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Every craftsman needs his tools, and business consultants are no different. There are a number of key tools and frameworks that a good business consultant must have in his or her repertoire if he or she is to succeed. We will look at a few of these in this article.
The first tool is called Porter’s Five Forces. Developed by a Harvard Business School professor, the five forces are five aspects to an industry that determine profit. Knowing them will ensure you sound professional, and able to manage a business’ problems.
The BCG growth Share Matrix was developed by Boston Consulting Group, and allows a business to arrange its products into types. It is an incredibly useful tool to have, because it can immediately tell a business which products to ditch and which to market heavily. It can mean the difference between bankruptcy and profit.
The McKinsey nine-box matrix is a real classic, and deserves a place in every consultant’s toolbox. The matrix has been around for a number of years now but it really offers some great insights for a consultant who is working with a client. Business opportunities are categorised in this matrix, so that a business may accurately identify which opportunities are high risk and low risk, and even medium risk. Used intelligently, the matrix allows a business to pick and choose business opportunities, and therefore create real profit.
Finally, every consultant should know about core competencies. These competencies allow a business to define its competitive advantage, and therefore market them more heavily.
All of the above tools are now expected in any business consultant’s toolbox, and should be understood and appreciated by any professional that wishes to help a business meet it’s own goals and make that all important profit. If you are intending to become a consultant, you need to get these tools as part of what you do.
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