Let me see your watch

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Part 13 of 13 of my series on the profession of management consulting

“A consultant is someone who borrows your watch to tell you the time, and then keeps the watch”- Advertising executive Carl Ally

Criticism of management consultants is not hard to find. Criticism of the profession ranges from only stating the obvious and rehashing old analysis to only using trendy frameworks and not providing sustainable solutions. All of which, I concede, are pretty much on the money. Today, I address a few of these criticisms.

Consultants state the obvious

Yes we do. Actually, more specifically, we state what’s obvious to us. A lot of consulting is about bringing in a fresh pair of eyes. Clients are often too close to the problem and can’t discern the forest from the trees. It also happens that the client is too emotionally invested in a particular situation thus impairing him from seeing a problem for what it is. Of course, it’s also possible that the client simply doesn’t have the knowledge to see the obvious. On the other hand, sometimes, the client  just needs some support in a view they feel shaky about. For instance, the client may think something is obvious, but needs someone to validate his observation. Or perhaps the client doesn’t have the political power needed to push through a plan of action.

In any case, as consultants, we’re trained to find root issues and recognize tell-tale symptoms, quickly. After seeing so many clients over our careers, we’ve learned where to focus our time and effort in order to meet tight deadlines. We take pride in stating the obvious because sometimes someone has to tell the emperor that he’s naked.

Consultants reuse analysis

All I can say to this is, “duh”. While every client is different, a lot of things stay the same. Consultants keep track of all their lessons learned. This is what makes consultants so valuable – their knowledge acquired from previous engagements. Client’s shouldn’t be overly surprised that their “unique” problem actually isn’t that unique. In fact, if a consultant can use a previous analysis as a baseline for a project be grateful. The job will probably get accomplished quicker and benefit by avoiding mistakes made in the past. Of course, I am not condoning complete re-use of old work. I’m just saying, we’re trying to get the job faster – for you. A good consultant will always perform all the necessary analysis required, they just may be guided by a previous experience.

Consultants use trendy frameworks and management fads

Again, yes we do, but we don’t call our frameworks “trendy” or “fads” we call them “up-to-date”. It’s a consultant’s job to stay up to date with the current state of their industry. What was good practice last year, could be this year’s recipe for disaster. It’s a consultant’s duty to promote what is considered the best advice to a client at any given time.

Consultants don’t deliver sustainable solutions

This is unfortunately true, sometimes. What clients don’t understand is that the quality of the solutions that consultants offer depends greatly on the quality of information they are able to collect and the support they receive from management. You can make any plan fail if you don’t support it as you fan fool any doctor if you hide certain symptoms. So while not every solution will be sustainable, the blame is always shared with the client. Don’t blame the dentist for not fixing your cavity if you don’t open your mouth.

So while consultants are not angels, they are far from being devils. At the heart of every consultant is the deep desire to help clients and help advance their businesses. Sure, a bad apple can spoil the bunch – but don’t rule out apples completely from your diet because of that fact. Just simply go to a different grocery store.

The end

I hope you’ve enjoyed my series on management consulting as much as I’ve enjoyed writing it. I plan on beginning a new six-part series on Integrated Marketing Communication shortly, stay tuned.

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Management Consulting 13 or 13, Mana 695E