{"id":1413,"date":"2022-09-21T17:18:52","date_gmt":"2022-09-21T17:18:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/theforage.wpengine.com\/?p=1413"},"modified":"2024-08-05T16:47:30","modified_gmt":"2024-08-05T20:47:30","slug":"consultant","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theforage.wpengine.com\/careers\/consultant","title":{"rendered":"What Is a Consultant?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What is a consultant and what does a consultant do? A consultant is someone who provides expert advice and guidance to a company or individual facing a challenge or trying to solve a problem. While this can include a wide variety of issues, consultants usually provide solutions to pressing business problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Though it can take years to truly feel like an expert on a topic, anyone can learn how to become a consultant if they\u2019re open to new experiences and willing to develop the relevant skills. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Consultant Definition<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Ryan Duitch, founder and CEO at Arro, says a consultant is \u201can individual (or company) who\u2019s hired to provide insight or guidance on anything.<\/em> They illuminate and look at lots of layers in the company \u2014 anything from financial to cost-cutting measures and ways to improve the business operationally.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Consultant Salary: How Much Does a Consultant Make?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Your consultant salary can vary based on several factors, including how long you\u2019ve been working in consulting<\/a> your area of expertise, your industry, and additional compensation like bonuses or profit sharing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\t

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Technology Consulting<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Discover what it's like to work as a technology consultant in this free course from PwC. You'll learn how to prep for a client discovery session, communicate a high-level solution, and so much more.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGet Started\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tSkills you’ll build:<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\tCritical thinking, roadmapping, business writing, business analytical thinking, strategy\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

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The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) groups consultants into the management analysts category. For 2022, the BLS estimate<\/a> of the mean wage for management analysts was $104,660 per year. Consultants in management, scientific, and technical consulting services had the highest mean annual wage of $116,960, while those in state government had the lowest mean wage of $73,440. The BLS predicts that jobs for management analysts will grow 10% between 2022 and 2032, with approximately 92,900 job openings each year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Below is a chart of typical consultant salary ranges and the average salary for consultants in various sectors, according to PayScale<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Type of Consultant <\/th>Salary Range<\/th>Average Salary<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
Business consultant<\/a><\/td>$57,000 – $117,000<\/td>$77,997<\/td><\/tr>
Strategy consultant<\/a><\/td>$67,000 to $145,000<\/td>$91,687<\/td><\/tr>
Analytics consultant<\/td>$65,000 – 123,000<\/td>$87,983<\/td><\/tr>
Software consultant<\/td>$68,000 – $126,000<\/td>$87,841<\/td><\/tr>
Consulting associate<\/td>$52,000 – $96,000<\/td>$75,972<\/td><\/tr>
Managing consultant<\/td>$93,000 – $158,000<\/td>$124,054<\/td><\/tr>
Financial consultant<\/td>$54,000 – $124,000<\/td>$79,782<\/td><\/tr>
Senior business consultant<\/td>$77,000 – $137,000<\/td>$104,147<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It’s interesting to note that while the bottom and top of these salaries are very different from sector to sector, the average<\/em> consultant salary across them is somewhat consistent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Does a Consultant Do?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Though a company usually has employees with extensive experience, businesses often hire outside consultants when facing a challenge. This is generally because the company wants an outsider to take a fresh look and share their insights and solutions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s not uncommon for employees to be too close to the issues at hand or too focused on their initiatives to come up with workable or pragmatic strategies and solutions. When this happens, it can be difficult for them to step back and be impartial.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\t

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Strategy Consulting<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Experience a day in the life of a strategy consultant in this free course from BCG. You'll have the chance to conduct market research, understand consumer needs (and the tradeoffs you may need to make), and present your recommendations.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tSkills you’ll build:<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\tMarket research, data gathering, financial basics, critical thinking, business judgement, stakeholder management, project management\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

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A consultant, though, isn’t invested in the problem or solution the same way internal staff may be. This allows the consultant to be neutral when considering the problem and suggesting solutions and strategies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Industries Do Consultants Work In?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Consultants work in any and every industry, like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n