5 Reasons To Hire A Management Consultant

Often over the past year, we found ourselves describing what we do as Management Consultants. So we figured, why not start the year out by sharing with you what we do as hired consultants and how we can provide a valuable service to your organization or business?

The definition of a consultant is "an expert in a particular field who works as an adviser either to a company or to another individual."

In other words, Management Consultants (or MCs) help businesses improve their performance through management and leadership. Our passion is HOW a business works – its strategy, structure, management and operations. As management consultants, BridgeBuilder Education & Investments helps businesses improve and grow by solving problems and finding new and better ways of performing. Our client organizations are typically businesses, but we also specialize in advising governmental agencies and education organizations.

We are unbiased third parties that have no vested interest in relationships or “the way we've always done things.” We simply try to help organizations see their situation differently in order to free them to do what they are in business to do. What separates a good consultant from a bad consultant is a passion and drive for excellence, and a good consultant should be knowledgeable about the subject he or she is consulting in (i.e. management).

When we are hired by organizations, two things are typically true: A problem needs to be solved, and it needs to be solved quickly. So here’s how the MCs at BridgeBuilder Education & Investments can help you and why you should consider hiring us as a consultant for your organization:

1. Providing Expertise.

This is where it pays to not only be really good in the field you have chosen to consult in, but to have some type of background that speaks for itself. For example, at BridgeBuilder Education & Investments, collectively we are certified in aligning services with the needs of business. We are certified Project Management Professionals (PMP), Engineering/Computer Science trained, and management-credential individuals. Therefore, it makes sense to hire someone who has the credentials to perform these specialized duties for other companies.

By engaging a consulting firm, you get access to professionals that have skills that would not only be expensive to hire for, but your company might not have enough work to keep said employees busy year round. However, thanks to consultants, companies can acquire those skill sets and knowledge base on demand when they need it.

2. Supplementing Your Staff.

Sometimes a business discovers that it can save thousands of dollars a week by hiring consultants when they are needed, rather than hiring full-time employees. Businesses realize they can save additional money by not having to pay benefits for consultants they hire.

Additionally, companies may not have the manpower to focus on addressing its problems. Companies still have to focus on their day-to-day operations, after all, and new orders typically require reprioritizing employees’ core responsibilities. Since surge orders are typically one-offs, hiring new employees to fill these gaps doesn’t always make sense either.

In instances like this, consultants basically serve as temporary, highly-skilled employees. We’re not full-time employees of the company, so it is often cheaper to use us than hire someone new. Since we actually have a background working for mission-critical systems and projects, the consultants at BridgeBuilder Education & Investments are used to a fast learning curve, and onboarding us is easier. By using consultants, a business doesn’t have to pull their employees away from their actual jobs either!

3. Acting as a Catalyst.

Changes bring challenges, which is why many avoid change, especially in corporate America. But sometimes change is needed, and a consultant may be brought in to "get the ball rolling." In other words, the consultant can do things without worrying about the company culture, employee discontent or other factors that are considered when an organization wishes to implement change.

4. Providing Objectivity.

We provide an objective, fresh viewpoint. It’s sort of like when you’re dealing with an issue in your life, and you turn to friends and family for their opinions. Sometimes companies need this also, especially when making tough decisions. Our clients often times have a perspective on how to solve the problem they are facing but want to make sure that what they are thinking is correct, or perhaps they are so close to the challenge that they are missing the obvious answer. That’s when they turn to us to come and provide our perspective.

Since we have worked with many different companies and may have worked through similar problems in the past with another company, we can really provide a perspective based on what we have seen work (or not) before. Given this experience, we can often bring new and innovative ideas or possible challenges to the table that clients probably would not have been able to see on their own.

5. Doing What May Be Unpleasant.

Rarely does a person want to be the person who has to make cuts in the staff or to eliminate an entire division.

Clients tend to engage us for restructurings or controversial projects so that they can ensure they are handled by an external party that is experienced in and somewhat removed from the activities. We have been a part of companies working on a challenging problem or a controversial project, where it may be hard for them to make decisions or take the necessary actions. Therefore, they bring us in as the consultants to provide an unbiased eye and take on those actions for them.

In this capacity, we provide a back-up and confirmation for a client attempting to implement a critical change that may not be well-received within an organization.

Conclusion

As you can imagine, as consultants we support companies in a variety of ways—and we dig into a lot of tough situations. As problem-solvers, those are the situations that drive us to develop viable solutions.

Management Consultants (or MCs) should be an intricate part of your business leadership and culture. We have discovered that hiring consultants and outside experts can save a company time and money in the long haul. It also can increase your competitiveness and professionalism.

Now, what's going on in your business? What needs or challenges could be solved by hiring us your MC?

DeWayne Johnson, PMP (dewayne.johnson@iamabridgebuilder.us) is a Co-Founder and Business Management Consultant with BridgeBuilder Education & Investments, which provides consulting for businesses interested in ways to improve process, strategy, leadership, and staff development. For more information, please visit www.bridgebuilderinvestments.com. You can ‘like’ the company on Facebook: www.facebook.com/iamabridgebuilder and ‘follow’ them on Twitter: @BBEInvestments. You can also connect with DeWayne Johnson on LinkedIn.