Customer Reviews

The Concise Guide to Becoming an Independent Consultant

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Holtz's general consulting guide has been updated for the new millenium with this new concise edition. Notice it is concise, perhaps in deference to the whole notion of the lack of reading time our contemporary business environment. Nevertheless the book is packed full of advice about the nuts and bolts of consulting and the perspective is useful to experienced consultants as well as beginners..

I was struck by two issues that are emphasized in the book. There is lots of attention paid to the notion of continuous marketing. According to Holtz, most businesses fail because of a lack of a marketing strategy; they just don't have enough sales. The other emphasis is an in-depth discussion of consulting to government agencies at the local, state and federal levels

I have to admit that there was some useful information in the book. Especially in setting fees, importance of retainers, the current outlook towards the consulting industry. While Mr. Holtz does have a great amount of knowledge, that can be quickly seen in the text, I find his writing style lacking and even frustrating. Many subjects appear in the book multiple times - a rehashing of subjects he has already discussed. This, and the back and forth references of subject matter was disconcerting. I think that if the duplication of information was removed from the book, the nearly 300 page book would be about 25% smaller.

I find the title funny because this book is anything but concise... It has lots of good info but the author covers the same ground over and over in some places... Makes for a frustrating read... This book could have done with a good editor... If you can put up with the frustration, there is definitely something to be gained from getting this information.

I have actually been an independent consultant for 9 years, but I wanted to become more successful - so I bought several books on the subject. This was by far the best book on consulting that I found. Every warning he gave to the reader was SO TRUE - it nearly always described a mistake I had made along the way that had hindered my success! I read several poor reviews of this book, but I can only imagine that the reviewers were new to the world of independent consulting, and maybe were hoping for a rosier picture!

I agree with the other reviewers: there are many other books that cover the material in more detail and in far fewer pages. I'd recommend Alan Weiss' "Million Dollar Consulting" or Alan's "Getting Started in Consulting." Either of these books should be considered a MUST addition to any consultant's library. Overall grade: D+/C-

This Guide is an abridged version of the best-selling How to Succeed as an Independent Consultant. Packed with expert advice, helpful tips and industry secrets to successful self-marketing, it gives you the crucial tools and techniques to survive and thrive in this highly competitive field. From founding your business to writing proposals to negotiating fees, this guide has details on a wide variety of essential topics.

Herman Holtz is one of America's leading experts on business and consulting. Holtz's consulting clients include IBM, General Electric, Dunn and Bradstreet, Chrysler and Georgetown University. He is the author of more than twenty best selling books on consulting, marketing and sales.

Reviewed by Azlan Adnan. Formerly Business Development Manager with KPMG, Azlan is currently managing partner of Azlan & Koh Knowledge and Professional Management Group, an education and management consulting practice based in Kota Kinabalu. He holds a Master's degree in International Business and Management from the Westminster Business School in London.