When does it make sense to hire a consultant?

Other than "what does your company do?", the most common question that I am asked with regard to our practice is "when do people hire you?". While there are certainly a plethora of reasons why businesses engage professional consultants, it has been my experience that companies are primarily looking for one of three things when they approach our organization:

1. Specific expertise that is only required on an ad hoc basis - Whether it is a need for a strategic presentation (i.e. investors, etc.), an operational review (i.e. efficiency measurements, etc.) or professional facilitation (i.e. executive meetings, etc.), seasoned business consultants can provide world-class solutions on relatively short notice.
2. Strategic resources that can backfill a role in transition - Regardless of whether the leadership is required to develop the skills of internal resources (i.e. up-and-coming executives, etc.) or required as a stopgap while the company searches for a new candidate to fill an executive position, senior consultants can buy you some much-needed time.
3. Tactical capabilities to assist in flattening the demand curve - There are major fluctuations in supply and demand for every business and both the highs (creating a scarcity of resources) and the lows (resulting in hiring freezes) create major obstacles to generating relatively stable financial results. Consultants are resources that align well with variable demand.

In a perfect world, companies would be able to attract and hire full-time employees to fulfill each and every one of their business requirements as they arose. In the real world where uncertainty and Murphy's Law reign supreme, the need for capable business consultants to augment your team has never been so acute.