Management analysts help businesses remain competitive when faced with new challenges that might put them out of business. Management analysts, also known as consultants, propose professional advice as well as the means on how to improve the company's efficiency, structure as well as profits. Management analysts can either work independently or join part of a bigger group of international organizations with thousands of other analysts.
Different companies use analysts for different reasons. There are those that need an analyst's opinion to determine the kind of resources that will be required and the unforeseeable problems that may be incurred if they were to invest in a particular opportunity or project, while there are those that lack the internal resources required to handle a given project.
When a company or a particular business needs a consultant, it solicits proposals to different consulting firms that specialize in the type of project the company wishes to pursue. The proposals indicate the type of the project, the cost, the staffing needs and the date it expects the project to be completed. Once that is completed the company will select the analyst that is best suited for the job. There are other companies that do hire their own internal management consulting groups instead of hiring consultants from outside.
The consultants that are hired report their findings to the client, either in writing or through oral presentation of their findings. There are certain companies that retain the consultants to see through the entire project till its completion and could give more recommendations if necessary. These changes could be needed while the project is in progress, to make it better. Analysts usually manage contracts for a wide range of services as well as goods to prevent cost overruns as well as quality performance.
Management analysts do a lot of traveling since most of their time is usually spent between their offices and the client's site. They work an average of 40 hours a week though at times they run into overtime which is rarely accounted for, especially when there is pressure of meeting deadlines under tight schedules. There are analysts that are self-employed and they do work at home and set their own workload and working conditions. Their ability to maintain and enlarge their client base is what keeps them in business, whereas the ones that are salaried have to impress potential clients in order to keep them as well as getting new clients for their respective companies.
For one to pursue a career as a management analyst, a bachelor's degree is sufficient for some entry level positions. For specialized expertise, a master's degree or both may be a requirement. The qualifications for management analyst positions vary between government and private industry. A master's degree in business management or a related field as well as some additional years of experience is usually the requirement by most private industries. There are companies that hire consultants with a bachelor's degree as research analysts or associates that eventually get promoted to consultants after several years of experience. Graduate education, some experience or both are some of the government's requirements to hire a management consultant though at times it could hire entry level management analysts with graduate education without giving much emphasis on the years of experience.
Though management analysts don't require certification, it does give a job seeker an advantage over those that don't have it. The institute of management consultants USA offers Certified Management Consultant (CMC) designations to those that have the minimum levels of education and experience.
As much as the management consultants are self-employed, in 2006 they held about 678,000 jobs of which 27% were self employed. Though these analysts can be found all over the country, they are mostly concentrated in big metropolitan cities working in several different fields such as management, technical consulting, Federal, State and local governments.
The high earnings potential due to the challenging nature of the work promises employment opportunities for management analysts to grow by 22% over the next decade. The government relies a lot on outside expertise to improve the performance of their companies in consultancy. Large international consulting firms as well as small firms that specialize in specific areas are geared to play a big role in providing employment to a large number of people who qualify.
The amount of money an analyst earns is determined by several factors such as the size of the employer, specific expertise, geographic location, level of education and years of experience. Those employed in large firms in big metropolitan cities earned more than $128,330 as their highest 10%, while the lowest 10% earned less than $39,840 during 2006. There is a huge variation in-between the highest and the lowest, though most salaried analysts enjoy several benefits such as retirement plan, vacation and sick leave as well as health and life insurance.
