The Tribune

By D’Arcy Rahming

The old joke is that a consultant borrows your watch to tell you what time it is. One of my professors in business school used to say: ‘Always hire a consultant and then you will have a scapegoat should things go wrong’. He was kidding, I think. Every business, from time to time, needs a consultant to come in and take a look at its marketing or operations. The idea is that the consultant should be able to provide some new insights and take you to a higher level.

This article will provide some tips to make sure you always get your money’s worth. Consultants can, unfortunately, hurt you more than help you if the relationship is not properly managed. Here are a few rules I have learned through extremely painful experience. I am assuming that you have selected competent consultants that really do have some value to give.

First, never give a consultant executive power. That means they should have no decision-making power in your business. Why? Because a manager’s skill set is different from that of a consultant. Just because a consultant can point out a problem, and/or provide suggestions for improvements, does not mean they can necessarily fix the problem. You will create chaos in your organisation if you place consultants above your line staff and management. Resistance and resentment will reign supreme.

Second, be very clear as to what both his/her responsibilities and accountabilities are. A consultant’s task should be well defined to avoid confusion, and to know when a job has been delivered. It is very easy to start out with one objective in mind, then move to another. This is called scope creep, and leads to disappointing results.

Third, always have an exit strategy. If you are not happy with the work being performed, you need to know how you are going to make adjustments or terminate an agreement. Make sure you know who owns what, and who has a right to use what. Some persons unscrupulously apply a ‘pain of disconnect’ strategy. For example, they will hold on to all leads generated. Or, when asked to develop technology, they will retain ownership.

Review all agreements with the end in mind, no matter how good you think your relationship is. Complex agreements are often brought before lawyers, which is only a good step if the lawyer is knowledgable about the subject area being discussed. It is better to have someone knowledgable about the inner workings of technology, software licensing, data ownership etc. review your contracts before signing.

Finally, a disturbing, yet human, condition is that consultants often over value their contribution to the project. It is very important that the consultant be reminded that he or she is working for you, and that while you value the advice, the buck stops with you.

NB: D’Arcy Rahming holds an MBA from the prestigious Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. A lecturer at the College of the Bahamas, Mr Rahming has clients in general insurance, retail, the health and medical fields, sports federations and financial services. To receive his marketing newsletter FREE go to http://darcyrahming.com