{"id":2874,"date":"2024-06-04T18:18:09","date_gmt":"2024-06-04T18:18:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/cicp-pcpob\/?p=2874"},"modified":"2024-09-23T11:50:50","modified_gmt":"2024-09-23T15:50:50","slug":"unlocking-insights-charities-perspectives-on-engaging-with-consultants","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/cicp-pcpob\/2024\/unlocking-insights-charities-perspectives-on-engaging-with-consultants\/","title":{"rendered":"Unlocking Insights: Charities’ Perspectives on Engaging with Consultants"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n Unlocking Insights: Charities’ Perspectives on Engaging with Consultants\n <\/h1>\n \n \n <\/header>\n\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n

Many of us have experience calling on outside expertise for help in various aspects of our lives. This is not always a straightforward process and often requires careful thought in terms of what we can afford, how much time we have to complete a given objective, what points of compatibility are important to us when hiring someone, and who is actually available. We may have accumulated a mix of nightmare, \u2018ho-hum\u2019, and breakthrough success stories from these interactions, and derived some real wisdom along the way that can be valuable for others. It is in this spirit of paying wisdom forward that we look at the CICP\u2019s survey results from April 2024 on consultants in the charitable sector<\/a>. We asked our panel a short series of questions to gauge to what extent charities in Canada are engaging with consultants, why, and their general experiences working with these entities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are 5 key findings based on our collected responses:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  1. Consultants are widely in use in the sector:<\/strong> Out of 917 respondents, 15% report using consultants regularly and 63% indicate that they use consultants occasionally. Only 19% report never engaging with consultants.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Internal needs and decision-making are the primary drivers for engaging consultants:<\/strong> According to our survey results, the most frequently selected reason for engaging consultants is to gain expertise in a specific area (73%). The second most frequently selected reason is to fill a skills gap within the organization (44%) and the third most common reason is to gain an outside perspective on projects or services (33%). This data suggests that the motivation to work with consultants is largely driven by internal needs rather than externally imposed requirements from donors (only 9% indicated donor requirements as a reason).<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Charities are looking to consultants for a range of knowledge and skills:<\/strong> Charities seek expertise from consultants in various areas, such as strategic planning, human resources, project management, and fundraising. The skill gaps that charities are trying to address through consultants are similarly diverse, from grant writing to board governance to data collection and analysis to communications and marketing.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. Financial constraints are a top reason why some charities don\u2019t work with consultants:<\/strong> Among the charities that do not engage with consultants (based on 177 panellist responses), the most frequently cited reason is budget constraints (76%). This data suggests that there is a cohort of charities who would potentially like to hire consultants but cannot afford to do so. In contrast, 32% of the 177 respondents say that they have no reason to hire external consultants.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  5. Charities overwhelmingly report positive experiences with consultants: <\/strong>Among those charities that have worked with consultants, 50% report that, on average, it has been a good experience and 36% report having excellent experiences. Only 1% of responding charities indicate that they have had a poor experience with consultants.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    The comments section of our survey provides more depth and context for the survey\u2019s findings and highlights some of the broader staffing and funding issues at play, as well as the different trade-offs charities are contending with:<\/p>\n\n\n

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    \u201cWe really need outside consultants but don\u2019t have the resources to pay them. A lawyer to help us set up chapters, a marketing and fundraising specialist to help us grow. We have asked for volunteers but it is hard to find the specialists.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n

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    \u201cUsually too expensive for us and hard to find qualified persons to come to our community.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n

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    \u201cThey are a vital part of getting things done: we can engage people with expertise far beyond what internal staff can offer, in a range of areas of work. We can\u2019t afford them on a regular basis and rely on grant funding to make it happen \u2013 but they legitimately help us raise our game.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n

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    \u201cExtremely frustrating as the costs are so high and consultants don\u2019t particularly have context to our particular organization.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n

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    \u201chiring a consultant is the only way to get staffing funding when they don\u2019t allow you to use funds towards administrative expenses or to offset staffing costs required to do the work.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n

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    \u201cOne glaring gap is free (or subsidized\/discounted) legal advice for workers and smaller organizations who cannot afford the $200-$300 per hour rate for lawyers.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n

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    \u201cSmaller organizations don\u2019t have the resources or the need to have permanent staffing for every required job. Using a consultant is more cost effective.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n

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    \u201cIt was great to get outside perspective and expertise for our agency\u2019s strategic plan.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

    The comments are also a treasure trove of lessons learned and hard-earned wisdom directly from charities across Canada:<\/p>\n\n\n

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    \u201cJust be careful. There are lots of external consultants for all kinds of marketing, financial planning, HR, providers of donor lists and more. Just into their track record, access if you really need their services, etc. It is buyer beware because nonprofits can be an easy target.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n

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    \u201cWe find it difficult to find a consultant who does not require a lot of orientation, background information, oversight, given the specialized focus of our mission. Once we get past that part, our experience has been better. It\u2019s a trade-off in time, and often it\u2019s not worth it. We end up with a pattern of \u201ceasier to do it ourselves.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n

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    \u201cUnfortunately, we find it much easier to get funding for contractors than for wages. This limits our ability to build our organizational capacity.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n

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    \u201cInterviewing and checking references is key.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n

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    \u201cIt can be challenging to find consultants that genuinely understand the needs and nuances of the work in our sector. As such, there\u2019s considerable variation in the quality of result and the quality of result does not correspond to the investment made. We often end up depending on the same small pool of consultants that are highly skilled and understand our sector, but this limits the expertise and perspective we can pull on to inform our work.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

    –The CICP team<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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