Why hire an interim or a consultant? and what’s the difference anyway?
People often ask me these questions, so I share my thoughts as someone who has worked as both a professional interim and as a consultant over the last 12 years.
Interims and consultants are contractors who can add value to your business on a temporary basis. They are not with you for the long term. Whether they are classified as interims or consultants probably depends on how long you expect them to stay, what you want them to do and how involved they become in your business; whether they’re purely offering advice or specific services, or whether they’re essentially picking up someone else’s job for a while. It is all too easy for the day to day realities of working practice to blur boundaries; sometimes they may start out as one thing and end up as another. A clear contract setting out expectations and terms is essential to avoid unintended legal and tax consequences revolving around the ‘status’ of the interim or consultant doing the work. That aside, one thing that’s certain is that neither interims nor consultants have the mindset of the permanent employee and they are not with you indefinitely.
Senior interims and consultants in particular are worth their weight in value add because they are:
Able to deliver specialist skills and knowledge
Professional interims and consultants have a huge wealth of experience and expertise gained from working with many different companies and industries, and in many different situations.
Cost effective
IR35 is a complicated piece of legislation, often referred to as the bane of the consulting world, and is too complex to cover here. But as long as their contracts are outside IR35, consultants provide an agreed rate or fixed fee which is inclusive of national insurance and other taxes (except VAT if applicable). No benefits – such as pensions or holiday, maternity or sickness pay – accrue and no severance is payable when the contract ends.
Able to offer a fresh perspective
Consultants can give a clear view because they have no vested interests. They are not part of the political machinery of your organisation and will only be with you on a temporary basis. This helps them to break through roadblocks, generate new ideas and improve processes.
Results focused
They’re not paid to be unproductive. They come to the job with experience and knowledge already in hand, and do not expect to be trained. In fact, they can help to train you.
Able to provide space and time to help you assess what you really need in the business
They are a safe pair of hands you can rely on in times of crisis.
In uncertain times, contractors and consultants can add more value to your business than ever. If companies are fighting to make ends meet, why spend time and money training and supporting new employees? Better to bring in an experienced consultant who can do the job fast, efficiently and cost-effectively – and also guarantee great results.