Business Consulting: A wheels within wheels definition
Starting a new business is often scary. However, in today’s digital era there are lots of learning media to start a business that you can use. Starting from digital business articles to online business consulting.
The fear of uncertainty, the business risks that may arise in the future, to the anxiety of facing failure are some of the things that are natural for someone to feel when starting a business.
However, in fact, starting a completely new business is not impossible. You just need to equip yourself with clear, measurable preparations and don’t stop learning.
You can improve your skills by learning many things from various sources, such as taking business classes or consulting business with experts.
Business consultant concept
According to Massey (2003) and Pellegrinell (2002), the idea of ”business consulting” first emerged in the early twentieth century, when Frederick Taylor published his study of “Scientific Management”.
McLarty and Robinson (1998) define business consulting as a service provided to businesses, the public, and other companies by independent and qualified persons.
Broadly speaking, business consulting is a process of seeking information, advice, and business guidance by experts or professionals, who are often referred to as business consultants. There have been many business experts in the world who have attempted to describe the meaning of business consulting explicitly.
While Greiner and Metzger (1983) provide more detail when describing business consulting. For them, business consulting is a service provided to entrepreneurs or companies by specially trained and qualified people to help objectively and independently.
The understanding of business consulting by Greiner and Metzger which emphasizes the aspects of business consulting is shared by practitioners and business professionals in the world.
Business consulting requires specific skills and an appropriate level of knowledge if consultants are to help clients identify and solve their business and business management problems.
There are many views that think that business consulting is not an important thing to do. In fact, there are many studies that show the good impact of business consulting for startup entrepreneurs as well as large companies.
The Services for The Rocketed Business
For those of you who are just starting a business, you might think that the business consultant services seem excessive or you can’t see the need to use their professional services yet.
Or for those of you who already have a business with a crystal ball of success on your hand, you might not need business consulting services anymore.
However, did you know that the presence of business consulting can prepare your new business to face any potential business risks in the future? Or even prepare your business to grow and dominate a wider target market?
The world’s business experts are supported by many studies related to business consulting, found that one of the successful management stories of a business is strongly influenced by the process of learning and mentoring through business consulting.
Hands-on with Customization Services
Unfortunately, up until now, the world’s business experts have not agreed on the scientific terminology to define the crystal clear business consulting’s concept.
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Various metaphors are pinned on the notion of business consulting and the role of business consultants. It is difficult to reach an agreement on the definition of business consulting.
The main reason for it is because business experts and researchers in the world realize that the success of a learning process in business consulting is influenced by the consultant’s business style.
The business consulting process does not have scientific benchmarks or manual guides like the school curriculum. In conducting business guidance, a majority of consultants are only provided with business knowledge, the field of experience, and frames of reference.
The same view is expressed by Cruciani and Kipping (2001) who link the notion of business consulting with the ‘translation process’ — where the success of the business guidance process can be achieved if the business consultant is able to interpret his/her business knowledge with the needs of his/her clients.
A similar study was also found by Fullerton and West (1996) who suggested that both entrepreneur clients and business consultants should find customized solutions according to the abilities and needs of both parties. Not based on textual solutions contained in various theories and models of business conflict.
That’s why you can’t find the right consultant for your business just by searching. But deeper than that, the right business consulting process is a process that has passed the adjustment stage between the capabilities of the business consultant and the needs of your business's success.
To read more about the roles and responsibilities of a business consultant, you can find them in my next article.***
Sources
· McLarty, R. and Robinson, T. (1998), “The practice of consultancy and a professional development strategy”, Leadership & Organization Development Journal, Vol. 19 №5, pp. 256–63.
· Greiner, L.E. and Metzger, R.O. (1983), Consulting to Management, Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ.
· Pellegrinelli, S. (2002), “Managing the interplay and tensions of consulting interventions: the consultant-client relationship as mediation and reconciliation”, Journal of Management Development, Vol. 21 №5, pp. 343–65.
· Massey, C. and Walker, R. (1999), “Aiming for organizational learning: consultants as agents of change”, The Learning Organization, Vol. 6 №1, pp. 38–44.
· Blunsdon, B.J. (2002), “Beneath fashion: why is there a market for management consulting services?”, Professional service firms workshop, University of Alberta, Edmonton.
· Kakabadse, N.K., Louchart, E. and Kakabadse, A. (2006), “Consultant’s role: a qualitative inquiry from the consultant’s perspective”, Journal of Management Development, Vol. 25 №5, pp. 416–500.
· Steele, F. (1975), Consulting for Organizational Change, University of Massachusetts Press,
· Amherst, MA.
· Burnes, R.B., Cooper, C. and West, P. (2003), “Organizational learning: the new management paradigm?”, Management Decision, Vol. 41 №5, pp. 452–64.
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