A decision regarding the continuation of a successful consultation is obviously quite difficult. In some instances, the consultation should be continued, and the client and consultant should return to one of the two previous contracting stages (Two or Six). The intervention may have opened up a new set of questions that can be answered only by returning to the information-oriented stages. In other instances, the consultant and client will begin planning for another intervention.
If a decision is made to conclude or terminate the consultation, the client and consultant should take time to reflect on what they have learned from the consultation, both personally and professionally. If the consultation has been successful, then the client and consultant should take time to celebrate their mutual achievement. Neither party can be successful without the good intentions and competency of the other party.
Looking Forward
With this introduction to the models and processes of consultation, we turn in the next set of essays to a particular approach to organizational consultation that builds primarily on the fourth Model of Consultation and that relates specifically to the intervention stage of organizational consultations. This approach is appreciative in nature and concerns the processes not just of change but also of stabilization. It builds on the existing strengths and successes of the organization with which the consultation is working and on the capacity of the client to move into the domains of information, intentions and ideas within her organization.
