Business Management

consultant working

10 Ways to Make More Money as a Consultant

By MBO Partners

As an independent professional, it can be easy to get caught up in the cycle of finding a client, completing a project, getting paid, and then repeating the process. While constantly being on the lookout for new projects and new clients comes with the territory of being an independent, if you find yourself starting from…

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consultant

What is Scope Creep and 6 Ways to Avoid It

By MBO Partners

What is scope creep? Scope creep occurs when a client adds new provisions, tasks, or deliverables to a project that are outside of an existing scope of work. These unforeseen changes can lead to missed deadlines, financial losses, increased timelines and budgets, and client dissatisfaction. When deliverables are not clearly defined, stakeholders are not involved…

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consultant looking at charts

Gross vs Net Income: Differences and How to Calculate

By MBO Partners

Gross income is the total amount you earn and net income is your actual business profit after expenses and allowable deductions are taken out. However, because gross income is used to calculate net income, these terms are easy to confuse. When you run your own business, understanding the difference between gross income and net income…

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retired consultant

How to Make Risky Business Decisions as a Small Business Owner

By MBO Partners

In the majority of traditional jobs, managers have the final word when it comes to making important business decisions and there are always coworkers to bounce ideas off of or ask for opinions. Independent professionals, on the other hand, are relatively on their own when it comes to making choices that will affect their business….

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Independent professional with long-term client

5 Best Practices for Developing Long Term Client Relationships

By MBO Partners

For many independent professionals, work can be tinged with uncertainty. The top two challenges reported by respondents to our 2022 State of Independence survey were not enough predictable income and concerns about the sales pipeline, and a big part of operating an independent services business is addressing them. In addition to these challenges, many independents…

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consultant

Year End Small Business Review Checklist

By MBO Partners

If you are an independent contractor, consultant, or solopreneur, the end of the year is a great opportunity to review results, evaluate business assets and expenses, assess relationships, and create a plan to excel in the new year. Use this handy checklist to keep yourself on track. 1. Wrap Up Financial To-Dos If you operate…

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consultant

6 Project Management Tips for Independent Contractors

By MBO Partners

There’s no getting around it—project management is a core competency for any successful solo consultant. In addition to your specialized expertise, the success of client engagements and your business requires effective results and milestone management. If this isn’t a strong skill set of yours, don’t worry. There are many ways to enhance project management capabilities through…

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Home podcaster

6 Thought Leadership Strategies for Consultants

By MBO Partners

In our social media dominated world of today, anyone with a Twitter account or a blog can call themselves an “expert” on any given subject. And that makes it tough to rise above the noise to reach current and prospective clients with your message. However, by establishing true thought leadership and experienced-based innovative thinking, you…

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10 Ways to Prepare Your Business for the Holidays

By MBO Partners

Avoid a slump in business by using these tips to keep new projects coming in over the holidays.

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Leading a meeting

How to Plan an Effective Project Kickoff Meeting: Key Steps to Follow

By MBO Partners

Whatever the initiative that’s getting underway, a project kickoff meeting is essential to success. Putting time and energy into turning your kickoff from “just a meeting” into a motivating, action-oriented session can pay big dividends over the course of the project. Your kickoff needs to fit the type of project being launched. Examples include: Internal…

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