Sbi Magazine

Management consulting is one of the most popular career choices for today’s graduating students and career-changing professionals. The industry is growing fast, both in demand from organizations seeking consulting services and in the supply of candidates seeking consulting positions. Although thousands of individuals receive offers every year, tens of thousands compete for those offers. In the face of such intense competition, applicants need all of the help that they can find.

Students, who especially like the accelerated professional track of consulting, have turned the field into one of the hottest choices for entry-level professionals. Approximately 40% of graduates in each MBA class attempt to enter the consulting industry.

Other professionals with established careers also look towards consulting for opportunities to accelerate their professional development or to switch career directions entirely. As management consulting firms multiply and grow the demand for experienced hires that can establish and build new practices will likewise grow. But once again, the number of candidates exceeds available positions, making the competition fierce.

Starting salaries in management consulting are among the highest available for entry-level professionals, competing with the traditionally high earnings potential for investment banking, venture capital and law. Whether changing career paths or graduating from a business school, graduates fortunate enough to land an internal management consulting job receive starting salaries of approximately $100,000 USD plus bonuses of up to $50,000 USD, while undergraduates receive base salaries of $40,000 USD to $45,000 USD plus bonuses of up to $10,000 USD.

Independent consultants operating from small practices can earn significantly more than this once established, but it can take longer. Project Management graduate consultants can earn fees ranging from $1,000 USD up to $2,000 USD per day, while Facilitation Management graduate consultants can earn fees ranging from $2,000 USD per day to $5,000 USD per day.

But the potential to earn stratospheric salaries or fees is only one of the attractions of consulting; candidates also recognise its power to accelerate a career. Former consultants are valued for their carefully trained analytical minds and for their presumed expertise at solving business problems, or maximising service value.

As a result, many who leave consulting are likely to enter companies at higher levels than their peers who have worked the same number of years, but in other fields. There is a strong and arguably justified perception that a stint as a management consultant is the key to future professional success.

As with any industry, consultancy has two images; that of the consultant who tells you the time and charges you for it and that of the consultant who facilitates success over a sustainable period of time. The difference simply amounts to the substance which lies behind what the consultant offers. Good quality consultants tend to have tangible products to offer their clients, whereas poor quality consultants tend to try to sell clients proposals, advice, opinions, or even experience. Consultants who have tangible products tend to be the ones to trust and clients know this of course. It is always obvious to a client if they are employing poor quality consultants because it tends to be clear that they are just making things up as they go along. Conversely good quality consultants tend to be very well prepared and clients can invariably see, feel and touch what they are being asked to buy.

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Business travelers: Do you know what to do if you’re on the road or in business lodging when tornado sirens go off? Developing some emergency weather know-how ahead of time can help you protect yourself and your workforce travelers.

While Tornado Alley typically is considered the central U.S. region, tornadoes can and do occur in almost any state. May and June are considered the height of the tornado season but tornadoes may pop up at any time of year.

Smart business travelers make it a standard practice during peak tornado season to check out weather warnings and watches. The brief amount of time required to make these checks can make the difference between being caught in tornado-level winds and being safe in a secure shelter.

Experienced travelers who have been through tornado warnings and watches many times may think they’ve developed a sense about when a tornado is possible. After all, there is a certain bruised look to a tornado-ready sky and the atmosphere typically is humid and oppressive.

But to ensure severe weather preparedness, every traveler should take a minute to check out the news and review the forecast, go to weather sites online or look for smart phone apps that show the weather at a glance.

It also is smart to get in the habit of monitoring severe weather advisories. The NOAA’s National Weather Service Office of Climate, Water and Weather Services offers a variety of severe weather sites.

Just as companies rely on experts for business lodging savings, business travelers should look to several expert resources to stay informed about significant weather patterns ahead.

Here are other important pointers to help you stay safe:

At a hotel or motel:
• Ask at check-in about the procedure if there’s a tornado warning.
• When necessary, don’t delay in going to the pre-designated shelter area.
• If there’s no basement or designated safe area, interior hallways and rooms on the lowest floor usually are considered as the best protection areas.
• Stay away from windows and outside walls.
• Don’t take shelter in areas under free-spanning roofs that aren’t supported by interior columns or pillars.

On the road:
• Don’t ignore the signs – tune in to weather alerts if skies look threatening and if it’s humid, windy and hot.
• If conditions appear right for a tornado, do not drive.
• Do not try to out-drive severe weather. Tornadoes often change direction.
• Take shelter in a sturdy building, preferably where you can move to the basement level. Move away from windows.
• If there’s no shelter, park – but not in a traffic lane. Stay in your car with your seat belt fastened. If debris is blowing by, keep your head below window level and covered, if possible.
• Stay away from trees and cars that can become flying debris.
• Avoid highway overpasses – despite popular myth, they aren’t safe refuge. Wind moving through them actually may increase in speed.
• If it’s possible to get lower than the level of the roadway, take shelter in a low-lying area but be aware it may flood.

A cabinet shop can be started in a homework shop, but in order to do it right a person would need to have a spacious place to do the work. They would also need to have real experience in cabinetry and wood working detail. A knowledge of how to do the work and an artist eye would make a terrific combination to some one looking to own a business in this field.

The obvious way to get into the business is to buy an existing firm and capture many pluses that come with an existing business. Equipment, a place to do the work and a customer base are very good advantages when buying an existing business. A cabinet shop is really a creature of its reputation with contractors and the advertising it does to the homeowners. A good sales staff with a portfolio of quality pictures of prior jobs is also important in getting new business. The homeowner business will be far more profitable than the contractor business.

Both of these customer types are important to keeping the cash flow coming into the business. Some owners in this business will take the contracting jobs just to keep their staff busy. They know they will make money on homeowner jobs.

Locating or finding a business to start or buy

Location of the business is not as important as a retail store’s place of business. The importance of locating the business is having the floor space to do the jobs that come in the door. Also the shop must have solid equipment and a staff that is good at their job. Experience in this business is gained by doing the work and not by book learning. A hand on knowledge is the only way to learn to be an artisan at woodworking. Most people in this field have been doing this kind of work since they were a kid. They may have learned it from their father or another relative.

If you have been doing some small jobs for neighbors or small contractors in your home, it may not be that hard to expand your business as you have some valuable references. Slowly taking on bigger projects is a way to grow your business and still be stationed at home. At some point you will need to get a shop and add an employee or two. Be prepared to spend money and not make a great deal at first. You are at the mercy of customers needing to have work done in order to get the money in the door. This will grow by word of mouth and by some very pointed advertising. It may be a good idea to hook up with a good commission sales person to bring in the business. Again you will have to pay for talent as these sales people who can do the job are highly paid.

Finding an existing business that is for sale is going to require a search. Talk with business brokers about their listings. They may know of a business in your area and they will have listings in other cities. This is not a common business that comes to market so you will have to be patient and maybe check with several business brokers. Once you find a likely candidate, the fun will start.

The art of the deal

The buying of a business is much more complicated than buying a home. There are many factors to take into consideration like, company profit, existing clients, number of people on staff, areas of possible growth, current financials and why is the owner selling. Is the asking price something you can afford and pull off without a huge growth in business? Will the current owner consider carrying paper to make the deal happen? All of these questions will need to be answered and many more. A business broker will know many of the answers to the business details. If he has done his job, he already knows the answers. A pro in this area can make a deal go far more smoothly than if the owner and the buyer was negotiating face to face. The point is let the broker earn the commission he will be paid if the deal goes through.

Money is needed to make the sale

If you have all of the money needed to make the deal, you are in the catbird seat. If you are going to need help with the purchase price, you will need to find a source to help you come up with the difference. A lender of some sort must be found. Your banker, a relative, a friend, a business lender from the internet or the owner himself may be willing to help raise the needed money. If the owner will take part of the purchase in a loan, then you have a start in getting together the funds to buy the business. If the owner is involved, the purchase price will probably increase some. Business buying lenders are found in great numbers on the internet and they are professionals at doing this kind of loan. The other sources mentioned are iffy, but they sometimes will make the short-term money available.

Money is the name of the game in this kind of a purchase. It will make the difference in the price and the possible success of the venture. Be careful of too heavy of a debt load when buying a business. This can sink the project right from the start.

Conclusions

This is a unique business that the owner must bring exceptional skill to in order to be successful. Woodworking talent is at a premium to do this business right. A staff of professionals must be acquired in order to grow. Talent comes at a price and must be kept happy in order to keep them. The new owner must be a sales type person or be willing to hire a talented person in this area. Sales is the name of the game in any business and this one is no different.