Persona-Based Questions
Is this a Persona-based question?
Prospect:
"Thanks but I'm no longer in that role, please reach out to CeeDee Lamb that dudes got all the power"
Us:
"Cool I'll reach out to CeeDee - but does project management, resource management or BI interest you at all?"
No
- To be clear, this is a valid question to ask during the "S" in SPIL (Situation/"What tools are you using for resource management"
- This is not a valid question to respond to this objection with. If someone says they're not the right person, make the next question apply to them!
This TV Show, featured first on May 31, 2000 is now on Season 47 and still airing.
A group of castaways are dropped off on an island and forced to compete in challenges and gather for themselves to win the $1,000,000 cash prize.
Survivor
Yes or No questions can be impactful, but also give prospects an easy out.
What are two methods that we can use to ask this question differently, while not giving them an easy out?
How/Why Questions
Scenario A/B
Why do Internal Marketing teams or Internal IT Teams NOT purchase our software?
Possible Answers:
- Difficult to prove RoI
- Cost Prohibitive
- Bloated functionality that they don't need
- Overly complex/involved for a team that doesn't create dollars for the business.
- They go with a cheaper competitor that satisfies their needs.
- No need for bill/cost rates, margin/profitability, EAC/ETC based on hours... the list goes on
Name one area that a pointed solution such as Monday.com or Asana lacks, that professional services teams require.
- Integration with other systems
- Project Costing/Projecting accounting features
- Advanced reporting/KPIs (Utilization, margins, etc)
- PS-Specific Resourcing
- Require a supplemental tool to be effective
Discovery questions are fundamental in understanding who we are calling into, and vetting their use case for alignment with Kantata.
In opposition to wider, organizational questions, Persona-based questions are intended to target the ___, appealing to their ____ or ____ pain.
- Emotional/Rational
The 2004 documentary "Super Size Me" chronicled the decline in health of the filmmaker as he spent 30 days eating food exclusively from which fast food chain?
McDonald's
Listen - https://copilot.clari.com/gametapes/video/66cdf32406e6971ad230688a
What is a common response to this objection that I talk about?
Appeal to them.
- Congratulations on the promotion! That is great to hear. Where have your responsibilities shifted if you mind my asking?
- That's awesome news, and I appreciate you sharing that. Understanding that you no longer oversee the selection of the software, how do you currently interface with the delivery teams?
(Willing to accept more answers)
Our three Primary verticals are:
- IT Services, Agency & Consulting
Name at least two sub-services (Specific service offerings) for each of the three verticals.
IT Services:
- Systems Implementation, IT Consulting, Custom Software Development, Managed Services, Cloud Services, Data Analytics
Agency
- Digital Marketing, PR/Communications, Creative Services, Advertising, UX Design
Consulting
- Management Consulting, Advisory Services, Operational Consulting, Attestation & Compliance Services, HR Consulting, Financial Consulting
Provided that we know the prospect is using Parallax currently: Name a differentiator that would be applicable.
Hint: How does the size of a software organization affect its clients?
- Limited Support with Parallax
- High TCO
- Less involved implementation/poor training process
- Limited reinvestment into their own product for future scaling.
Provide a clear example of a persona-based discovery question that appeals to Emotional pain for a VP of Finance.
Typically when I speak with finance leaders the poor connection between the finance system and delivery system leads to an overly manual process and tons of communication to get data where it needs to be. Does that resonate with you?
- (Lack of integration/Poor data puts more pressure on them from Investors/C-level)
How are you maintaining visibility into project margins throughout the life of a project?
- (Distrust in financial reporting leading to a lack of confidence in business decisions)
How do you currently understand project profitability across your service offerings?
- (Finance leaders need to stay profitable AND grow the company to be successful)
In 2003, Beyonce Knowles became Beyonce. In this year she released her first studio album "Dangerously In Love" after splitting from which popular girl group that dominated the 90s?
Destiny's Child
In discussions with lower-level stakeholders, we are often told that they have no power to make decisions.
If I already have a referral, why continue the conversation? (All that apply)
A) I will convince them to send a personal letter to their CEO, watch me.
B) Uncover a CBI that we may not have otherwise when speaking with other parts of the business.
C) Wider stakeholder buy-in across different business segments are supportive to the initiative.
D) Name-dropping is only truly helpful if we add context to the conversation that was discussed.
B/C/D... maybe A?
Listen - https://copilot.clari.com/gametapes/video/66cdf46d4dfe1c2512b7f715
Based on our understanding of various industry verticals:
- What vertical is most likely on the other end of the phone?
- What is the "group" that she refers to?
- Agency
- Holding co. / Parent
Holding companies are extremely common in the agency space, to the point where most organizations above a certain space are often under one of these larger organizations.
It is important to understand because if we understand the mandated tool from the holding co., we can apply this to other orgs in the same holding co. Additionally, we should utilize the holding co to find any possible current clients under their umbrella. This bolsters our position in the conversation, though still a hurdle to overcome.
OpenAir is a heritage PPM tool subsidized by Netsuite ERP.
What are some distinct DISADVANTAGES (Name two)
- Limited Platform Investment
- Heavy Config
- High TCO
- Weak Product Roadmap
- Weak Domain Expertise
- Poor Implementation
First name the persona, then the applicable titles to which the following discovery questions would apply. (One title for PSO, one title for ESO)
- How are you gaining visibility into the utilization of resources?
- How long does it take for project performance metrics to be received from your team?
Service Delivery Leader/Head
PSO Titles (will accept others depending)
- Head of Global Delivery, Head of Consulting, Director of Service Delivery, Partner
ESO Titles
- Director of Professional Services, Director of Implementation Services, VP of PS
This website was revolutionary in the social media game.
Developed in 2003, what website was everyone friends with Tom on in 2005-2009 during its peak?
MySpace
Listen - https://copilot.clari.com/gametapes/video/66ce27fe1590815adf31f28d
What are the two pieces of emotive language in the recording?
Keep the conversation going by forming a question, using Labeling.
- "Unfortunately"
- "I Wish I could"
I appreciate the context there, it sounds like there will not be any changes in the near future.
I speak with many services leaders in similar situations almost daily. Just out of curiosity, what's the most impactful area that you would change if you could?
Name the three most commonly requested compliances within Government & Healthcare that we do not currently offer.
- DCAA
- FedRAMP
- HIPPA
Name a competitor in the following categories AND the expected CBI based on that software.
PPM/CWM
ERP
PS-Cloud
PPM/CWM:
Asana, Monday.com, Planview, Smartsheet, Wrike, Workfront
CBIs: Accuracy of Estimates, Lack of Actionable, Timely Data, Forecasting ETC/EAC
ERP:
Netsuite/OpenAir, Workday
CBIs:
- Resource Visibility, Resource Forecasting, Staffing Adjustments, Lack of Actionable/Timely Data
PS-Cloud
Certinia, BigTime
CBIs
Project & Portfolio Health at Scale, Period Close & Invoicing, Lack of Actionable, Timely Data, Resource Forecasting, Forecasting ETC/EAC
Match the Four following Persona-based discovery questions.
CFO
Project Delivery Lead
Consulting Leader
Director of PS
- To what extent would having up-to-date and comprehensive resource and engagement information impact the business?
- How could being able to view project and portfolio profitability impact how you run the business?
- How do you keep a pulse on project status and where it is trending?
- What tools or methods do you use to determine ROI for your investments?
- What tools or methods do you use to determine ROI for your investments? CFO
- How do you keep a pulse on project status and where it is trending? Project Delivery Lead
- To what extent would having up-to-date and comprehensive resource and engagement information impact the business? Director of PS
- How could being able to view project and portfolio profitability impact how you run the business? Consulting Leader
This series of children's novels (later gaining a movie adaptation) was extremely popular in the late 90s and early 2000s.
Name the book series following the difficult lives of orphans Violet, Klaus and Sunny after the tragic death of their parents.
A Series of Unfortunate Events
Listen - https://copilot.clari.com/gametapes/video/66ce27024dfe1c2512b7f780
Continue the conversation with a clarifying/leading/discovery question. Must be applicable to the context of the recording.
(Will accept multiple answers)
How do you currently understand Estimates vs Actuals across billing types, are these grouped into one category for reporting?
Have you found that one of the billing types listed can be more challenging than others in this regard?
How much time are you spending looking, or creating these EVA reports?
Explain why a VP of PS at an Embedded Software organization might react differently than a "typical" Services Leader at a Consulting organization to the following question.
"How are you understanding project profitability of your services engagements?"
While staying profitable is important to ESO leaders, they often care less about maximizing profitability when compared to PSO Leaders within consulting for example.
A VP of PS is often more focused on the following:
- Ensuring that they have the supply to staff their pipeline demand
- Maintaining profitable projects while delivering projects on time.
- Green client implementations/outcomes
A comparable, but more persona-based question for an ESO could be:
"Is your department measured on revenue, margin or both?"
This will provide an opening for the prospect to share important context.
"Well we don't really care about profitability at this point, we're just falling behind on staffing and its affecting the business at large"
Provide a talk track for Project Pulse explaining the benefits and the title of someone you would speak to.
Applicable Titles
- Project Manager
- PMO Director
- Chief Client Officer
- Director of Client Services
- PS Director (if embedded)
Definition
- Pulse enables professional services organizations to natively collect client and employee feedback, identify actionable insights, and improve project outcomes.
Example talk track
"It's great that you mentioned that. Speaking with others in your role, I've seen firsthand that identifying and understanding client expectations mid-flight of the project can be extremely challenging, often leading to unexpected project delays or challenges.
Very closely in line with of one of our newest offerings, called Pulse. Pulse allows service delivery teams like yourselves to natively collect both client and employee sentiments of the project while they're in flight"