There are big benefits to bringing in independent business development consultants to help you take your company to the next level.
This is true regardless of your company size or sector. It also applies equally whether your business is flatlining or growing strongly.
This is because business development consultants with direct experience of similar challenges to your own, can often identify and implement new ways of creating value more effectively than your own teams working on projects without external support.
Here are 11 benefits of hiring an external expert to support your business development.
1. Experience
Business development consultancy brings a wealth of experience into your company. Not only are you getting support from professionals who have already done the kind of development work you need, but you also benefit from our direct experience in related areas that can add extra value.
If you happen to run a smaller business and opt for an independent business development consultant, you are likely to partner with a seasoned professional such as me who will be happy to transfer knowledge and skills to your employees.
2. Broad Skillsets
Business development consultants not only come with deep and diverse experience, we also have extremely broad skillsets.
We can sometimes top-up skills in your organisation and, if your own people are working with us day to day, they will learn from our approach and become more effective at business development projects and processes as a result.
3. Expertise
Some business development activities require special skills that your teams cannot quickly or easily learn. This is especially the case where new systems, processes, or tools need to be deployed.
Often, it makes sense to bring in specialist consultants to advise and initiate before handing over fully to your own in-house teams.
4. Objectivity
There are many options for business development. Within your company, you are likely to have supporters and opponents for whatever choices you make.
Their views may be biased by their own business preferences or personal goals. By contrast, external consultants are truly impartial and independent.
We will always provide you with an unbiased assessment of your organisation’s strengths and weaknesses in relation to your objectives as well as best practice business models.
5. Root Cause Analysis
“My greatest strength as a consultant is to be ignorant and ask a few questions”
Peter Drucker
Good business development consultants assume nothing. No matter how skilled or experienced we are, we always start by asking the right questions in order to come up with the right answers.
Business development consultants are able to add value by deep-diving to identify the root-causes of a problem. In this way, we can propose the best solutions to today’s challenges whilst at the same time, avoiding future roadblocks.
6. Insight
Perhaps, the greatest benefit that business development consultancy offers is a fresh perspective on seemingly intractable issues.
We help you free up your thinking, reframe problems and develop new approaches to your business challenges.
Business development consultants don’t feel constrained or inhibited by your company’s culture or business processes.
We leverage the insight and knowledge gained from other experiences to create realistic and achievable business development plans for your organisation.
7. Networking
Not only do business development consultants provide new insight, often we’re also able to introduce you to new networks of individuals and companies.
In many cases, this opens up access to additional sources of trusted advice and support. Sometimes, it even creates short-cuts to relationships that grow into strategic alliances or partnerships which deliver significant future value.
8. Benchmarking
Due to the work business development consultants do, we can benchmark your organisation against your peers, if we specialise in your specific industry, or against similar industries if we have a wider portfolio of projects or access to research papers.
In either instance, a consultant is very likely to have a clearer and less biased view of how your company measures up against your competition than your own in-house teams. This is even true where your colleagues have deep experience and long-standing industry contacts.
9. Flexibility
In a recent survey, 48 percent of executives that used independent consultants stated that flexibility is the biggest selling point.
Long recruitment cycles to hire new employees sometimes delay the start of business development projects. Also, a lack of in-house resources can lead to inexperienced or under-qualified employees being seconded to important projects with less than ideal results.
Both of these issues can be overcome by drafting in an external expert to work flexibly with you as and when needed, within a clearly defined budget and without having to add to your headcount or overhead.
10. Speed
By not needing to recruit additional, permanent business development employees, you potentially put yourself in a position to start your project more rapidly. Not only that, but you are also likely to be able to see results more quickly as well.
This is because business development consultants are generally hired for a specific time period only or for a fixed fee.
As a result, we work quickly and efficiently. There is no time to lose or money to waste.
11. Cost-effectiveness
Contrary to popular belief, consultants are not an expensive luxury. Whilst it is true that fees from the “big-four” consultancies can at first appear eye-wateringly high, they are often working on cutting-edge issues for large corporates faced with high stakes business decisions.
According to Consultancy.uk approx. £11.4 billion was spent in 2019 in the UK on business consultancy. Around £1.8 billion of this was related to business development and business change activities, with independent consultants accounting for ca. 20% of this expenditure.
Fees from independent business development consultants are naturally lower than those charged by larger consultancies.
Indeed, it is often more cost-effective to use an external business development consultant than an in-house employee.
In addition to paying an employee’s salary, you also incur significant overhead expenses such as healthcare benefits, pension contributions, holiday and sick pay as well as costs for vehicles, computers, and other physical resources.
You should of course take these expenses into account when comparing the cost of external versus internal business development.
In Summary
Independent business development consultants provide valuable support to companies seeking profitable and sustainable business growth.
We offer flexible and cost-efficient expertise to help you get results quicker.
If you have never used external experts, you’ll find that it is extremely beneficial to do so.
But how do you choose the right partner to work with you and your teams?
The traditional way to do this is to ask for personal recommendations from people that you know and trust.
Or you can research business consultancy firms in online business directories or through internet searches.
Competent and qualified business development consultants will have websites showcasing their experience and expertise.
Check for case studies of projects similar to the one that you are planning to run. Also, look at any testimonials and get in touch with recent clients.
Above all, meet potential business development consultants in person or via Zoom, Teams, Skype or WebEx before going ahead with any project, no matter how small. They’ll be part of your team and need to work well with people at all levels of your organisation.
Finally, if you need help with your business development, please don’t hesitate to contact us at any time.
