Using a Consultant

1. Your Objectives

Until you are clear about what you want to achieve, it is hard to use a consultant effectively.

1.1 In broad terms, work out what end result you are aiming for.

• Is the output you are expecting tangible, or is it going to be a set of new ideas?
• Who will deliver the end result - the consultant or your own team?

1.2 Work out a set of SMART objectives (specific, measurable, agreed, realistic, time-limited).

For example, you may use a PR consultant to get press coverage for your products. Some of the factors to consider would be:

• Which publications are you aiming to get coverage in?
• What end result do you expect from the coverage, and how will you measure this?
• Does your whole team agree with the objectives? Will your employees willingly help the consultant to achieve them?
• What sort of coverage might you achieve?
• What is a reasonable timescale? When is the first item of coverage expected?

1.3 Be clear about why you need a consultant to achieve these objectives.

• Consider which tasks are best done in-house, and which are best done by a consultant.
• Consider the alternatives. For example, you could pay a consultant £1,000 to advise you on doing your own payroll. But a payroll bureau might be able to do the actual payroll for £700 a year.