How To Say “No” to a Professional Services Client
By John Waite, Principal Project Manager at Kantata
How to say “no” to clients. It’s something project managers and delivery teams – or anyone on the front lines – wrestle with on a regular basis. Have you been daunted to say no? To a client? To a sales prospect?
Saying no to clients can be a taboo and controversial topic, but that’s why it’s a good one. We always want to provide the best service and treat each inquiry with the utmost care, but it doesn’t mean that just saying “yes” to your client is always the right answer. Saying yes will be well received, but it may have profound impacts, too.
Why is the power of saying “no” or “not now” important? From a project perspective, saying yes when ill advised can have impacts on your schedule, resources, budget, and lead to worse outcomes for the client. The client doesn’t know what they don’t know.
Most inquiries that will require a stance – a no or yes response – will manifest during the business process/requirements gathering phase. It’s important to set the right tone from the beginning of a project. As such, much of the guidance here is based on initial phases of an implementation, but the need to say no can come up at any time during the project.
How to Say “No”
1. Always Have Empathy
Here’s the thing, you cannot fake empathy. It has to come from a genuine place, but if you are in a service-oriented role, this is likely part of your DNA. One thing I have reckoned with over many years of implementing projects is that clients often “inherit” project work. Executives signed a deal and now the assigned project team has their full-time responsibilities coupled with a budding role as project lead or subject-matter -expert. Congratulations, right?!
Working an additional 20 some odd hours each week on the project can be downright frustrating and tiresome (and it may not have been the software they chose, if part of the decision-making process during the sales cycle).
Key Takeaway: Be understanding, even when you might be frustrated or not privy to what’s happened (or happening) inside the walls of your new client. And this extends to personal pursuits, too, in that sometimes the resources (or person in question) on the hook for the project are simply having a bad day (kids are sick, overwhelmed at work, etc). Take the high road.
2. Offer Alternatives
No one wants to hear “no” and have their problem or inquiry left unresolved. “No, Larry, we cannot do that.” It is better to provide a few alternatives/options and always have an angle on the one that you think will meet the clients needs, but also be the best premise and pathway for the team. (ie. quicker delivery versus a prolonged effort). “Larry, we aren’t able to proceed with building you an entirely new application, but we CAN do one of these two things which I am confident will address your inquiry.” But remember, bad options won’t benefit anyone either.
Key Takeaway: Options allow for a middle ground and give clients the freedom of choice.
3. Never Make It Personal
Always show respect through professionalism: Saying no should come from a place of rational thinking and justification; never say no for the wrong reasons. Be mindful of your tone and inflection and always try to keep an even keel. A client may have you feeling very frustrated (something that has nothing to do with the current ask) and a knee-jerk reaction is to say “no” to whatever they are asking, but that is bad business.
Key Takeaway: Every request or inquiry should be addressed on its own merits.
4. Have Belief In Your Position (And Data To Back It Up)
Confidence comes from knowledge and experience. While you can use data points to back up your decision, you must be confident in your position or it won’t be worth fighting for. For example, “Nancy, doing multiple data migrations in your test environment will distract from progress (and potentially cause us to miss your go-live date). We have seen with other clients that have been successfully implemented that there is a test migration, and then one in the production environment to get ready for go-live.” Look at your own implementations and you can come up with a myriad of examples.
Key Takeaway: You will always know more about your products and services than your clients do. Share your experiences with real-life examples to make a salient point.
5. Explain The Why
Simply responding no leaves too much to the imagination. Clients can relate when you explain the why, and even if they don’t agree, they will at least feel valued and respected. Relationships are built on honesty.
Key Takeaway: It’s easy to defend a “no” when there is rationale behind it. Your clients will be curious, have an open dialogue with them.
6. Understand The Why
Interestingly, suggesting too many alternative options can be confusing, so the sweet spot tends to be two or three (and as long as they are doable and advisable). Perhaps a client has come to you with business process requirements they have always utilized in their business, but functionally they are unable to achieve within your product. All software is different. By understanding what they are looking to achieve and how they are looking to leverage their business processes, you can provide viable options. Equally so, it’s important to understand the why. Strangely enough you will find that oftentimes the answer is, “I’m not sure. It’s just the way we have always done it.” Chalk it up to the “legacy factor” – doing it this way since 1979, perhaps?
Key Takeaway: Ask good questions. Knowing why is everything.
7. Address In The Right Forum
You never want to embarrass or harass a leadership stakeholder on a call (with subordinates especially) – or anyone for that matter. It’s best to say “no,” in my experience, in more intimate situations. You have to be careful to challenge authority in the wrong setting. You have to know the client. I prefer a 1:1 and if I can convince them on rationale and get their buy-in, they now become an advocate in spreading this to their team. This is delegation through the client.
Key Takeaway: There is always a right time and place. If you’re unsure, just ask them! “Gina, what works better? Should we talk this out now [via this status call] or do you prefer I call you to discuss after this call?”
8. Be Firm And Direct
Delivery matters. Meandering or long drawn out explanations can lose their luster. Also, it’s important to pause afterwards. Refrain from talking too much. Uncomfortable pauses are fine, as long as they talk first after you deliver a succinct message. (It’s about keeping your poise). So this is about how to say no.
Key Takeaway: Practice makes perfect. Remember, it’s business (not personal).
The Benefits of “Not Now”
“Not now” is a softer blow versus an outright “no.” And sometimes it makes sense to position something for a phase 2 or future work (always be mindful of disruptions to current scope). It’s a happy medium that implies we will revisit, which we do, but is much less of a distraction in the short term. Importantly, I never want to give a false sense of hope, so don’t use this tactic to avoid a difficult conversation. But if it’s a consideration, there is nothing wrong with tabling it for the time being and keeping focus elsewhere.
If you are considering it, make sure you don’t lose sight of it. Tuck this away in a Risks, Actions, Issues, and Decisions (RAID) log for future reference.
The Opportunities of “No”
There are times where you will feel defeated. Try not to second guess yourself or decisions because saying no can lead to confrontation. Even if you have the best argument on why it should be the case, know that it can be challenging to tactfully get the word out. I experienced this recently, and wondered if I was less inclined to say “no” to avoid confrontation, or maybe because I couldn’t convey or substantiate the best argument or position on why we shouldn’t do it? I didn’t see a lot of viable options, except the one that would lead to extending the timeline and down a path of finger-pointing. But at the same time, it was the best decision that could be made at that time. It takes practice to execute much of the above, but even if you are super experienced, it’s easy to falter. Shake it off and be ready for the next opportunity. These are opportunities to demonstrate professionalism, best practices, your top-notch methodology (how you implement your projects), and overall, acting in their best interest.
In closing, always remember your clients have clients, too. They have been on the other side of the conversation about needing to say no to their clients. At the end of the day, we are in the business of serving clients, but it’s always give and take, so don’t be afraid to stand your ground.
Only you “no” best.