Hiring a Consultant? Check Their Continuing Education
By: Tim Campbell
Tags: Entrepreneur, Consulting, B2B, Consultant, Entrepreneurship

Today was a busy day: first, I finished a course required for a certification I’m pursuing. Then I was onto supporting two other people going into social media marketing. This while writing my book, and I can’t help but think of a key activity consultants must do and consumers must ask about:

I’m talking about the need for continuing education for consultants.

Continuing education means a consultant will be abreast in new frameworks, methodologies, details and concepts, and able to synthesize them in application as needed. Continuing education means a consultant has a (hopefully) strong foundation and intentionally builds upon it to be better. Continuing education is required by most (if not all) regulated professionals, and here I’d like to encourage consultants to pursue it and consumers to ask about it.

I also advocate for continued education because consulting is so easy to get into and only growing as a profession. Education, and continued education is the true marker of a consultant who delivers excellence for their clients. This also doesn’t call into question the foundational education: some consulting fields almost require a formal education (like management consultants, who it is strongly advised have an MBA) where some professions it’s not required (a famous case study is Gary V saying a college education is not required to become an entrepreneur). Based on these concepts, and always being future looking: continuing education is crucial. Ultimately, the notion is clear:

When hiring a consultant, continuing education will be the key differentiator that leads to successful outcomes.

When I encourage consumers to check continuing education of consultants, I’m actually encouraging two things: check for demonstrative behaviours, and ask about tough ideas. With all of these you can scratch the surface, or dig deeper with some of my suggestions.

When hiring a consultant, check for

Courses. How long were the courses? What did they learn? Who offered it? Were there exercises, tests, exams? How frequently are courses taken? Was the course free, or did the consultant have to pay for it? Certifications. How hard was it to get? What was required to get it? Does it have an expiry? Was the certification free, or did the consultant have to pay for it? Who else has it? Diversity of source. Articles are great, but lack theoretical underpinnings and concepts. Case studies are fabulous, but lack big picture or replicable take aways. Online is an accessible medium, but lacks the dedication of a classroom setting. Too much of any one source leads to blind spots. Thought leadership. Thought leadership are places where a consultant shows original, supported works that are seen or even reviewed by others. You can check for things such as LinkedIn articles, YouTube videos, books or peer submitted reviews.

Then there are some core things to ask about for further for further information:

Ask your prospective consultant when they last engaged in continuing education. Because there’s so many forms of education and opportunities for learning, be open to their experiences. Ask your consultant about whether or not education is a priority. Ask how that priority does or doesn’t show up in their professional life. Ask your consultant when the last time their position was changed on something. This is a really beautiful indicator that your consultant is not only consuming new information, but wrestling with and synthesizing it.

When you’re thinking about getting help from a consultant, and you both want the relationship to work, ask about continuing education. This is one quick way to build trust and credibility for them, and shows you’ll be a more engaged client (which, personally, as a consultant is my favourite). When you’re both engaged and caring about how outcomes are come to, everybody wins: consultants and clients.

Consumers: ask about how your consultant is maintaining excellence.

Consultants: be excellent for your clients.