Technical Consultant

Technical Consultants bring current and relevant knowledge to their clients, solving technical problems in computers and information systems.

Summary

A technical or information technology consultant brings specific expertise to the design, instruction, or operations of technical solutions. Some technical consultants may work in an instructional capacity with clients, training end users. Others may assist product engineers, or perform other work in manufacturing operations as a technical support person within a production capacity. Those who work as technical consultants may be members of a design team working on a large project. Companies or research labs may bring in a technical consultant to resolve one aspect of an operation.

Generally, those technical consultants who work as developers are recruited to devise a specific solution to a technical issue in developing a product or device. Process consulting applies technical solutions to improving manufacturing operations. A technical consultant may work as a designer of technology, developing new solutions. Those in this capacity are typically either engineers, or they are working closely in a team with engineering expertise.

An engineering technical consultant may be recruited to develop a technical solution to a hurdle that must be circumvented. He or she would then work with the client to gather all relevant facts and assist the company in engineering a technical solution. For example, a manager of an assembly line might conclude that one step in the operation regularly bogs down, idling other workers. An engineering technical consultant would investigate the cause, and propose a solution. This might involve calling in a process engineer who would design the actual solution.

Educational Requirements

A bachelor's degree in a computer-related field is necessary for work as an information technology consultant, including computer science, management information systems (MIS), and information science. Regardless of the specific degree, information technology consultants often have coursework or experience with computer programming, computer engineering, mathematics, and statistics.

Many information technology consultants begin their careers as system or network administrators, computer engineers or programmers, or IT analysts. With a successful track record, exceptional information technology workers can work their way up to consultants in just a few years, but for many it often takes many years of hard work and dedication.

Salary Information 2022

According to Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median salary of a Technical Consultant in 2022 was $80,535.

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Information retrieved from Practical Adult Insights: What Does a Technical Consultant Do?