How would I choose a consultant?

At some point in time, your organisation may need to bring in external consultants. 

In this third blog in the series, I talk about the task of how to go about choosing a consultant. 

In my experience, organisations find it easy to make the mistake of focusing on the tasks and the specifics of projects. Installing contact centres, changing or improving supplier performance, ordering and implementing hardware are examples. 

I recommend focusing on the outcome or the business improvement that you are looking for. This is unlikely to be “upgrading your contact centre”. If it’s possible, tie an engagement to a business outcome – for example “improving customer service levels by x% as measured by quarterly sentiment survey”. That way you get expertise and effort that lead to what you are really wanting to achieve. 

Consultants are incredibly valuable when the engagement is set up well. Here are some suggestions and ideas based on my experience of what works. 

A. Start with outcomes  

Be explicit about what you want to achieve. Does the consultant understand this? Do they draw out the real problem, issue or opportunity and understand the bigger picture? Can the consultant bring clarity to the problem that you don’t know about? 

• What is the real business or organisation goal?  

• What decisions must be made?  

• What benefit do we expect and where will this be seen?  

• What risks and constraints exist?  

B. Look for creativity in delivery 

Innovation applies to consultants as well. Is there another way to approach a problem that may offer better results at a lower cost? How can risks of failure be minimised?  

• Unless you’re working with a big consulting firm, it’s not unusual for firms to partner to deliver complex results 

• look for different ways to do things that bring improved results 

• Linking fees to delivery, allows organisations to lower risks of failure. 

C. Do a pilot or low risk engagement before delivery  

Carry out a small pilot to test a consultant before committing to large programs. This reduces the risk of engaging the wrong company. Like with all vendors or partners, it can be difficult to disengage once a project is underway. 

D. Demand independence  

Make sure your consultant isn’t incentivised to sell a vendor’s product or approach. They must be focused on the best solution for your business or organisation. 

E. Keep governance light but do it 

You want to engage well but not add layers of effort throughout your organisation. Set up:  

• A clear goal. 

• A single executive sponsor and a team allocated to the project with clear decision-making authority. 

• Weekly, short check-ins with a focus on delivering the agreed result within the agreed budget. 

• Modern tools that will let you see progress and costs transparently. 

Governance & knowledge transfer matter 

A 2025 Victorian Auditor‑General report found that while departments’ processes complied with requirements, some departments could not always demonstrate value for money from professional services and labour-hire engagements due to weaknesses in contract management and ensuring work was delivered and used as intended. - Victorian Auditor‑General: Contractors and Consultants: Management (June 2025)

F. Require knowledge transfer  

Consultants should leave you stronger, not dependent. Ensure your staff pick up knowledge and can use this in the future. It’s a great incentive for staff to learn new skills. 

G. Insist on reusable documents and workings  

You should own:  

• Roadmaps  

• Architecture models 

• Procurement criteria 

• Vendor scorecard matrices 

• Decision logs 

• Working data and analysis. 

Not just PowerPoints.  

If these assets are stored on your consultants’ servers, ensure they are copied to your systems at the end of a project. 

H. Tie commercials to outcomes where possible  

If you are focusing on business outcomes, then tying short or fixed price phases to these is becoming more popular. These commercial arrangements minimise risk for you and increase the chance of an excellent outcome.