Risk protection is one of the critical factors you should consider when setting up your own engineering consultancy business. There are many risks a business like yours can face. Apart from the vagaries of the economy, the changes in the industry, new techniques, and competition from peers, you also have to address the risks you face from your clients. Armed with a comprehensive Engineers Professional Liability insurance and a competent team that is handpicked from the best, you are all set to achieve your goals in this niche.
Yes, with the burgeoning competition in the niche, success does not come easy. That is where you will find the following success mantras coming in handy to help you take your business to new heights.
Make yourself visible in the marketplace
You might have the most skilled team in town, you may have a stellar flair for your work, you may have an impressive list of achievements but unless the prospective client is aware of all of this, how is he going to choose you over your competitor? To be successful in this niche, you need to make yourself highly visible, and to do that, you need to market yourself efficiently. Use social media and leverage your connections there to make yourself known. Go to exhibitions, events, conferences, and meet new people in your niche who can give you leads. Take the stage in such events so that you gain visibility. Maintain good relations with clients, past and present, so that they pass on a good word about you in the marketplace.Learn the basics of your business’s cash flow.
Understanding the basics of how the money comes into the business and how it flows through your firm helps you see how to divert it in the right direction best to improve your operational efficiencies. Keeping tabs on your income and expenses lets you stay aware of how your business is doing at any time. A good handle on finances also allows you to estimate a project cost with a greater level of accuracy, and that's always a good skill for a consultant to develop. After all, you want to maintain your profit margin.Gather the right team and resources.
With a handpicked team of competent professionals in your corner, you can offer consistently effective solutions to clients and earn immense goodwill. A team can be more productive when you give them the right tools to wield. Invest in tools to make tasks easier, more accurate, and more efficient, and invest in skilled employees who are passionate about their work and committed to giving their best. Make sure your employees are happy with the kind of exposure they get in your firm and with the paychecks so that they are motivated to push themselves to do better continuously.Safeguard your business with E & O insurance
You must protect your business against risks too. Apart from general liability insurance that covers you, for example, if your client is hurt physically in your office premises or his property is damaged by you, you also need professional liability insurance or E and O insurance for your engineering consultancy firm. When you take up a new project for a client, be it a small one or a mammoth-sized one, you take on the responsibility of offering services that will match the client's expectations. There are situations where the client might, despite your best efforts, remain dissatisfied with your output. In such cases, they may even go to the extent of choosing legal recourse, claiming damages from you.Whether you are at fault or not, your business is impacted financially here owing to the costs of hiring legal help, fighting the case in court, and associated costs. If the judgment goes against you and you have to pay damages, that can deliver a crippling financial blow to your business. The bigger the projects you take up, the more innovative the ideas you offer, the bigger the risk you expose yourself to here. Thankfully, professional liability insurance offers a simple way to protect yourself from this risk. This kind of insurance protects you when you are accused of NOT providing the expected standard of care customary in your niche.
Taking care of all these aspects is a good initial move towards creating a successful engineering consultancy business. You can talk to a mentor to help you set up the firm under his expert guidance to ensure that you are headed the right way, too.
Sources:
1) InsuranceBee.com, Who needs professional liability insurance, or E&O?, Available at: https://www.insurancebee.com/blog/who-needs-professional-liability-insurance2) Medium.com, 2018, Tips to Succeed as an Engineering Consultant, Last updated Nov 27, 2018, Available at: https://medium.com/@sales_60088/tips-to-succeed-as-an-engineering-consultant-418659f4ff5e
3) Andrew Armstrong, 2016, How to Succeed in Engineering Consulting, Last updated 1 February, 2016 Available at: https://blog.eonetwork.org/2016/02/how-to-succeed-in-engineering-consulting/
4) InsureON.com, Professional liability insurance for building design professionals, Available at: https://www.insureon.com/design-business-insurance/professional-liability
5) Hanover Insurance Group, Professional liability insurance for architects and engineers, Available at: https://www.hanover.com/business-insurance-professional-liability-architects-engineers.html
