So where do you start? - Finding a Consultant

So now that you have determined what questions you are going to ask this consultant prior to approving their work and getting started on your very important and urgent project, where do you find them?

1. Search engines: Type in several queries using as many relevant terms and key words related to your project. For example: change management, process, utilities, geographic area (last if important). Conduct a search using multiple queries to see who appears in the resulting list 1 or more times. This resulting this will provide you with a start of who you would like to review in more detail. This list should be 5-10 names long.


2. Tap into your network: Spend 20-30 minutes summarizing what you think you need and send it out to your professional network. You never know whether that person you met at that function last month might know of a consultant who just did that same thing at big company x last year!


3. Post It!: Post your need on industry related web sites. For example in the Learning and Development industry there is ASTD.org, for Human Resources there is SHRM.org and the list goes on. When you completed step 1 it should have resulted some industry related sites which would be a logical place for a posting. Job banks are not just for full-time employee postings, consultants often browse these job banks for consulting and contract opportunities. Be sure you are ready for a potential on-slaught of responses.


4. Network: Attend business networking or social networking functions. This is a great opportunity to discuss and brainstorm your current business need, get the word out that you are in need of a consultant and potentially meet or be introduced to someone who may fit the bill. If you have already met a potential consultant face-to-face, it may get you that much closer to selecting your perfect fit.

Once you have that list of consultants from the steps above, now you need to decide how to vet these resources.

1. Shorten the list: Conduct research and ask yourself some questions. Is the firm too small or large for your preference? Are they specialists or generalists in your described need? Do they have a good client list? Is there a potential for a conflict of interest within their list of clients? Are they geographically pleasing?


2. Define Your Need: Some of this may have happened slowly, some may be prescribed by the business you represent and some may be personal preference. Define and detail it all, describe the issue, the business goal/objective driving the current need, whether you would like someone on-site/local or remote, rate limitations, estimated number of hours, etc. Or just be honest in describing the need and the ideal solution and let them know you might not know how to solve it.


3. Contact Them: Contact your short list with your defined need.


4. Measure the Responses: You can tell so much from how quickly someone responds, what types of questions they ask or don't ask, whether they are quick to provide a standard solution or would like to get more information before offering some suggestions.


5. Ask Questions: In order to get an apples to apples comparison, ask the same questions of each person you talk to. It isn't always possible to meet people face to face initially these days so level the playing field by asking for a phone conference to start. Once you have your finalist then arrange for face to face time.
   
6. Short List: Create a very short list of 3-4 firms that appear to meet your requirements.


7. Get a Proposal and Presentation: Although not relevant to every consulting engagement, the way in which a person prepares and submits a proposal for a consulting engagement and then presents that information can be one of the most important measures of their skills and abilities. For example: A consultant may be more of a change management generalist without your industry experience but their written proposal and subsequent presentation just blew you away. You can then assume that they would blow away your senior sponsors and impress both verbally and in written form.


8. Get Some Free Consulting: Any consultant worth their salt will gladly give some free consulting by way of offering suggested solutions, proposing ways of more clearly defining the issue or even offering a 2 hour brainstorming session to define the business issue more concisely. Use this free consulting in two ways: find out if you could work directly with this person for the next 3 to 18 months and also to determine whether the consultant can handle the environment.
   
9. Make a Decision: Remember, this is a business decision. Don't be afraid to tell a potential vendor or consultant that they are not selected no matter how much you like them or have come to like them over the process. Your business has to make a business decision. When coming to your decision be sure to communicate: When you will make the decision, what factors are affecting your decision, what are the potential barriers and who you need to consult prior to deciding. And PLEASE.......do notify firms even if they are not selected and provide some prescriptive feedback. We want to learn where we went wrong, where we were less qualified, whether our rates were a factor and even if it was not a personality fit, but don't just let it dropped and assume the vendor will take the hint!!!!!!!

Most of my fellow consultants are now screaming at what I have just documented but once the initial shock has worn off, most will agree that the above helps the client make a sound decision and follows the process that most consultants are used to.