These days, many businesses are forced to pivot away from traditional sales strategies to succeed in an increasingly challenging market. And as these challenges in the market arise, more and more people seem to be coming out of the woodwork to market themselves as “business consultants.” But what do these consultants do? And can they actually help your business?
This article is here to help you assess your company’s needs and define what a successful business consultant would do for your business so you can make an informed choice.
General Goals of a Consultant
A business consultant’s general role is to improve specific statistics regarding a business’s performance and efficacy. Primarily, businesses hire consultants to focus on external sales goals or internal management goals. These categories are then further subdivided, so your business can track specific figures to show progression.
A consultant’s external goals include improving sales figures, helping lower customer conversion costs, or even improving advertisement click-through rate. On the other hand, internal goals a consultant would be hired for often include improving employee retention, helping define HR policies, or identifying redundancies across a company.
So, before entertaining the idea of a consultant at your place of business, it is important to identify the goal or set of goals you’d like a consultant to work towards.
Types of Consultants
As mentioned previously, there are various consultants you can bring on to tackle internal or external problems. When working on external problems, common specialties among consultants are SEO based, marketing strategy, and product packaging. Internal issues consultants will often market themselves in the realms of leadership, HR, and even DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion).
Sometimes experienced consultants, like UConn MBA Jasdeep Singh, will be able to bring a multidisciplinary approach when they work with your company. Having a consultant working from both an internal and external perspective can be a worthwhile investment. Firstly, the company won’t have to explain and re-explain the company culture to multiple consultants as they help you solve problems, which saves a ton of cost in man-hours. Meanwhile, some external problems stem from internal issues and vice-versa, so having a consultant who is versed in a more holistic approach to solving problems often can more quickly rectify whatever issue needs to be tackled.
Is It Worth the Investment?
In an age of budget slashing and belt-tightening, companies can make it difficult to put aside money to hire outside consultants. But if your problem can’t be solved in house, then an outsider can be worth the funds. Additionally, consultants are often worth their cost if a company has already tried and failed to solve the problem. There’s nothing wrong with bringing in an outside resource if those on your staff already have a full plate.
If you are struggling to justify a consultant’s costs to a higher-up at your corporation, It’s best to start with and consultant who can have their work reflected monetarily. For example, you may not want to start with an individual specializing in leadership or diversity equity and inclusion. In contrast, their work is much harder to quantify than someone who can directly increase sales figures. After you’re able to reflect numbers on paper, you may justify the funding for other aspects of consultancy to those higher up.
In The End
All in all, specialized consultants can bring a great perspective, actionable items, and problem-solving skills to a situation that your company could be stuck in. When your company can connect with business consultants who make a difference, approach work holistically and help fine-tune the workplace process. It is more than worth the investment. Look for a great local consultant in your area today!
