The growth of professionalism is on the cutting edge in Consultancy. There are a number of ways to differentiate a profession from an occupation. A profession is a calling that requires special knowledge, skill and preparation. For example medicine and law is recognized as learned professions. The terms occupation in this field is the work that a person regularly performs that especially suits them. Thus an occupation will hold a special interest for the person and is an area of interest on a regular basis.
As a professional Consultant the requirements are prolonged, specialized training to acquire a body of knowledge pertinent to the role to be performed. The members of the profession rather than outsiders determine the standard of education and practice for the Consultant. Being a Consultant already denotes certain professionalism or specialization brought to the industry. Therefore, the work involved requires either certification or a successful track record; the other would be the ability to manage their time and budgets to make this a profitable and full time job.
The regulations through the setting and enforcing standards of education and practice for the specialist. Regulation is largely achieved in the United States and Canada through licensure certification and accreditation. The Development of knowledge is to generate questions and formulate hypotheses from the theories then to-test or implement the usefulness of the theory. Transmission of values, norms, knowledge and skill is an important aspect of professional status. Historically this knowledge was acquired through formal educational institutions. Now in modern times, the trend has been toward education programs in colleges and various online accredited programs. Any consulting job will theoretically focus on concerns of the public, client, and company.
This profession can become autonomous if it regulates itself ands sets standards for its members. Providing autonomy is one of the purposes of this sector. Once legal authority in a certain sector of Consulting has been established the amount of autonomy depends on its effectiveness on governance. In some cases such as law or medicine certain government agencies play a major role in how to research and analyze products. Therefore the establishment and maintenance of social, political and economic arrangements are controlled by self-discipline, working conditions, and professional affairs.
Marketing and securing business as a Consultant is not a hard task if the Consultant has prior experience. Return business and word of mouth have been the norm in this industry. Therefore having an excellent portfolio with a strong website presence will ultimately bring in new clients. However in this industry excellent customer service will always assure the consultant plenty of work for the future.
