Hiring A Consultant

Hiring a consultant rather than directly employing someone can make a lot of sense if you have a short term piece of work to do or only need someone for a few hours a week, particularly where you do not either have the time or the competencies to do it yourself. Examples may include hiring someone to write some funding bids for you, doing your bookkeeping, maintaining your computers or to carry out a consultation. Sessional work, such as hiring trainers, may mean hiring people that are self employed rather than taking them on to your own payrole.

However things can go badly wrong if you do not get the right person for the job or are not clear about what you want. This can result in a useless piece of work for which you have paid several thousand pounds or worse damage may be done that will cost more to repair.

It is important to write a detailed brief about what you want the consultant to do, to recruit someone with the skills and knowledge to do the job efficiently and effectively and for you to manage the consultant.

The brief should contain an accurate description of the job to be done, what criteria you will use for chosing a consultant, the timescale and a budget for the job. If it is an area of work that you do not know well you may need to take advice to write the brief.

Recruiting a consultant requires the same skills as recruiting a staff member. Think of what competencies you want and write a person specification. What qualifications and experience should the consultant have? Think about where you will find the right person. What tools will you use to assess the consultants competencies? References from their last customers can be very useful. Think about your recruitment timescale. Good consultants are often booked up weeks or months in advance. Ensure that the person applying for the job is the person that will actually deliver the work.

A contract is important as it is the legal document that disputes will be judged against as well as being a working document for the two parties. Most consultants will have a draft contract that can be used but be sure that you are happy with it before you use it. You may also want to know that the consultant is properly insured for any risks and liabilities that may be incurred. If the job involves contact with vulnerable people then a CRB check will also be necessary as well as procedures for working with vulnerable people.

Think about what arrangements you need to make to supervise the consultant. Where a consultant is working to a partnership it will be important that they are supervised by one person who is clear about what is being paid for and also knows if the consultant is doing a good job. Regular agreed contact is important. If the consultant is not carrying out the agreed task or working to the agreed timescale that person will need to know what to do.

Good consultants are an asset for the sector. It is important to treat them with respect.

The NCVO produce a Good Guide to Working With Consutlants but you will have to pay for it. They also have a directory of approved consultants. BHCI keep a list of consultants but you will have to satisfy yourself that they are suitable for the job you want done. Some pieces of work can be carried out by other voluntary organisations. Think about using the CVSForum email list or ask BHCI.

Published by Brighton and Hove Impetus