The Executive Conundrum With Hiring a Consultant

Executives are faced with a conundrum when they are trying to decide on when and how to hire a consultant. There are typically 5 issues that nag an executive during this decision making process.  Those issues typically go along these lines:

• Consultants are too expensive; especially the top tier consulting firms and they don’t get real, measureable value
• Every professional who is unemployed or underemployed is a consultant until their next job and they don’t have the appropriate bandwidth; but they are cheap
• Finding a consultant or consulting firm who is a cultural fit with the organization
• Finding a consulting firm who has all the functional resources required for an entire project.
• When to admit that we really can’t solve the problem ourselves

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In an article I wrote about writing your company’s chapter on 2016, I asked if your view was optimistic or pessimistic. The first couple of weeks of 2016 should have reigned in all of the optimists, unless you are one of the lucky few who have a business that is absolutely bullet proof, or you have completely forgotten what an economic downturn is like.It is already here. All of the companies and countries whose fortunes are tied to oil have cut back their capital spending by as much as 80%. In the United States alone, that amounts to over $90 billion in reduced spending in 2015 and the worst isn’t over. Middle Eastern companies have reduced their spending by similar amounts. Not included in that is …Read More

For most of us, 2015 has been one of those years where business leaders were continuously faced with new obstacles to progress. Tepid demand, a strengthening dollar (+13%), the first interest rate increase in 8 years, a slowdown in China’s growth rate (-30% to – 50%, depending on who you listen to), oil down (-30.5%), volatile stocks on the DOW which is down (-2.2%) for the first time since 2008, geopolitical turmoil, a decline in the manufacturing index (-14%), etc. etc. etc. 2015 should be a reality check for …Read More

It doesn’t matter what size your company is or what industry you are in. Every company is challenged with delivering a Known Good Product or Service  Let’s face it, companies are only about offering products and services. When working with clients, I often ask their definition of a Known Good Product and am usually surprised by their inability to give me a good answer. They often say that it is a function of cost or quality or customer satisfaction or profitability, but I typically never hear them say …Read More

I was recently working with a division of a $1B company who was having problems with the introduction of a highly engineered product in a foreign country. They were struggling with manufacturing a complex component in a new product that was introducing a disruptive technology.

They recognized that this new product introduction was complex and that successfully introducing this product was the basis for their Market Effectiveness. They knew that that new product introduction programs typically generate their highest sales and profit margins in the fist 12 months after implementation. Disruptive product programs that are poorly implemented …Read More

Unhappy with your current DC? Expanding to a new region?

Whatever your reason for wanting to open a new warehouse or distribution center, you know that the decision can’t be taken lightly… and 3PL providers don’t make it easy to do side-by-side comparisons of their services and prices. There is more to developing an analysis of the options than …Read More

In our earlier posts on Anti-Strategy—situations where well-intentioned employees act against company interests—we’ve explored various cause and effects. Today we consider the impact of poor communications on Anti-Strategy. “Do we need better communication around here?” The answer to that question is: It depends. Have you over-heard this common question (or complaint) lately? “Better communication” is the politically-correct solution of choice when “slip-ups” occur. “No one told me about that…”. …Read More

In our earlier posts on Anti-Strategy—situations wherein well-intentioned employees act against company interests—we’ve explored this all-too-common issue, some of its symptoms and how it shows up in various business functions. Today we consider the root cause: poor and/or untimely information availability and its damaging effect on a company’s culture. Absent information, particularly in a dynamic business environment, people tend to …Read More