If you’re looking for an energy consultant, you’re probably in a situation where either you or your CFO has been concerned by runaway energy costs. You’re not alone. Most companies these days are concerned about energy cpsts and looking for ways to control energy costs and have more predictability in costs going forward. Energy consultants offer insight into energy pricing which can save you money, but what are some important alternatives?

What does an energy consultant do?

An energy consultant has relationships with energy producers, often understand energy pricing, and can have insights into pricing. They can help you select the best product and advise you on strategies to meet your organization’s goals. It can be useful to use an energy consultant especially when the area that you are in has a wide variety of suppliers and you aren’t sure what best fits your needs. Because they have relationships with suppliers, hiring a consultant can cut down the time it takes to sift through options.

What sorts of benefits do energy consultants offer?

An energy consultant is a one-stop shop for your energy related questions and concerns. They follow the markets and can help you make sense of the news articles you read about possible energy spikes and the reality they see on the ground. You can ask them about types of energy – if your organization has a plan to focus on renewable energy, for example – and find suppliers that match your desires.

What are some of the challenges with hiring a consultant?

One of the main challenges of hiring a consultant is that your understanding of the energy markets and suppliers are filtered through a third party. A good energy consultant will provide you with up-to-date information. However, the lack of transparency means that you don’t know if you are getting the best rate and you don’t have direct access to your very own pricing model, to the latest data or analytics on an ongoing basis.

Also, the introduction of a third party means that you only get a ballpark idea of actual cost, as your bill includes both the energy costs as well as the consultant fee. For any given month, how do you know how much you are paying for each if they aren’t broken out? Furthermore, how can you tell if you are subject to “supplier bias” where the consultant has certain suppliers which offer a better deal for them but the savings aren’t necessarily passed along to you? Transparency can be an issue when dealing with an energy consultant.

What is an important alternative to hiring a consultant?

You might be surprised to learn that there is a way that you can solve the lack of transparency that you get with a consultant by getting an energy management solution instead. Software can give you greater benefits than a consultant by providing you transparency not only into pricing but into energy markets themselves. In addition, an energy management solution is available to you on an ongoing basis. 

Instead of relying on a consultant to distill the latest trends, you can see them for yourself. Instead of wondering what your actual energy costs are, you can look at the past pricing, current pricing and future forecasted price, and understand exactly what you pay your suppliers.

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What’s an example of a powerful energy management solution? The Megawatt Hour.