Features and Benefits of Hiring a Business Management Consultant

I was talking with a colleague recently from the retail industry. She mentioned that she taught sales associates to sell products by talking about features and benefits. A feature, she explained, is some physical property of the product while a benefit helps the customer understand how that feature would make their life easier. For example, that flat screen TV I've been wishing for has picture-in-picture (feature) which means I can watch two different games at the same time (benefit).

I got to thinking about the features and benefits of my services as a business management consultant:

Feature:  I am respectful to the current operations and culture of the organization. I know adding a new person the organization can be difficult. Benefit: 

Feature:  I have an unbiased and outside perspective to assess the organization. Often it is hard to see the challenges with processes and skills when you are too close.  Benefit:  I can help implement solutions as a trusted-adviser.

Feature:  I am an effective communicator.  Benefit:  Communicating a single direction at many different levels within the organization, by knowing the right questions to ask and choosing the most effective communication paths, can make or break a project.

Feature:  My approach to continuous-improvement is sustainable. I believe it is important to match the organization's current skills and resources.  Benefit:  Solutions are implemented immediately. We don't waste time dreaming of the perfect solution or solutions the organization cannot implement.

Feature:  I study the forces shaping the business environment.  Benefit:  The success of the organization is related to how well they respond to these forces. By tracking trends, we avoid the chaos of external random events.

Feature:  My goal is always to build up the organization. It is easy to tear-down or stir situations but I never want leave a wake of destruction.  Benefit:  Change occurs by building teams that are capable of continuous improvement without me.

If you'd like to know more about the benefits a business management consultant can bring to your company, call me at (740) 947-2700 or email me at Leo@LeoGillen.com.