How to choose a management consulting company?

Management improvement (or change) is a long-term, time-consuming and arduous task, and both managers and grass-roots employees have a lot of other work to do every day. How can we coordinate the relationship between the two? There are two methods commonly used by enterprises: one is to recruit or select the person in charge of this work from within the enterprise, and the other is to hire a management consulting company. For large enterprises, the former may be feasible, but for small and medium-sized enterprises, these personnel are not easy to obtain. Secondly, after the project is completed, the placement of these personnel is also a big problem. So for small and medium-sized enterprises, the latter may be a more ideal choice. Management consulting companies have rich experience and profound knowledge, and can also master the latest technological development, and also understand the advantages and disadvantages of various solutions of similar enterprises.

Daoqin management consulting believes that the biggest advantage of hiring a management consulting company is that it can not only save the long-term expenses brought by enterprises using their own employees, but also greatly reduce the opportunity cost because of the centralized change and remarkable effect.

How can we choose a suitable management consulting company?

Step 1: Define the four elements of the project.

Daoqin management consulting believes that if a management consulting project is to be successful, enterprises should first make clear the four elements of the project: goal, scope, cost and progress before hiring a management consulting company.

The first is to define the goal of the project, that is, what kind of problems you want to solve and what kind of state you want to achieve. Of course, the objectives of the project are not necessarily clear from the beginning, and enterprises often further clarify the basic objectives of the project in the process of contacting management consulting companies.

The project objective answers the question "Why do enterprises need management consulting". According to the objectives of the project, the contents of the other three elements can be further determined:

Project scope: which departments (finance, production, human resources, etc.). ) Is the project covered? To what extent does each part need to be realized?

Project cost: What is the budget of the project? How is the budget allocated?

Project schedule: How to arrange the project schedule (timetable)? How many people specialize in this project? What kind of personnel do all departments need to provide? How long does it take to participate in and cooperate with the project?

Many enterprises employ management consulting companies with unsatisfactory results, and even everyone broke up in discord. One of the main reasons is that the enterprise itself has not defined its own needs in advance, but after inviting the management consulting company, the management consulting company will tell the enterprise what to do. When the project was completed, it was found that it was not the result they needed.

Step 2: Find a candidate management consulting company.

Management consulting companies can be roughly divided into two types: large comprehensive management consulting companies and small specialized management consulting companies. Large management consulting companies have a wide range of business, but they are usually expensive. Small professional management consulting companies have concentrated business and can provide more professional services.

When choosing a management consulting company, you can't simply believe that "the more famous the better". The key depends on the management consulting company's understanding and experience of the contents involved in enterprise projects. One of the best ways to find an experienced management consulting company suitable for enterprises is peer survey. Enterprises can contact other enterprises with similar scale and business, learn about the management consulting companies they have hired, and listen to their comments on the quality of work and services of these management consulting companies. In addition to enterprises in the same industry, trade organizations or trade associations are also good sources of information.

Selection of candidate management consulting companies can refer to the following criteria:

The past performance record of the management consulting company;

Qualification, education, experience, industry knowledge, etc. of consultants in management consulting companies.

Tariff standard, cost performance and payment method of management consulting company

The ability and level of management consulting company to customize personality according to the needs of enterprises;

Refer to customers.

According to the size of the project, generally speaking, 3~5 management consulting companies can be selected as candidates. Not too little, not too much.

Step 3: Project Introduction

After determining the candidate management consulting company, the enterprise can start further contact with the management consulting company. In this step, we should pay attention to two points:

The enterprise introduces the basic needs of the project to the management consulting company;

Enterprises should not preach unilaterally, but discuss with management consulting companies, determine the project objectives in the discussion, and understand the capabilities and ideas of management consulting companies;

After contacting with management consulting companies, they are required to put forward project proposals, explaining their understanding of the project, consulting ideas, consulting results, progress, project budget, etc.

At this stage, it is forbidden to ask management consulting companies to provide project proposals only by briefly introducing the company's situation and basic objectives. On the other hand, if a management consulting company provides a project proposal without a preliminary understanding of the company's basic problems, the management consulting company is either extremely capable or extremely unreliable.

Step 4: Evaluate the project proposal

After receiving the project proposal of the candidate management consulting company, the enterprise may organize internal review according to the situation. In the evaluation process, there are the following aspects that enterprises need to pay special attention to:

First of all, according to the management consulting company's solutions to the problems faced by enterprises, enterprises can get a general idea of how they will implement this project. It is not appropriate to pay attention to two types of management consulting companies: one is to push too much responsibility and work to enterprises, and the other is to "do all the work".

Secondly, enterprises should pay attention to whether management consulting companies really listen to the requirements of enterprises, and whether their project proposals clearly tell enterprises what problems will be solved? Many "project proposals" are just simple copies of the previous plans of these management consulting companies, and lack pertinence to the projects of enterprises. This scheme is not desirable.

Third, it depends on whether the management consulting company provides the most cost-effective solution. In order to get higher income, some management consulting companies will expand their scope and improve the standards of some services.

Finally, enterprises should not ask management consulting companies to propose innovative solutions to their own problems in project proposals. Enterprises need to understand that the innovation of management consulting companies needs to be reflected in the consulting process, so how to identify their innovative ability depends on whether they successfully handle previous cases in the project proposal. Too much emphasis on innovation will be very dangerous for enterprises, because those innovative and untested methods or programs often have great risks.

When evaluating proposals, enterprises should pay attention to balancing the relationship among quality, importance of experience and project budget. Enterprises should choose the best scheme within the tolerable range. If we can't find a suitable one in the project budget, the enterprise needs to redefine the project scope or increase the budget.

Step 5: Sign the contract.

The rest is to sign the contract. Most management consulting companies have standard contract templates. Whether they have them or not, enterprises should ensure that the project contract should include the following contents:

List of deliverable documents

Project completion date

* Fees and payment plans

Checkpoints (or milestones) for enterprises and management consulting companies to evaluate project progress and solve any problems.

A mechanism through which either party can terminate the contract before the project is completed.

Method of dispute settlement

Daoqin management consulting believes that the management consulting company has been selected in strict accordance with the above five steps, and the management consulting project of the enterprise has been half successful, and the remaining half needs the full cooperation of both parties.