You are on a consulting team and the client hasn't provided essential data two days before the deadline. What would you do?

Situation

This reminds me of a situation during my junior year at university when our capstone group was consulting for a small coffee shop owner. We needed financial records to analyze cost structures, but the owner delayed providing them until the week before our final presentation.

Task

I needed to ensure we still delivered a meaningful analysis without the complete data, while maintaining a positive relationship with the client and keeping my team on track.

Action

First, I contacted the owner via a polite email and follow-up call, explaining the urgency and offering to visit the shop to pick up the documents personally. When he still couldn't provide them immediately, I worked with my team to identify proxy metrics we could use, such as industry benchmarks and supplier invoices. I also prepared a contingency plan that outlined two scenarios: one with the actual data if received later, and one with the proxy data. I communicated this transparently to the client, emphasizing our commitment to the project.

Result

The owner appreciated our proactiveness and provided partial data two days before the deadline. We integrated it into our analysis, and our presentation highlighted both the estimated and actual cost structures. We received an A for the course, and the client mentioned he valued our resourcefulness and clear communication.