What's A Consultant?

Perfect example of marketing consultant 

I was sitting in class the other day, wondering what kind of precautions a consultant must take while investigating an organization. By precautions, I mean how they approach certain situations without "rocking the boat" with co-workers, supervisors, or the head boss. First of, a consultant is defined as a professional who provides professional or expert advice in a particular area in hopes of finding a solution to a problem. Consultants have a variety of fields that they provide their service to, for example; law, marketing, engineering, or any other specialized field.

 First, a consultant needs to identify the problem. The boss/director needs to be addressed first before any of the general employees. Next is brainstorming possible solutions or actions that'll resolve the problem at this organization. Most importantly, the consultant will then take action to implement the solution to the problem. The consultant will need to evaluate the solution and make sure that it's working effectively. If not, the consultant might need to re-evaluate the problem and find an alternative solution. Lastly, the consultant will need to do a follow-up with the organization to make sure that the problem has disappeared or gradually fading away. The follow-up can be a monthly check-up. The follow-up should be frequent, not yearly because then the organization will feel abandoned. If the problem doesn't seem to be solved then re-evaluation needs to take place and find a different approach to tackle this problem. Often times bosses will hire consultants even if things are running smoothly. Bosses have a curiosity to hear what the employees have to say about their position and how they think the company is running. Which is really good for a company because it maintains balance throughout the spread of the internal organization. Every company should hire a consultant every year, or when there has been a sudden shift in supervisors/bosses. Just be careful when choosing your consultant. Do your homework and talk to other companies that have had previous success with consultants.

Successful consultants

Some organizations do not hire consultants because they get the feeling that they'll cause disruption to the internal organization. The term "seagull consultants" is a joke that refers to a consultant that flies in, makes a lot of noise, eats all the food, craps all over everything, flies out-never to return. In simple words, the consultant evaluates the problem, doesn't provide an effective solution, disrupts the organization, and never follows-up. They leave a disaster and aren't returning to pick up the pieces on the ground. After the consultant leaves, things tend to be worse than they were before, and you have wasted money. To avoid hiring a seagull consultant I would advise the organization to do their homework on good consultants to ensure that they do not waste their money and time. An ideal consultant will make their changes, and after they leave the organization will work better than before and continue to be successful years down the road. The changes WILL take time to work. Do not think that after a week things will be magnificent and all the problems will be gone. So, now that you have an understanding of a consultant, do you think your job is in need of hiring a consultant?