Consultative roles are both vilified and admired in the private business sector where dichotomous perspectives exist. One person may view consultants like seagulls who swoop in, relieve themselves all over everything, and then take off and disappear. Another person may have a dedicated line item in their budget for consultants and use them regularly, valuing their insight, impact, and contribution. While the consultant field contains both good and bad consultants, the need for consultant work is real, and finding the right one for your business is what matters.
Consultants Provide Unbiased Perspective
Corporate innovative consulting works because it allows for an unbiased third party with no preconceived notions of the workplace to provide input without fear of reprisal and without being hindered by groupthink. Consultants do not have to worry about advancement, workplace tensions, or cultural issues when it comes to delivering their insight. This frees them up to be transparent, honest, and straightforward in their delivery. When employees are in the thick of things, it is hard to see the forest for the trees. Consultants can separate themselves from the minutiae and be highly effective.
Consultants Have Access to Best Practices
Consultants who have worked with numerous clients have seen the good, the bad, and the ugly. Whatever struggles a company may be facing, a seasoned consultant has probably seen it before and can provide insight and guidance. Whether the issue stems from process inefficiencies, cultural milieu, strategic planning, leadership development, or something else, the right consultant has seen it, addressed it, and can provide solutions that may not otherwise be known.
Consultants Can Be a Safe Space for Owners to Strategize and Process
Business owners have a problem. They are at the top, and the top can be a lonely place to be. There are some challenges a CEO or President may have that he or she is not able to process with anyone either due to the sensitive nature of data and its impact on the company or personal nature of the issue and the desire to self-protect due to their position. A consultant can be a safe place to strategize, run ideas by, vent, and receive feedback. Just make sure they sign a non-disclosure agreement!
Within any field, there are highly-skilled, seasoned professionals as well as inefficient inept players. Assuming one identifies the former, consultants can provide great benefits to a company and its leader. The unbiased perspective they offer, the access to best practice sharing the have, and the fact that they can act as a safe, confidential place to vet ideas and issues are just three of the many reasons they work.
