Client Advocacy as an Evolving Practice
Client advocacy is a well-known term in the healthcare and legal arenas. It is not a term or a practice that is wide-spread in technology and engineering circles. It happens to be a philosophy and practice that Human Circuit considers a key offering to our clients. We, and our clients, are falling victims to products rushed to market because of competitive pressures to be first. The first two stages of the product lifecycle have, in most cases, become one…there’s no time for introduction and then growth…a lack of separation of those phases creating one, perhaps introgrowth? Ingrowth? Or hmmmm ingrown!? Now that is a problem. The end-user client needs help; an advocate; a protector.
A high-performing business is always an advocate for their client. However, in the present, we believe it must be a conscious core competency for companies that rely on others for manufacturing. Human Circuit is an engineering company, we are not a manufacturer. We must rely on a very broad base of manufacturers in order to help our clients meet their goals for technology use. This reliance comes at a premium.
With the pressures of time and evolution in the technology industry product arrives without maturity. And much like the human race…one immature person is innocuous…a room full of immature people could be trouble. We find ourselves in trouble.
Human Circuit has quickly moved client advocacy to our primary focus. Someone must take responsibility for the costs associated with manufacturer intervention and troubleshooting. Too many firms quickly wave in the problem manufacturer to deal directly with the end-user. A recipe for disaster and a bad strategy for maintaining a client. The client chose us, we chose the manufacturer, it’s our success or failure. We are the guardians for our client.
Even more unfortunately, is the cost associated with being the beta test and R&D arm of a manufacturer. We have seen an elevation of our being used for these purposes over the last couple of years; without prior consent. As some clients have experienced this themselves, it provides those who make client advocacy a true service, a real value-add.