Honor Guiney understands the art of consulting. Before becoming CIO in 1998 at National Oilwell, she ran the global services organisation at Ardent Software, which was later acquired by Informix.
A year ago, as her company was launching a major business-to-business e-commerce initiative, Guiney quickly recognised that National Oilwell and its customers would need consulting help to link core procurement processes. But, rather than asking either to pay through the nose for expensive outside consultants, she created a group of internal consultants that is not only forging closer ties with customers but also generating new revenues for the Houston-based oil-field services company.
As e-business forces enterprises to retool business processes and core technologies in order to collaborate better with partners, more CIOs like Guiney are realising they need consultants inside their organisations who can help bridge the gap between IT and the lines of business, experts say.
The good news is that, compared with just a few months ago, it's easier to fill internal consulting positions. Not only do business people already inside companies often jump at the jobs but also the pool of potential candidates from the outside has improved as consulting companies continue to lay off consultants in today's tougher economy, Guiney said.
The biggest challenges remain determining the best mix of internal and external hires and finding individuals with the right balance of experience in IT and business.
"I don't think you can do without them," said David Foote, managing partner and research director at US-based Foote Partners. "When you take them away, there's a void."
The internal consultants, called by dozens of titles, including "business technologists" and "business and technology consultants," usually report to the CIO and often also to a line-of- business vice president. They help IT develop strategic plans for underlying technologies based on the needs of lines of business while helping the business side redesign and rethink processes to better take advantage of technology. Depending on consultants' levels, salaries can range from US$80,000 to about $200,000.
