Types of Consultants 

The consultancy industry is one of the most diverse markets within the professional services industry, and, as such, a wide spectrum of types of consultant are found in the industry. Moreover, being a ‘consultant’ is not a protected professional title like most other professions, and, as such, anyone can title themselves strategy, management, business, finance, HR or IT consultant. Given the widespread areas in which a consultant can operate, and added to this the variety of work places a consultant can access, there has been a sharp rise in the number of independent consultants over the past few years. Following the influx into the industry, a common definition of a ‘consultant’ has become more difficult to reach. 

Over the past few decades, branch specific associations and analysts have developed different definitions in order to categorise the diverse types of consultants active in the field. Consultancy.uk adheres to the approach used by Kennedy Information, an American research agency that has been analysing the consultancy market since the ‘60s (for more info see the page on the Consultancy Branch). The methodology behind their approach is based on there being six core types of consultants within the consulting industry:

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Strategy Consultant

​The term Strategy Consultant is used to describe consultants who operate at the highest level of the consultancy market, with focus on strategic topics like corporate and organisational strategy, economic policy, government policy and functional strategy. For this reason, strategy consultants generally carry out work assigned by top managers, like CxOs, directors and senior managers. Seeing that the nature of strategy consulting differs from the other more implementation and operational driven areas, strategy consultants generally have a different profile than their peers. Their focus lies more on quantitative/analytics skills, and their job description revolves more around giving advice than overseeing implementation.

Management Consultant

Management consultants, in practice also known as business consultants or organisational advisors, are consultants who focus on all sorts of organisational concerns from strategy to a variety of elements within management. In the methodology upheld by Kennedy as well as Consultancy.uk, Management Consulting is a collective term used for all services that fall under Strategy Consulting, Operations Consulting and HR Consulting. For that reason, management consultants form the vast majority in the advisory branch – more than half of all advisors can be defined as a management consultant.

Operations Consultant

Operations consultants are consultants who help clients improve the performance of their operations. Consultancy activities in this segment vary from advisory services to hands-on implementation support, for both primary functions (e.g. Sales, Marketing, Production, etc.) as secondary functions (e.g. Finance, HR, Supply Chain, ICT, Legal, etc.). Operations Consultants form the largest segment within the advisory branch, and the majority of consultants are active within one of the many underlying operating areas. Seeing as the operations is often associated with the strategy and technology side of a company, active operations consultants regularly work side by side with experts from these domains.

Financial Advisory Consultant

Consultants who operate in the Financial Advisory segment generally work on questions that address financial capabilities, and, in many cases, also the analytical capabilities within an organisation. Subsequently, the profiles of consultants active in this segments can differ greatly, from M&A and corporate finance advisors to risk management, tax, restructuring or real estate consultant. Consultants specialised in forensic research and support disputes also fall under the Financial Advisory segment. The majority of financial consultants work for the large combined accounting and consulting firms, or else for niche advisory offices.

Human Resource Consultant

HR consultants help clients with human capital questions within their organisations and / or with improving the performance of the HR department. Chief topics central to the job description of HR consultants are, among others, organisational changes, change management, terms of employment, learning & development, talent management and retirement. HR consultants are also brought in by organisations to help transform the business culture within their organisation, or transform their HR department, which includes changes in the area of organisational design, processes and systems, among others. HR consulting forms, together with strategy consulting, the two smallest segments of the consultancy industry, and the number of consultants active in this domain is, therefore, lower than those in other parts of the industry.

IT Consultant

​Technology consultants, also known as IT, ICT or digital consultants, focus on helping clients with the development and application of Information Technology (IT) within their organisation. IT consultants focus on transitions (projects) in the ICT-landscape, contrary to regular IT-employees, who work on day-to-day IT operations (so-called ‘business as usual’ activities). The majority of ICT-consultants work on implementation projects, for instance, extensive ERP systems applications, where their role may vary from project management to process management or system integration. Within IT consulting, the fastest growing markets are digital, data analytics (also known as data science), cyber security and IT forensics.

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Reason Business Consultants Are Important 

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Few reasons why business consultants are hired:

• To provide a “short-cut” to know-how, knowledge and information that does not exist in the organization

• To provide a professional service that does not exist in the organization, or that is needed for a specified period of time

• To provide solutions to specific challenges and situations

• To validate ideas that have already been created in the organization

• To analyze, diagnose or criticize (constructively)

• To facilitate the search for ideas and solutions with existing team members

• To facilitate, create and implement methodologies and systems that enhance efficiency and organization

• To access a network of business or government contacts

• To bring in an experienced “outsiders” evaluation and point of view

• To present, teach or implement “new” business ideas and procedures

We provide speedy assistance in time of need. Our highly educated and professional team of consultants are much like the Early Heroes, Defenders, and Warriors of past time. We have the knowledge and power to assist, guide, correct, and protect your company in order to achieve its ultimate success.  

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