This year may be a turning point to relaunch your professional life. If becoming self-employed is not a decision to be taken lightly, the call of the open sea can push you to put your skills to good use in your own business. Why not become an independent consultant to bring your expertise to professionals?
As a profession in full effervescence, the independent consultant puts his know-how, his dynamism and his flexibility at the service of companies or independent leaders who wish to develop their activity. Having become an essential resource, he can be directly solicited by companies looking for skills.
What is the job of an independent consultant? What is it and its role? Why you should choose this activity? How can I start as an independent consultant? These are all questions that are important to know in order to engage in this profession and practice it independently.
What is the profession of independent consultant?
The definition of the profession of consultant
The independent consultant is above all an expert who will bring his experience to companies or independent leaders who wish to improve their operations in a specific field. He will propose his expertise to solve a specific problem.
When he becomes self-employed, the independent consultant focuses on his professional network or on his client portfolio.
Professional skills
To practice this profession, the independent consultant has professional experience and solid knowledge in his field of intervention. This can be a specific field such as management consulting, law, human resources management, finance, etc.
He must know the market of his future clients in order to provide them with advice adapted to their needs. In addition, this profession requires a very good ability to synthesize and analyze information using appropriate tools and methods.
With a high level of expertise in his field, he also has the interpersonal skills required to adapt to any type of problem of a company or leader.
Qualifications required to become an independent consultant
As confirmed by our partner, Laurent de Rauglaudre, one of the main qualities of an independent consultant is his ability to listen. A consultant must have a good sense of listening in order to better understand the realities of his client in order to be able to bring him adapted solutions. Within a company, he will listen to the points of view of each actor. It is he who will lead the teams to listen to each other and work together to develop the company’s project.
The freelance consultant is not afraid of contact and has an easy relationship. He must be able to ensure the confidence of his interlocutors without losing his composure. Alone at the controls of his activity, he shows an irreproachable organization in which nothing is left to chance.
All his qualities are the guarantee of the credibility of the independent consultant in front of his clients. If he lacks a skill, he will not hesitate to follow training courses or to learn by his own means to go beyond the simple framework of his profession.
What is the role of an independent consultant?
An independent consultant intervenes on a very precise problem of his client. It is a consulting activity for companies or an independent professional.
In order to improve the functioning of a company or the development of the activity of a leader, the mission of the consultant will be to:
- observe, listen and identify the needs and expectations of his client
- helping its clients to clarify their vision
- analyze and evaluate the feasibility and appropriateness of its mission
- determine the means to be implemented to meet the client’s expectations
- propose adapted solutions
- plan and ensure the follow-up of its mission.
Our partner Laurent de Rauglaudre sums up the role of an independent consultant as follows:
- To do: one intervenes in a company to carry out the job that one already knows how to do.
- To teach: we will structure the things we know how to do so that the clients can make them their own (this can be in the form of training courses, seminars, etc.).
- To inspire: we will advise clients to bring them to a higher level (with coaching sessions, animation, conferences)
The advantages of becoming an independent consultant
It is generally more advantageous to be self-employed than to be an employee in a consulting firm. The activity of an independent consultant can therefore be part of the solutions to regain your freedom. Transitioning from being an Employee to being a Freelancer brings both personal and professional benefits.
Personal benefits
Time
Who has never lacked time to devote to his family, his passion or his hobbies? By becoming an independent consultant, you will no longer have any time constraints other than those you set for yourself. It is you who decides at what time of the day you devote yourself to your professional activity. You organize your working time yourself.
Workplace
You can limit daily travel and work from your home or wherever it suits you. Customer appointments allow you to get out of the house, so you don’t have to be completely isolated. You are now in charge of your workplace.
Professional benefits
The choice of missions
Freelance consultants are free to choose their assignments, and therefore their new clients. Are you more interested in one company than another? You can therefore choose the one that best suits your field of expertise.
The opportunity for evolution
Becoming an independent consultant is a great opportunity to broaden one’s field of activity and enrich one’s skills. The more you advance in the profession, the more you will want to learn more.
While there are many advantages to being an independent consultant, there are also some challenges to be considered. The best solution is to seek the advice of other consultants to get an idea.
How do I get started as an independent consultant?
Becoming a consultant is a challenge. If you have been an employee, you will see that you are going to integrate a new environment, a new world, by launching yourself as an independent consultant. To take this step towards freedom, we advise you to follow the training course “Becoming a Free Consultant”, from our partner, Laurent de Rauglaudre.
Training to become a free consultant
This training is intended for employees who have the professional project to become a free consultant, or for consultants who want to develop their business.
By following this online training, you will be able to:
- clarify your project
- find customers without competition
- invoice at the rate of the best
- develop your business
- put aside your interior impostor
- develop your network
- manage your business well
If you too wish to launch yourself into one of the professions in vogue in recent years, join the training of our partner, Become a Free Consultant.
Don’t wait any longer to change your life!