Importance Of Confidentiality

Wherever consultants gather…airports, hotels, Starbucks…we often find ourselves sharing detailed, unfiltered stories about our jobs. This is natural human behavior. It’s also a really bad idea.

Clients have a legitimate expectation that we will be discreet, even with information that isn’t labeled “Proprietary and Confidential”. For us to help them, they have to tell us their problems. If they worry that we’ll broadcast those problems to fellow passengers on an airplane or at the next table in a restaurant, they’ll be reluctant to share information that is needed to provide a solution that will help them.

Our advice is to never, ever use a client’s name in public. Start your story with, “We were on a project where…” or “I remember once …”, removing identifiable information.

It’s natural, and often necessary, to talk about your projects and share your experience. It’s not necessary, or ethical, to compromise the client when you do it.

Respect your client’s confidentiality. That includes their identity.

(Original author: Christine Lambden. Reprinted with permission.)