What is the role of a consultant?

• 1. A misunderstood industry: More than just giving advice
• 2. The role of the consultant
• 3. The different types of consultants
• 4. The characteristics of the consulting profession

According to the Harvard Business Review, the consulting industry is worth more than $2 billion in the United States alone. As a result of the globalization of markets, the diversification of tasks and an evolving business landscape, consulting has gradually integrated all spheres of the global economy. The consulting profession, symbolic of this phenomenon, remains largely unknown and its multiple roles are poorly understood by the general public. 

A misunderstood industry: More than just giving advice

According to the dictionary, counseling is a practice of giving expert advice within a particular field. But it's much more than that. More than just the role of giving recommendations, the consultant faces a multitude of tasks, adaptable to each industry and each client project.

First of all, a company will call on a consultant to provide it with specific information, this can be a cost study, a market analysis, a behavioral survey, etc. The consultant thus offers expertise that does not exist within the company itself and benefits from an external, independent and objective perspective on the client's problems. The consultant's role is to solve these problems, through the formulation of a diagnosis and appropriate recommendations. He will then participate, to a certain extent, in the implementation of the proposed changes. Answering a question, understanding why the company is asking this question, finding a tailor-made answer: these are the main objectives of the advice.

Nevertheless, the consultant goes further. More than solving a given problem, his role is to give the client-company the ability to deal with any changes in the problem it has been confronted with and to offer it greater flexibility and will work on organizational efficiency, thus optimizing the contribution of the workforce and its ability to evolve and face new challenges. This concrete and long-term contribution gives all its value to the consulting industry.

The complexity and breadth of the consultant's role has fostered the development of different branches of consulting. Thus, we no longer speak of consultants but of consultants.

The role of the consultant

Human Resources/HR Consulting

As the hiring and workforce management process has become extremely complex and globalized, HR consultants allow companies to reach the full potential of their employees and find the right talent for each situation. They will take on different roles such as selection, talent scouting, coordination between employees and the company...

Types of jobs: Recruitment Consultant, Human Capital Consultant, Employment Consultant, HR Consultant, Staff/Employee Relations Consultant...

Management Consulting 

Particularly useful during a transition or expansion of a company, management consultants benefit from expertise in a certain segment of an industry and will meet the managerial and organizational needs of their clients.

Types of jobs: Business Consultant, Risk Control Consultant...

Strategy Consulting

The consultant will help a company understand and intervene in the face of possible operational problems or within their work strategy. It is a question of maximizing the functionality of business plans in order to improve performance 

Types of jobs: Strategy Consultant, Organizational Development Consultant, Consulting Consultant...

Information Systems Consulting

The first role of information systems consultants is to develop software solutions and design a Tech architecture on a company-wide scale and adapted to its needs in order to gain competitiveness compared to their competitors. They have a strategic know-how and an understanding of the drivers of technological evolution and digital transition.

Types of jobs: Telecom Analyst, Cybersecurity Consultant, Technology Consultant...

IT Consulting

In the same dynamic as information systems consultants, IT consultants will recommend hardware and software as well as computer networks in order to allow a business to build efficient systems and improve internal processes. 

Types of jobs: Application Systems Consultant, Data Management Consultant, Network Consultant...

Operations Consulting

Operations consultants will assist companies through very diversified missions depending on the industry. There are different categories of operations consultants:

Different types of consultants

Marketing Consultant

It involves developing strategies to successfully promote, sell and distribute a good or service to a target clientele. On a larger scale, the marketing consultant works to expose a new brand. But also a new product in the eyes of the public and to transform it into a lucrative and sustainable business.

Legal Consultant

The role of the legal consultant is to identify, prevent and resolve any legal problems that a company may face. They can manifest themselves in different areas of law: labor law, contract law, business law, intellectual property, real estate, technology and innovation or trusts...

PR/PR Consulting

Managing and calibrating the flow of information between the public and the client-company is the main role of the PR consultant. But it also has the ability to help a company build the reputation that will be exposed to the general public. As well as investors and partners, employees... In short, the PR consultant controls what others think about a company's leadership, political and strategic decisions.

Social/Digital Media Consultant

The social and digital media consultant will work alongside a company to increase traffic to its website and social media pages. Its main means of action are SEO, SEA and different digital marketing techniques.

Other types of operations consultants exist, their roles referring mainly to their field of application: healthcare consultant, personal consultant, security consultant, etc.

Different characteristics of the consulting profession

Financial Management Consulting

Financial management consultants enable their clients to make the best financial and tax decisions with their expertise. Their role is to protect, restructure and maximize a company's profits.

Types of Jobs: Financial Advisor, Financial Analyst, Fundraising Consultant...

Environmental Consulting

Consultants specialising in environmental issues will be called upon by companies concerned with reducing their ecological impact and carbon footprint. But also in order to comply with the standards in force and regulations. 

Types of jobs: Environmental Consultant, Environmental Audit Consultant, Air Quality Consultant, Environmental Project Manager...

The consulting profession is divided into different categories. It is characterized by a range of primordial abilities corresponding to its various roles:

• Analytical skills to analyze and solve a problem effectively
• Communication and leadership skills to communicate meaningfully with clients and understand their needs
• Intellectual curiosity
• Professional and geographical flexibility
• Ability to work in a team.

Being a consultant means privileging and knowing how to deal with flexibility and constant mobility. Dealing with a diversity of settings and situations. But also to intellectual challenges and collaborative workspaces. This demanding profession is compensated accordingly. The median salary for a consultant reached $83,620 in 2018 according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Outlook Handbook. From entry-level to executive positions, consulting brings together a multitude of profiles and roles and it is not uncommon, during a career, to do consulting between two jobs. 

A consultant can work for a consulting company or be a freelancer, but can also be employed within a company, such as structures such as Google BizOps, Disney Corporate Strategy & Business Development. They will thus develop an acute knowledge of the company in question and exploit this expertise.

In this way, like today's economy, the consultant is a versatile and flexible being. He or she has specific expertise in a particular field and his or her role is to put it at the service of a company in order to solve its various questions and help it progress and reach its full potential.

 

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