During my tenure of employment in Corporate America I had the experience of working with and/or engaging MANY external resources, on a contract / consulting basis.
And, I’m pleased to report that Customer Centricity has been providing such services to help our NUMEROUS clients achieve important corporate initiatives – for over 14 years!
I’m not going to say that “we have seen it all” as that would be presumptuous. I will say that we’ve definitely seen a lot.
What strikes us the most is when we observe our clients wasting money on, and precious time with, ineffective (as well as effective) consulting resources.
It is with this in mind (helping to ensure you get the most from your consulting dollars) that we share this series of short articles.
First, let’s summarize…
The primary reason to engage a consultant / contract resource (or team of resources) is to cost effectively obtain access to a particular set of skills that are only needed on a temporary basis to complete a project and/or fill a void until a highly qualified, permanent employee is hired.
The key operators here are:
- Cost Effective
- Particular Skill Set
- Temporary
While we have found there are many reputable firms that provide resources which meet or exceed these expectations, there are just too many that do not. And, even if we are working with a highly effective consulting firm, if we (being the client) don’t properly manage these resources there can be a number of unfortunate outcomes.
The unfortunate outcomes can include but are not necessarily limited to:
- Missed goals and objectives
- Significant cost overruns and timeline slippages
- Embarrassing meetings with the project Steering Committee, Senior Management, Board of Directors, Audit Committee, etc.
I hate that…
The situation caused me pain, even embarrassment, as a manager in Corporate America. More recently, we’ve observed our clients experience it, after repeatedly having the “opportunity” to work side-by-side ineffective, costly consultants from other firms and/or witnessing consulting resources simply not being properly managed by the client.
I suspect you have directly or indirectly felt the pain as well.
There is a better way. A much better way!
In subsequent posts we’ll cover the all too-typical realities experienced when engaging consulting firms and how you can get far more value from your consulting dollars than you may be receiving today.
Stay tuned!
Customer Centricity 