When you’re planning to a business planning consultant for your business needs, you should consider the following factors:
Having a Contractual Agreement
Both you and the consultant must sign a consulting agreement in order to name a particular timeframe for completing work, milestones for performance review on portions of the overall project, and a schedule of payment. The agreement will also include the scope of work, the extent of services, and other terms and conditions to rule out the possibility of any confusion or discrepancy.
Before signing the dotted line, make sure that the break-up of expenses that you will reimburse is clearly mentioned in the agreement, especially if you will be covering the costs of specific items. Most consultants expect their expenses to be covered by the company; however, the agreement must clearly state this information.
You need to be specific about the time when you would like the consultant to start the work as well as the time at which point the consultant will finish the work. It would be of no use if the consultant started the job several weeks after the decided date. This is vital to ensure that the project does not get behind schedule.
Does Your Consultant Have Prior Experience?
Business planning consultants may differ in their skills and expertise and you need to choose someone who has prior experience in your industry. Also, make sure that your consultant has academic credentials to support his or her claims.
The best way to find an ideal candidate is to ask for references from your business associates and others that work within the same industry.
Does Your Staff Have The Required Expertise?
Before you outsource the planning task, take the time to go through the resumes of your existing employees just to make sure that there is no one currently on your workforce who could do the job. You would be surprised to know how competent your staff may be and they may probably have more skills in their repertoire than the ones that are being used to carry out the current job.
Do Your Homework
Although it’s expected to pay high fees to hire a reputed business planning consultant, you may strike a good deal if you invest some time in good research. Talk to people and research on the Internet to find out about the current rates in the industry for the kind of services you require in order to avoid overpaying for a consultant.
Invest Some Time in Interviews
Just because a good friend of yours has recommended a consultant, this does not mean that you should hire them without a thorough hiring interview. After all, the future of your business depends a lot on the consultant who would be involved in the planning stages – so make sure you put it in safe hands.
Get a Letter of Confidentiality
Because they are free to work for whomever they want, there is a strong probability that your consultant may work with your competitors in the future, especially since he or she will most likely use you as a reference or portfolio item to show the type of work that they can complete. Therefore, you should consider asking them to sign a letter of confidentiality to safeguard your business.
Now that you have found a suitable consultant, make sure that the project is clearly described so that he understands the fine nuances. Your consultant must not only provide you a business plan but also extend his support to help you successfully implement that plan.
