At the time of writing this article, I’ve been a Salesforce Consultant for seven years. One of the most important things I’ve learned during this period is time management. These skills are important for everyone, but even more so when time is the resource you’re selling. If you are unable to manage your time between multiple clients or projects, you’re going to be unsuccessful as a consultant.
Luckily, time management is a skill that can be learned, just like being a Salesforce Admin. There are many apps and resources available online and a lot of experienced people to learn from. This article will cover some of those important skills and help you find additional resources to start on your consultant journey.
Calendars
This might be the most obvious one, but I think it’s also the most important part of being a consultant. Your schedule is the critical piece to managing time as a consultant. Do some serious thought about the things you need to do daily, weekly, or monthly.
You may need to set up a weekly block of time for internal business management if you’re self-employed, like managing your finances, sending invoices, and paying taxes. If you have daily tasks that you need to accomplish, like picking up your kids from school or taking that mental health walk, those need to be on your calendar too. Schedule a weekly check-in with each client to go over the new items and projects that are in progress and answer any questions that come up.
I also like to select a color coding system – you can opt to use certain colors for certain clients or to separate business items from personal items. You may want to include schedules for any vacations of your clients or business holidays that differ from your own.
If you have multiple calendars, be sure to share them all with each other. That way, you always know what your schedule is, no matter where you happen to be viewing it from.
Use a ‘Book Time with Me’ Software
I’m not going to recommend a particular tool here because there are so many, ranging from paid to free options. You’ll want to look for a tool that allows you to provide an easy way for clients or prospects to book time directly with you without having to be in a meeting just to schedule another meeting.
Having a link in your email signature or something you can quickly provide via Slack message will actually save you hours of work and make your clients comfortable that they can reach you quickly and when they need to.
Learn to Say “No”
As much as a consultant may hate to turn away work, it is sometimes necessary. Maybe you don’t have the right skill set, or the project is too big for you as a single person. Maybe you just don’t have the bandwidth right now for another client. Or, maybe the client is asking for something unethical or something that goes against best practices.
It may be as simple as the need to tell a client that you cannot do a recurring meeting on a certain date or time. By taking on work that you do not have the time to complete, you set yourself up for failure and provide a poor customer experience to your clients. This could lead to a lack of referrals or even bad reviews for your business online.
Understand (or Set) Expectations
If you’re self-employed, or if you’re starting out and only have a few clients, it can be easy to be instantly available for your clients. However, you need to be careful that you’re not setting the expectation of unlimited availability. Whether that’s the hours that you work or the turnaround time for tasks or replies, make sure you’re setting reasonable business expectations.
You also need to clarify what the client’s expectations are for turnaround time for tasks or projects. Clarifying this upfront will ensure that you are able to accept or decline any projects, depending on whether the deadline is feasible within your workload.
Use Project Management Tools
It can sometimes seem like there’s an endless array of project management tools out there. Basecamp, Monday.com, Asana, Jira, Salesforce… the list goes on.
Depending on the type of consultancy you’re running, if you’re with an agency or self-employed, you may not have an option as to which tool you use. I’m not going to direct you to an exact tool because the decision may not be yours. The most important thing here is that you use something. Most of my clients have their own system they want me to use, but you may want to consider using your own or building something custom within Salesforce.
These tools are critical to managing ongoing tasks and making sure that your clients know what you are working on. Another benefit is keeping priorities aligned and having due dates that you can manage.
Take Thorough Notes
Taking notes is getting easier and easier these days with the advent of AI meeting notes tools. If you’re not using those features yet, just be sure you’re taking detailed notes, stored in a place where you and the client can review them as needed.
You may have to refer back to meeting notes after project delivery if there are any disputes about the results. These notes will help you make sure that you do not have any unexpected work pop up and make sure the client gets all the deliverables they expect in a timely manner.
Summary
Being a consultant has a lot of freedom, but also comes with a lot of responsibilities. You might have total control over which projects you accept, but there’s also often nobody to fall back on if you over-commit.
Managing your workload is one of the best ways to maintain your reputation as a great consultant and consistently deliver great results to your clients. I hope these tips help you, and please let me know if you have any other tips in the comments below!