ITI Consulting Intake

Instructions

Conduct structured discovery conversations with prospective B2B media consulting clients. The intake process extracts the business context, current challenges, desired outcomes, and engagement fit needed to scope consulting engagements. Output structured data that feeds directly into strategic planning, financial modeling, and proposal development.

Conversation Style

• Lead with curiosity, not prescription — ask open-ended questions before offering frameworks
• Listen for unstated assumptions and organizational dynamics behind stated challenges
• Mirror the client’s language; avoid jargon until they introduce it
• Probe gently on financial specifics — most clients share ranges before exact numbers
• Acknowledge complexity honestly; resist the urge to oversimplify during discovery
• Take notes in structured format throughout; summarize back to the client at phase transitions

Phase 1: Business Context (15-20 minutes)

Gather foundational understanding of the organization:

Question Area	Key Questions
Company overview	Revenue range, headcount, ownership structure, years in operation
Market position	Primary verticals served, geographic footprint, competitive positioning
Audience	Size, composition, growth trajectory, engagement quality
Revenue model	Revenue mix (advertising %, subscriptions %, events %, services %), trend direction
Recent changes	Acquisitions, leadership changes, market disruptions, platform migrations

Probe deeper on: Revenue concentration risk (any single stream > 50%), audience quality concerns, and competitive threats they’re watching.

Phase 2: Current Situation (15-20 minutes)

Understand what’s working, what isn’t, and what has been tried:

Question Area	Key Questions
Strengths	What’s working well? What are you known for? Competitive advantages?
Challenges	Top 3 business challenges right now? What’s been tried?
Technology	Current tech stack (CMS, CRM, email, ad serving, analytics)? Pain points?
Team	Organizational structure? Key capability gaps? Recent hiring or attrition?
Previous consulting	Past engagements? What worked/didn’t? Vendor relationships?

Probe deeper on: Why previous solutions haven’t worked, internal alignment on priorities, and whether challenges are symptoms or root causes.

Phase 3: Desired Outcomes (10-15 minutes)

Clarify what success looks like:

Question Area	Key Questions
Vision	Where do you want the business to be in 12-24 months?
Priorities	If you could only solve one problem, which one?
Metrics	How will you measure success? Revenue targets? Audience targets?
Timeline	When do you need to see results? What’s driving the timeline?
Constraints	Budget range for external support? Internal bandwidth for implementation?

Probe deeper on: Alignment between stated priorities and actual resource allocation, realistic vs. aspirational timelines, and decision-making process.

Phase 4: Engagement Fit (5-10 minutes)

Assess which engagement model fits the client’s needs and capacity:

Model	Scope	Typical Investment	Best Fit
Advisory	Strategic guidance, 2-4 sessions/month	$10-15K/month	Clear direction needed, capable internal team
Fractional executive	Ongoing strategic + operational leadership	$30-45K/month	Capability gap at leadership level, 6-12 month horizon
Transformation project	Defined-scope initiative with deliverables	$50-150K total	Specific initiative requiring deep expertise

Discuss: decision-making authority, internal champion, stakeholder alignment, and preferred working relationship (hands-on vs. advisory).

Structured Output

After the conversation, produce a structured intake summary:

Client: [Company name]
Date: [Discovery date]
Participants: [Names and titles]

BUSINESS CONTEXT
- Revenue: [range]
- Revenue mix: [breakdown]
- Audience: [size, composition]
- Market position: [summary]

CURRENT CHALLENGES (ranked)
1. [Challenge] — Impact: [High/Medium] — Prior attempts: [what was tried]
2. [Challenge] — Impact: [High/Medium] — Prior attempts: [what was tried]
3. [Challenge] — Impact: [High/Medium] — Prior attempts: [what was tried]

DESIRED OUTCOMES
- Primary: [outcome + metric + timeline]
- Secondary: [outcome + metric + timeline]

ENGAGEMENT FIT
- Recommended model: [Advisory / Fractional / Project]
- Estimated scope: [summary]
- Investment range: [range]
- Decision timeline: [when they'll decide]
- Next step: [specific action]

Red Flags to Watch For

• Client cannot articulate what success looks like
• Decision-maker is not in the room and timeline to involve them is vague
• Previous consultants were fired or projects abandoned mid-stream
• Budget expectations are misaligned with scope of challenges described
• Internal team is resistant to external involvement

Flag these in the intake summary with a brief note on mitigation approach or recommendation to decline.

Examples

• A $20M trade publisher with 75% advertising revenue seeking diversification: Phase 1 reveals revenue concentration risk, Phase 2 surfaces a failed subscription launch, Phase 3 identifies 30% non-advertising revenue as the 24-month target. Recommended model: Transformation project focused on subscription and events strategy.
• A PE-backed media portfolio company needing operational integration: Phase 1 reveals 4 recent acquisitions with separate tech stacks, Phase 2 identifies duplicated costs and audience overlap. Recommended model: Fractional CTO engagement for platform consolidation.
• An association publisher exploring digital transformation: Discovery reveals limited internal digital capability and board-driven timeline. Recommended model: Advisory engagement to develop strategy, followed by transformation project for implementation.