5 Benefits of Hiring a Business Consultant

Trying to decide if you want to bring in a business consultant? 

‍

It doesn’t have to be a difficult decision. There are many reasons companies like yours may look to an outside consultant. You might need help bringing a fresh perspective and dedicated support to a large project. Or if you’re looking to enter a new market or win complex government contracts, a contractor will have experience to guide you through the process. Or maybe you just need help strategizing an all-encompassing brand refresh and need consulting services to help focus your ideas, ask the right questions, and guide you to the best messaging. 

‍

Business consultants may feel like a big expense, but when you look at what your company truly needs, plan for how you want to utilize a consultant, and develop a business strategy for getting the most momentum from hiring an outside perspective, you’ll be able to drive business growth much faster and in more streamlined ways than trying to do it yourself. 

‍

So let’s take a look at some of the reasons a business consultant will help your organization. 

‍

Five Ways a Consultant Can Add Immediate Value for Business Owners
‍

1. Neutrality: Job descriptions often call for candidates with a “passion” for elements of the role at hand. From leaders to every level of an organization, we all put a certain amount of emotional investment in our work, and that’s a good thing! It’s what gets us out of bed in the morning. 

‍

But it’s also what can make us cling to ideas and processes that may not be the most lucrative option. At the other end of the spectrum, even the best teams can sometimes “check out” and unintentionally operate on autopilot for far too long. An outside consultant provides a holistic view and an impartial understanding of what your company needs (whether that’s marketing or pursuit efforts or whatever area of expertise the consultant has). This expert advice ensures both cost savings in the near term, and a clear-eyed focus on the ideas and problem-solving processes that will best benefit your organization in the long term. 

‍

2. An eye from the outside: Just like you might seek a second opinion on important health issues, a second opinion is invaluable in your business as well. When faced with big decisions, engaging business consulting services can help you see solutions that you may have missed by being too close to the challenge. They also can help refine your position and messaging, ensuring you can effectively communicate your critical differentiators or strategic planning with others outside your organization. Knowing how and when to ask the right questions helps them get a fresh perspective that ensures your team doesn’t get lost in the weeds. 

‍

One other large benefit is that consultants work with many companies, so they bring best practice knowledge and valuable insights from other companies in your industry or at your size.

‍

3. Skills within a timeframe: You might hire a specialist with a skill set that you need right now but don’t need for the long term. This type of consultant will lay the groundwork for your strategy by performing research on market trends, building out your website, setting up your CRM system, writing a winning proposal, or creating a suite of collateral materials. A consulting firm might also provide coaching and training for your staff and sales team. This is critical for a small business who doesn’t have the resources to invest long-term for short-term needs. Using a consultant for initiatives with a hard deadline ensures you don’t have to keep paying for it beyond when you need it. 

‍

On the other hand, you might need a pinch hitter; someone who can jump in and provide extra horsepower when your team is swamped. This can be a time when you’re receiving a lot of proposals or building marketing campaigns with deadlines that don’t allow enough time to hire and train a new employee. An experienced consultant will be able to get started and ramped far more quickly, ensuring teams meet deadlines. 

‍

4. Flexibility: Hiring a consultant allows you to propose on your sweet-spot projects or develop a new marketing campaign even when you’re not fully staffed to handle it. As your needs fluctuate and grow, a consultant helps you fill in the gaps. This can be especially effective if you want to try out new processes or establish a new framework to support a competitive advantage. Hiring a consultant with a skill set designed to solve a specific problem or develop a new process is a practical solution to testing and flushing out these processes before your company needs to fully invest in them. You can see if they work, test different ways of problem solving issues, and get your team aligned before committing more permanent resources. 

‍

The role of a business consultant can also be an ongoing, extended member of your team. Building long term relationships with consultants provides the added benefit of knowing exactly whom to call for your current need — whether it’s change management consulting or social media expertise.

‍

5. Quality, speed, and cost effectiveness: With a consultant, you are not just hiring a single person with a single skill set. Often when working with firms like Summit Strategy, you have a team of specialists at your fingertips, from strategists, proposal managers, digital marketing specialists, writers, designers, project management professionals, and more. Because these individuals have often worked together on previous projects, they are able to provide value on Day 1 of the engagement. There is no ramp-up time, human resources hurdles to overcome, or training to provide. The consulting team simply comes in and gets the job done – for a fraction of what it would cost to hire a team of specialists.

‍

Choosing the Right Consultant for Your Company

‍

Choosing the right consultant or business consulting firm starts with finding someone who has the expertise to address your specific challenges. But before you jump in headfirst to the consultant pool, you’ll need a clear understanding of your current needs, future objectives, and the outcomes you expect after hiring the consultant. 

‍

Then have an open mind—a fresh perspective and outside opinion are key benefits of hiring a consultant, so don’t overlook innovative solutions that may differ from your usual approach.

‍

Here are a few steps to help guide your search whether you’re looking for management consulting or someone who can help take your startup to the next level of profitability:

‍

1. Ask questions. While it’s important to ensure the consultant has industry expertise, it’s also important to understand how they would approach your particular challenges. Ask them to walk you through their approach to your challenges. Consider how their approach aligns with your company’s workflows. Find out how they will collaborate with your team. Evaluate whether their solutions will improve your processes.
2. Understand experience. Look at their background and expertise. Ask for case studies or examples of how they help businesses similar to yours—whether in industry, size, or type of challenge. You can also request references or review testimonials. Look at the collective years of experience of the team member across the various industries you need support for. A successful business consultant agency will have highly experienced team members in their respective fields.
3. Decide on size. Larger consultant firms will have broader reach, more experts to leverage on your behalf, and well-established processes to solve your specific challenges or complex problems. Small firms or independent consultants will likely be more flexible and adaptable to your organization’s current workflows, offering more personalized services. Discuss with your internal team supporting these professional services on what will work best to coordinate business processes and business operations. They’ll have valuable insights on what size of consulting firm will help most. 
4. Consider cost. Hiring a consultant can be more cost-effective than bringing on a full-time employee, but make sure you’re clear on the full cost of services. Some consultants charge by the hour, while others operate on a retainer or project-based fee. Knowing their pricing structure from the outset will help your financial planning and make a business plan around their services.
5. Build a strong relationship. A successful consulting relationship relies on clear communication and mutual trust. Establishing a framework for open communication at the start ensures both sides are aligned on expectations. This foundation will help maintain a productive partnership for as long as your business needs support.

‍

Whether you are a large, established corporation or a growing company, hiring a consultant is a value-add that will strengthen your team and contribute to your growth. Summit Strategy partners with market leaders who set industry trends by helping them plan, develop, measure, and expand their business.

‍