Environmental Pricing: Lowest Price & The Race to the Bottom

In the Mid-Atlantic area, there are many good, reputable environmental consulting firms that do honest work and put in the effort to solve the complex situations that we’re often presented with…and given the industrial & manufacturing history here (and geology), they can be challenging, but offering the lowest price is a race to the bottom that often leads to disaster and soured client-consultant relationships.

This is very common in public bidding opportunities (e.g. Request for Proposals), and is not limited to environmental consultants.  The success rate is generally pretty high when going with a lowest price strategy; although many towns, cities, municipalities have the authority to pass on the lowest bid if they deem a respondent to be more qualified or better suited to achieve the desired results…at an acceptable cost.  It also means that they can select the incumbent if the price is right, thus making their selection process that much easier (and truly minimizing the opportunities for other small businesses).  Cardinal Environmental covered this topic in our January blog post “Should Small Businesses Pursue Requests for Proposals?,” but the same principles hold true when local businesses are searching for a reputable environmental consultant to help them through a difficult situation, whether it’s due diligence, an Underground Storage Tank (UST) removal, or Licensed Site Remediation Professional (LSRP) services.

Experienced firms typically understand that communicating a realistic, or probable outcome to a prospective client along with estimated, and realistic projected costs increases the trust-factor, and the perceived value you bring to the table.  Conversely, there are also many firms (experienced and inexperienced) that will provide a low bid or low cost (with too much fine print in their contracts), simply to secure the work.  Unfortunately, a complex Site’s difficulties usually surface over a short time-period leaving the consultant and client scrambling to identify how much more money is needed, how much longer, etc.  This tactic ultimately impacts the public perception of the environmental consulting industry, but does that mean you should always throw out the lowest price?  Probably not.  It means that you should understand the proposed scope of work, prior to signing that contract, which goes back to a familiar theme that we stress at Cardinal Environmental: effective communication.  Understand what you’re paying for and what the expectations are!

At Cardinal Environmental, we have the experience to get you through your remedial situation and provide realistic costs up-front, regardless of the size, or scope.  Additionally, with over two decades in the industry, we have established relationships in the environmental community to get your project on a cost-effective remedial course that meets your long-term goals. For further information on how we can assist you with environmental solutions and/or LSRP services, please don’t hesitate to contact us at tfrancis@cardinalLSRP.com or www.cardinalLSRP.com. 

Responsible Party Pain Points

As a follow-up to our previous blog topics, including “Environmental Consulting and the Consumer Perspective” and “How Much and How Long Will it Take,” it’s invaluable to understand the pain points of your client, especially if they happen to be a responsible party.  For this week, we’ll look at a few key issues that need to be understood early in the remedial process…aside from a technical strategy or pathway to remediation. Every situation and every client is different, but let’s expose a few common pain points and some simple remedies.

Pain Point # 1:  Cost

Every environmental consultant should understand early in their career that on most occasions, environmental liabilities usually hit your clients’ bottom line, and the lack of an in-depth understanding of the Conceptual Site Model (CSM) for your specific project can lead to delays, and you guessed it…cost overruns.  Clients don’t like to hear that a project is over-budget, but this pain point can be alleviated if project costs and potential outcomes are discussed beforehand.  It’s difficult for a client to hear that project costs could increase 3x; however, they’ll appreciate your candor if this discussion takes place sooner (i.e. at the beginning of a project) rather than later.   One last item:  never surprise your client with last minute costs on an invoice.  Nobody likes surprises!

Pain Point # 2:  Time

While project cost may always be the top item, time or project duration is not too far behind. While certain tasks may only take a few days to complete, others can take significant amounts of time.  The only solution to this pain point is to spend a little extra time during the initial phases of the project, or even while generating a proposal, to prepare a schedule.  It may only be preliminary, but it will serve as a starting point from which you can provide your client with a “realistic” timeframe for when you will complete a task or project.  Similar to pain point # 1, your client will appreciate your professional opinion, even though it may sting for a moment (if not longer).  Word to the wise: If you believe that you can complete something in two (2) weeks…add on an extra week, and then complete the project ahead of schedule.

Pain Point # 3:  Disruption of Operations / “Inconvenience”

Don’t be fooled.  If there are access issues at your project site which require numerous things to be moved around, or re-located, and your client has to devote resources to accommodate your efforts, it’s an inconvenience.  If your client has to inform staff that they can’t use a portion of a parking lot, so you can conduct a subsurface investigation, it’s an inconvenience.  Sometimes this is unavoidable; however, similar to the prior pain points, the easiest solution is to discuss the options with your client in advance.  Are there alternative locations? Is there a specific time that your client would be more amenable to?  Weekends? Sure this may increase costs, but your client may be willing to accept the additional fees. As a consultant it is imperative that the client’s concerns be addressed, and that we work to make their job a little easier by demonstrating flexibility, and a willingness to minimize disruption to their operations.

Stay tuned for future updates and musings from Cardinal Environmental, and we hope that you find these posts informative, and relatively useful.  For furher information, please don't hesitate to contact us at tfrancis@cardinallsrp.com .

Environmental Consulting and “The Consumer Perspective” Vol. I

There are many, many variables in the environmental consulting world, some of which can be highly complex and some simply incomprehensible.  Conversely, there are too many things that consultants inadvertently make complex through poor communication skills or utter confusion, which are then conveyed to a customer or potential customer…which leads to more confusion, or a stalled project, or a poor remedial decision, or even worse…the loss of a client (potential or existing).  

To avoid this mistake adapt the “consumer’s perspective” throughout every aspect of your practice. Experience will oftentimes help an environmental practitioner (or any professional for that matter) learn to develop this mindset, and once fully integrated, you’ll easily understand the value, and your client will appreciate it.  There will be occasions when discussions on technical or regulatory items need to take place, but that doesn’t mean you need to inundate your customers with so much information and data that they feel overwhelmed.  It will take practice and patience, but be mindful of this easily, overlooked skillset.

Stay tuned for future updates and musings, as well as others, from Cardinal Environmental. We hope that you find these posts informative, and relatively useful, and your feedback is always welcome. For further information please don't hesitate to contact us at tfrancis@cardinallsrp.com, or www.cardinallsrp.com.