Baby boomers are leaving the workforce at a record pace, and businesses need to account for this looming talent gap. To help meet their need for experience and expertise, many companies turn to management consultants to help smooth out the transition. Below is an overview of management consulting, as well as five things you should consider before your company signs on the dotted line.
Management consultants provide advisory services for organizations to help them with things like organizational design, corporate strategy, information technology strategy, marketing, sales and logistics. With the improvements in the economy over the last five years, company budgets are better equipped to handle the additional costs of hiring them.
According to IBISWorld’s 2015 Industry Report, this sector grew at an average annual rate of 5.2 percent to $200.6 billion over the last five years. It is expected to grow 3.6 percent annually to $239.4 billion until 2020.
Five Things to Keep in Mind before You Sign
As with any profession, not all management consultants bring the same skills, experience and expertise to the table, so it’s important to know something about your prospect before a commitment is made. If you’re hiring from one of the bigger firms, there’s a better guarantee of quality, since you’re dealing with more than a single individual (although there should be a consistent project lead).
However, the consulting industry is highly fragmented, with many independent operators in the mix. That’s why it’s important to keep a few things in mind to make sure you protect your company’s interests. Here are five things that should be included in your list:
Educational credentials: Consultants have varying educational backgrounds, but many have graduate degrees in business or a related field. In addition, some are also certified in management consulting, which can provide additional proof of the ability to operate according to industry-specific standards. One organization that offers such a certification is the Institute of Management Consultants.
Industry experience: This relates to experience in consulting as well as niche experience in your industry. Being a niche expert doesn’t mean someone knows how to keep a project on track, and vice versa. Your best bet is to find someone who can do both.
Samples and references: An experienced consultant should have work samples available of completed projects and a list of references you can contact. Even if confidentiality limits the size of a consultant’s portfolio, you should have access to some type of evidence of previous work.
Working style: Clear communication and flexibility are two traits every consultant should have. Use the interview time to assess whether the individual you’ll be working with possesses the working style that best fits your company’s needs. Consider any red flags and imagine how their working style will fit in over the course of an extensive and costly project.
Mission scope: Before you begin, it’s important that you understand your own needs as thoroughly as you can. Of course, that may be why you’re hiring a consultant in the first place, but you should have some idea of what you need before the billable hours start to add up.
If your company is struggling to make ends meet as baby boomers surge toward retirement, then hiring a consultant may be just what you need to fill in the gaps their mass exodus will create. By keeping a few key things in mind, you’ll better ensure you’ll get the help you need and the most for your money in the process.
Alison Napolitano is the Community Relations Manager at UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School.
