Role of the Consultant
Weiss lists nine roles of a consultant (Weiss, 17) organized along two planes, Transfer of Skills and Resolution of Issue. They are: Analyst, Commentator, Interventionist (along the Skills plane) and Analyst, Counselor and Independent Expert (on the Issues plane). Combining the two, especially in the seasoned consultant, are Instructor, Proactive Advisor, Exemplar, and Collaborator.
Using the old fishing or teaching someone to fish analogy, Collaborator combines the best of both roles in that the consultant focuses not only on actually doing something for the client (fishing, for instance) or teaching how to do something so the consultant doesn't have to hang around forever (teaching to fish, according to the analogy. Analyzing, the simplest of all the consulting skills is well applied, but only as a beginning of an engagement.
So, in choosing a consultant, what do you do? Look first at what you need from the consultant, then hire according to need. You have to do some work before you begin the dialog, especially if you want to maximize your investment. Sometimes you just hand off a project and expect a timely report. Sometimes, you need someone to actually direct your team - an interventionist - who focuses on training his or her successor as much as accomplishing the task at hand. Need both? Look for a collaborator. Get deliverables, and train your team, both at the same time.
Weiss, Alan. Million Dollar Consulting. The Professional's Guide to Growing a Practice. McGraw Hill. 2009.