Clarify the Work Before the Consulting Engagement

Begin by recording what the enquirer says they want to change or produce. Use their actual words where appropriate in the authorised internal record, then write a plain-language description of the result you understand. Keep that description provisional. A request for a clearer presentation is not automatically a request to write, design, rehearse and deliver it. Do not treat an enthusiastic conversation as approval for every related service you could offer.

Separate the desired result from an activity the enquirer proposes. They may ask for a workshop because they assume it is the best route, while the actual difficulty remains unclear. Ask an ordinary clarification question about the intended use or audience rather than making a technical diagnosis. Record what is known and what still needs discussion. Avoid claims that a particular service will guarantee sales, confidence or a business transformation merely because the requested result sounds valuable.

Add a visible pre-engagement status to the brief. It should say that the enquiry is being clarified and that no commitment or start date is established by the document itself. The business's actual agreements and applicable requirements govern whether a commitment exists; this guide supplies no legal interpretation of conversations. The record simply avoids making an unsupported administrative claim. Starting with a provisional result keeps the next discussion focused on a real outcome and reduces the temptation to turn an early idea into a full programme of work without agreement.