How to become a Management Consultant

A management consultant is someone that goes into businesses and advises them on how to improve their strategy and performance. They will work with each company on an individual basis to make improvements, and can either be employed by a firm or on a freelance basis.

Management consultants dive deep into the workings of a particular business or brand to analyse what is working, what isn’t, and how they can improve. Management consultants typically work with one brand to revise and improve their strategy and production for a set period of time, before moving on to a different brand. 

Due to this, the nature of a brand manager’s role means that they may travel domestically and internationally for work, and work hours beyond a 9-5. 

Brand manager’s roles typically entail: 

• Meeting potential clients and presenting what they can offer.
• Analysing strategies and preparing detailed reports about what is and isn’t working. 
• Thinking of solutions to any issues that are causing the business to not function optimally.
• Interviewing members of staff about the workplace. 
• Physically putting solutions into action. 
• Keeping updated with changing statistics and data and calculating how changes have benefited the business. 

Management consultants need to have a range of skills, including being able to analyse, problem solving, communication and knowledge of computer systems and applications. The typical management consultant candidate will have a degree in business, maths or finance or an alternative degree and a masters in business or management. Foreign language students with business related master’s certifications are sometimes given preference, because languages are often needed in international firms. Non-graduates can get into this field with apprenticeships, although competition is fierce.

Previous experience in business, IT or management fields is beneficial and can be converted, or work experience in a suitable role is also valuable when applying to become a management consultant. 

Management consultants tend to work for a consultancy firm, but once they have built up contacts in the field they could switch to freelance employment, or even start their own consultancy business.