Years ago, I dropped off the association of associations' listservs when one too many people asked for a survey questionnaire so they could send it to their members. Why stop there? Why not just take the resulting research report, search and replace the association's name? So much more efficient! Ye gods.
And it's not limited to market research. Just as strategic planning is now reviled, so too is the concept of 'best practice.' Superficial case studies documenting success are touted as triumphant models without a deeper examination of mistakes made, lessons learned. Yet best practice, like information, is a verb, something in motion to be improved on by the community of practice from which it came.
A research report, a strategic plan, a case study, even a biography of a great leader, is just a replica of what it represents, a ship in a bottle not the original, full-scale craft. The consultant, like the hobbyist, is the master of the model, not ship building.
All of these recipes for success are useful, but not to be confused with cooking or hospitality. It's the doing, the practice, not the list of ingredients, that builds capacity and skills. The process--what you do together with your team--builds trust and commitment that will see you through adversity. It's the means, not the end report or plan, that creates meaning.
