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There are two
broadly different approaches to hiring consultants. The first one might be called the either/or
school because it assumes that you can either ask an outsider to energize the
company by sharing knowledge and expertise or you can develop answers to your
organization's problems by yourself. The
other one might be called the both/and school as it tends to underline the role
of both the consultant and the client in creating effective responses for
organizations. These two approaches can
be seen as two opposing points on a long scale that accommodates a great
variety of choices. Recently, there has
been more trust in solutions that stress collaboration between consultants and
clients.
By definition,
consulting services are needed when an organization cannot deal with an issue
by its own resources or it would be too expensive or complicated to involve its
own staff. External perspective and
counsel are seen as a viable remedy. However, every organization holds a pool of expertise and self-healing
energy that can be activated and leveraged to help it thrive. More often than not, it is in everybody's
interest to release it and channel properly so that solutions do not come
entirely from the outside, even if an outsider is hired to think them up.
If consultants do
not take up this sort of approach, they risk undermining sources of knowledge
inside the organization. While the
transfer from external sources can still be impactful and effective, it might
not do much good to an organization's confidence and ability to get motivated
in the face of trouble.
Totally external
consulting that does not tap internal resources also undercuts
independence. The best consulting services
work towards helping an organization achieve autonomy so that when they walk
away it is strong and energized enough to prosper on its own. In fact, this does not apply only to solving
a particular problem at hand, but developing an ability to tackle potential
future setbacks with confidence and without having to resort too much to outside
expertise.
In many ways,
whether a consultant assumes one approach or the other depends on the
client. They need to be able to resist a
temptation to outsource the entire problem and, in particular, stay away from
the thinking process that leads to its solution. Outsourcing responsibility
rarely ends in success while entering a meaningful cooperation, and expecting
one from consultants, often does.
Business Educators
is an innovative online resource that allows you to engage with and hire top US
business academics with front-line experiences in consulting services.
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