Early and often when starting a business it can be advisable to seek outside counsel. Hiring the professionals who know how to do what you don't can make the difference between success or failure very quickly and the cost of hiring them should be a part of your business plan. The obvious help we run to are accountants and attorneys because we typically fear the IRS and lawsuits more than anything else (sometimes for good reason). But there are plenty of other disciplines which we are not masters of and can easily cost justify hiring the help. Sometimes we need a lot of help, sometimes just guidance. The part of hiring someone that usually concerns us most is whether or not they will really be qualified and deliver something that is worth the money they are charging us for their services. So with that, I'll offer up a few things that make a good consultant and that you should be prepared for when hiring someone:

1) A good consultant will give you references. They let their track record speak for itself. If they don't have references as an employee or consultant, or dodge the question, ditch them immediately.

2) They'll be happy to meet with you at least once to see what your needs are and demonstrate that they are competent. They aren't going to give anything away, but should give you enough so that you are comfortable with their level of expertise.

3) Good consultants are good communicators (or should be). Their ability to communicate effectively and succinctly is as important as their technical ability. If they speak in too much "fluff" or their explanation is always verbose, find someone else. Good consultants aren't there to try to impress you with how big their vocabulary is but want you to clearly understand what they are saying.

4) Their rates aren't too low. I know that isn't what you want to hear but someone who is really good is going to cost. If it sounds too good to be true...

5) They will prompt you with a lot of questions. A good consultant knows what questions to ask. If they start asking you about things that are clearly important but you hadn't even thought of yet (and probably wouldn't have) then they are on the right track.

6) A good consultant is very interested in building a long term relationship with you. They aren't a snake-oil salesman that just wants one quick hit. They'll be a mentor, teacher and coach. They'll tell you when you are wrong and be flexible enough to work with the idea that is, after all, yours.

7) They are good listeners.

8) They are appropriately professional. That doesn't mean you can't become friends with them and enjoy beers after a long day of work, but they'll bill you on time, deliver what they promise, respond to you in a reasonable amount of time and always extend to you a consistent level of professionalism.

The list could go on and on...

Following are a couple of other things to keep in mind.

If things don't go well with a consultant it's possible that you found a bad one, but it's even more likely (in my personal experience) that you were the problem. Consultants are good at getting you to think about the things you should consider but aren't miracle workers either. If you don't know what you want or really need, the consultant probably can't tell you. They'll still happily provide what you ask for but if you don't give them good info, or are a pain in the ass to work with (i.e. disorganized, thoughtless, slow to respond, ....), you won't get your moneys worth from them, so do yourself a favor when hiring someone, get it together and know why you are hiring them. A good consultant usually has several clients at a time so if you are a pain, they will fire you as easily and more quickly than you will fire them.

If you are ever thinking about hiring someone in a consulting capacity and have questions, feel free to drop me a line for a little help. Accountants and lawyers aren't the only ones you will need help from along the way so being open minded and a little savvy will do you worlds of good.

Update (1/26/2008): When I wrote this I overlooked a critical issue regarding your consultant, though indirectly touched on it when I mentioned them as a coach and teacher. That is that they should not only solve your problem/provide a solution, but should help you to ensure that solution is sustainable. i.e. they should be working them self out of that job. Then you are free to hire them to do something else as needed. If they don't, then a dependency can build up and that isn't why you hire a consultant. Pam, at escapefromcubiclenation.com, wrote a great post on this topic from the consultants point of view and I would highly recommend reading it.

Labels: business development, marketing, recommendations