"Adam was not alone in the Garden of Eden, however, and does not deserve all the credit; much is due to Eve, the first woman, and Satan, the first consultant."

--Mark Twain

The structure of the consulting firm defines the work that is required from the consultant & consequently the skill sets desired. Consultants in big consulting firms (big3) have very few roles outside of the specialization that they provide consulting in. The range of responsibilities goes on increasing from small & medium firms to partnerships, virtual organizations, internal consultants, proprietorships & individual consultants. A consulting outfit would require skills in marketing/selling, understanding client needs & business processes, pricing, paperwork, data analysis, presentation skills, problem solving, verbal communication, written communication, proposal/report writing, training/coaching skills & conducting meetings. For an individual consultant starting his/her practice, multi skilling is probably on a much more broader level than entrepreneurship in any other form.

Time management in consulting is an optimal mix of billable & non billable time. To achieve an increase in billable time may not be the ideal strategy for most consultants. There is no substitute to keeping track of activities a consultant undertakes & their implications to the bottom line of the practice. Measuring time spent in various activities alone can help manage a consultant's time.

The chart below is divided into billable (top portion) & non billable activities. In the non billable area, two major concerns, activities that directly help in procuring billable hours & those that bring in additional revenue are highlighted. Approximate ratios of time & costs are provided for billable & non billable activities (may differ from firm to firm & across industries). Keeping track of the time spent in these activities would bring up interesting ratios for your firm. These can be compared to the best practices in your industry. For example the ratio of marketing hours to billable hours (An approximate figure would be 20%).

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