Are You Looking Forward to Starting a Business Consultancy Career?
The following insights may impact your decision.
College graduates and young experienced professionals often wonder whether consulting is the right career option for them. If this sounds like you, you’ve come to the right place. When deciding whether or not you should pursue a career in business consulting, be sure to consider the following insights about this career option:
Consulting is All About Soft Skills
Did you know that all of the Big Four firms started out as auditors? The term “auditor” was derived from the Latin word, “audire,” which means “to listen.” In everything consultants do, listening is the most critical skill because their work largely involves efficient collaboration with management, team members, and clients. As a consultant, you’ll meet a lot of people, which is why you should know how to build relationships, sometimes from scratch.
Therefore, if not anything else, you must possess the following two soft skills:
Empathy: It encompasses both listening and an understanding of what questions you need to ask.
Agility: This skill requires you to be open-minded about challenging your own assumptions in the broadest possible sense.
If you see yourself as a consultant, be sure to develop these two skills in yourself.
Consulting is a Unique Career Path
One of the most important things to know before choosing consulting as your business path is that it’s not a “9-to-5” job. Since you’ll be expected to be on the road at any time, you may feel as if you’re “always on,” which can be quite exhausting. All of the flexibility and freedom associated with a consulting career comes with a lack of structure and stability. You’ll be accountable for your own impact and will need to create your own work structures.
As opposed to a job where performance evaluations will let you know how you’re performing, your impact as a consultant is based on the advice you will give your clients, making the impact indirect. In many cases, the contract will end once you’ve given the suggestions, so you may not even get to see the final results when the project is finally completed.
It’s a Diverse Career Path
Within business consulting, there are multiple specializations to choose from that include but are not limited to:
Business Strategy: A basic appraisal of a business.
Information Technology: The provision of design, systems, applications, and software following hardware evaluations.
Human Resources: Advising on job evaluation, industrial relations, and personnel policy.
Quality Management: Formulating strategy and policy to boost customer satisfaction, people management, and performance management.
Marketing: Conducting market research and business forecasts alongside organization and training of the sales team.
Financial Management and Controls: Consulting on budget control, office reorganization work, and profit planning.
Manufacturing and Service Businesses: Reviewing the layout of the production department with an aim to boost productivity.
Join Our Team
Based on these insights, if you think business consulting is the right career path for you, join the consultant team at FocalPoint Coaching and Training. Not only can executive business coach Scott Hartsfield give you the perfect start to your consulting career, but he can also help you improve your skills so that you can realize your full potential.
