It shouldn't happen to a consultant

An estimated 300,000 Americans work within the consultancy industry. For the world's biggest economy, this is a significant amount of the working population. Across other developed and developing economies , the consultancy profession typically takes up a sizeable amount of the workforce, depending on the economic make up of the country.

Either way, it's fair to say that those who work in consultancy have to deal with a lot of negative stereotyping when it comes to how their profession is perceived. Many regard consultancy, whether it is management, IT, etc. to be an arduous and costly exercise. In particular, the individuals who work in management consultancy are often unfairly branded as useless, and a waste of money. 

The reality, however, is a little different. In recent years, business leaders have been making steps to challenge the perceptions held about consultants and consultancy in general. On business forums such as Quora, members of the consultancy industry have been voicing their opinions about what they do, and how consultancy work has real value. It is the role of consultants to come into a business of which they will likely have had no experience of working in previously and apply their expertise to solve a problem on behalf of their client.

This is a challenging job to undertake, and as this interactive game from AXA Business Insurance shows, like working in architecture, design, or accountancy. The old view that working as a consultant is outdated, and not necessarily true to begin with. These people make a valuable contribution to the economy, and as such, should be treated with the respect they deserve.