in independent consultant, but did not know how to handle. Well this book gives some great insight and practical approaches to make progress.

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Mitch Paioff

Great Consulting Book

Reviewed in the United States on November 28, 2008

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I have to admit that I really liked Peter Block's "Flawless Consulting". This book was originally written in 1978, and then revised in 1998. I expected the book to be dated and irrelevant, but it wasn't. The concepts that Block wrote about many years ago are still applicable today.

Block strikes a perfect balance between theory and execution. In fact, there is a lot of both. He backs up his theories with flowcharts, checklists, and even cartoons.

Until I read read this book, I thought that Alan Weiss's "Million Dollar Consulting" was the best consulting book out there. But Block's book ranks right up there with Weiss's.

This book has over 300 pages and is packed with information. The topics include 1) dealing with resistance, 2) getting the data, and 3) managing the feedback meeting.

If you are serious about your starting or improving your consulting business, then you really should read "Flawless Consulting".

Mitch Paioff, Author, Getting Started as an Independent Computer Consultant

Getting Started as an Independent Computer Consultant

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Woodsy Gal

The latest edition is just as brilliant as the prior two but updated to address current ...

Reviewed in the United States on June 11, 2015

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Bought the first edition shortly after Mr. Block spoke at my local ASTD dinner meeting in the mid-80's and have been smitten by his wisdom and clear, simple guides ever since.

The latest edition is just as brilliant as the prior two but updated to address current and emerging aspects of organizational culture that can and will affect how consultants need to conduct themselves during contracting and then once embedded in a client system.

Should be mandatory reading for every one whose job entails influencing others to learn and/or do anything new.

2 people found this helpful

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BSXX

Excellent. Easily my favorite Consulting/Project Management book.

Reviewed in the United States on August 23, 2008

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Probably the single best consulting, or management (yes...management), book I've ever read. I've read many, many books on project management, consulting, problem solving etc, all of which are rearrangements of the same material, but this one is unique. It has the best information, it is very well written, and it is a pleasure to read. There are a million books that can give you the good and necessary technical information about consulting, management and problem solving, but very few that give you the information you get here.

This is not a book for beginners and college students as some have said because this information would only be of value to active consultants who have experienced some ups, and downs, in their career, i.e. people who can actually relate firsthand to the topics being discussed. This book is not aimed at consulting in a specific industry, so it may seem a little general to an inexperienced reader, but this is definitely the highest order of consulting knowledge. A beginner would likely try to impress the client with their "brilliance", a pro would handle it like Block describes. This book takes you on the inside of the client-consultant relationship, he shows you what is going on "behind the scenes" of your clients mind, whether spoken or unspoken, and how to address it. This is where ultimate success or failure is decided.

This is the stuff you won't learn in college or find in most project management books, which emphasize "scheduling, monitoring and control" and other elementary stuff. Block makes a clear and proper distinction between consultant and manager, but I have worn both hats and can say without hesitation that an astute "manager" would find this book as valuable as a consultant.

Block gets at the heart of the matter. He deals with reality (people, politics, fear, resistance, etc.), not a make-believe situation where the brilliant consultant diagnoses the problem with the insight of Sherlock Holmes, and proposes an ingenius plan that amazes the thankful client. Keep dreaming. He tells you what to watch for, what it means, what is happening, how to respond. Some of his insights were truly eye opening even though I have been a consultant for 20 years.

I have seen perfectly capable and hard working professionals of various sorts go by the wayside because they were too aloof or did not understand their clients on the "affective" level. They thought their expertise alone would insure acceptance of their ideas and secure their position with the client...it didn't. I've seen this many times. If you're a capable professional that is losing clients, read this book.

It's all about people. No matter how educated they are, how expensive the suit, or how ornate the office, they are only human and are driven by pride, fear, greed, jealousy and the full range of human emotions, and to be ignorant of this during the consulting process is very harmful.

Don't let my review mislead you...this is not just a book on the psychology of consulting. He covers that area well, but this book is packed with useful and insightful tips and techniques for diagnosing and solving real problems.

Flawless Consulting is not only full of excellent information, it is also extremely well written and enjoyable to read. This is rare for many business and management books which are either too boring or unrealistic. He has an amazing way of getting to the root of every issue and expressing it in a most concise manner. I read things I have experienced many times explained to me in this book, and I could see where I went wrong at times, and where I got it right at times (even if by accident).

Edit: (7-14-14) I bought and perused the shorter, updated 2011 version, but would recommend any interested reader get the 1999 Second Edition. You can buy it for a few dollars and it is better formatted and includes all the checklists.

8 people found this helpful

Helpful

Bruce Appelbaum

Flawless Advice

Reviewed in the United States on September 13, 2000

Verified Purchase

After 25+ years in the consulting business, it is wonderful to find this compilation of knowledge and techniques. Experienced comsultants will find that Block has taken lots of things they know viscerally and set it all down on paper. New consultants will find this a worthwhile addendum to the technical skills you've learned along the way.
This book won't teach you the mechanics or technical aspects (content) of consulting, but it will go a long way toward helping establish a better working relationship with your client from the outset.

6 people found this helpful

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M. Gillam

Great Book!

Reviewed in the United States on February 5, 2018

Verified Purchase

This is a great book for understanding consulting. It is a great tool for starting your consulting business. I loved it!

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honeygold

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United States on December 19, 2017

Verified Purchase

Good buy! For be successfully through my course. Fast shipping!

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

Ian B.

Great for price

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 14, 2018

Verified Purchase

Yet to get into this seminal book but pleased I have it and for a tiny price from this is bookseller it did have highlight pen marks across the text which I was not expecting

Jo Brookes

A resource for any manager not just consultants.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 6, 2010

Verified Purchase

A really good resource for any manager - don't let the "consulting" title put you off. Whether you are a consultant or a manager in an organisation you need to know how to influence and engage with your peers effectively.
It provides helpful approaches to all sorts of scenarios, from engagement to implementation and a very interesting section on ethics.

One person found this helpful

Glen Jacobs

excellent value and condition

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 2, 2018

Verified Purchase

Bought for my wife, excellent value and condition.

ANDY

MUST READ IF YOU WANT AN INSIGHT!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 13, 2016

Verified Purchase

MUST READ IF YOU WANT AN INSIGHT!

Amazon Customer

No value

Reviewed in Canada on November 20, 2018

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Poor

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