Consultants are a dime a dozen… fact or fiction?  While it’s true that there is an abundance of people calling themselves consultants, they certainly do NOT charge by the dime.  Consider some of the factors to consider before hiring the perfect fit for yourself or your firm:

Fact or fiction

There is a difference between an expert, mediator and a consultant.  FACT!  An expert specializes in a field while a consultant may be more generalized and the mediator is a whole different category.  One thing for sure, consultants are challenged in this day and time to be unique or become antiques.

Fact or fiction

I can only hire a consultant by the hour.  FICTION!  Supply and demand have opened creative options all to the clients benefit.  Due to supply and demand, consultants have become very creative.  You can negotiate by the hour, project and/or ‘add ons’ including seminars, product knowledge, software engineering, webinars, and training courses. For instance, I offer a Leadership Bootcamp that includes crisis management complete with soft and hard drills after conducting a company assessment to determine how to customize to their best advantage.

Fact or fiction

My company would be better served by using in-house talent rather than outsourcing. FACT AND FICTION!  What is the ROR (rate of return) expected? What will your employee not be doing while acting in a different role? Will the employee base accept them as well as the well known expert that lives 50 miles away?

Fact or fiction

A consultant will fix it.  FICTION!  Depending on what needs to be fixed.  Primarily, the role changes along the way.  Was the consultant hired to help the executive team with planning, processes and people development?  Was he or she hired by a board of directors to help govern?  Who identified the need to begin with and what is the definition and expectation of what should be the end result.  Is that expectation fact or fiction – realistic or fantasy – based on wants or needs?

Perhaps we should have called this truth or consequences.  If the truth be known, why did (or would) you hire a consultant?  Keep in mind it all starts with the expectation of the client, the culture of the firm and the willingness to devote the time, talent and budget to make it worthwhile.  Motivation creates behavior.  Behavior creates consequences and that’s a FACT!