How to Know When a Consultant is Right For You

May 22, 2023
Jessica Harling

By Jessica Van Roekel

Whether you’re facing complex or difficult challenges that you don’t have the expertise or the necessary resources to solve on your own, consultants are there to help you.

How do you know when to contact a consultant for your business or team? Reaching out to a consultant can feel like a huge expense and decision, but it can bring harmony to your team and help change the trajectory of the success of your business as a whole.

Are there signs that might indicate the need for a consultant? The answer is “yes”! There are glaring signs that it’s time, and these are the red flags when you know a consultant might be right for you.

Red Flags to Look Out For:

High-Turnover – What trends do you see? Are employees staying for less than a year? If so, this is a huge sign that the business has something fundamentally wrong. This could be a toxic work culture, poor leadership, lack of direction, or bad morale. The cost of high turnover is extremely expensive, on average costing an employer $30k each time someone leaves a business. Hiring the right candidates for positions and looking at the culture is crucial.
Lack of Processes – Does it always seem like you are grasping for straws when trying to get things done? Are there stacks of papers and disorganization keeping you from completing tasks? Not having streamlined processes is often to blame when a business struggles or fails completely. Having the proper documentation for everything from HR policies and procedural manuals to full-cycle job descriptions and clearly defined roles is extremely important. These combined will set your team and your business up for success.
Poor Training – When employees start, is there a thought-out training program to set them up for success? Is there a structured plan 30, 60, or 90 days out? Proper training that is well thought out is extremely important to retain employees and for the sustainability of your business. It’s a huge miss if you think an employee will come in and know how to do all their job functions. That is often not the case, even if they have experience. They need to know how you do things, your expectations, and the tools they need to do their jobs effectively.
Loss of Revenue – Year in and year out, does it seem like your revenue keeps declining, or are you just maintaining? There are many indicators that point to this in your business, and if you constantly come up short on what to do to increase your profits, then it’s time to bring in fresh eyes, expertise, and innovation. Someone who can help direct you to areas for improvement; this could be as simple as restructuring your employees, a deep dive into your P&L, or even what marketing efforts you could utilize to reach a broader audience. There are so many avenues a consultant can help with to make sure your revenue is growing.

The good news is that all of these red flags have a solution! There are tons of consultants out there waiting to help your business grow and thrive.

Did you know that here at Behind the Design, we offer consulting services that go beyond just hiring? We can help you with your processes, training, and how to increase revenue.

So if you’re unsure if connecting with us is right for you, look at the red flags at your company. There are many more that aren’t listed above, but our holistic approach can bring your team and your business some relief and much-deserved success!