Dealing with a difficult client who has ADHD
Discussion
I am party to an awkward situation on which I would appreciate any pearls of wisdom and insight. I need to be vague about some of the detail.
I am involved in a project that was delivered for a company whose MD revealed to us that he suffers from ADHD. This should not have been an issue as day to day, we were dealing with the managers. Over a six month period, it did become a problem.
Despite us delivering as per the terms of reference and to the satisfaction of the managers, he constantly intervened to question the approaches be taken becoming highly vocal and dismissive of explanation. It became apparent that he was expecting something entirely different to that which we were doing... but to date, has been unable to articulate what those expectations are.
The project was completed. We handed everything over with him still complaining that we hadn't done what he was expecting yet still being unable to tell us what, from the Terms of Reference, we hadn't done. There was scheduled to be some follow-on activity but we agreed that we would draw things to a close and handover what we had done for them. That was six months ago.
Having chased payment several times, the MD has come back with an email setting out why he is unhappy and that the bill should not be paid. All of these reasons are completely unfounded and in some cases, false. The managers have not been particularly helpful in supporting our cause despite them being happy with what we’ve done.
So the question is, how does one go about successfully resolving such an issue with someone who suffers from ADHD without adding to their burden?
We know the standard options available to us but are respectful of the chap’s condition and the preference is to resolve amicably.
I am involved in a project that was delivered for a company whose MD revealed to us that he suffers from ADHD. This should not have been an issue as day to day, we were dealing with the managers. Over a six month period, it did become a problem.
Despite us delivering as per the terms of reference and to the satisfaction of the managers, he constantly intervened to question the approaches be taken becoming highly vocal and dismissive of explanation. It became apparent that he was expecting something entirely different to that which we were doing... but to date, has been unable to articulate what those expectations are.
The project was completed. We handed everything over with him still complaining that we hadn't done what he was expecting yet still being unable to tell us what, from the Terms of Reference, we hadn't done. There was scheduled to be some follow-on activity but we agreed that we would draw things to a close and handover what we had done for them. That was six months ago.
Having chased payment several times, the MD has come back with an email setting out why he is unhappy and that the bill should not be paid. All of these reasons are completely unfounded and in some cases, false. The managers have not been particularly helpful in supporting our cause despite them being happy with what we’ve done.
So the question is, how does one go about successfully resolving such an issue with someone who suffers from ADHD without adding to their burden?
We know the standard options available to us but are respectful of the chap’s condition and the preference is to resolve amicably.
If it were me, I'd want to separate the ADHD from the legal contract.
(you can understand the actions, you can't excuse them)
The legal contract, is the legal contract.
Whether or not his mental health has suffered as a result of your actions, is something different.
Sounds to me like this was the plan from the beginning.
I'd continue with whatever actions you need to do to resolve payment and make it clear to the client what you're doing, whilst inviting him to separately have a conversation about how the working relationship might be improved.
(you can understand the actions, you can't excuse them)
The legal contract, is the legal contract.
Whether or not his mental health has suffered as a result of your actions, is something different.
Sounds to me like this was the plan from the beginning.
I'd continue with whatever actions you need to do to resolve payment and make it clear to the client what you're doing, whilst inviting him to separately have a conversation about how the working relationship might be improved.
Silvanus said:
sunnyb13 said:
This is not an ADHD problem.
It’s very common in the consulting industry.
Agree, doesn't sound like it's anything to do with ADHD and he's using it as a convenient excuse to cover other issues he may have. It’s very common in the consulting industry.
StevieBee said:
Silvanus said:
sunnyb13 said:
This is not an ADHD problem.
It’s very common in the consulting industry.
Agree, doesn't sound like it's anything to do with ADHD and he's using it as a convenient excuse to cover other issues he may have. It’s very common in the consulting industry.
Stick with what it says in the contact and seek what is owed.
You have been commendably patient thus far, however I am not sure why you are continuing with this approach, whether he has ADHD or not doesn't alter the fact that he is behaving like a t
t and you are not being paid as a result. I wouldn't offer a discount as he cannot say what you haven't done and you have a contract that shows what you were asked to do.
t and you are not being paid as a result. I wouldn't offer a discount as he cannot say what you haven't done and you have a contract that shows what you were asked to do.Thanks chaps.
greygoose said:
You have been commendably patient thus far, however I am not sure why you are continuing with this approach, whether he has ADHD or not doesn't alter the fact that he is behaving like a tt and you are not being paid as a result. I wouldn't offer a discount as he cannot say what you haven't done and you have a contract that shows what you were asked to do.
The company is not my direct client. Another company brought me in to help deliver the project and is their client of many years. There's two reasons for them holding out. One is not to destroy the relationship which, this particular project aside, is very good. The other is that the work we've done is excellent and if they were to embrace the outputs, would lead to considerably more work over the coming years beyond the usual. If they were to accept what has been done and act upon it, there 'may' be a case to suggest writing the debt off as the value of the additional future work would outstrip what's owed by some margin. But if they accept it, there's no reason for them not to pay what's owed so the idea sort cancels itself out.t and you are not being paid as a result. I wouldn't offer a discount as he cannot say what you haven't done and you have a contract that shows what you were asked to do.StevieBee said:
Thanks chaps.
I wouldn’t want to work with him again as I suspect the same issues would happen again, if someone doesn’t pay once I wouldn’t rely on future earnings from them to recoup my money.greygoose said:
You have been commendably patient thus far, however I am not sure why you are continuing with this approach, whether he has ADHD or not doesn't alter the fact that he is behaving like a tt and you are not being paid as a result. I wouldn't offer a discount as he cannot say what you haven't done and you have a contract that shows what you were asked to do.
The company is not my direct client. Another company brought me in to help deliver the project and is their client of many years. There's two reasons for them holding out. One is not to destroy the relationship which, this particular project aside, is very good. The other is that the work we've done is excellent and if they were to embrace the outputs, would lead to considerably more work over the coming years beyond the usual. If they were to accept what has been done and act upon it, there 'may' be a case to suggest writing the debt off as the value of the additional future work would outstrip what's owed by some margin. But if they accept it, there's no reason for them not to pay what's owed so the idea sort cancels itself out.t and you are not being paid as a result. I wouldn't offer a discount as he cannot say what you haven't done and you have a contract that shows what you were asked to do.Silvanus said:
sunnyb13 said:
This is not an ADHD problem.
It’s very common in the consulting industry.
Agree, doesn't sound like it's anything to do with ADHD and he's using it as a convenient excuse to cover other issues he may have. It’s very common in the consulting industry.
Little update.... the situation appears to have been resolved to a degree.
Again, needing to be a little vague, the project output required a certain level of conceptualisation on behalf of the client; "If you do this, these are the likely outcomes you can expect". There were also numerous abstract examples where we articulated the need to 'position' the company in the minds of his market (high value/ mid cost, etc). So, 'shades of grey' which this chap is incapable of understanding. He operates on a black-white, yes-no, on-off basis.
Anyway, the majority of the outstanding payment has been secured on the proviso of a reformatting some of the outputs in a manner that he will understand and on this, we'll be doing that with him.
As annoying as the process has been, it's also been interesting to observe from a behavioural perspective. I think we were right not get robustly legal. He wasn't withholding payment for the sake of it. He genuinely wants to understand his own brief and I think we've worked a away to achieve that which will bode well for the longer term.
Thanks for the inputs.
Again, needing to be a little vague, the project output required a certain level of conceptualisation on behalf of the client; "If you do this, these are the likely outcomes you can expect". There were also numerous abstract examples where we articulated the need to 'position' the company in the minds of his market (high value/ mid cost, etc). So, 'shades of grey' which this chap is incapable of understanding. He operates on a black-white, yes-no, on-off basis.
Anyway, the majority of the outstanding payment has been secured on the proviso of a reformatting some of the outputs in a manner that he will understand and on this, we'll be doing that with him.
As annoying as the process has been, it's also been interesting to observe from a behavioural perspective. I think we were right not get robustly legal. He wasn't withholding payment for the sake of it. He genuinely wants to understand his own brief and I think we've worked a away to achieve that which will bode well for the longer term.
Thanks for the inputs.
StevieBee said:
Little update.... the situation appears to have been resolved to a degree.
Again, needing to be a little vague, the project output required a certain level of conceptualisation on behalf of the client; "If you do this, these are the likely outcomes you can expect". There were also numerous abstract examples where we articulated the need to 'position' the company in the minds of his market (high value/ mid cost, etc). So, 'shades of grey' which this chap is incapable of understanding. He operates on a black-white, yes-no, on-off basis.
Anyway, the majority of the outstanding payment has been secured on the proviso of a reformatting some of the outputs in a manner that he will understand and on this, we'll be doing that with him.
As annoying as the process has been, it's also been interesting to observe from a behavioural perspective. I think we were right not get robustly legal. He wasn't withholding payment for the sake of it. He genuinely wants to understand his own brief and I think we've worked a away to achieve that which will bode well for the longer term.
Thanks for the inputs.
Glad to see this as an outcome. Again, needing to be a little vague, the project output required a certain level of conceptualisation on behalf of the client; "If you do this, these are the likely outcomes you can expect". There were also numerous abstract examples where we articulated the need to 'position' the company in the minds of his market (high value/ mid cost, etc). So, 'shades of grey' which this chap is incapable of understanding. He operates on a black-white, yes-no, on-off basis.
Anyway, the majority of the outstanding payment has been secured on the proviso of a reformatting some of the outputs in a manner that he will understand and on this, we'll be doing that with him.
As annoying as the process has been, it's also been interesting to observe from a behavioural perspective. I think we were right not get robustly legal. He wasn't withholding payment for the sake of it. He genuinely wants to understand his own brief and I think we've worked a away to achieve that which will bode well for the longer term.
Thanks for the inputs.
My first thought on reading your opening post was that ADHD was irrelevant. Your customer is the MD of a company that is financially robust and capable enough that you felt comfortable taking on the commission.
ADHD is clearly not holding him back to the extent that it prevents him from being successful. Although neurodiversity creates issues for people in some aspects of their lives it can also supercharge abilities making them highly effective in other ways.
This looked like a communication issue to me. His regular interventions suggest that your understanding and his understanding of the objectives were never fully aligned.
I've been there with consultants and it's massively frustrating when they produce something that isn't what you wanted and hide behind their fee proposal to pretend it is what you agreed to.
The right course of action is to properly try and understand why your customer is not happy and see if there is anything straightforward that can be done to resolve it. That should be possible in situations where you feel you have done a good job and produced an output that they will value.
You have clearly done that and it sounds as if it has got you to a good place.
Silvanus said:
sunnyb13 said:
This is not an ADHD problem.
It’s very common in the consulting industry.
Agree, doesn't sound like it's anything to do with ADHD and he's using it as a convenient excuse to cover other issues he may have. It’s very common in the consulting industry.
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