Choosing a Consultant
From Wikipractice
Contents |
Introduction
To evaluate and choose consultants' firm, the customer has to consider the competence of the staff and the specific knowledge relative to the problem to be study. In fact, the important is to hire a consultant who will bring an additional value to the company.
There are several types of consultants' firms. Every firm offers various services according to its size. For example, certain national firms have staff in certain key markets with the aim of offering a better service to their customers.
Several accountings' important firms offer a staff of consulting in management to their regional offices. Certain firms offer a complete service of consultation to answer any sorts of demands. Certain consultants can act as general practitioners or specialists for certain problems.
To facilitate the process of evaluation and the choice of the most qualified firm, consultants' firms were grouped together according to three categories:
National or international firms
These firms offer a big variety of services and arrange numerous competent consultants. However, as they can face a movement of staff at the level of the execution of the projects, it is important for the customer to know the consultants who will be realizing the work.
Regional average firms
These firms generally group together from ten to fifty consultants, often very competent, with a rate of movement lower than that of the national firms. These firms specialize in certain sectors of the company and their fixing of a price scale is generally less brought up than in the national firms.
Independent consultant
In the last category, we find the independent consultant who acts is as specialist or as general practitioner. The consultant specialist concentrates in a sector such, for example, the training, the data processing, or in an industry as the transport, the communications, etc.
The non-specialized consultant, as for him, with a very good basic training and a many years' experience in the industry or in the consultation, can offer a very valid expertise. He presents the advantage to offer a continuance with certain customers with whom he works on a long period of time.
The relation of long-term confidence which he develops is generally superior to that of the other categories of consultants. And his rates can be lesser, not having to support of high expenses of administration.
