Beyond supply chain expertise, consultants bring an outside perspective and lack internal biases about what can or can’t be done. They have more freedom to ask probing questions, drive conversations toward new ideas, and challenge the status quo. Consultants may also have a more direct line to senior executives and can more easily sell their strategic vision to key decision makers.
Collectively, these consultant capabilities and credibility factors help companies avoid the politics, risk aversive behaviors, and resource shortages that can quickly marginalize supply chain initiatives.
Step 2 – Who to Hire
One of the biggest misconceptions about consultants is the cost. Reading about expensive engagements and the $7.1 billion spent in the United States on management consultants in 2016 is enough to make a company avoid consultants like the plague. However, beneficial outcomes more than outweigh project costs—if the right consultant is hired and appropriate project parameters are set.
One option is to hire a well-known global consulting firm like Accenture or Deloitte. These highly regarded organizations bring vast experience to supply chain engagements, assign an integrated team of well-trained individuals to a client, and leverage an arsenal of technology resources. The downside of working with these giants is their large, enterprise-wide project focus and expense. Many produce company projects are smaller scale undertakings and do not present a large enough payback to warrant the cost of a major consultancy.
Another option is to seek out an affordable boutique consulting firm that offers a narrower set of capabilities. While these smaller organizations may not cover the full spectrum of supply chain activities, they have deep capabilities in a few areas. This can be of great benefit when a company understands its needs and takes the time to align with a capable consultant. One challenge of hiring a smaller firm may be availability. A well respected organization may be quite busy and lack the capacity to take on new clients.
Produce companies can also look beyond the ranks of pure consultancies. Logistics service providers, equipment companies, and technology firms often provide some level of consulting services. These complimentary or low-cost offerings can be beneficial, but the solutions may be biased toward a specific set of services, solutions, or technology tools. University research centers can also provide supply chain advisory services via faculty or graduate students. They are priced competitively, though their project bandwidth may be constrained at certain times of the year.
The choice ultimately boils down to fit and availability. There must be a match between the project focus, timeline, and budget with the consultant’s capabilities, capacity, and cost structure.
