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Fee Split To Prevent Dispute #1

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Things happen fast in consulting. A prospective client calls at 10:30 a.m. and wants a proposal by 3:00. Or, you're booked solid, but need to create a project team overnight. Even though you're rushed, it's dangerous to move forward without a paper trail. If you're bringing in partners, subcontractors, or employees, be sure every part of your agreement is documented. That can prevent weeks or months of litigation—or just plain bad feelings.

I get many requests for work I don't want to do. Either I'm bored because I've "been there, done that," or it's outside my area of expertise. If I like the client, and the project interests me, I'll bring in a superstar partner or subcontractor and take a finder's fee, usually 20%.

That was the case here, where the client wanted to roll out a national teambuilding, and I didn't want to travel. One of my friends who thrives on travel is a top expert in teambuilding. Here is the agreement I created to prevent conflicts or disagreements between us.


September 9, 20—

Fee Split for LAM Asia

  1. Scope of Project. LAM Asia initially wants two half-day programs, but we expect to roll out the teambuilding program nationally to many other regions.
  2. Fee Split. 20% of total of any and all gross revenue will go to CareerLab for this project; 80% of all collected fees will go to Audrea Endsley. This formula applies to both consulting and testing & assessment, if it is incorporated later.
  3. Expenses. Out of pocket expenses like printing, copying, will be invoiced separately, and reimbursed at cost without markup.
  4. Billing. The project will be delivered under the CareerLab name.   CareerLab will invoice LAM Asia, and Audrea Endsley (Endsley & Associates) will invoice CareerLab.
  5. Payment. CareerLab will pay Endsley & Associates invoiced amounts within 10 days of collecting from LAM Asia.
  6. Duration. After the first year of the teambuilding engagement, all teambuilding revenues will go to Audrea Endsley, and CareerLab will not be compensated for teambuilding.

_______________________
Bill Frank

_______________________
Audrea Endsley

_______________________
Date

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William S. Frank, M.A.,
            President/CEO
25 Reasons I love consulting.
by William S. Frank
  1. Brand. You are your own brand, and you can define it any way you want. For many years, I provided outplacement to the ex-employees of Schlumberger, the world's largest oilfield service corporation. When departing employees left the company, they didn't request outplacement in their severance package. They said, "I want Bill Frank."
  2. Demand. The world will always be full of terrible problems that need solving.
  3. White Hat. I can be a helper and get paid for it.
  4. Pay. I can be paid to do things I'd gladly do for nothing.
  5. Variety. Every day is different.
  6. Happiness. At this stage of my career, I only work for people I respect and care about. If a client micromanages me or is otherwise no fun, I complete the assignment and replace them.
  7. Talent. I'm using 110% of my talents and stretching myself to the max.
  8. Change. I can change my focus any day I want. If you're a McDonald's franchisee, you don't say, "Hey, I've got this great idea for a meatball sandwich—let's try it out today." In consulting you can adjust your focus hour-by-hour, as long as your clients still understand and appreciate what you do.
  9. Income. No one else would pay me as much as I pay myself.
  10. FUN. I can't think of anything I'd rather be doing.
  11. Retirement. I can write and consult as long as I am physically and mentally capable. Peter Drucker worked into his 90s, and when asked which book was his best, he said: "My next one."
  12. Job Security. Although clients come and go, no one can come into my office and say, "Pack up your stuff . . . You don't work here anymore." In 29 years, I've only had one employer: ME.
  13. Travel. I don't have to travel unless I decide to. I travel if it's both FUN and profitable—or at least FUN.
  14. Commute. I live five minutes from my office, a corner office in an upscale six-story tower. In winter, I leave a heated garage at home and drive to an underground heated garage at work. There's seldom time to hear even one song on the radio.
  15. Vacation. Consulting is more fun than vacation (except on Wailea Beach in Maui).
  16. Friends. I have developed hundreds of close acquaintances and several lifetime friends.
  17. Time. I can work as much or as little as I like: four-hour days or 18-hour days. (Of course, my income will reflect that.)
  18. Employees. I can work with employees, subcontractors, partners, or alone—I've done it all.
  19. Passive Income. I've developed several products that provide "mailbox money." I earn while I'm sleeping.
  20. Ethics. I've never had to violate my values or personal code of ethics. I've never had to lie, purposely deceive or harm others, or promise things I can't deliver. I go to bed with a clear conscience. That doesn't mean there's never any conflict. But the conflict is conducted according to generally accepted business practices.
  21. Virtual. My career is fairly portable. With the Internet, e-mail, cell phone, and FedEx, I can work nationally, even internationally from my office—or anywhere in the world.
  22. Purpose. I make a difference in peoples' lives every day. I see it in their faces, hear it in their voices, and read it in their thank-yous.
  23. Experience. Every painful or joyful life experience makes me a better consultant. So does every person I meet or book I read. Grey hair can be good in consulting.
  24. Structure. I have to work very hard, and the clients expect superb results—but I get to structure my days, weeks, months, and years.
  25. Boss. Most of the time, I love my boss.
As I was posting these letters online, I realized I want to communicate my love for consulting. It's just a great business. The single letters, taken together, may create a picture of enjoyment, but in a burst of creativity I listed some of the reasons consulting is such a good fit for me—and perhaps for you, too. They are not prioritized; this is just how they came out.