By Mike Kayat

Never doubt that a small group of people can change the world.
Indeed it is the only thing that ever has.
- Margaret Mead

In the after glow of the Arthur Andersen melt down, many professional consultants may be overly sensitive about the shadows of doubt cast on their chosen profession. The Andersen situation with Enron involved gross conflict of interest with Andersen performing both loss-leader audits and lucrative consulting services. The lack of accuracy and integrity of the auditing at Enron by individuals within Andersen has been devastating to employees, retirees and shareholders of both companies. Though many large consulting firms have provided and are still providing a mix of auditing, business strategy, IT and other consulting services, there are winds of change forming. We can expect regulatory changes and a general move by many companies to smaller services firms and independent consultants.

In a time when leading management consultants such as A.D. Little can close down and sell their assets while the Big 5 shrinks to the Big 4 or 3, we independent IMC consultants have a lot going for us. We are flexible specialists, not a supermarket of services with high overheads and bureaucratic structure of partners, seniors, juniors and associates. Our clients contract with us directly, as an expert consultant. Many of us have worked in a number of different industries, in a number of senior roles, and can also act as “deep generalists” or process consultants to our clients. We can team up with our IMC peers to deliver a unique, compelling package of expertise and process knowledge services to address a wider range of a particular client’s needs.

As independent consultants, we have control over who we work for, what work we do, when and where we work. The IMC Code of Ethics is our guide and our clients should be as familiar with this as we are. We strive to be ethical, open and honest about our services. We charge reasonable fees, we avoid conflicts of interest and undergo continual learning and renewal. When we provide high quality, high value services, we become a trusted advisor and our clients will refer new business to us. In an uncertain economy and turbulent times, we achieve our goal of generating a sustainable consulting practice. We can then enjoy the real personal and professional advantages of being a successful independent consultant.

This article appeared in an IMCNE e-Newsletter on July 23, 2002.

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