When recruiting new employees, hiring managers look for a distinct set of skills tailored to the job at hand. While education is important, it’s not the only thing that matters, so holding an MBA doesn’t necessarily make a job applicant the shoo-in for a Business Consultant position. Candidates will want to demonstrate that they have the skills necessary to do the job, including hard skills like data analytics, project management, and key financial processes, as well as soft skills like interpersonal communication, leadership, problem-solving, and creativity. Some people assume they’ll never be considered for a Business Consultant without the right pedigree, but in fact, much of what is required to take on a Business Consultant role can be learned outside of an MBA program. This article will explore the skills needed to become an in-demand Business Consultant, well-suited to working across industries and with companies of all sizes.
What is a Business Consultant?
Business Consultants are industry experts who advise clients on both execution and strategy. After working with management to review company operations, Business Consultants can help with revision and restructuring, as well as implementing a plan for the company to achieve long-term goals. They are typically strong problem solvers, adapt easily to market demands, and are quick to implement any changes on a higher level within the organization. Moreover, consulting across industries can mean becoming better at the job and gaining a deeper understanding of the business world at large.
Companies of all sizes rely on Business Consultants, from decades-old corporate entities to brand-new start-ups, and from family businesses to multinationals. Even more so, they can work in virtually any industry, including finance, healthcare, technology, retail, manufacturing, and even tourism. Their primary roles include analyzing the organizational structure of a business and developing new strategies for improvement as a result of their findings. They may also specialize in certain subsets of business consultancy, such as human resources, marketing, or management.
On a daily or weekly basis, Business Consultants typically engage in several key activities that range from research and analysis to presentations and strategizing. One challenge of business consulting is that tight deadlines and an expectation of meaningful results can make it a stressful field. However, the people who will succeed best as Business Consultants will be problem solvers who are motivated, flexible, calm under pressure, and have excellent communication skills. When working on large-scale projects, Business Consultants will encounter tasks that differ daily, leading to better engagement with the project and higher job satisfaction: since no day is exactly like the next as a Business Consultant, it’s hard to get bored.
Hard Skills
Data Analytics
Business Consultants use data analytics to help identify trends, understand their customers, and make more informed decisions. Data analytics uses statistical measurements to aid decision-making processes across industries. As a practice, this is a useful customer service tool, a way to improve marketing campaigns, and helpful in increasing operational efficiency. Moreover, effectively analyzing data can provide insight into customer preferences and identify areas for improvement. Learning Microsoft Excel, programming languages like Python and SQL, and data visualization tools such as Tableau are all useful when it comes to data analytics.
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Project Management
Project Management involves planning, budgeting, organizing, supervising, and directing a team to complete projects on time and under budget. It is a burgeoning field in its own right, with millions of project management jobs projected to be created in the coming years, but it’s also a useful set of skills for Business Consultants to learn and employ. Like Project Managers, Business Consultants will do well to establish goals and deadlines, delegate to team members as needed, consider risk management, manage resources, and establish strong communication across the organization. The so-called “Project Life Cycle” has five stages: project initiation, project planning, project execution, project monitoring, and project closure. Understanding this cycle can help Business Consultants in considering the needs of their clients, both project-to-project and more globally.
Financial Modeling
Financial modeling is the process of evaluating a company’s past performance by relying on financial forecasts to predict the likelihood of various financial outcomes. By using the organization’s financial statements, finance professionals and Business Consultants alike can predict how statements may look in the future. This practice considers all relevant factors, including risk assumptions and growth, to evaluate financial health, which may require working with existing models or building new ones from scratch. Financial models can help companies budget for the future, analyze performance against goals and targets, and compare performance with those of an organization’s competitors. Because models can be used to analyze finances, ratios, and capital structure, as well as to estimate financial metrics for new projects, an ability to build and understand financial models will serve a Business Consultant well.
Data Management and Presentation Skills
Knowing how to organize and present data will be a huge advantage to a Business Consultant. The first step will be to gather information from the organization such as financial statements and employee performance records, and synthesize that information to determine what is working and what isn’t. Then it will be the Business Consultant’s job to present the material in a way that is easy to digest, keeping in mind that some of the information might be unwelcome or worrisome. Tools like Microsoft Excel and PowerPoint can be ideal for organizing and presenting data, but it will take problem-solving and good communication skills to understand both how to help the company and how to craft a message that is diplomatic and fair.
Soft Skills
Interpersonal Communication
Business Consultants will need to convey their ideas, thoughts, and concerns to clients clearly and concisely. This is especially necessary when offering up less-than-positive news. A Business Consultant won’t be able to sugarcoat the information; regardless, they will need to consider the feelings and sensitivities of those they’re communicating with. The job will often include sharing hard truths about what has gone wrong and identifying teammates who either aren’t working up to their potential or whose jobs are redundant. Knowing how to share bad news -- and, when possible, to look for and convey silver linings -- will be key for Business Consultants. Businesses that are in perfect shape are rare (and arguably, nonexistent) but they still need a consultant to offer up wisdom, guidance, and assistance. Therefore, being a strong, respectful communicator is essential.
Team Player
The perception of a Business Consultant is quite different across various parts of the organization. Some employees will worry that the consultant is simply inventing ways to prove themselves. Those in supervisory positions may feel defensive of the people who report to them and will want to make sure their own track records are perceived as unblemished. The higher-ups, however, will want answers: what’s working and what isn’t. So it’s important that a Business Consultant works well with everyone in the organization, reassuring employees that the goal is to create streamlined processes and build a more efficient company rather than implement arbitrary layoffs. Embedding into the team and working to understand each aspect of the business can help a Business Consultant gain the trust of skeptical employees and, ideally, bring out the best in everyone. While redundancies may be inevitable, a keen-eyed Business Consultant can also figure out ways to keep them to a minimum -- and understanding how the team works as a unit can help a Consultant to recognize what individuals bring to the table.
Problem Solver
A Business Consultant will do best with a solution-oriented mindset, looking to tackle projects at each new company with the same level of diligence and focus. Solving complex problems is only part of the issue: the problems often need to be solved on a strict timeline. This will likely require breaking each problem down into manageable pieces, which means a Business Consultant will also have to be organized and disciplined. So-called “directional correctness” is also key: working on a short timeline, Consultants may not be able to look at a problem from every angle, but rather will often have to use their judgment to make the best guesses.
What Other Jobs Require These Skills?
Business consulting is not the only field that requires skills like financial modeling, data analytics, and project management -- so if you share that training but business consulting doesn’t seem like quite the right fit, there are other avenues to explore. A Business Administrator is tasked with handling the day-to-day operations of an organization, and unlike a Business Consultant, will work directly for the company. This provides a degree of security, as well as the familiarity of working within a singular organization without a set end date. The job is still dynamic and will provide new challenges, but you can feel you’re effecting positive changes from inside the company rather than as an outsider.
If the highly organized aspect of business consulting is appealing, a Project Manager position might be the right role for you. Responsible for planning and executing a project including procuring materials and labor, defining the scope, and creating a timeline for a complex project, a Project Manager is a boots-on-the-ground position that is high-octane and ever-changing. As with a consulting position, excellent communication skills are key for Project Managers.
For a more behind-the-scenes role, one in which collecting, processing, and analyzing data is at the forefront, the position of Data Analyst could be the best fit. The role of Data Analysts is to translate numbers into actionable insights that help their employers make better business decisions. Data Analysts can work across industries including retail, tech, medicine, and government agencies, which means having a lot of options on the open market--and allows for variety across the length of your career.
Learn the Skills to Become a Business Consultant at Noble Desktop
At Noble Desktop, you can learn all the necessary skills to become a Business Consultant through various classes on a wide range of subjects. You can choose from certificates, bootcamps, and short courses that help give you more insight and skills to succeed in your preferred field and industry. For example, the 132-hour “MBA” Business Certificate allows students to master the tools, concepts, and technologies to succeed in the business world. Specifically, you will learn project management methodologies, financial concepts pertaining to investments and insurance, marketing strategies such as search engine optimization, business law and writing styles, and data analytics processes. In addition, you will explore ways to utilize useful tools like AI, which can be instrumental in creating a more productive workplace. In addition, you will practice using software and platforms like Microsoft Excel, Figma, Tableau, and Google Analytics. With the help of an expert instructor, hands-on training, and additional mentoring, you will earn your certificate of completion. This all-encompassing education will enable you to become more confident in your business skills and feel ready to take on a role as a Business Consultant or a related position.
One of the most popular and widely used platforms across all businesses includes Microsoft Office. The applications within Microsoft Office are essential for data management, communications, presentations, and document handling. In Noble Desktop’s Microsoft Office Fundamentals Bootcamp, you will learn advanced levels of Excel and intermediate levels of PowerPoint, Word, and Outlook. In Excel, your instructor will show you how to turn data insights into clear, understandable visualizations. Perhaps you choose to present your data findings with PowerPoint -- after this bootcamp, you will feel comfortable using all the visual features, transitions, and layouts. Similarly, you will learn how to navigate, format, and personalize documents within Word and share them with others in your organization with Outlook. Overall, this bootcamp gives you an all-encompassing overview of the most essential Office tools that will serve you well as a business consultancy professional.
If you are curious about specializing in project management but want to take a short course before deciding, you can enroll in Project Management Level I. Here, you will learn the five key phases of project management, focusing mostly on the first two stages: initiation and planning. You will study foundational concepts and project management terms that give you more insight into the field before deciding to move forward with Level II or a bootcamp. Moreover, you will learn how to select and develop project plans, including everything from its schedule, budget, resource allocation, and other aspects that define the project. Overall, this course gives you the skills to determine whether project management is the right career path for you to explore.