Who The Hell Needs Consultants?

Why would you bring in an outsider when the best ideas come from within?

You could spend a ton of money on a consultant that will come in, examine your practices, and give you a magical, groundbreaking solution (that will probably cost more money). Consultants don’t know you or your coworkers, they haven’t worked for you, and though they may come up with interesting solutions to certain problems, they certainly don’t have a huge stake in whether or not those solutions work.

Blanket solutions rarely work because they ignore nuances and lack specificity. If your problem is a lack of innovation, a huge software overhaul isn’t going to suddenly spur novel ideas. Human interaction, empowerment, and a medium through which ideas can be shared will uncover potential that already exists.

Ideas reach decision makers when people are connected. The people around you may have excellent, thoughtful ideas but no way — or immediate desire — to share them. All you need is better communication, and that’s something that any group of people can accomplish without an expensive, fancy consultant.