Here's an excerpt from a sample dialogue with the Sounding Board. In it, a sales manager named Sarah discusses with the program a challenge she is facing: she is having a difficult time landing a new account. The program asks questions, and Sarah provides responses. As the questions help her generate useful ideas, Sarah is able to makes notes of them, which the program records. She exercises control over the flow of the questions in a number of ways, including starting on a new problem, backing up to a previous questions, and canceling a current line of questioning.
When reading the dialog, keep in mind that what you are seeing is just a transcript of the conversation. The user interacts with the program through a full-screen graphical interface which presents the questions one at a time.
Question:
What problem are you working on?
Response:
I'm trying to land the Motorola account.
Question:
What larger objectives would getting Motorola's business help achieve?
Response:
It would get our foot in the door of the industry.
Question:
Should we start by focusing on the SPECIFIC problem you've identified or the more GENERAL one?
Response:
Getting Motorola's business.
Question:
Is getting Motorola's business a matter of maintaining the status quo, or of achieving something new?
Response:
Achieving something new.
Question:
How would you categorize the goal of getting Motorola's business?
Response:
Selling professional services.
[The program provides example categorizations such as selling, managing, organizing, designing, or fixing].
Question:
Who is currently doing the business with Motorola that Sarah wants to be doing?
Response:
An internal shop.
Response:
SciTech.
Response:
Some of it isn't getting done at all.
Question:
Why should Motorola do business with Sarah rather than SciTech?
Response:
We have more experience in the industry.
Response:
We have more general business sense.
Note:
I better make sure that I read up on all the latest innovations in chip manufacturing before I make my presentation.
Question:
How can you impress upon Motorola that your advantages are important?
Response:
Tell them stories of less experienced competitors.
Question:
What success stories could Sarah tell Motorola?
Response:
None.
Question:
What success stories could you MAKE relevant.
Response:
There was the time we reduced Apple's inventory needs by 20%.
Note:
Be sure to have Joe get me the write-up of the Apple engagement.
Question:
Who is really great at solving problems like getting Motorola's business?
Response:
John Smith the boss where I used to work.
Question:
How could Sarah get John Smith's help?
[Sarah indicates that the Sounding Board should skip this inappropriate question]
Question:
What would John Smith do in this situation that Sarah could do?
Response:
Tell a lot of good success stories.
Question:
What might keep Motorola from appreciating the advantages Sarah offers?
Response:
Our staff is young.
Response:
They might think that we are too expensive.
Response:
The MIS manager there is kind of threatened by me.
Note:
Make sure they realize that our solution is less expensive in the long run.
Question:
Who else within Motorola might be better to deal with?
Response:
Maybe the operations manager.
Note:
Make sure the operations manager is contacted about the presentation.
Question:
What recreational activities is Sarah really good at?
Response:
I'm really good at chess.
Question:
How could you apply the skills that make you good at chess to getting Motorola's business?
Response:
Maybe I should do more complex strategic planning.
[User indicates a desire to work on a new problem]
Where am I in the content of the book?
