Choosing a consulting Company is not an easy task for any entrepreneur and we are often urged to highlight differences that may lead one to prefer StudioBase rather than any other Company.
We report below the main guidelines of StudioBase which, to our minds, are liable to lead to a careful choice among all relevant operators.
When choosing a Consulting Company, one should implement principles as "scientific" as possible and devote enough time to preliminary contacts and the analysis of references.
The company should be identified through direct contacts when participating in events or seminars, or via the Internet, by selecting it among those recommended by Local and/or Professional associations.
The following points are worth remembering:
- Not all consulting companies, albeit expert in their sector, are able to grasp their Client's needs. This implies the possible "rejection of consulting services" by the staff involved in the project.
- The economic value of the offer should not be the main assessment principle: consultants have always undergone a long training and can count on direct experiences which do not translate into greater economic investments on the part of Clients, rather into a more thorough understanding of problems and their viable solutions.
One's own needs should be carefully analyzed and expressed in terms of requirements and constraints. A consulting project should be requested to highlight:
- Detailed project stages
- Description of consulting and training activities, including expected results
- A Gantt diagram relating activities, schedules and any criticality
- In-house and external resources to be involved in the various stages.
The following items should be requested from the Consulting company:
- The list of their certifications (Iso 9000) or formal authorizations and qualifications
- The list of their main references, consistently with the activities proposed, and the persons who should be contacted to check them
- Profiles, experiences and qualifications of the consultants who are expected to be involved in the Company's activities.
Get a clear picture of the methods and tools that the consultant and the Company shall implement to support their activities, e.g.:
- Tools to assess problems and define activities
- Standards to implement solutions and training methods
- Methods to verify and validate activities
- Tools to manage the project systematically
Ask what tools shall be used to support the project and assess the following:
- Staff involvement
- Final autonomy of the company
- Time management quality
- Necessary maintenance activities
Establish the formal constraints that shall be complied with by the selected Company and consultant, e.g.:
- Relate payments to the monthly work progress and to shared criteria to asses mutual satisfaction
- Commit the consulting Company to use only the dedicated staff identified at the very beginning and ask that any change should be agreed upon in advance
- Arrange a systematic work progress report to allow the assessment of the implementation of the project.
Finally, ask the Consulting company to provide a formal presentation of their project to the Management so that all doubts are clarified and the initial proposal may be modified as needed.
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