Hi Beth,Here is what I would do:
Contact those firms of interest and ask for general information. Most consultants will send the link to their website, resumes or backgrounds of principals, an annotated list of clients, a fact sheet of services, and a list of references.
The org should review the packet, pick two or three of those that seem to best match their needs and call the references. If the org chooses to call other clients, the org should contact the consultant and let the consultant know. That way, the consultant can notify his clients that they're going to be called and that nothing is wrong. It's just courtesy to the current and previous clients of the consultant. Some clients think engagement of a consultant is confidential. After receiving such calls out of the blue, one of my clients once asked if I was dropping their org from my service roster. At any rate, letting the consultant know you're about to make inquiries is just professional courtesy.
The firm should then ask the three finalist consultants to visit the organization. The org should be prepared to defray all expenses for this trip. During each tour there should be a meeting or a couple of meetings with the org's decision-makers, a binder notebook full of pertinent information (list of donors including amounts, last audited financial statement, list of board members, case statements if any, feasibility studies, strategic plans, and the 501(c)(3) acknowledgement letter from the IRS.)
The consultant should have frank and open discussions individually with the board chair and the CEO.
Once this trip is accomplished, the consultant should be asked for a proposal describing steps to be taken, services he/she would render, and a workplan with a timeline. And, of course, the cost.
The organization should then pick the best fit for its circumstances.
Once hired, the CEO, board chair and campaign chair (if not the board chair) should arrange a retreat with the consultant to form consensus around proposed actions. Everyone must be on the same page and working toward the same goal at this point.
Now, that's the best way to hire a consultant. In my experience that scenario rarely happens.
And, in my humble opinion, your organization does not need a fundraising expert. Based on your description, the org has a ton of organizational work to do: strategic planning, donor market development, donor research, organizational repair. Something is wrong somewhere.
I'm working with a rural group that is building a $6.5 million structure. They've been working on the fundraising for the past two years -- did it themselves for a year before retaining my services. It took me several trips out there and many conversations over a period of months to convince them that they needed to form a 501(c)(3) organization to raise the money. They were committed to conducting the campaign as a municipal government.
At another time, I worked with a small rural hospital foundation that was attempting to build a $2 million surgical suite for the local hospital. Prior to this, the foundation had not ever had paid staff. The hospital did not have a development office, let alone a devlopment officer. We had a lot of work to do before we could get to the raising of real money.
Your organization may be unaware that it is missing some pieces to the puzzle.
Hope some of this helps,
Carl
