SELECTING THE RIGHT CONSULTANT FOR YOUR BUSINESS
If you're concerned about increasing staff and costs but have projects that require immediate attention, a consultant can be your best solution. However, selecting a consultant is very different from adding your own staff. Here are some questions to ask yourself and tips to keep in mind when selecting the right consultant.
1. Should I use a consulting company or hire an individual consultant?
If you are using an individual consultant or independent contractor, then find, evaluate and choose the consultant yourself. If you use a consulting company, it does the screening for you of all team members required. A consulting company's job is to ensure that background checks and the candidates’ for your consideration have qualifications that are right and that you are presented with the best available slate of candidates.
The consulting company can become an approved vendor for you by having the appropriate insurance and internal confidentiality security measures in place. Ensure that the consultant has the resources required in management skills and experience to fulfill the job as efficiently and effectively as possible, something that is hard to find in aviation consulting.
Certain industries, and aviation is surely one of them, operate in a “village” atmosphere where everyone knows everyone else, and credibility is everything. Ensure that your consultant is managed and staffed by people recognized as experts in their field and neutral or the information will not flow. In highly competitive businesses such as airlines, airports and associated industries this is absolutely the case.
2. How to get started?
Whether you hire a company or an individual be as specific and clear as possible to match the skill set to your needs. The consultant can only be effective if they are able to manage your expectations, and that can only happen through effective communication with knowledgeable team members. Often during this stage you will find out of the consultant has in house capabilities or is relying on their brand name only, and will have to outsource to bring in expertise.
- Identify your needs. To find the best person or company, define the project requirements and deliverables. Ask yourself, “What do I really need done?” Do you need someone who can prepare and deliver a presentation to senior-level executives? Do you need someone with experience in your specific industry? We find that ex-employees or people who have worked in the industry make great candidates. Little training is needed and they navigate the company without much help.
- Select and interview the candidate. A consulting company performs the initial screening interview of their own associates. If you are on your own, you must perform this first step as well as schedule time for in-person meetings with your team and other project members to ensure they fit and will be credible.
- Check references. Again, a company will have checked references for any associates and team members for you if they put them forward as candidates. If you do this on your own don’t just ask for references; follow up with a phone call, unless your policy dictates only written communication.
Where possible, get a direct supervisor and a colleague to give different viewpoints from your own on the consulting candidates to ensure a balanced viewpoint.
If your company requires consultants to be on an approved list to qualify for tenders or contracts, research the market for the companies that can truly meet your needs and start that process in advance. Many consultants receive tenders only because they meet this requirement, not because they are the right ones for your business.
3. Don’t be afraid of a senior person performing a junior role
If you are new to selecting consultants, it can be daunting to consider a person with more experience than an employee or manager in your company would have. The tendency is to ask why someone would want to perform a lower-level assignment. Remember, this is not an employee. This is actually one of the best things that can happen, if you use it as a learning experience.
A senior person will deliver superior value on that assignment. They are there to do whatever job is required and can give you valuable assessment, feedback and guidance in as short a time as possible. In some cases through knowledge transfer and training opportunities they will leave with much more gained by your company and employees than was originally expected. Why they want this project can be as simple as it fits into their schedule.
4. Per-Day billing may cost you a lot less than fixed price
Businesses like to manage monthly expectations with a fixed budget. However, charging by the day for a seasoned consultant can be a cost effective means of staying within the budget. You are billed only for days worked. If you get an estimate of days, you can come out on top. Sign off on the billed days before invoicing so you both agree on completed deliverables. This style also allows you to ramp up days when needed and decrease it in slow times. For example, you can put more days into strategy and planning and be very tight on execution. Traditionally, travel, visas, and entertainment expenses if required are separate.
5. Understand the culture and dynamic of your team
The consultant must work well within your organization. If you are an organization with a casual atmosphere in your company and you have a consultant with a rigid formal tone, your team’s perception of them might hinder getting the job done. If your team comes into the office daily, your consultant might need to have some personal time with them to be accepted as a part of the team.
Get agreement and understanding of the consultants’ role and your mandate from team members so the consultants’ presence is completely understood. The objective is to develop a friendly, pleasant working relationship between your team and the consultant, build trust and move forward to achieve your companies goals.
These are safe guidelines, whether it’s the first time selecting a consultant or something you refer back to regularly. Add your own findings to the checklist as you gain experience and understand what you want and need in a consultant.
Contact: stan.wraight@sasi.com.hk
www.sasi.com.hk www.aerosynergies.com |
