As your enterprise grows, your in-house staff might not have the time or expertise to handle everything on their plate. Even with a great internal IT staff and amazing technical resources, it’s often difficult to manage rapid growth without distracting your team from their main activities.

This is where your organization can benefit from expert help with Consulting as a Service, or CaaS. Bringing on consultants helps you avoid internal disruption and maximize the technology you’re using. Your in-house team may have limited bandwidth to take on extra tasks, and they also may not have the right skill set for more complex projects.

Let’s take a look at how CaaS works and why it’s worth considering.

What is Consulting as a Service (CaaS)?

Consulting as a Service (CaaS) is an agile support framework that gives you access to expert consultants for both ongoing support and specific projects.

At Collectiv, CaaS gives you access to our entire team of consultants at a set rate. Clients choose the type of support they need and we start right away. Then we make adjustments as our client’s support needs change over time.

CaaS gives you access to many different types of experts, ranging from Power BI to strategy to Azure and much more. As your enterprise grows, you may find that your support needs change on a regular basis.

For example, one week you might need broader support for the entire Microsoft data stack, while the next week you need a Power BI expert for a specific implementation. CaaS provides ongoing support as your organizational needs grow and evolve.

The beauty of CaaS is its flexibility. It provides access to so many different types of support, which means that you can use it to solve a variety of problems you might encounter as your enterprise grows. If you’re chronically understaffed or just don’t have the right in-house talent to tackle a problem, consultants will fill that gap.

Additionally, CaaS is incredibly helpful if you are working on a time crunch. In most cases, consultants are available to start in just 24 hours.

Traditional Consulting vs. Consulting as a Service

CaaS and traditional consulting can both be helpful in specific scenarios. Ultimately, you’ll need to determine which option makes the most sense for your business needs.

Traditional consulting is much more structured than CaaS. It usually involves an analysis of your entire organization, which is a very lengthy project. Traditional consulting is usually done with one specific goal in mind but on a very large scale. Traditional consultants are also only available for a specific period of time as defined by your contract.

Consulting as a Service is far more flexible, offering a consulting plan that functions on an as-needed basis. CaaS does away with rigorous analysis and strict objectives to instead offer the expertise of consultants wherever and however the hiring organization needs them.

How CaaS Works and Who It’s For

Consulting as a Service integrates directly with your organization’s existing processes. CaaS works to patch skillset gaps or just solve problems quickly. CaaS is easy to adjust depending on your unique needs.

CaaS is a customer-focused rather than product-oriented service. When you opt for Consulting as a Service, instead of just helping you complete a project, we help you on an ongoing basis as your organization grows.

Not only do you get post-project support, but you also get access to a team of consultants who are already familiar with your organization’s culture, goals, and processes. This enables CaaS consultants to seamlessly provide support on a variety of future tasks.

CaaS works for organizations of all sizes, from small businesses and startups to mid-sized companies and enterprises. It is particularly popular among organizations that are growing quickly and need access to a wide range of expertise on a flexible and scalable basis.

For example, the Microsoft data ecosystem is vast and requires dedicated expertise. However, your organization may not be ready to hire a dedicated internal Power BI team. CaaS would help you implement this technology efficiently, without having to invest a huge amount of time and money in an entirely new team.

CaaS is best for teams that require ongoing support with a variety of tasks. It provides flexibility as you expand your capabilities and/or encounter new challenges.

How CaaS Supports Your Power BI Journey

Data management is a massive challenge for any modern organization. It can be incredibly difficult to manage, access, and leverage accurate data throughout your entire organization.

Navigating these large and complex projects is often difficult to do without the help of BI experts.

A Power BI consulting firm like Collectiv will help you tackle projects that might seem unattainable internally, like building a strong Power BI data governance strategy.

If you already have a data solution in place, consultants will streamline your systems and suggest additional resources. If you’re just starting your Power BI journey, our consultants will help you successfully develop a strategy and bring that vision to life with implementation.
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From time to time, organizations need outside expertise and support. You might not have the right people and tools in place to achieve your long-term goals with the Microsoft data stack. Even with an amazing team, you might not have the time you need to get your technology where it needs to be.

Consulting as a Service is worth considering if you’re looking for ways to support and strengthen your team. Want to learn more about CaaS? Schedule a call with the Collectiv team to see how we can help.