Reaping the Rewards of Consultants

24 February 2006

Simon Sawers, a partner in Aberdeen based corporate support consultancy firm, Facilitators UK, writes about the benefits organisations can glean by employing external consultants in-house.

Should we employ the services of consultants? This is a question that almost every organisation in the UK will have considered at some stage. Many view external consultants as an expensive resource whose work should be carried out in-house by fully-fledged employees. Whereas, other companies do successfully employ external consultants to help deliver targets and meet objectives.

So, are companies that employ consultancies more successful than those that don't? - This is a difficult question to answer. As a consultant myself, I am of the view that there is no specific right or wrong answer - it very much depends on the culture, structure and objectives of the organisation in question.

I do, however, believe that companies can potentially inherit problems by employing a consultancy.

For instance:

  • There is not the same continuity in the relationship as with an employee
  • The consultant may not immediately know the client’s business very well
  • Consultants traditionally command high fees
  • Clients have limited control over the consultant

There is no getting away from the fact that these problems can often be present. But equally there is no doubt that consultants can do an excellent job and do provide a great resource to many many companies.

The advantages include:

  • Specialist expertise
  • An external and independent point of view
  • The ability to import experience from other organisations
  • Unencumbered by organisational politics
  • Consultants can be used as and when required
  • Companies can save on tax contributions and benefit schemes by employing consultants
  • Flexibility in the relationship, with further specialist resources available if needed
  • Terminating a consultant or consultancy is easier than terminating employees

So some companies will choose to go down the consultant road and some will not.  Perhaps instead of trying to analyse and debate which is more successful, we should instead concentrate on how companies can achieve the optimum value from consultants.

From a consultant's point of view, forging good client relationships and ensuring sound lines of communication are in place are absolutely key to the delivery of a successful account.  What is the best way of achieving these conditions? There is no doubt in my mind that the answer is to bring a consultant/consultancy in-house, i.e. to employ an external consultant and to create a long-term relationship within the client’s organisation with specific goals and objectives.

Working in-house enables the consultant to develop good working relationships with staff at all levels. Engaging staff by telephone, email or the occasional meeting is not as effective as physically being part of a working environment and a member of 'the team'. The value of creating good working relationships cannot be underestimated. From a consultant's perspective an effective flow of information, good communication channels and access to key staff ensures that good working relationships are established. Working in-house enables the consultant to see how the organisation works from the inside and provides a deeper understanding of the business.

What I find most rewarding as a consultant working in-house is the ability to directly influence the organisation from within. As a Partner of Facilitators UK, I have wide experience of working in-house with clients and in doing so I get a genuine sense of satisfaction in adding real value to my client's operations. I do not believe my work with clients would be as successful if I work as an external consultant. However, as a consultant working in-house I can form strong relationships with key staff, I can develop a deep knowledge and understanding of my client's business and additionally I can incorporate ideas and frameworks from Facilitators UK into the organisation, all significant contributing factors toward delivering client satisfaction.

Indeed at Facilitators UK we strongly advocate to clients the benefits that can be gained by contacting consultants in-house. As a corporate support consultancy we help client organisations to improve their performance by calling on our expertise in delivering changes through people, operations and strategy. As leaders in our field, an element of our success can be contributed to the amount of work that we carry out working as consultants within a client's premises.

In addition to the advantages highlighted above, the employer can also enjoy a number of benefits by contracting external consultants in-house. For example: the consultant is easily accessible; able to consistently deliver; has a set of clear objectives to adhere to; has good working relationships established, with the connection growing deeper and richer over time adding further value to the client. Furthermore, an in-house consultant can remain somewhat aloof to office politics with no need to become embroiled in issues surrounding pay, promotion, etc that often results in negative tensions.

The external consultant is faced with many issues to overcome in order to deliver a successful and rewarding service for their clients. By employing an external consultant in-house an environment is created whereby the consultant can work most effectively and efficiently, thereby delivering the best possible value to the client. Indeed a successful in-house consultant can negate many of the disadvantages that can be associated with hiring consultants that I outlined earlier.

Further Information

Please contact Simon Sawers for further details.

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