Choosing a Business Consultant
Once your application for the Indigenous Business Australia (IBA) Business Development Program has been approved, you will be invited to select a suitably qualified consultant from IBA’s Register of Business Consultants, who will work with you to develop and grow your business.
Choosing a business consultant to work with is an important decision. This is your business and you will be taking the personal risks involved with starting and running the business. IBA strongly encourages you to spend the time to make a considered choice as you may be working with your chosen consultant for quite some time through the business planning stage, the loan application and settlement process, and mentoring and other business-related activities.
You will need to be actively involved in the business planning process and will work closely with your consultant to gain the necessary understanding and skills to run your business independently.
When choosing a consultant we suggest you keep the following points in mind:
- Does the consultant have knowledge and experience in your chosen business industry/field?
- Do they have enough time to dedicate to your project? How busy are they?
- How soon can they start assisting you?
- How long will they be able to work with you for, and how long do they think the project will take?
- Do you feel comfortable with the consultant; do you communicate well with each other?
- Do you think you will be able to work well with each other, and do they seem like the best match for you and your business?
You may find it useful to telephone one or two of the consultant’s previous clients to ask about their experience working with that consultant. You may also prefer to meet the consultants face-to-face rather than talking on the phone.
When you first contact a consultant it is important to be clear about what you need, and give some background about yourself and your business. Explain that you are calling several consultants before making your selection.
‘It felt like our business consultant was on call because we could reach them at any time either by phone or over the net and they would always respond. That has been very reassuring for us and has cut down on our headaches…and allowed us to concentrate on moving the business forward’. - Peter Christopherson, Partner & Director, Kakadu Native Plants.
Some useful questions to ask
Experience and expertise
Have you worked with a business like mine before?
What experience do you have in this industry?
Have you worked regularly with Aboriginal clients before?
Can I call one or two of your previous clients?
The process
How do you usually work with your clients, and what process do you follow?
How much involvement will I have in the process?
Will you be the consultant that is working with me, or will it be someone else? If it is someone else, what is their knowledge of and experience in this industry?
Availability and delivery
When will you be able to start working on my project?
How long do you think it will take, and when do you think we will be finished?
Finally, you may want to ask the consultant why they think they might be the best fit for your business.
It is possible to change consultants later, but this could significantly delay the business support process, and a replacement consultant would need to repeat a lot of the initial groundwork that you do with your first consultant.
However, if none of the recommended consultants are right for you, or you need some help or advice with the selection process, please Contact Us.
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