To want to try consultancy?

[OwnBossOrNot]

I work in a public sector role as a manager and am thinking about trying consultancy. This would involve training and supporting people in my current position to improve services. I have an excellent track record doing it myself and have done a stint with the national oversight body for my line of work so am very well placed to get this sort of work, and it's well paid - if I did on average one day a week I would be on more money than I am now. There's also the flexibility side - I can say I'm not available during school holidays for instance.

The down side of course is that there is no job security, if I have a dry spell we could not plan our expenditure, and if I don't get enough work we would struggle - though I would then look for something else of course. DH veers between being supportive and saying I should go for it, and then suggesting I go for jobs which are out of my line of experience and offer Jo flexibility which irritates me. It would be a risk but I can only know if it will work by trying it. But I do have family responsibilities so AIBU to want to give it a go? I hope that's enough information to give me a view; I'm not sure I can see it objectively at the moment and I'm sure MNetters will help with that!

Could you go part time at work and do consultancy on your off days to begin with?

Being truly truly honest with yourself how good are you with money?

If 4 days a month (roughly) would equal your current salary then if you got 3 weeks work would you instinctively think

"yay! I'll put that money in the bank and use it to pay myself for the next 3 months"

Or

"yay! Time to book a love holiday!"

A lovely holiday!

Not sure what a love holiday is but it sounds a bit rude!

CailinDana yes I'm trying to do that and actually got a solid offer, just really hoping my line manager doesn't think it's a conflict. mumoftwo I am really careful and cautious with money (maybe too much so) - DH on the other hand would be planning the Grand Designs loft conversion if I got 3 weeks work! I could probably distract him with the offer of a love holiday though

So no one thinks IABmassivelyU so far?

I'd be cautious, if I were you. The public sector has been subject - rightly - to tough restrictions in a number of areas since the coalition government came in. Chief amongst these areas is consultancy, whether provided by a big operator like Crapita (deliberate typo) or individuals.

The controls were introduced because of the negative publicity around the public sector's massive expenditure on consultants and contractors.

Every new consultancy assignment now has to be signed off at a very senior level, in some cases by ministers, so you may find that it's not easy to get this type of role. Also, you'll need to make sure that you're working through one of the providers with whom the public sector are prepared to deal - they won't engage you directly and will only consider candidates via preferred suppliers.

Times have been very lean for contractors/consultants in the public sector over the past few years. You'll be up against stiff competition, in addition to the hurdles I've already pointed out. The people in my profession who were telling their employed colleagues that they were fools not to contract/consult five years ago have gone strangely silent, and most of them are now trying to get back into an employment contract.

I think it's true that times are lean for central government consultants, but I'm not sure it's true for the whole public sector. My organisation seems to be throwing money at consultants at the moment.

My note of caution would be that what you want to do sounds quite specialised. I think in consultancy you have to be adaptable to survive changes in government and rewriting of policy. You also have to be able to sell yourself and hustle - do you have those skills? That's the bit I struggle with in the quieter periods.

YANBU, definitely. If you can work fewer days for more money and do some of it from the comfort of your own home then why on earth not? I do and I am eternally grateful for the bliss of being able to do it.

But what Financeprincess said about procurement is crucial. It also helps a lot to start off assuming you aren't going to get any work for several months.

Thank you everyone. Without being too specific I work in a particular area of work where this work does exist, and for individuals. Hobbes8 the selling side is definitely the part which is out of my comfort zone, though I have talked to a friend who works in marketing who helped me to think about this in a much more professional way. I do agree about adaptability, I would need to do a lot of networking not only to get work but also to keep up with developments.

purplewithred it sounds like you have made a success of it which is encouraging. It's the quieter times which worry me, I have a friend who is self employed but his DW earns enough that they don't have to worry even if he doesn't work indefinitely. We can't afford for me not to bring in some income. I agree with your last point, I should have explained that I'm not thinking of giving up a permanent job to do this; my current role ends in the summer so I am thinking of trying this rather than going for another contract. So there's time to put a bit away assuming it will take a few months to find work.

The AIBU bit really is am I being selfish to want to take the risk of trying this, when if it doesn't work out we will struggle financially (until I find something else anyway). I do think that if it did, it would benefit the whole family as I would be around more for the children and get household tasks done so that free time is family time. But it would also mean more satisfaction with work and more down time for me, and I can't quite tell if I am letting that part sway me too much!

I'm marking my place to come back to this later because I have done this and also seen several friends do it with variable amounts of success.

No reason not to try it, if you say the market is there. Give yourself a specific time period to make it work, and then decide whether to continue. It's not like you'll be unemployable after a couple of years of consulting. Go for it.

Thank you Argy! That's exactly what I would like DH to say This thread has really helped me to think about his worries though. He is quite practical so if I say I will set a time period to give it my best shot, and assume no income for the first three months and have planned for that in advance, that might help.

BigWelly can you tell me any more about what you and others did which caused success or otherwise? I am grateful for any tips on making it work.