HOW WE WORK

The way we work with clients is rooted in several beliefs about the people with whom we work and the complex problems we address. Here are some of those beliefs:

• Our clients know their own business better than anyone else. They are most familiar with the big issues, the hot buttons, and the markets in which they serve.


• Our clients want to get real value for the money they spend. When they hire consultants, they want more than an endorsement of what they already know.


• Our clients are busy. They don’t want to devote too much time managing temporary relationships.


• An organization’s strength is in its employees and their collective knowledge. Failing to capitalize on this strength destroys value.


• Sometimes more is wanted than what is asked for. The way questions are asked or issues are stated may not fully convey the need or intent.


• Numbers can be dangerous if not used properly. Good information is essential to running a business, but great care is required to interpret data accurately and completely.


• The best solutions are often not those that are most obvious or most common. It is hard to make conventional solutions work effectively in niche markets.

When you work with us, you can count on several constants:

• We enter relationships trusting that our clients intimately understand their businesses and their needs. This enables us to work collaboratively and to combine our strengths with those of our clients.


• Whenever possible, we base our price on the value of the work we perform rather than on the number of billable hours. This protects both us and our clients from unpleasant surprises.


• We try to be as easy to reach and work with as possible. Our goal is to be as involved with our clients as possible without being intrusive on the other priorities in their organizations.


• We build on our clients’ strengths and the systems they have in place, rather than tearing down and starting over.


• We ask many questions. We would much prefer listening and exploring rather than talking. We work hard to understand issues, needs, and expectations.


• We are relentless in our pursuit of data. We spend a lot of time in the numbers, trying to get beyond the obvious conclusions. We look for cause-and-effect relationships and for results that are not intuitively obvious.


• We also look for common-sense answers. We combine the truth that can be found in numbers with the truth that can be found outside them. We encourage our clients to challenge our conclusions and to think about observations we cannot explain.


• We work hard at finding solutions that are both innovative and practical. Where possible, we look for potential solutions that include both the more conventional and the less conventional.

Next - Our Markets

© 2003 Mark Haarer Consulting LLC. All rights reserved.
Site designed and developed by Emley Design Group

Mark Haarer, FSA, MAAA
Phone: 260.627.8130
FAX: 260.627.8131
Mark@mhcllc.com
P.O. Box 431
Leo, IN 46765

Statistics are like bikinis. What they reveal is suggestive, but what they conceal is valid."

—Aaron Levenstein