We all use engagement letters from time to time as a formal way to document work that we have agreed to do for our clients. They are a useful tool to reduce misunderstandings, and make sure that we are clear with our clients on the work that needs to get done. Do they always work? Do you always write one?

Engagement Letters with a Twist
Over the years, I have put a major twist on the engagement letters that I use. The main difference is that although I write the letter, it isn't a letter from me to my client (you can do one of those too if you wish), it is a letter from my client to their staff, and managers.

I use these type of engagement letters at the beginning of almost every engagement that I do, and often they get e-mailed to every employee in the company. This engagement letter will work equally well if you are acting in an internal consulting capacity as well. I love engagement letters in situations like this because they have several key benefits:

• You have your contact send out the engagement letter, so they will make sure that the two of you are crystal clear on the work that you will be doing. You write the letter, your contact edits it as necessary and sends it out. This virtually eliminates any misunderstanding about the scope of the work. Most accountants simply have a letter of engagement between themselves and their contact. This is good, but the contact is less likely to give the letter their full scrutiny, until something goes wrong.
• The letter introduces you to the people you will be working with, even if you already know them all in your current capacity. It also tells any potential participants what to expect, regarding deliverables and timelines. This greatly increases your chances of a successful engagement.
• Coming from their boss, the engagement letter gives you instant credibility for the work you will be doing, and it positions the work as very important to the organization. You will even find booking meetings with the recipients is easier after the letter has gone out!
• Finally, it firmly and publicly confirms that you have the job. Sometimes in the sales process, it can be a little fuzzy whether you have been given the go-ahead to start an engagement. Once this letter goes out, there is absolutely no doubt.

Many of the business planning engagements that I do, can be a little more complex, and may require the involvement of many people in a client organization. I have found this type of engagment letter to be an invaluable tool. I hope you can find a use for them in your practice.

If you do any small business consulting, or if you would like to take your practice to the next level, visit The Planning Boot Camp website for CMA's
Simply click on the link to the left, or paste this into your browser: www.planningbootcamp.com/CMA I have added a few pointers about actually using these engagement letters in practice at the bottom of the newsletter, as well as one example to get you started. This is just a small example of what is included in The Planning Boot Camp.

A few quick notes about the letters below:

• I welcome you to use the sample as you see fit. Don't hesitate to modify it in any way to suit your purposes.
• This is a samples, not a template. Rather than making the letter so generic that it didn't make sense, I have referenced a real engagement and just disguised the client's name.
• Get the most senior person appropriate in your client organization to send out your letter or e-mail to the largest group of staff that is appropriate to your project. The owner or CEO is best for projects that will touch an entire organization. If your engagement touches a specific area of an organization, the division leader or manager is fine as well. E-mail is the best way to deliver these to staff.
• The best person to send the letter may not be your key contact. In fact, if you have any concerns that your key contact person doesn't have complete support of upper management for your proposed engagement, this is the best way to find out. If you ask a CEO if he agrees with the terms of reference of your engagement, you will be lucky to even get a reply, if you do, you might not have their undivided attention. On the other hand, if you ask a CEO to send out an e-mail under his/her name, I guarantee you will hear about any objections they have.
• Having public executive support is the single most important thing you need to ensure project success. This simple letter is a great way to get that support.
• This isn't just for big crowds. Even if your project is only going to touch a small team, this type of letter is still highly effective.
• More than just defining the scope of work, these letters are meant to define an engagement in a particularly public way, and inspire both the reader, and the sender. It should be inspirational and informative.
• Always wrap up your letter with some promised next steps that readers will actually see, and that you will need their participation in.
• Don't hesitate to be a little bit provocative when you send your first draft to the proposed sender. If there are issues that your client glossed over in all your conversations, use the draft to poke at the nerve so you know what you are truly up against.

To: All Acme Employees*** From: The Owner or CEO
We have known for some time that Superior Service is more than just a catch phase for Acme, it is our key competitive advantage. Superior Service is not just how we treat our customers, it's also about how we treat each other. To compete against larger rivals, we must truly be "best in class" when it comes to internal cooperation and effectiveness. We must also set the standard for customer service excellence as one of our key differentiators. As we strive to make Superior Service a reality, we are going to devise and implement a project to dramatically improve the measurable level of internal and external service across the organization.

To help us, we have contracted Peter Wright of The Planning Group to guide us through this very important initiative. Many of you will be called on over the coming weeks to help define what Superior Service is all about, and in the months ahead as we actually change how we interact with each other, our producers, and our customers.

We are in a period of intense business change and growth, and most of us are pushed to the limit doing our jobs, and contributing to many important projects at the same time. It is during this time when we need to embrace the concepts of Superior Service the most, to break down internal barriers, and work together to move forward.

Later in the summer we will conduct several sessions to communicate the results of the Superior Service surveys, and describe how we will address the issues highlighted in those surveys. Watch for more details regarding these sessions, and please take the time to participate.