As the business world grows more complex and more heavily contractualised, the contract manager’s role has become essential to managing contracts effectively, reducing risk and finding levers for growth. Yet despite the crucial importance of their work, these business partners often neglect one essential aspect of their profession: communication. The relational dimension is in fact central, whether in project management or in raising the profile of the role among the people they work with.
What is the use of having a Zizou of contract management if he is invisible? If nobody knows how effective and useful he is on the pitch? That is the surest way to waste his strengths.
That is why, in this article, we set out to remind contract managers how important it is to master the art of communication, or to put communication back at the heart of their priorities.
Just as Zidane was acclaimed for his skill and his influence on the pitch, the contract manager must, on top of the technical work, make the role known and sell it so that its impact is fully recognised.
Contract manager: still a role too few people know?
Studies on how contract management is perceived, notably in France if we look at the one produced by the consultancy Day One and the Intract network (e2cm/Kalexius/Aperwin/KPDP) in 2017 and still relevant today, find that while the specifics of the contract manager’s work are increasingly well understood, communication about the role deserves to be stepped up, and it is, moreover, one of the five priorities expressed by contract managers themselves according to the analysis recently carried out by World Commerce & Contracting.
This is entirely understandable because, although the role is seen as a credible optimisation lever across all the subjects that make up its day-to-day remit, knowledge and perception of the job differ according to the size of the organisation, according to whether you are a lawyer or not, and according to the maturity of contract management within the business. For example, lawyers generally see contract management as a structured function focused above all on method and oversight. Non-lawyers, by contrast, place more value on gains, performance and optimisation. Expectations also differ from one group to another.
Broadly, it can be concluded that understanding of the contract management role is far from settled, and this tends to limit how its added value is perceived.
To meet this challenge, it is essential for the contract manager to explain and to draw on their people skills with the people around them, so as to make the full scope of the role known and to be recognised as a contributor to value creation.
Communication: an art to master in order to sell yourself
As you will have gathered, communication is the essential tool that allows the contract manager to play their part in full within the organisation.
Unfortunately, this side of the job is often set aside in favour of technical skills. It is a key competency that must be brought to the fore, so that everyone knows the scope of the work, the know-how involved and the cross-disciplinary effectiveness of the role. That will inevitably help erase the fragmented perception of the contract manager’s role, turn them into a genuine business partner at every level and foster a contract management culture.
An absence of communication will inevitably limit teams’ maturity on the subject, as well as the contribution and implementation of contract management at the heart of projects.
This communicator’s role, which is far from innate, must be a priority for the contract professional.
Overcoming obstacles and resistance
Of course, the contract manager’s communication will not stop at presenting themselves as the Swiss Army knife they are. They will sometimes have to overcome obstacles and resistance, particularly when interacting with sister or neighbouring functions (legal, procurement and so on). Failing to break the ice with these colleagues, and failing to highlight contract management as the tool that complements their work and better optimises and secures the projects they are involved in, often leads to a lack of synergy and to unjustified blockages.
The contract manager must encourage active listening in order to understand needs and expectations, and adapt their communication accordingly and to each audience.
Internal training is also an excellent way to capture the attention of colleagues, demystify the role, build confidence in their expertise and get their messages across.
Showcasing the contract management function through relevant KPIs
Another effective communication lever is the performance indicator (“KPI”). Its purpose is to demonstrate the added value of the role and its contribution to the organisation’s success. Putting KPIs in place and communicating the impact of contract management on improving them automatically enhances the function and its relevance, and encourages buy-in.
Conclusion
In project management, the contract manager knows that communication is essential. Yet they often forget it when it comes to selling themselves. If you want to embed a genuine contract management culture within your organisation and bring every stakeholder on board, make communication your priority. Train to build your skills in this area, talk and share about the subject regularly, use the right tools.
Contract management should be on everyone’s lips and, we would say, it is time contract managers stepped out of the shadows and highlighted the essential role they play.