Over the past summer, I’ve spoken at two different distributor conferences on the topic of “Creating Business – Harnessing the Power of Assessments". It seems to me that most companies are providing some level of risk or vulnerability assessment (which are not the same), yet little remediation is taking place, and more importantly, not much in the way of new projects or managed services. What is the purpose of an assessment? In my opinion, it is to identify issues that need attention, and then to persuade the customer to move forward on them. In the case of risk assessment, not moving forward generally means leaving things in an unsecured state. How responsible is this? Not only is it bad for the client, it’s a waste of time for most consulting companies who stand to multiply their business gross profit and build valuation through contractual managed services.

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Some thoughts on why the assessments have no follow-through:

• Assessments are generally controlled by the IT group. The provider assumes the information will be passed up the chain of command. Bad assumption.

• Business leaders are not attending the deliverable meeting. The provider assumes that the economic buyer doesn’t see the need. This is true, but it’s the provider's fault for not making it business relevant.

• Providers may try to coerce business leaders to attend, assuming they have the desired outcome. However, most of the assessment methodologies lack the language required to attract business level attendees.

• Deliverables tend to be created by technicians writing in technical jargon. The provider assumes this is the right approach, given the IT buy-in requirement. This is a bad assumption. Risk should be communicated to those with liability in their own language.

• Deliverables tend to be long and boring as the writing is usually technical. The assumption is this is a technical document that should describe technical facts, statistics, and vulnerabilities. The truth is, this should be a persuasive essay, or marketing document, that is used to help move the client to action.

• Deliverables tend to focus on holes in the security armor – lists of issues that might allow compromise. This is wrong. Assessments should measure the likelihood of data theft, misuse, corruption, etc. Likelihood looks at conditions, along with trends, and requires an expert opinion based on norms.

• Deliverables are often sent to IT in accordance with the agreement, and no presentation is actually conducted. This is a major mistake –the presentation is the most qualified selling opportunity a sales person could have.

• Issues are buried in hundreds of pages of reporting, tables, and listings. Managers need a clear list of action items, along with justification, to take action.

I’ve been shopping at REI since I was eleven years old. As an avid backpacker, with a family of backpacking children, I have a ton of gear, and a budget for backpacking that might alarm some. With the Internet, I know I can search for better prices, but generally I don't. I just go to REI. Why? Because they make it easy to be satisfied with the buying experience. Currently, I'm reading, " What Would Google Do?", by Jeff Jarvis, and as I read, I see that REI, like Google, understands what the customer wants.. They 're not just a store, they're a platform for the consumer's voice. At REI, patrons have the ability to rate and comment on every piece of gear carried by the outdoor equipment giant. They also allow customers to comment on REI itself, which I believe leads to REI demanding, and getting, absolute customer satisfaction.

Last week I bought two backpacks. I did the research online, mostly at REI’s site, reading comments written by fellow backpackers. I then went to the store to shop. When I asked about a warranty, the salesperson responded, "Why do you need one? You can return anything you’re not satisfied with, even if you’ve used it for years." REI gets it. An Internet economy requires this type of response. Selling is no longer a one-way communication. It’s a community activity that requires you, as a provider, to allow customers to comment, and demands your team respond when problems arise. This is not your grandparent's economy!

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