The Oxford English Dictionary (2014) defines ‘competence’ as “the ability to do something successfully or efficiently.” In essence, as a business consultant and/or expert in your field, you are hired to have the ability to help your client successfully and efficiently.
A consultant’s technical competency is the cornerstone to all activity and the success of the individual and the project. Without a firm grasp of the fundamentals of business strategy, finance, operations, marketing and human resource development, business consultant are not able to fulfil this task.
Asking a wrench to perform a screwdriver’s job would be absurd, therefore the basic functionality of a consultant is the first building block which is needed. Although there are exceptions to the rules such as project managers, every walk of life requires an individual to ascertain a level of expertise and know-how in their chosen field.
Naturally it is improbable to have vast knowledge in every area which may be covered whist consulting on numerous projects, but the ability to breach the knowledge gap and empower yourself to gaining this overall understanding is invaluable.
References
Oxford English Dictionary (2014). Definition. Competence. [on-line] Available from: <http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/competence?q=competence>. [Accessed on 18 March 2014].
By: Jake Li – WBC Juniour Marketing Consultant
Westminster Business Consultants 