con-SUL-tant (n): Someone who looks at your watch and tells you what time it is.

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The first time I heard this "humorous" definition of a consultant, I didn't find it very funny. Being a consultant myself, I responded, "If managers don't have the sense to look at their watches and check the time, if they were that blind, maybe I should double my fee."

Back then, I had a different view of why executives needed consulting services. It seemed to me that they hadn't grasped the benefits of participatory management and an open work environment. They were unwilling to communicate openly with their employees, so they hired someone like me to act as a window to their staff.

If they were to ask the kinds of questions I asked (for example, "What's the biggest obstacle you face in performing your job?"), listen objectively to the responses (for example, "YOU, Mr. or Ms. Manager"), and take appropriate action, they wouldn't need consultants... or so I thought back then.

Does anyone know what time it is?

Today, after a period of immersion in corporate management, I know something I didn't know before: Even with the right questions and careful attention to the answers, it's practically impossible for company managers to learn what time it really is.

The reasons involve organizational dynamics and corporate politics ... for example,

FEAR. Employees who speak out risk their livelihood. Those who take a stand are generally careful about what they say, how they say it, and whom they say it to. Thus, when the boss asks what time it is, no one gives a straightforward answer. "What time do you want it to be?" some respond; others ask, "What time do you have on your watch?"

MYOPIA. Each department and division is in a separate time zone, making problems and solutions appear different than in other parts of the company. When the sales manager looks at her watch and sees 12 noon, the operations manager might think it's midafternoon. Accordingly, even someone bold enough to tell the boss what time it is speaks for only one time zone - the time shown on one watch, reflecting one perspective and one agenda.

CREDIBILITY. Moreover, if an employee were to thoroughly and objectively understand a problem, and were to fearlessly offer an ideal solution, chances are the solution would be given scant attention. In fact, it's fairly common for employees to recommend a course of action and to be ignored, while if a consultant comes along and makes the same recommendation it's suddenly a brilliant idea.

The consultant's watch

What's different about the consultant's watch? If it's a good watch, it covers every time zone. Even more important, a good consultant tells the time as he sees it - he's not concerned about what management wants to hear.

Consultants don't have total immunity, but they're fairly safe from a company's internal politics. And managers expect consultants to shake things up; the boss is eager to hear what the consultant has to say.

Consultants have the benefit of ...

FREEDOM. They have several clients; their risk is spread. The outspoken employee has only one "client," so alienating that "client" is dangerous. He or she might well be fired for saying what the consultant can say with impunity. In fact, executives hire consultants to tell them what no one in the company will.

PERSPECTIVE. Good consultants take a balanced view of a problem and consider a range of solutions. They gather facts and opinions from different people with varying perspectives. Finally, they integrate what they've learned into an accurate image that focuses on the key issues.

RESPECT. Their ideas may not take hold and their recommendations might not be followed, but consultants are nearly always given attention and respect, and their suggestions are seriously considered. For one thing, management recognizes that there's a problem, which is why the consultant was hired in the first place. Second, the company probably chose this particular consultant among others and is paying for his or her advice. Both factors tend to raise the consultant's influence and almost guarantee a receptive audience.

The value of the consultant

More important even than consultants' expertise are their independence and objectivity. In a perfect world, a consultant would hold a mirror in such a way that when you looked in it you could see the entire company at once, including the true relationships among all the components. However smart or well informed or persuasive, the consultant is only as effective as your willingness to look in the "magic mirror."