People Management (HR) Consulting, also referred to as HRM Consulting, encompasses advisory and implementation support activities related to the management of an organization’s people force (human capital) and the HR function. The scope of services range from overarching work on people strategy, the design and deployment of a compensation & benefits framework down to the transformation of the HR function operational effectiveness.

What does an HR consultant do?

Human resource consultants are generally hired by three types of clients. Firstly, HR advisers support HR directors and managers of client organizations with improving the performance of the HR function – examples include implementing a HR business partner delivery model, redesigning HR processes or implementing a HRIS system. Secondly, HR consultants are hired by clients to support broader human capital issues. This can range from providing HR support on M&A programs to managing a cultural transformation or developing a new talent management strategy for critical business functions. Lastly, HR consultants are typically staffed on large transformations to ensure that the necessary people and human capital expertise is on board, complementing the traditional ‘hard’ functional skills that already are part of the project. In this case, the client is often an internal consulting department that leads the delivery of the engagement. For example, a Finance Transformation Program at a client will be led by the Finance service line, which subsequently will call upon human capital consultants to lead areas such as leadership alignment, change management, learning and communication.