Client Discovery

---
name: client-discovery
description: "Run a consulting client discovery session — uncover the real problem, scope, and decision process. Use when asked to prepare for a client discovery call, qualify a consulting lead, scope an engagement, or run a kickoff. Produces a discovery plan — the questions that surface the real problem (not the stated one), budget/authority/timeline qualifiers, success criteria, red flags, and a follow-up that leads to a proposal."
---

# Client Discovery Skill

The brief a client gives you is rarely the real problem — and the difference is where good consulting (and
accurate scoping) lives. This skill preps a discovery session that gets beneath the stated ask to the
actual problem, qualifies whether it's a fit (budget, authority, timeline), and pins the success criteria
— so you scope and price accurately and write a proposal that lands.

## Required Inputs

Ask for these only if they aren't already provided:

- **The prospect** — who they are, the stated ask, and how they found you.
- **Your offering** — what you do, so questions probe fit.
- **What you need to decide** — go/no-go, scope, and price.

## Output Format

### Discovery Plan: [prospect]

**1. The goal of the call** — qualify + uncover the real problem + earn the right to propose. Not to pitch.

**2. Get to the real problem** — questions that move past the symptom to the cause and the stakes:
- "What made this a priority *now*?" · "What have you already tried?" · "What happens if you do nothing?" · "How will you know this is solved?" · "Who else is affected / involved?"
- Use **5-whys-style** follow-ups to reach the root, not the presenting issue.

**3. Qualify (fit)** — surface, tactfully:
- **Budget** — is there one, and roughly what range? ("Have you set aside budget / a range in mind?")
- **Authority** — who decides and signs? Are they on the call?
- **Timeline** — when do they need it, and why that date?
- **Decision process** — what happens after this call; who else weighs in.

**4. Success criteria** — the concrete outcome that = success, in their terms. (This becomes the proposal's objectives.)

**5. Red flags** — watch for: no budget/authority, "just exploring," scope that balloons mid-call, shopping many vendors on price, unrealistic timeline. Note how to handle each.

**6. Close & next step** — how to summarise what you heard (confirm understanding) and set up the proposal ("I'll send a proposal with options by [date]").

## Quality Checks

- [ ] Questions dig past the stated ask to the root problem and the cost of inaction
- [ ] Budget, authority, timeline, and decision process are all surfaced (tactfully)
- [ ] Success criteria are captured in the client's own terms
- [ ] Red flags are anticipated with a handling plan
- [ ] Ends by confirming understanding and setting up the proposal

## Anti-Patterns

- [ ] Do not pitch during discovery — listen and diagnose; the proposal is where you prescribe
- [ ] Do not accept the stated problem at face value — the real one (and real scope) is usually underneath
- [ ] Do not skip qualifying budget/authority — a beautiful proposal to someone who can't buy is wasted
- [ ] Do not ignore red flags to win work — a bad-fit client costs more than the fee
- [ ] Do not end without a confirmed next step and date — momentum dies in the gap

## Based On

Consulting discovery / sales-qualification practice — root-cause questioning, BANT-style qualification, outcome-defined scoping.