So, You Still Want To Be A Consultant?
As featured in the AITD June 2005 edition of "Training and Development in Australia" p18 - By Reg Polson
Over the last decade, there has been a major trend to outsource most non-core business functions. This has included HR, especially training services. The result has been a boom in the consulting industry.
Ch . - C c ha . - C c hanges?
Does a boom in consulting work in your favour? Maybe not, The favourable environment for consulting is changing - especially for if you're new ones to the game . Organisations have a reasonable knowledge of which consultants are good at what . (But thankfully, high turnover and subsequent loss of this useful knowledge is still prevalent.) .
Long Long- established Training training Brokers brokers have a preference for consultants they have had continual success with and prefer to offer their clients "safe bets" (after all, that is why clients use brokers - - to eliminate risk) and are less likely to try new consultants. The choice is also much wider now than it was 10 years ago.
So, consulting is much tougher now that it was.
In addition to this, many consultants are getting back into organisations or larger consulting firms. The overwhelming reason for this is that they want to be part of a team again. They miss the stimulation of team members, intellectually and socially, and they want to see the longer term impact of their contribution to an organisation. Also, many are just sick of the administrative side of running a business - BAS statements, insurance, chasing up slow payers etc and so on . Most are prepared to drop their income by 30 to 40 % per cent in order to get back into a team.
So, c C onsulting can get lonely after 8 eight years or so.
Counter Trends trends
For every trend there is always great money to be made in the counter trend an opposi ng trend . E.g. For example, a A t the very time when organisations are tremendously cost conscious about training and trying to get as much training for the dollar as they can (big groups, shorter courses, eLearning e-learning , etc. , ) , there is a boom in coaching - an intensive , and hence expensive, one one- to to- one process.
At the time when outsourcing is the norm, a significant number of organisations are re-skilling their internal team and hiring. ( Well e E xperienced former consultants are in demand because they have a broader perspective having worked with so many clients, and have a strong business orientation, which helps them to be focused on outcomes, not politics.
And there are people successfully setting up as consultants in spite of the fact that this it is much harder than it used to be.
Consulting tips
Here are some tips for these newcomers to the consulting industry , which e . E xperienced consultants may want to use to them to review their professional practice as well. (Internal managers : - please read no further - this is secret consultant business.)
What D d o You you Want want ?
It is important to identify your underlying drives because this will help you identify what sort of consulting practice you should be working towards.
Do you want to run a business or a practice? In the latter, one tends to love the practice of consulting - training, coaching, planning etc and so on . You want to do delivery yourself because you simply LOVE love it. The financial benefits are secondary.
If on the other hand, you have a business focus, you are more likely to be looking at profit margins, hire hiring other people to do the delivery, while you network and sell. And of course, y
Y ou may want to be in consulting for work/life balance reasons. Consulting gives one the opportunity to work from home, be near young children, and determine how much work one wants to do etc your volume of work . As long as it pays its way, or is interesting, it can be worthwhile for you.
So, it is important to decide Know why you are consulting and what you want out of it.
Your Product product or Service service
Let's be unequivocal clear. W , w ith so much competition, you have to be excellent in what you do. Do what it takes to be the expert your client is hiring you to be. No amount of good marketing will disguise mediocrity.
You cannot be great at everything, so I encourage consultants to specialise in something . This also helps their makes marketing easier, as , because they become known for something. c C lients and brokers need to be able to associate you with a label. "JB - instructional designer; MR - leadership; TP - thoughtful process facilitator; BL - outstanding speaker on health" etc .
Now I know there are Of course, some people who are good at design, training and speaking in many topic areas . Unfortunately, - but they are not easy to these talented people are hard to sell to our clients , because it is hard easier to believe that they are better than specialists in these fields can do the job better and that so much talent can reside in one person . But, especially at the modest end of the market, there is still a demand for generalists. (Another successful counter trend).
So, d D efine your service clearly and excel in delivery.
Selling Your your Service service
Being a consulting is like being on Australian Idol - there is a lot of talent out there, but great success only comes to those who become well known. You need to be aware of whether Do you suffer from ' " sales distain ' ". ? Many practitioners see themselves as doing the " real work " and do not respect people who sell services. If you do not like selling and only want to do the 'real work' , you need to work with others who will help clients identify what they need and find solutions that meet those needs - i.e. sales people , (but call them "Client Managers" or "Account Managers" if you do not like the "S" word).
Here are some processes for making clients aware of what you can do for them:
. Word of Mouth mouth : Personal recommendations lead to more ongoing work than anything else. Tip: Consider thanking Thank people who recommend you to others - just a wild idea .
. Network: You have to g G o to places where you can meet prospective clients, catch up with existing ones, and meet colleagues you can learn from, or whom you can collaborate with. The AITD is an example of a network forum and you should be prepared to invest in opportunities such as their national conference. (These events and functions are useful for benchmarking yourself as well. It is interesting how many consultants believe they are the only one who provides a particular service, where in reality well well- informed buyers know they are one of many.)
. Visit Prospects prospects : This is daunting when one does not know them , and difficult with . It is also not easy even with busy existing clients because they are busy . There is a difficult balance to achieve here and one has to t T ake one's your personal comfort level into consideration . Some - some consultants excel at cold calling and have a high conversion rate from these calls. My personal style is only to call when I have something specific to talk about . (I have what Barrett Consulting, leaders in sales training, would say is "Call reluctance") .
Remember that One also needs to be mindful that internal people get a huge number of sales calls . R so one must respect their time and do something different to the others in order to gain their attention and hopefully secure a face-to- face meeting.
The bottom line is that people largely make the decision as whether or not to see you based on your reputation or from recommendations. They largely make the decision whether to hire you on how likable you are . They can only establish this , which they can only establish in an interview. As you can see, I am taking it as a given that you are good at what you do. (You can sing, you just need to get on that stage so people will send in SMS's for you.) (Yes, consider speaking at conferences as well as part of your marketing, but do not promote yourself overtly - people want content, not advertisements.). Promotional Material material
Most new consultants tend to overestimate the value of promotional material and are inclined to spend too much on it . Keep is simple and clear.
Do not underestimate the efficiency of the humble business card. Consider telling people what you do on the back so when they get back from the conference they can be reminded on why they thought you were a ' " good consultant ' " . while sharing a wine with you. ("Good guy, but cannot remember why?")
A simple to understand and use and professional looking web - site is important so that the people can find out who you are and what you do. I personally hate ones that that take longer than a nano-second to open and which are verbose.
The third essential is something like a one one- page bio you can send or leave behind. Brevity is key in a busy world - but have more material available for clients who what want more proof or detail before making a selection decision - ( they normally need this more to convince internal clients than themselves ) .
Alliances
This process is being used by more and more consultants . They , who form a network of non-competing associates and thus achieve economy of scale that way. i.e. They leverage off each other's contacts and refer clients to each other in the service areas they do specialise in.
These Alliances work well for people who come from a position of abundance, recip r ocity and collaboration.
A variant of alliance is to subcontract to other consulting firms.
Another smart way of leveraging off other people's marketing is to work through a Training Broker. Most consultants spend 40 % per cent of their time looking for work, so if someone drops an assignment in your lap, the savings for you are high.
One can of course also work for a big consulting firm and they can handle most of the marketing and sales aspects.
Working with a Big big Consulting consulting Firm
An option worth considering is working for a larger consulting firm so that you can do your consulting consult without , but not have the hassle of running your own business. This can be is a particularly good option for those with ' " sales distain ' " because many, but not all, large firms separate the sales function from the delivery function. Working in a bigger firm also gives one the benefits of being in a team.
However, one also loses autonomy. Many large consulting firms They are also are hard to get in to because they many prefer hiring people who are already successful external consultants so that they can be sure they can hit the road running . Some large ones prefer hiring smart new graduates and training them to do it "their way" . These people are very marketable after 3 three years of this training and exposure.
Buying a license for a branded consulting product is a good hybrid to consider. You get the associated status associated with a global name and service, but you retain most of your autonomy. It also means you You can focus on delivery, leaving intellectual property development to others. If the firm has dedicated Account Managers, this can release you you are released from the sales side to a large degree as well. The downside is that one you normally has have to buy into these arrangements and the good ones have a thorough accreditation process, which requires a time investment as well.
Conclusion
Consulting is harder than it was 10 years ago. It is however for most However , it is still hugely satisfying and economically rewarding. To be one of these the consultants who reap these rewards , one you have has to be clear on what one you want s , good at one what you do does , and have a process es that markets your talents.
Contact Reg at reg@regpolson.com.au
