A. Take a look at Business 4 Blessing in Action on the Home page. Each of them talks about working with a consultant. Sometimes it’s a sounding board, sometimes its something specific such as creating a business plan. Sometimes it’s a decision about how to work with staff. Each of these businesses value working with a consultant. Remember that when you sign up as a business you get 1 free hour of Skype consulting. In that short time you may find that your business thinking is sharpened and problems are solved. All our consultants are Christians who understand B4B very well. They are generous men and women who really desire to see the Kingdom advanced utilizing biblical business principles.
Working With A Consultant
A. Go to our consulting page and look through our consultant database. You can look at a consultant’s bio, or search through the three categories: Language, Industry, or Skillset. For instance if you have a need for someone who can help you put together a marketing plan, go down the list under Skillset and click Marketing. Consultants who are skilled in marketing will come up. Read their bios and get a feel for whom you might want to work with. Use the "Connect with a Consultant" button at the top left of the consultant page and you will be contacted. There is no commitment, or payment required to ask the question. Remember too that if you have joined B4B as an business you get 1 free hour of Skype consulting. That may be all you need to get going in the right direction.
A. We have a sliding-fee scale. We want to serve all our members and we know that the business in the developed world has a greater ability to pay than those in developing nations. Many of our consultants work for large multi-national companies and charge a great deal. Working with B4B is a labor of love. However, we do believe in the biblical principle that the workman is worthy of his or her hire. Therefore, we charge a fee for consulting. That fee respects the knowledge of the consultant as well as the financial ability of the client to pay.
A. When you click the "Connect with a Consultant" button you will fill out a form that helps the Consultant Manager understand your issue. The CM will contact you by Skype or phone to further understand how we can help. There is no charge for this service. If you have a consultant in mind, the CM will work out the scope of work, schedule and charges between you and the consultant – the Agreement. If you don't have a consultant in mind, we will do our best to make the appropriate match for you. The CM will also monitor the project to make sure that it is going well for you.
A. Once you have the Agreement, the terms of payment will be listed. Sometimes the CM will ask you to pay up-front, sometimes there will be payments as you go along. You can work that out with the CM.
A. B4B has a PayPal account so you can pay through PayPal using your existing PayPal account or any major credit card. We can also accept a USD wire transfer into our US bank account.
A. Each Agreement will have measures of success. It will depend on the job. You must also realize that the consultant won’t do the job for you. You have to do your part. For instance, our consultants do not write your business plan, but will give you feedback and advice on it. The process of writing a business plan isn’t about the piece of paper, but about you thinking through all the parameters of your business. When we started B4B we wrote a business plan. It wasn’t easy, in fact, we hated it. Several gracious advisors gave feedback and it changed several times. We hated the time that it took, too. But when it was finally finished we understood what would make B4B a successful business and we had a plan WE could execute. So, success is you working with the consultant, each of you doing your part to make your business successful.