More than ‘bums on seats’
Which way do you turn if you need more resources for your critical support engineering project? A consultancy, or an independent contractor? Let’s weigh up the benefits.
Whatever industry you are in, you are likely to be facing some of your toughest challenges ever. Getting the right expertise, at the right time, that can hit the ground running, will determine whether you deliver… to time and to budget. It will influence how, and what you deliver. Plus, how well you respond to unexpected bumps in the road.
Quorum delivers support engineering for the toughest challenges. By tough challenges, we mean anything that can knock your support engineering project off-track. It could be a technical challenge, a safety issue, an unexpected risk to be resolved, or the need for a rapid injection of skilled expertise.
So, ask yourself – do you need just contractors as ‘bums on seats’, or are you looking for more than that?
Accessing consultancy value-add
On the surface consultants have many similar skills to an independent contractor. However, as soon as you scratch beneath that surface, you will see a very different picture of the value-add potential of using consultancy services.
Firstly, independent contractors are focused on getting the job done, with consultants being paid for their strategic expertise and their knowledge to advise. However, the terms aren’t mutually exclusive, or used exclusively in the engineering industry. So, it’s easy to be confused about the differences.
If you are interested in accessing the right expertise, with capability to advise strategically, identify risks and solutions, and get the work done too, then you are more likely to benefit from a support engineering consultancy.
Consultancy service provision
In contrast to an independent contractor, which you need to individually source and manage, it is the consultancy, which delivers services, rather than an individual.
This is a vital difference in terms of flexibility of service provision, as it enables the clients to access additional support, at short notice. With the contracts in place, it is relatively easy for us to react to surges in activity, over and above the original request. The client’s lead consultant understands detailed needs, the contract and what success looks like.
So, with a consultancy basis resourcing approach, finding the best match for new requirements is far smoother, quicker, and less disruptive to your project delivery.
More agility whatever your industry
With over 20 years’ experience delivering engineering supportability services successfully, we know our consultancy approach gives clients greater agility to rise to their project challenges and meet resourcing and expertise shortages.
Quorum consultants are adept at wearing different hats, often at the same time. We pride ourselves on being forward-thinking and results driven. We provide invaluable insights and deliver project activities, through Integrated Logistic Support (ILS) consultancy which is committed to improving through life costs using tried and tested expertise in the Defence Industry. Also, it now benefits many other sectors which play a crucial role in our everyday lives, including Rail, Renewables, Oil and Gas and the NHS.
Clients trust us to identify risks and offer potential solutions, as well as plan and run projects, using their processes. They also know we are adept at rolling-up our sleeves and getting the job done too. Whatever the task, we work quickly and to client and industry standards.
Covid-19 and remote working
Covid-19 has also boosted the value of choosing the consultancy route, as it reduces the management overhead for clients, which can be even more onerous with support engineers mainly working from home.
An extended team of independent contractors requires additional client management. Consider, for example, a team of 10 individual contractors. They would all need to be managed by the client. Potentially, these would all need to have been sourced separately and, if supplied by 10 different umbrella companies, would have separate invoicing and administrative overheads. If they are a team of 10 Quorum consultants, we take ownership of the management, streamlining the resourcing process. Giving clients one single point of contact.
Priced to deliver more value
So, what about the numbers, do they add up?
Consultants do carry a higher price tag than contractors. Clearly different rates apply dependent on the specific role, or the contractor, or the consultancy. However, as a rule of thumb, consultant rates are about 40% – 50% higher than an independent contractor.
Engineering project managers, and probably your purchase manager, need to balance the hourly rates against the potential budgetary advantages and delivery and risk management benefits of utilising skilled consultants, who are backed by an ILS consultancy team.
Choosing to work with a consultancy to give you resource flexibility and expertise, offers much more than the individual’s knowledge and expertise. They have access to the whole expertise pool of the consultancy. This approach enables more rapid, and potentially innovative issue resolution. Making the investment in consultancy resourcing very attractive, particularly to many of the high-profile International projects we support. Projects whos’ budgets run into the Łmillions, and often Łbillions.
When the stakes are high, it clearly makes sense to choose an approach which reduces risk.
In summary
So, if you want to increase the assurance you can deliver safety, reliability, compliance, maintainability, durability, and through life performance – consultancy offers a great solution.
We know our support engineering (ILS) consultancy services bring the best of both worlds to our clients, because we ask them.
Our consultancy services provide consultant capability, consultancy backing, and streamlined resourcing, with flexible contractor capacity. Providing more than ‘bums on seats’.
So, if your project is looking to minimize risk, and is serious about delivering winning solutions, backed with expertise, agility, and integrity, then let’s talk.
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