Do you want to know what is required to become a business consultant? If YES, here is a detailed job description of a business consultant. A business consultant is a professional who provides professional or expert advice in a particular area such as security (electronic or physical), management, accountancy, law, human resources, marketing (and public relations), finance, engineering, science, digital transformation or any of many other specialized fields.
A Business Consultant is usually part of a more substantial Business Consulting Firm. However, if a person has a strong reputation, they can be an independent Business Consultant. The primary role of a Business Consultant is to help companies optimize and improve their overall business model. They utilize the information available from that company to help with simple and complex optimization issues.
Furthermore, a business consultant provides management consulting to help organizations improve their performance and efficiency. These professionals analyze businesses and create solutions while also helping companies meet their goals.
What Does It Take to Become a Business Consultant?
Please note that in order to qualify as a business consultant; you should have a 2 or 3-Year bachelor’s Degree from an accredited university or diploma in Business, Marketing, Accounting or related field. Previous experience in business consulting preferred. Having MSc or MA in a specialized business field is beneficial and of course Certification as management consultant is a plus.
You should also have strong research and data collection skills, strong analytical and problem-solving skills, knowledge of diverse business areas such as IT, HR, training and marketing, excellent communication, interpersonal and presentation skills, proficiency in Microsoft Office and you must be familiar with a wide range of business management software such as business invoicing programs, word processing programs, CRM, database and asset management software.
To be successful as a Business Consultant, you should have outstanding research skills and demonstrate exceptional problem-solving abilities. Having said that, here are the Top 17 Duties and Responsibilities of a Business Consultant:
17 Duties and Job Description of a Business Consultant
- Responsible for determining business needs and identifying weaknesses of an organization and recommend solutions.
- Responsible for organizing and executing assigned business projects on behalf of clients (recruiting, payroll, promotional campaigns etc.) according to client’s requirements
- Meet with assigned clients when needed and perform an initial assessment of a problematic situation
- Collect information about the client’s business through a variety of methods (shadowing, interviews, surveys, reading reports etc.)
- Responsible for analyzing and interpreting data to unearth weaknesses and problems, and comprehend the causes
- Responsible for formulating recommendations and solutions with attention to a client’s wishes, capabilities and limitations forming concise reports
- Responsible for presenting findings and suggestions to clients with ample justification and practical advice
- In charge of developing detailed business plans to drive small or radical changes in an organization (Work with marketing and business analytics to design a business plan)
- Responsible for assisting a client or an organization in implementing the plan and resolve any occasional discrepancies
- Responsible for providing guidance for any occurring problems and issues in an organization or business
- Responsible for assessing and analyzing business practices and procedures.
- Responsible for organizing and managing business projects.
- Responsible for tracking and assessing the effectiveness of projects.
- In charge of examining trade area for new business opportunities
- Successfully pitch an optimization strategy to new clients
- Follow up with clients during and after transition
- Meeting with and advising senior executives throughout the consultation process.
- Respond to audits to ensure continual improvement is achieved.
- Show capacity to perform other duties as assigned by the management.
- Part of the disciplinary committee that sits on any case that involves employees under his / her supervision.
- Play a part as needed in the interviewing and hiring of employee team members with appropriate skills.
- Identifies the developmental needs of business consultant trainees and provide coaching, mentoring to improve their knowledge or skills as required.
Please note that we have two types of business consultants with similar roles and they are;
Types of Business Consultants
- Internal Business Consultant – someone who operates within an organization but is available to be consulted on areas of specialism (business concerns) by other departments or individuals (acting as clients); or
- External Business Consultant – someone who is employed externally (either by a firm or some other agency) whose expertise is provided on a temporary basis, usually for a fee. As such this type of business consultant generally engages with multiple and changing clients.