It is all about psychology

SAP Consultant Insider:

Quite from the beginning, I figured, my job as a SAP consultant, was not about technical knowledge of the machine, nor about project expertise, and not even about my knowledge as an accountant and CFO. It is all about psychology.

This is true to many issues we consider as technical.

Go look at many NBA teams or famous soccer clubs that once in a while gather a group of excellent athletes (known as “Galacticos”), with terrific talent and skills but still something is not working, there is a missing part that prevent them from taking it to the top.

• Good technical understanding of your domain is very important.

• Project experience and capabilities will help you do the job on time.

• Strong process knowledge of the material you are dealing with (in our case finance) will let you know what you are talking about.

All this will get you thru, though it will not get you to the top.

At the end it is all about psychology.

If you just listen to your clients and do not “get into their mind” you might get the wrong idea of their needs, thus not providing them with the best tools to do their job.

During my years in consulting I encountered countless times when the client was sure he explained the need and at the end we gave him something that was quite far from the primary description based on further “interrogation”.

Psychology is a key to the project, not for nothing words like “teamwork” and “commitment” are synonymous to project success.

So, in conclusion, my advice to all young consultants: Do not drop your SAP books, but do remember, the key to your solution is understanding not only listening, and when you do your career decisions look for the “soft currencies” not only the hard ones.