Let’s look at what are consultants, what do they do and why do you need them for your business? The definition of a consultant as per Wikipedia is “A professional who provides expert advice in a particular area such as security management, education, accountancy, law, human resources, marketing, finance, engineering, science or any of the many other specialised fields.
A consultant is an individual who has an expertise in a particular field and has vast knowledge and experience in that said field. Consultants can be internal or external consultants. An internal consultant is a part of the organisation and provides consultation in a particular area to other teams or individuals who act as the client. An external consultant is usually employed for a client either directly by the client or a consulting firm, whose expertise is provided on a temporary basis at a certain fee.
Consultant firms come in many sizes ranging from sole proprietorships, small, large to the multinational consulting firm. By hiring a consultant, the clients can available in-depth expertise of a said field, which may not be economical to retain in-house or on long terms basis. Most clients optimise this expense by purchasing limited services required.
Now, a business is generally a small aggregation of a group of skills which are effectively harboured to derive a singular outcome. This can be derived from a single person, a small group of people or a large group of people. At times due to external economic, socio-political or other unforeseen circumstances, a certain set of expertise skills are called for, which may not be available at the time within the organisation or a business. This is where a consultant comes in, employing a special consultant can give access to the skills needed to combat the given situation and provide an objective external eye which at times is needed when it comes to dealing with a particular set of problem, which people involved with it every day may fail to notice.
Typically a consultant is responsible for reassessing a situation and provided solutions for a problem or a set of problems. This article, by Site Suite, sheds light on the various functions a consultant serves for a client and how to determine whether your business needs a consultant or not.
Like stated before, consultants specialise in a set field or a cluster of related fields, which leaves us with the questions – what are the various types of consultants out there and what type of consultant is required for your business. Let’s look at a few types of consultants and what do they bring to the table.
Human Resources Consultants
Need help with attracting, retaining and training labour? HR consultants will make this job several levels easier. In case of small or medium size businesses, retaining an entire HR team may not be a viable expense. In such cases, HR consultants can come in and help coordinate between the candidate and the company; they can help devise training programs, retaining strategy and also see if the company is labour and other union laws complaint.
Health and Safety Consultants
There are several risks when it comes to both the construction and operation of office spaces. There are many charges levied on those commissioning, designing, constructing and operating buildings to control those risks. Health and Safety consultants play a pivotal role in ensuring that these risks are taken care of and that the workplace meets all the necessary safety regulations.
Strategy/ Management Consultants
Strategy or Management consultants help an organization re-access their operational strategy and look for shortcomings and help come up with solutions to rectify them. It pays a key role in technology implementation and workflow management.
Technology Consultants
Technology consultants facilitate the growth of an organization by employing technological solutions to solve operational lags. In other words, they are responsible for integrating advanced technological functions in the everyday operations of the client and hence optimizing the company’s performance.
Legal Consultants
The primary role of legal consultants is to solve legal issues faced by an organization in various areas such as – employment, banking, contract, corporate, intellectual properties, tax, real estate, information technology and trust.
Financial Consultants
Financial or Investment consultants, primarily known as financial advisors or financial analysts are experts who access the market trends, stocks values, taxes and other economic factors and help a client or an organization decide whether an investment is profitable or not. It also helps the company cut costs and optimize their turn-over with effective financial solutions.
IT Consultants
IT consultants also known as information system consultants, system applications consultants, data management consultants, network consultants etc help a client device the best IT solution for their organization. They help the client pick out the best computer hardware, software, network and data security solutions to optimize the workflow.
Marketing Consultants
Marketing consultant’s job is to devise strategies that help the organization reach its targeted consumer via improved promotional, sales and distribution solutions. In simpler words, they help the organization get their brand name, product, service in the public eye which in turns increases their sales and overall development. A single marketing firm may provide solutions for various marketing mediums or may come as specialized in a particular field such as digital marketing consultants, web marketing consultants, social media marketing consultants etc.
PR or Public Relations Consultants
PR consultants work as the key to establishing a favourable image of an organization in the public eye or the market. They devise strategies that help put the best word out in the market to attract potential employees, investors, partners etc. In simpler words, they help control what others think of the company products, policies, and people.
These are some of the different branches of consultancy services available to a business – big or small. In some instances, a single consultancy firm may cater to all these sectors or may specialize in one or two key areas. Some firms even provide consultancy based on various sectors, they provide consultancy for agricultural businesses, banking, entertainment sector, start-up etc. Employing consultants can help detect shortcomings in key drivers of business such as marketing, sales, operations, technology etc. The expert inputs provided by the consultants can help a business recognizes these missed opportunities, and aid their overall growth.
Here’s an article that lists world’s top consultancy firms; which can help narrow down the process of shortlisting. Also, an article that explores 5 things to look for when hiring a consultancy firm.