Short-Cut The Consulting Services Learning Curve.

• Author: McHenry-Osborne, Edi

When you started out in accounting, you had mentors and systems to guide you on how to complete tax returns and financial statements. You were given three to five years to gain a modicum of competence, while your efforts were sheltered behind more experienced practitioners.

As you head out into the world of consulting, you realize you do not have five years to get good at this. Expanding client relationships, professional credibility, and competitors knocking at your client's door, all demand that you move much faster along the consulting services learning curve.

It's no wonder so many practitioners are buffeted between the excitement they feel about this enormous opportunity and their concern about the professional and personal risk involved. It would be so much easier to just stay with what you know, but the marketplace will not stand still. Clearly the greater risk in this proposition is in not expanding your service offerings. So the question on everyone's mind is, "How do I (or how does our firm) short-cut the learning curve?"

Getting started

Let's assume you have already considered the appropriateness of a new service in relation to the needs of your clients. Once you have done your homework regarding which services to offer, look for training programs that take a "systems" approach to providing those services. Just as you have systems for preparing tax returns and financial statements, you will need systems for consulting services. Systems make the process predictable and repeatable and allow for greater leverage across the firm.

Internal preparation

It is critically important to lay a proper foundation within the firm early in the process of initiating your new consulting service. This requires the involvement of others in the firm.

Partner/team orientation. The fastest way to learn something is to teach it to others. As part of your path to mastery, we recommend that upon completing any training program, you teach your newly acquired skill to others in your firm. Not only will your skills grow, but you will also find others in your firm much more likely to support your efforts if they understand the nature of the service you are providing, the overall value this service brings to the firm, and what your expectations are of their involvement.

Strategic planning. To help assure the continued involvement of others, it's important to outline the who, what, where, when, why, and how of your effort. Be specific in your targets. For...