Professional Practice For Consultants

ONLINE COURSE PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE FOR CONSULTANTS

Are you an Expert at something?

Use your expertise to make a living by running your own consultancy business!

Consultancy is one of the most rapidly expanding areas in business today. Tom Lambert in High Income Consulting, states that the consulting industry world wide is growing by 20% each year, and will continue to do so for some years.

A high percentage of graduates are now looking at earning their living by independent means rather than being employed by an organisation. These include graduates from areas such as psychology, law, IT, accountancy, business, the different areas of medicine, engineering, physiotherapy etc. It does not matter what field you are in, there will always be organisations or individuals who will be in need of your expertise.

Because of downsizing, companies are increasingly out-sourcing for services and expertise that is not available from their own staff. Consultants bring their time and expertise to help fill in the gaps. They are needed because they have skills, experience, or knowledge not perceived to be available in-house. 

Lesson Structure

There are 8 lessons in this course:

1. Determining If a Consultancy Practice is for You
2. Planning a Consultancy Practice: Part 1
3. Planning a Consultancy Practice: Part 2
4. Knowing What to Charge
5. Setting Up Your Consulting Practice
6. Keeping Accounts and Records
7. How to Generate Business & Keep It
8. Maintaining Your Consultancy Practice

Each lesson culminates in an assignment which is submitted to the school, marked by the school's tutors and returned to you with any relevant suggestions, comments, and if necessary, extra reading.

Aims

• Analyse current industry requirements and your individual needs to determine if opening a consultancy is appropriate.
• Determine the business structure appropriate for your consultancy practice.
• Produce a business plan and implementation schedule
• Determine costs involved in setting up a practice and how to set fees.
• Describe different communication and marketing techniques.
• Describe different administrative procedures including invoicing and maintaining records and accounts.
• Determine industry best practice for obtaining and keeping your customers
• Recognise responsibility towards yourself and employees in maintaining and expanding your practice, and to develop strategies to cater for increased demand.

The course covers the following:

- Attributes of successful consultants
- Advantages & disadvantages
- Codes of Conduct
- Are you ready?

-Methods of getting into consultancy
- Business structure & name
- Working from home or an office
- Insurance
- Financing
- Equipment
- Set up costs
- Surviving start up
- Getting assistance

- A comprehensive Business Plan & Implementation / Pro-forma

- Your costs
- Available Working Time
- Different ways to charge
- Value based fees & justifying your fees

- Letting clients find out about you/Advertising/Marketing
- Creating a press kit
- Internet
- Image
- Networking

- Keeping Records
- Source documents
- The invoice
- Timesheets
- Being organized

- Using agents/brokers
- Using other consultants
- Asking advice from clients & potential clients
- Asking for a reference
- Tenders
- Writing articles
- Successful client relations
- Keeping clients
- What to do if a potential client says ‘no’
- Principles of acquiring business

- Professional development
- Hiring staff to expand your business
- Creating passive income
- Pitfalls to avoid

Alternatively, check out our bookshop for relevant text books: