When to hire a consultant
By Dr. Thomas L. Landers -- Modern Materials Handling, 6/1/1998
Have you been considering hiring a consultant? In this age of the virtual organization, partnerships with consultants are increasingly common.Reasons to hire or partner include: (1) Due to downsizing there may not be enough staff to do a big project. (2) Perhaps there are some tough and risky decisions ahead and you want someone from outside to take the heat. (3) And there's also the magic bullet approach; it goes something like this: "Company X brought in Consultants ABC and had great success, so we should do the same."
These three examples are typical; but they are inconsistent with the tenants of change management cited in the December 1997 installment of this column and repeated again here (sidebar).
All three situations illustrate poor reasons to partner. Each indicates a lack of trust in internal resources. And unless your own people are involved in the project or decision making, an outsider's brilliant ideas are doomed to failure.
Why should you hire a consultant? To obtain expertise and access to leading-edge technology. Seek consultants who can help empower employees, explain concepts, recommend sound design principles, and provide enabling tools and technologies.
Once you have identified a valid need for outside consultants, here are some pointers leading to a successful partnership. One of the best ways to identify good consultants is by the recommendations of trusted friends. To find the real innovators, look for those who invest heavily in research and development and maintain close ties with university research centers and national laboratories.
Beware of consultants who propose to do only strategic planning or training, and won't commit to stay with you throughout the change process. Also avoid consultants who give new names to old ideas. Verify that the senior people who make the initial contacts with your company or organization will stay involved throughout the consulting engagement. Your people will quickly recognize the naivete and inexperience of junior consultants, no matter how bright and energetic.
Do not promote infighting among factions or among levels of management by hiring multiple consultants with competing visions. Consultants tend to have big egos and a strong profit margin. If matched in competition, some will pursue self-interests and the results on your project could be disastrous.
Hiring a consultant can be a good move in managing change. Be sure you have the right reason(s) and choose the right firm for the job.
Seven tenants of change management
1. Trust people
2. Involve associates early and often
3. Explain the goal and the concepts
4. Use sound design principles
5. Provide enabling tools and technology
6. Follow through on good suggestions
7. Celebrate successes
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