What is consulting in simple words - its types, forms, and the procedure for carrying out consulting activities

Hello! In this article we will talk about consulting.

Today you will learn:

1. Definition and types of consulting;
2. What are the advantages of consulting for doing business?
3. What are the stages of consulting activity?

Any owner of a business or company, large or small, needs outside consulting assistance. A person cannot know everything, and there are times when a fresh look at an existing problem is required.

Content

• What is consulting in simple words
• A little history
• Consulting company - what is it?
• Operating principles of consulting companies
• Types of consulting
• Financial advisory
• Management consulting
• Investment consulting
• HR consulting
• Legal consulting
• Accounting consulting
• Educational consulting
• Expert consulting
• Project consulting
• Internet consulting
• What problems do consulting companies solve?
• Stages of consulting activities
• Situations in which consulting is necessary
• How to find a serious consulting company
• Requirements for companies and consultants
• What is the difference between a professional consultant and an amateur?
• Positive aspects of consulting
• Consulting and coaching: differences between methods
• Who can consulting companies cooperate with?

Financial view

Young entrepreneurs often make the mistake of believing that they can handle financial matters on their own.

Without management experience behind you, you may not know basic things and make many mistakes in building a business. Sometimes, even experienced businessmen do not admit the idea that they are engaged in financial planning illiterately. How to avoid mistakes and achieve success?

The answer is simple: you need to contact specialists at a consulting firm. Professionals will not only be able to teach you how to manage finances effectively, but will also take on some of the responsibilities. They will be able to provide full control and create plans for further development. Financial consulting today is one of the current areas that helps increase the productivity and income of companies.

Most entrepreneurs in Russia are actively interested in financial consulting, but are wary of the help of consultants. Many simply do not know what criteria should be used to select a competent consulting company and what preferences a businessman cooperating with consultants has.

Next, we will try to explain as clearly as possible what financial consulting is and why you need it.

What is consulting in simple words

It is not possible for a company, even the largest one, to have several experts in different fields on staff. But if the company’s goal is to develop and conquer the market, sooner or later the advice of such experts will be needed. So what is consulting?

Consulting is the process of advising executives, management personnel and other employees on financial, legal, investment and other issues.

In simple words, these are recommendations and advice from experts on business matters. The concept of consulting also includes analytics, studying the company’s prospects, and studying the customer’s reserves.

Types of consulting

Consulting is a fairly broad field of activity, which is divided into eight types.

Educational consulting

The task of training consultants is to conduct trainings, teach staff something and prepare methodological documentation.

IT consulting

IT consultants are technology specialists. They are involved in cases where it is necessary to adjust existing indicators or create something new in order to develop the company.

They are also hired as experts in the field of computer security, since the problem of hacker attacks is considered quite pressing today.

Example

. The call center turned to a consulting firm to improve performance while reducing the load. The solution was simple - the development and implementation of a “virtual consultant” system that answers frequently asked questions from clients itself. With it, there was no longer any need to strain the Call Center employees, who could now respond to the point and earn more.

Accounting consulting

Consultants working in the field of accounting analyze all accounting documentation and put it in order. They also help reduce the tax base, find a way to quickly close loans, and all this to improve the company’s earnings.

Management consulting

Management consultants are specialists in the field of efficiency improvement. They use various strategies when it comes to managing the finances and personnel of the client company, as well as improving the marketing area. In the process of their work, they will provide management with an audit, which contains all the tips for improving performance.

Important!

These services are regulated by a fairly large regulatory framework.
Particular attention should be paid to Articles 8 and 74 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation
, as well as
the Law of the Russian Federation “On the Protection of Consumer Rights”
.

Legal consulting

The task of a consultant in this area is to find, prevent or solve legal problems for organizations or individuals. Their scope of work is quite extensive, and therefore, with any problem related to the law in one way or another, you can turn to them for help.

Financial advisory

Financial consultants are experts in comprehensively improving the financial position of the client company. They will rationally distribute the company’s financial resources, estimate implementation costs and the time it will take to pay off future projects, calculate financial risks, and ultimately determine a financial strategy for distributing funds in order to increase earnings.

Investment consulting

The job of investment consultants is to find and evaluate investment projects. From them, those where it is profitable to invest are selected. They also help in choosing a broker.

Their responsibilities also include drawing up an investment plan and portfolio, as well as advice on the distribution of financial resources.

HR consulting

HR consultants are professionals in the field of personnel policy. Their task is to assess the condition of workers, identify problems in the interaction between employees and entire departments, hire new people and distribute roles in order to improve work efficiency.

It is these consultants who are responsible for testing, developing and implementing various employee incentives and motivating them to work.

A little history

Domestic consulting as a professional activity began to develop in Russia in the 90s. This is directly related to the change not only of the economic system, but also of the political one. In 1991, the number of consulting companies was only about 20.

With the development of market relations, the consulting services market began to experience rapid growth. These services have become more understandable to managers and more professional. The level of competition gradually began to increase, large players from the West entered the Russian services market, this brought the consulting industry to a qualitatively new level.

Consulting concept

Even in the last century, nothing was known about what the term “consulting” and “consulting company” meant. They came to us in the early 90s, when significant changes took place in the economic sphere. By the end of 1991, there were already about 20 consulting firms in Russia (a consulting agency is an institution where every novice or experienced company manager can get answers to all questions important for successful business). Since then, little has changed in the specifics of the work of such enterprises. Is that their number has increased from 20 to several hundred.

Now let's figure out what consulting is and for what purpose it is carried out.

Consulting is professional advice to clients (executives, managers and ordinary employees of companies) on issues important for the successful conduct and promotion of business.

If we consider the question of what consulting is from the other side, then, in simple words, this term can be characterized as a client company turning to a consulting firm to receive answers to all questions of interest and strategically important to it for a certain amount of money.

It is difficult to say how much the services of consulting firms cost, since each such organization sets its own price for its services. In this case, the price list is compiled taking into account the scope of activity of the consulting firm.

Consulting company - what is it?

Companies of this kind are engaged in providing consulting services to their clients. Most often they are external companies and are related to their clients' companies. They provide assistance in various areas of their activities.

At the same time, they do not bear full responsibility for the result that will be obtained in the end. There is no clear answer to the question of what consulting companies do.

In general, their activities are as follows:

• Providing assistance in various areas;
• Consulting services;
• Plan organizational and management activities.

What is the difference between consulting and other business services?

If you read my article on coaching, then a red thread running through the entire text was the idea of ​​what distinguishes coaching from other types of similar services. The most important element that I have identified for myself is responsibility.

Or rather, its full awareness by the client. In the case of coaching, the responsibility always lies with the client and the coach cannot advise or recommend anything, since the client must do everything himself. In consulting, everything is much more complicated. Or rather simpler).

It is generally accepted that since the consultant tells the client what to do, then the responsibility rests with him. In most cases this is true.

Yourselfbranding

But let's figure out who is responsible for what in relation to the structure that we looked at just above.

In the first case, if the consultant provides the best working method for the client and the client implements it himself, then who will have the main responsibility? That's right, exclusively on the client.

In the second case, when the consultant tells the client what to do, and he, in turn, implements everything independently, under the strict control of the consultant, then who will be responsible in this case? That's right, exclusively on the client. Regardless of whether the plan is being verified or not, in any case, it is the client who decides what to do or not to do.

Well, in the third case, when the client is ready to pay money for the result, and the consultant implements everything independently or with his team, who is responsible for the final result? That's right - the one who implements the step-by-step plan.

And here I have 2 pieces of advice. First, if you order consulting, then be prepared to pay in money or with your personal involvement in the implementation process.

Yourselfbranding

And the second piece of advice: if you want to become a truly successful consultant, you must understand that the more responsibility you take on, the higher your earnings will be.

When at Yourselfbranding we came up with just such a gradation of responsibility, it became clear to many of our clients what they were really paying money for and what guaranteed results they could count on. I am sure that this scheme will definitely be useful to you in cases where you want to order consulting services, or become a top consultant.

Types of consulting

In the modern economy, there are several types of consulting. We will consider and give a brief description of the most common of them.

Financial advisory

It is a set of services designed to build a reliable and functional financial management system. It includes: analysis and audit of the company’s activities, consultations on finances and budget development, implementation of techniques to strengthen the company’s financial system.

Management consulting

Helps determine which areas of the company are most vulnerable and adjusts the company’s activities as a whole.

It, in turn, is divided into several groups:

• Strategic – allows you to analyze the market in a global and local sense, calculate possible risks;
• Marketing – helps develop a company strategy and diagnose the target audience. Its main goal is to increase sales, as well as reduce advertising costs;
• Personnel – consultations on the selection and training of employees, creation and development of corporate culture.

In addition to everything mentioned, this type of consulting helps solve the following problems:

• Improve the functioning of all company management structures;
• Master new management techniques;
• Develop a system for motivating employees;
• Optimize business processes.

Investment consulting

When company managers choose schemes for investing capital, or attracting it from outside, they mainly rely on the recommendations of professionals who can provide the necessary assistance.

Investment consulting functions:

• Carrying out interactions with credit institutions, insurance companies and authorities;
• Assistance in the development of investment projects;
• Search and attraction of investors;
• Legal investment advice.

HR consulting

Consulting with HR specialists is becoming increasingly popular.

Such consulting includes:

• Personnel certification;
• Personnel accounting;
• HR audit;
• Analysis of personnel policy;
• Document flow analysis;
• Analysis of compliance of personnel policies with labor legislation.

Through HR consulting you can:

• Form a certain corporate culture;
• Conduct a diagnosis of how loyal employees are to the company;
• Increase the efficiency of the entire personnel management system;
• Develop criteria for evaluating staff performance.

This type of consulting allows management to build work not only with the team as a whole, but also with each employee individually.

Legal consulting

In modern business conditions, it is often necessary to resolve emerging legal situations. But the situation itself can hardly be called transparent; then the manager will definitely need the help of a professional. And if the company does not have a full-time lawyer, then it is impossible to do without hiring a specialist from a consulting company.

Accounting consulting

The goal of accounting consulting is to improve not only the efficiency of accounting. accounting, but also to monitor its accuracy. Typically, such services are provided by highly qualified specialists.

Accounting consulting services consist of:

• Services for the development and formation of accounting policies;
• Consultations on building an accounting system. accounting;
• Assistance in preparing accounting reports;
• Assistance in preparing reports to the Federal Tax Service;
• Consideration and consultation on controversial situations in accounting.

Educational consulting

The practical significance of this type of consulting is that the consultant:

• Conducts seminars;
• Organizes lectures and trainings;
• Develops teaching aids.

Simply put, consultants train the client’s company’s personnel.

Expert consulting

Its essence is as follows: the client sets a task for the consultant, and he, in turn, using his own experience and knowledge, as well as relying on various sources, provides a ready-made solution. In addition to developing a solution to a problem, an expert can also diagnose the problem.

The client does not participate in developing a solution to the problem.

Project consulting

Project consulting is the joint work of a consultant and company employees, during which a solution is developed on how to optimize the company’s activities. This type of counseling is called long-term.

Internet consulting

This area of ​​consulting activity can include:

• Development of information technologies taking into account the needs of a specific company;
• Maintaining technology at a high level;
• Identification of existing problems;
• Creation of high-quality information infrastructure.

Types of consulting companies and their operating principles

There is no single correct classification as such, but among the variety of companies in consulting, the following main types can be distinguished:

• The largest international companies with a large developed network of representative offices around the world, large consulting agencies.
• Subject-oriented companies specializing in certain areas: management, financial, IT consulting, etc.
• Leadership organizations - a company is formed around a strong personality, a first-class specialist. In exceptional cases, the leader forms a company of followers of up to 20 employees.
• Partners are a group of consultants, each of whom is a professional in his field with his own clientele and can work independently of others, but prefers to work on equal terms with colleagues, sharing an office and sometimes projects.
• Independent individual consultants.

In consulting activities, there are certain well-established operating principles that every consulting company tries to adhere to.

Among them are:

• Scientific validity. A self-respecting consulting company uses only scientifically based data and facts confirmed by expert assessment. In this work there is no place for speculation, professional “feeling”, intuition, only facts that have a strong evidence base.
• Using information technology and the latest software as additional tools. Every company should have not only modern technological solutions, but also various latest versions of software in order to increase productivity in the tasks performed.
• Dynamism, which is not only demonstrated to the customer during the initial consultation, but is also used in the company’s activities after completion of the work.
• Scientific perspectives. Consultants can offer clients their own scientific ideas that will help in identifying the optimal and most promising direction for the development of the customer company.

What problems do consulting companies solve?

Consulting specialists can help in the following situations:

• When it is necessary to adjust business process management;
• When business reorganization is required;
• To restore the solvency of a company or enterprise;
• Support of the company merger procedure;
• When advice is required on the acquisition of property;
• Budgeting;
• Development of business plans;
• When you need to prepare a financial forecast and so on.

This list of services is not complete; it may be supplemented with other items.

Consulting services

There are several main directions. Naturally, there are individual requests and problems, but in a general sense, services can be distinguished according to the following principle:

• Consultation on running a business.
• Consultation on staff selection.
• Solving legal issues.
• Educational consultations.

Let's try to understand these directions in simple words.

Doing Business

Not only large companies, but also small business niche firms address questions regarding commercial assistance. Moreover, this will not necessarily be one single consultation. It often happens that several “therapy sessions” are needed for an enterprise.

The agency's experts receive a task, closely study the problem that has arisen in your company, analyze it and, as a result, offer several options for solving it.

Further, when you begin to implement the proposed path, the company’s specialists control this process. But such behavior is agreed upon in advance and is usually regarded as an additional service.

This area also includes resolving issues in the investment sector. In this case, they resort to the opinion of specialists when it is necessary to resolve issues with attracting loans or investments in their project. And also with the assessment of existing assets and their effective distribution.

The other side of the issue is also not uncommon. For example, when a company itself is looking for a project in which it will be possible to invest funds in order to make a profit in the future.

Then consulting specialists will select for you certain startups, projects, beginnings that really deserve attention.

Personnel selection

Not all companies can afford a professional HR department. Even just keeping one HR specialist on staff can be expensive. But not everyone can find professionals for the necessary vacancies, especially if they are of a very specific nature.

That is why consulting agencies provide a personnel selection service. The scope of this service includes processes such as selection, holding meetings and interviews with applicants, and testing their suitability for the designated position. Typically, experts in this area already have their own database of specialists.

This will allow company managers not to waste a lot of time searching for unnecessary interviews. They will see already suitable people selected according to the given parameters.

What is important is that consulting in this niche involves not only searching for candidates and checking them, but also working with hired specialists. This refers to the organization of special training and courses that raise the level of qualifications of existing personnel. These can be general events for the entire team or department, or there can be courses aimed at growing the skills of a specific person.

(On the topic of personnel, you can also familiarize yourself with the following materials: “Methods of personnel assessment”, What types of salaries are there”, “How to correctly fill out a work book”).

Legal sphere of consulting services

Again, not everyone can afford to have their own lawyer on staff. Meanwhile, completely placing legal issues on the shoulders of, for example, the chief accountant is not the best practice. Therefore, there is a solution from a consulting agency.

And there are two options here, depending on what your needs are. Or you can contact us for a one-time consultation if a certain legal problem arises. Or actually hire a person on the principle of outsourcing.

For example, cases when you defend your interests in court with obvious frequency. This task is best handled by a professional lawyer. However, this frequency is not so constant as to hire a person on your own staff and pay him a salary. In this situation, you enter into an agreement for legal assistance with an agency, and it provides you with paid assistance as problems arise.

Educational consulting

This area of ​​business assistance is still developing in our country, but it is developing very quickly.

Educational consulting implies that the company assists you in selecting a place where your employees can undergo retraining. Basically we are talking about the selection of educational institutions where specialists could improve their knowledge, skills and abilities in the field of management and business.

That's the minimum. And in the developed form of this type of service, specialists can select training programs and compose them themselves, based individually on your company and its processes.

Naturally, as in other cases, not a single consulting agency will do its work at random, simply randomly selecting an institution from a list of more or less suitable ones. To begin with, your specific needs, current level of training, gaps and weaknesses are determined. Just like that, without proper professionalism, such work cannot be carried out.

Stages of consulting activities

Any company can be called a living, constantly developing organism. If the body malfunctions, then a doctor is needed. But treatment should be carried out by a professional, not an amateur. That is, the consulting company must have serious practical experience.

Next, we will analyze the stages that make up consulting activities.

1. The customer acknowledges the existence of a specific problem. If the customer realizes that he cannot solve the problems that have arisen in the company without the help of professionals.

Example: the head of a confectionery company has set himself the task of increasing production volumes. But a problem arose: the manager himself and the company’s specialists do not have sufficient knowledge for this. To achieve the goal, a decision is made to invite outside specialists. And this decision will be reasonable and justified.

2. Conducting initial consultation and concluding an agreement. When a suitable company is selected, you need to consult with its specialist. Then the contract is concluded.

The contract must include the following points:

• The time frame during which the work will be performed;
• Full list of services with cost information;
• Conditions in connection with which the amount of the consultant's fee may be changed;
• Conditions for early termination of the contract;
• Responsibilities of both parties.

The contract can be concluded either one-time or for a long term. The contract can be concluded in the form of an employment contract or in the form of a work contract.

3. The data necessary for cooperation is collected. At this stage of cooperation, specialists from the consulting company collect and analyze data that will help determine how serious the problem is. The main thing here is to establish what problem exists, as well as develop a plan to solve it.

4. The process of developing a solution to a problem . This stage can be called the main one. Having identified the problem and its causes, specialists draw up a plan according to which the problem will be eliminated.

5. The process of implementing decisions and monitoring their implementation. All procedures specified in the plan are carried out under the supervision of consultants. It is also possible to train company employees in the process.

6. The process of evaluating the results obtained. An objective assessment of the results can only be given after a certain period of time. The head of the company together with representatives of the performing company will sum up the results.

7. Making final financial settlements. If all the activities were carried out on time, production indicators increased, and the company’s income increased - this is an indicator that the activities carried out were effective, you need to make a final settlement with the consulting company. The amount specified in the contract is transferred to the account of the executing company.

When is consulting needed?

The opportunity for consulting, as follows from the definition, arises only at the moment when the customer recognizes the need to receive independent advice or assistance. If the awareness of the problem is not formed among decision makers, then consulting is impossible.

Here are some typical needs when consulting is in demand and brings real measurable benefits.

1. The company lacks certain expertise.

Including, for example, setting tasks for contractors or managing them.

2. The results obtained using Internet tools are consistently unsatisfactory.

Even if there is a change of managers on the customer’s side.

3. Contractors are constantly changing.

4. For some reason, long-time contractors seem unscrupulous and lose trust.

5. Several people affected by Internet marketing processes in a company cannot come to a common opinion.

For example, the marketing director and the sales director cannot agree on the functionality of the site.

6. A fresh look from the outside is required, a search for growth areas.

7. There is no Internet promotion in the company, but...

If a company has this or a similar problem, it is wise to at least explore the possibility of turning to consulting. It is important to avoid several pitfalls.

Situations in which consulting is necessary

• The company's management and employees lack new ideas, the company has entered a period of stagnation;
• The manager lacks certain knowledge or experience;
• The company is developing a serious project, but cannot implement it in full due to lack of knowledge;
• The company is required to conduct an audit with the participation of independent specialists;
• The company needs its management staff to work more efficiently;
• The company needs to select a number of qualified specialists.

This list of situations cannot be called exhaustive, since in fact there may be more than a dozen of them.

Varieties

Each of these companies operates in one field or another, so consulting is usually divided into several types. To know who to turn to for answers to your questions, you need to consider the types of consulting services in more detail.

1. Financial advisory. Every private entrepreneur should know what financial consulting is. Experts working in such centers provide consulting services in the development and further strengthening of the financial foundation of the client company. This area of ​​activity includes a thorough analysis of the operation of the enterprise, the search for shortcomings and recommendations for correcting them, as well as the introduction of new techniques that will help strengthen the economic system of the client company. Simply put, financial consulting is the assistance of qualified specialists aimed at stabilizing the financial situation in a particular company.
2. Investment consulting, when the efforts of consultants are aimed at finding investors for their clients' companies. In addition, people who provide such advisory services facilitate the correct investment of capital in transactions that are profitable for their clients.
3. Legal consulting is a type of consulting services aimed at solving various legal issues. Especially often, managers of companies that do not have their own in-house lawyer resort to the help of third-party companies.
4. Accounting consulting, aimed not only at the correct maintenance of accounting records, but also at constant monitoring of its quality.

There are other types of consulting services. For example, quite often the question is asked about what business consulting is. Despite the fact that it is not in the main list of types of consulting, such a subtype of this type of activity still exists.

So, business consulting is a range of services that includes solving the following issues:

• economic and financial nature;
• investment direction;
• economic activity of the company.

In other words, this type of consulting services helps solve important problems that most directly affect the business.

Among other things, there is also the concept of international consulting. Lest it be misunderstood (since each person may interpret it differently), let us consider it as well.

International consulting is a whole range of various consulting services that can be provided by the EU and Balkan countries. Such consulting services are aimed at the regulation and implementation of new projects in these regions.

That is, as can be understood from all of the above, the term “international consulting” cannot be applied to absolutely all foreign countries.

Consulting activities today bring quite high incomes due to its relevance, as well as the reluctance of company managers to spend precious time and money on solving issues in which they are incompetent.

Organizations engaged in consulting activities employ exclusively highly qualified specialists who thoroughly know their craft and are able to conduct not only analytical analysis, but also develop a plan for further action to improve the efficiency of the enterprises that turn to them for help.

How to find a serious consulting company

If a number of problems have arisen in your company that are not possible to resolve on your own, the next step is to choose a suitable company that specializes in providing consulting services.

There are criteria by following which you can choose a company and not make a mistake:

1. Collect as much information as possible about the company with which you plan to enter into an agreement. Look at its official website, find out how long the company has been on the market;
2. Read reviews about the company’s work in the media and on the Internet;
3. Ask if the company has a portfolio: each specialist is proud of his achievements and usually records them;
4. Find out if there are serious businessmen in your region among the clients;
5. Pay attention to the cost of the company's services; too low should be a warning, as well as clearly overpriced.

If all the recommendations have been followed, and you as a client are satisfied with absolutely everything, then it’s worth making a phone call to get to know the consultants of your company or organization.

It is best to have several companies in stock, and after a personal meeting and communication with specialists, make the final decision.

What are consulting services and why are they needed?

Even large international companies often face operational difficulties. This may be due to both external factors and internal problems. Most often, problems arise due to price fluctuations in the market, the appearance or departure of a competitor, but in companies there are difficulties with the very relationships between employees within the enterprise. Because of this, there is no opportunity or strength within the company to fight for its survival, so an excellent solution in this case would be to use consulting services .

Consulting is a type of service that essentially means consulting. One company or person provides services to solve certain problems to another company.

The issues that can be solved with the help of consulting are very diverse. Sometimes this can be a whole range of tasks, and sometimes it is provided only in a narrow area. For example, accounting consulting is the involvement of a specialized company or employee to solve problems related to accounting. That is why, when they talk about the concept of consulting, there is no clear definition.

Consulting services are the solution of organizational or management problems within a company with the help of external specialists. Professional consultants in a certain field are invited to work for the company. Specialists assess the condition, see the cause of the problems and create a system for solving these errors.

A company turns to consulting not only when it experiences difficulties in development. Often the manager decides to expand, so there is an urgent need to increase the number of specialists. But even if you hire them, you will still need to spend months on training, monitoring the completion of tasks, and only after that assigning difficult tasks to them. But a developing company doesn’t have that much time.

Consulting firms are specialized companies that provide consulting services. There may be a staff of employees who simultaneously collaborate with different organizations.

Requirements for companies and consultants

If a company or consultant has a high level of qualifications and provides a large range of services, then they must meet certain requirements, which we will discuss below.

1. The consultant must: have knowledge and skills in strategic planning, be able to analyze and predict the economic situation, master methods for diagnosing the situation in an enterprise, be able to establish contacts with specialists at different levels;
2. A consultant (or consulting company) should not depend on the rules and unwritten laws, as well as traditions that have developed in a particular company. The consultant's opinion must be free and objective;
3. The consulting company must provide assistance based on its experience and current legislation;
4. A consulting company, in addition to consultations, must engage in gaining experience, accumulating, analyzing and processing data;
5. The activities of a consulting company should also have a learning effect for its clients.

We invite you to familiarize yourself with the table, which presents the main features of professional consultants and those who only consider themselves such.

Basic forms of consulting

The activities of consulting companies have various forms and contents. Which, first of all, is related to the client’s ultimate goal.

The most basic forms will be discussed below.

Analytical activities

This is the main form of activity of specialists of a consulting company. Consultants evaluate and analyze the activities of the client company from all sides. Based on this, they provide him with a complete list of recommendations for optimizing the operation of the enterprise, its vulnerabilities and ways to eliminate them.

2. Forecasting

Based on the analysis and assessment of the client enterprise, consultants make its economic and financial forecast.

As a rule, any consultants’ forecasts are justified and developed on the basis of a sound evidence base. None of the consulting company specialists will make a forecast based on their experience and intuition.

Consulting on the activities of the client company

Almost all consulting companies provide consulting services to client organizations on an ongoing basis in a certain field of activity. Despite the fact that individual consultations are cheaper, for more efficient operation of the enterprise it is better to conduct consultations regularly. Which will ultimately bring significant benefits to the client organization. And the managers of large enterprises know this very well and enter into long-term contracts for the provision of consulting services.

Audit of the activities of the client organization

In large companies, situations often arise in which it is necessary to conduct an independent audit of the production and non-production assets of the enterprise. And consulting companies are ideal for carrying out this type of activity. Which, in turn, formalize the results of the inspection in a report, which is accompanied by recommendations for improving and optimizing the activities of the enterprise itself.

Direct participation in the activities of the client organization

Here, consultants take part in specific business projects of the enterprise, take direct part in solving specific problems, introduce modern innovations into production and more, etc.

Here you can read about which business is best for a beginner to open, and here - what business mistakes beginners make.

What is the difference between a professional consultant and an amateur?

Professional consultant	Amateur
Study in advance the activities of the client’s company	Does not undergo preliminary training; learns about the current situation from the client
All proposals are prepared taking into account the characteristics of the company	All developed proposals are not informative, but of a general, almost advertising nature.
From the moment the cooperation begins, he gives practical advice and recommendations to the client	Emphatically intrusively talks about his achievements, puts himself an order of magnitude higher than the client
During communication, shows awareness of the situation in the client’s company	Talks about work experience in the same industry
Asks questions, asks for the customer’s opinion	Speaks out without tolerating objections
Able to listen to the client	Prefers to talk rather than listen
Answers questions asked additionally	Ignores additional questions
Always responds to objections raised by the client	Doesn’t take into account the client’s objections, prefers to communicate via email rather than in person

What types of financial consulting exist - 3 main types

In international and Russian consulting practice, several types of financial consulting are used.

Let's look at the three most popular and popular types of consultations.

Type 1. Educational consulting

The customer receives useful information from consultants, which helps to introduce new forms of financial control into practice. Knowledge is transferred in the form of trainings, less often thematic lectures.

The most effective way to convey the right idea to the client is to show him how the information received is applied in practice.

Coaching is also particularly popular in consulting. A specialist with this skill helps the customer find the best solution on his own.

Type 2. Expert consulting

Such consulting involves the development of specific expert solutions and their implementation in the activities of the customer’s company.

At the same time, an analysis of business processes in the enterprise and diagnosis of existing problems is required. It is important for consultants not only to detect symptoms, but also to identify the cause of the current state of affairs.

Example

A young company, which grew out of a successful startup and is aimed at the mass consumer, has an office in Moscow and is trying to promote its services to the federal level. The managers have no experience working on this scale.

The director invites consultants who calculate the company's budget and determine the approximate costs necessary to expand the sphere of influence. Consultants have done this type of work in the past, so they know how to avoid common mistakes and minimize costs.

The transition to a new format under the guidance of experienced advisors is painless for the customer, since the consultants implement an innovative financial system at the enterprise.

Expert financial consulting is an expensive service, but its costs almost always pay off. Business consulting is closely related to this type of consulting assistance, about which there is a separate publication on the website.

Type 3. Project consulting

This type of consulting involves close contact between consultants and company personnel. Advisors are developing a large-scale project to optimize business processes and begin to consistently implement it in practice.

The point is that each participant in the process understands the meaning and ultimate goal of innovation. If this condition is met, the return on the project will be maximum.

Positive aspects of consulting

It is worth noting that increasingly, not only those who have just joined the ranks of entrepreneurs, but also serious companies that have been on the market for a long time are turning to consulting companies for help. What are the advantages of consulting?

• Consultants have a higher level of knowledge than the company’s full-time specialists (which does not detract from the merits of conscientious employees);
• Consultants are more experienced due to communication with a large number of clients;
• Consultants have enough time to study the problem deeply and comprehensively;
• Consultants usually have an unbiased opinion and are guided by the interests of the customer.

A clear advantage of consulting is that company specialists with a fresh look from the outside can identify problems that are simply invisible to company employees.

What it is

Financial consulting is a service of an advisory nature, aimed at increasing the company’s productive forces, increasing its economic performance and prestige in the market. How it works?

Consultants analyze the financial side of business activities, and based on the information received, they identify a number of main problems that hinder the development of the company. When a problem is identified, they will help you find the right ways to solve it.

Financial consulting is able to identify the ideal model for managing financial resources, as well as understand what place the company occupies among its competitors, what methods exist to optimize costs, etc. Thanks to professional consultation, you can get an objective view from the outside and identify shortcomings in building a business.

Financial consulting involves identifying short-term and long-term goals; accordingly, an in-depth analysis of the existing enterprise takes place with the construction of a further work plan for the future. Not all organizations today have the opportunity to recruit staff involved in financial matters, so professional consultants will be a real salvation for you. Hired labor will cost several times less than maintaining a permanent staff, and besides, consulting firms hire only professionals in their field.

Consulting and coaching: differences between methods

Before we find out the similarities and differences, let’s find out what kind of animal coaching is.

Coaching is a method of consultation in which the client and coach jointly look for ways to improve or solve a problem.

Skeptics may say that this technique merely duplicates a number of others that are already familiar. Why invent something else if there are trainings and consulting? But coaching does not repeat all previously known practices.

Coaching and consulting are not duplicative techniques for one simple reason: the coach guides and advises his client until the goal is achieved, and the consulting consultant is limited to making recommendations, giving the client the opportunity to continue to act independently.

Who advises?

Consulting services on the market are offered by several types of participants:

• Production companies (web studios, SEO companies, etc.);
• Agencies related to production (interactive, digital agencies);
• Marketing and consulting agencies;
• Independent consultants.

Manufacturing companies

Expert consulting (especially related to specific tools) is offered by many manufacturing companies. Web studios promise a usability audit, SEO companies promise a search engine optimization audit, SMM companies promise an audit of social media promotion.

Two important nuances.

• Often such proposals violate one of the key principles of consulting - independence.

• Very few companies are capable of process, project or training consulting due to the lack of special “soft” competencies (business analytics, interviewing and brainstorming skills, etc.).

It makes sense to seek audits from reputable manufacturing companies with good experience if the contract states a refusal to work with the consulting company for a certain period of time (1-2 years) in the area of ​​the consultation provided.

This will somewhat mitigate the risks that they will simply try to lure you over rather than provide real help.

Digital Agencies

Such companies in today's market have mainly grown out of manufacturing companies, having developed skills in identifying the needs of clients and their customers, interviewing, and assessing the effectiveness of various marketing channels.

Agencies can, to a certain extent, carry out process, project and training consulting, as well as strategic consulting.

However, most agencies have their own production or are interested in receiving a subsequent order (for example, implementing a developed strategy). compulsorily register independence also fully applies to them.

consulting in the contract.

Find out exactly who will be on the team,

who will work with you. While a good technical expert can be an ordinary specialist, process consulting in most cases will require senior staff.

Marketing and consulting agencies

Such companies do not have the disadvantages associated with potential interest in transferring services from consulting to production. They usually have all the competencies required for process and project consulting.

The only possible drawback of some of the marketing agencies is the lack of sufficiently deep expert knowledge about the nuances of Internet marketing. Since the industry is rapidly changing and evolving, the agency must have a permanent practice in Internet consulting.

Therefore, when contacting a marketing agency, be sure to verify their active practice

in the field of Internet tools (portfolio, reviews).
Also, an advantage for the agency will be the presence of partnerships
with market experts (including production companies of various profiles) to attract them if narrow technological expertise is needed.

Independent consultants

It can be said that nothing general can be said about independent consultants. Some are former hired experts in technology and manufacturing (and are good at expert consulting, but weak at process consulting). Some come from marketing companies (and are good at project consulting, but weak at expert consulting). Some are business consultants with a focus on internet marketing (and are good at process consulting, but also weak at expert consulting)… The list goes on.

The main disadvantage of independent consultants is that one person cannot be strong in everything, while agencies can attract several specialists.

When choosing a private consultant (and his advantage will be independence and a higher interest in providing quality service due to higher reputational risks), pay attention to several things.

• Is the consultant suitable for the type of consulting?

• In the case of expert consulting, how strong are “soft” competencies
  ? Does he appear to be able to identify hidden problems or expectations?

• In the case of process and project consulting, how wide is network of acquaintances
  to be able to attract narrow technology experts?

• In the case of educational consulting, how strong are the personal competencies of teaching and conducting training?

Of course, the most important thing is how much are you ready to trust this consultant personally, do you have an open relationship?

Who can consulting companies cooperate with?

Consulting firms can cooperate with:

• State and private enterprises that produce any products or provide services;
• With foreign companies that operate in Russia (legally);
• With government organizations;
• With government bodies.

So, dear readers, now you know what consulting is, what its goals are and what it is needed for. If you take advantage of the consulting terms in a timely manner, your business will successfully grow and develop. Your company will survive all crises and become a serious competitor for others.

Why is this beneficial?

Not all business problems can be solved on your own. The reason may be a literal lack of skills and knowledge. And then the help of a specialist is required. And to find a specialist, you will need to spend time and money. He will need to be found, hired, paid, organized workspace, paid taxes and contributions to extra-budgetary funds. Consulting allows you to avoid everything for a certain amount of money. You pay for the fact that you do not waste time and effort, for the fact that you receive expert help from people who have repeatedly encountered problems and successfully solved them. You are paying for the person's experience.

Consulting is based on finding problem areas, eliminating weak links from processes, which ultimately leads to solving your issue, be it management or other factors.

In simple words

By paying for the services of a consulting firm, you hire a person with experience in solving a problem without having to register him as a member of the company. And this will avoid many other problems.

In fact, you are buying an outside expert opinion service.

Naturally, the expert does not simply give advice that he is already accustomed to giving, or that is aimed at solving the issue in general. The company will study the issue in direct connection with your company. This usually looks like finding a way to develop your enterprise, reorganize its most important processes, and ways to increase profits and work efficiency. It all depends on what problem you are concerned about.