Smart Consulting Sourcing

When it comes to buying consultancy services, people tend to shortlist firms concerning their prestige, brand awareness, methodologies, and so on, and as expected,  MBB tops their desired list. However, it's not that only the top companies can really solve your issue. Sometimes, a local consulting firm with a sound knowledge of the local culture and economy often makes a better option for you. In this episode of the Smart Consulting Sourcing podcast, Helene brings your attention to some aspects beyond ranking that would help you find the right consultancy for your need -- not just the best ones.

Building up an organizational set-up that would make your consulting souring process more efficient is like laying the foundation of a house. Consulting sourcing is not like purchasing commodities; it calls for deep expertise, experience and extensive research.   In this episode of the Smart Consulting Sourcing podcast, Helene discusses five ways to build an organizational set-up for the ease of sourcing the right consultants! It does not matter how big your organization is, this podcast will help you approach this goal more strategically and confidently.

Spend analysis is all about turning your spending data into valuable insights. In consulting, the process helps you to examine your company's spending to find areas where you may save costs and improve the impact of your projects. Providing you with a fact-based picture ultimately helps you to decide whether your consulting investment was a wise decision or not. What did you spend money on? What are the functions/business units buying Consulting Services? Who are the project sponsors? How many times a year? How much did they spend? What type of Consulting did they buy? Spend analysis helps you to comprehend all these issues, and this insight can be your weapon for rapid wins and value generation. So, how do implement the process? What are some of the levers to capture its benefits? In this episode of the Smart Consulting Sourcing podcast, Helene explains it all. Do tune in.   

The effectiveness of a consulting project is significantly influenced by multiple elements. Negotiating these terms could be complicated and time-consuming. What if you could negotiate these points once and enjoy its benefits for all current and future projects together over a given period? In this episode of our Smart Consulting Sourcing podcast, Helene explains what a Master Service Agreement is, why you need one for your consulting project, when you should use one and how it is different from Consulting Agreement.

When we started Smart Consulting Sourcing, we weren’t sure exactly where it would lead. Today, it gives us immense pleasure to see that SCS has become a valuable resource for Procurement Leaders. It's hard to believe that it's been 100 episodes already, but time really does fly when you're having fun. With that in mind, we are presenting this special episode to recall and relive the little victories of this awesome journey, albeit the fact that we had our share of rainy days as well! I have Laurent -- the chairman of Consulting Quest, with me to anchor the conversation with his signature style, laced with inimitable wit and unmatched sense of humor. So, whether you've been with us from the very beginning or you're just joining us now, we hope you enjoy this special episode. Do let us know what you found inspiring or made you smile!

Procurement strategy outlines how an organization will go about procuring goods and services. You always stay focused on your business goals with a sound procurement strategy in motion. Consulting can influence the entire strategy and is frequently utilized to accelerate it. Optimizing consulting spend is all about anticipation and identification of the best options for different types of projects. Different levers help in designing the procurement strategy for consulting and they include consulting strategy, make-or-buy strategy, consulting procurement process, and the like.

Believe it or not, the consulting market is booming. And in such a market, consultants enjoy a host of bargaining advantages. So, what does it mean for clients? Well, they need to be extra cautious while purchasing consulting services and the procurement team has to play the most vital role in it all. Besides staying up-to-date on new developments in the consulting industry, they must also have a good understanding of the competitive landscape. Only a person with deep familiarity with the industry can coin these techniques and they can be very effective in earning a winning edge when it comes to hiring a consultant in a booming consultancy market. So, don't miss it.

What is the best fee structure from the client's perspective -- a flat fee structure, retainer-based fee or performance-based fee structure? How do consultants stand to benefit from these systems? How do the consultancy fees vary according to the firms' capabilities and industries?  In this podcast, Helene digs into all these topics with her inimitable mix of wit and humor. Don't miss it.

The question is, as a client, do you at all need to write an RFP when you know there may not be many candidates bidding on your project? The answer is an emphatecic YES. Know why from this episode of our Smart Consulting Sourcing podcast series, where Helene examines the overall significance of RFP for consulting and why it is needed even when the bidding does not involve much competition.

While measuring the performance of consulting service providers is crucial for your business, it's not a methodical and straightforward process. No wonder, 57% of companies don’t have a systematic Performance Evaluation system for the Consulting Category. On the other side of the spectrum, most consulting firms work without having a reliable system for measuring clients' satisfaction. Many of them learn it the hard way -- they come to know about their clients' dissatisfaction with their performance only when they lose that account.