The Impact of Product Consulting

‍What does a product consultant do, and when is it time to consider one for your startup?

Questions many first-time founders have asked themselves. 

To help Founders struggling with this, we sought the expertise of Aaron Mohammed, Founder and Product/Operations Executive at Bridged, a Toronto-based consultancy that guides startups to scale through fractional leadership, coaching, or advisory. Aaron has previously held executive-level consulting and Fractional Chief Product/Operating Officer roles, successfully launching over 20 end-to-end products and platforms used by millions of users in both B2B and B2C markets.

The Value of Product Consulting

Experienced product consultants add value by offering a holistic view of the product life cycle, from ideation to market launch, and providing contextual insights that internal teams might overlook due to their proximity to the product and respective industry.

An experienced product consultant is not limited to one perspective, approach, or culture; instead, they leverage expertise from collaborations with multiple product companies across various industries, to  assess product strategies, identify areas for improvement, and implement best practices tailored to their clients’ specific needs.

Catalyst for Innovation & Change

Organizations and product teams embedded into their respective domains provide incredible value to their users and customers. This could be done for several years, even decades, where they are a thought leader and trusted product/services provider. 

However, this laser focus and predictive evolution can cause “tunnel-vision” or complacency, leaving opportunities to be disrupted by new entrants or internally operating with mountains of inefficiency and technical debt. An outsider’s opinion can break this cycle.

Challenges Product Consulting Addresses 

While every company and product team faces distinct challenges, there are sometimes significant overlaps in the hurdles encountered across different organizations and industries. 

Some core issues can be:

• Aligning product vision with market needs
• Managing and scaling cross-functional teams
• Navigating resource constraints
• Ensuring timely, quality delivery
• Building and maintaining a culture of innovation, collaboration, and continuous improvement
• Implementing scalable, measurable processes and tools

… the list goes on, but product consultants like Aaron will leverage their experience to quickly address common and unique challenges, identify patterns, and implement proven solutions.

Best Time for Product Consulting

The CEO or Founder needs to evaluate their organization’s specific needs and challenges. A Product Consultant can provide valuable external insights, identify blind spots, and bring a fresh perspective to their product strategy and operations.

If there is a specific domain challenge, a specialized Product Consultant with domain expertise would be a good fit. If internal teams are stretched thin or facing complex, intricate challenges, a multi-domain Product Consultant can help bridge these gaps and drive the product vision or strategy forward. Usually, a defined scope and outcomes are agreed upon to create a hyper-focus and move key initiatives forward or solve persistent challenges.

Product Consulting Advantages

• Flexibility Hiring Advantages: a sometimes overlooked aspect of utilizing external help is the lowered onboarding time and flexibility in scaling resources based on market changes, specific project/initiative requirements, and budgets. Permanent employees certainly have benefits for long-term growth, but they are less flexible when managing with more rigid employment contracts. 
• Augmenting the Team: a Product Consultant’s role is to increase a team’s capabilities and help achieve the product vision more effectively or to alleviate restraints by letting teams focus on internal priorities. By fostering a collaborative environment and integrating their expertise into processes, it can unlock new opportunities for growth and success.
• Accelerating Time-to-Market and Driving Innovation: Product Consultants can accelerate time-to-market by implementing best practices and avoiding common pitfalls. Their broad experience across various industries allows them to introduce innovative ideas and methodologies that might not be apparent to those deeply embedded in day-to-day operations.  
• Strategic Partner: viewing the consultant as a strategic partner while collaborating side-by-side is wise. An experienced Product Consultant can complement the team’s efforts by providing an external perspective and specialized knowledge that can enhance the product development process.
• Integrating Insights and Driving Innovation: utilize their expertise to identify and address gaps in current processes and leverage their experience to implement new methodologies and best practices. By doing so, it can drive innovation, improve efficiency, and ultimately create a more robust and successful product strategy and execution.

Ultimately, the decision to engage a product consultant should be based on the potential value they can bring to help organizations achieve their strategic objectives. Their ability to offer specialized and repeated expertise, flexible engagement, and innovative solutions can be a game-changer for companies looking to elevate their product strategy and execution.

Aaron’s diverse experiences, from leading product teams in large enterprises to dynamic scale-ups, have shaped his success as a Product Consultant. Whether you’re a CEO or Chief Product Officer, these expert insights can help you determine when a Product Consultant like Aaron can be brought in during key inflection points (seed, pre-seed, Series A-D), providing the flexibility, efficiency, and innovation necessary for success in today’s competitive landscape.