Seven Types of Tough Clients & How to Earn Their Trust

If you work with clients, you’ve probably encountered the dreaded about-face on an approved deliverable, project delays arising from late feedback, or repeated requests to explain a topic you thought you’d closed the book on. You may have caught yourself saying, “We’re the experts, so why aren’t they listening to us?” By investing in earning your clients’ trust early, you can make your communication better, your project smoother, and your project team far less frustrated.

In this session, a senior technical manager and a director of technology, both former project managers, will talk about seven types of tough clients -- including the Disappearing Client, the I-Can-Do-This-Part-Myself Client, and the Indecisive Client -- and approaches for building healthy relationships with them. We’ll discuss:

• Being honest with your team about what types of clients your company will struggle most with

• Creating a vision that supports your clients’ users -- and your clients

• Understanding finite credibility: the science of picking your battles

• Maintaining accountability across your team even when client relationships are challenging

• Talking honestly with your clients when projects falter

This session is intended for attendees of all backgrounds, who will hear stories of successful and unsuccessful client communication, along with advice for identifying and resolving issues before they become problems.