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Beginner’s Guide on Starting a Consulting Business in Singapore

Hiring a consultant can be a costly affair. But why would you need to hire a consulting agency? What does a consultant do? To get right to the point, a consultant is someone who sells specialized knowledge as part of their services. If you are running a consulting business, you are selling the specialized knowledge that you have about a certain industry or specific niche area.

For example, if you were to choose business consulting as your preferred niche, you could focus on strategy consulting. You would work with your clients on the different strategies of how to improve revenue, global expansion, mergers and acquisitions, and more. Essentially, your job is to advise your clients on what their best next step is and what direction they should be moving toward if they want to reach their goals.

The type of consulting areas you cover is going to depend on the niche you focus on. Let’s say you choose to take on management consulting. For example, your focus would be looking at business operations and supply chains. It is your job to figure out strategies to get those aspects of a business to work better. You might even have the responsibility of changing the organizational structure of a company.

Why is there a need for such a business? Businesses need a consulting agency just like yours because sometimes, a fresh pair of eyes can see solutions that the businesses cannot see. Your consulting business is that “fresh pair of eyes”. As an outsider looking in, you’re able to see problems and solutions that the businesses or individuals might not see because they are too close to the subject matter. That is why your services are so valuable.

 

What Is the Consulting Business?

A consultant is someone who provides professional and expert advice to clients who need them. Consultants could cover a broad range of areas that include marketing, business, finance, law, management, and more. When starting a consulting business in Singapore, it is a good idea to spend some time thinking about the type of niche you would like to specialize in.

A consultant will be presented with some sort of problem that a business might be facing (consultants can be hired by individuals too). The first thing a consultant does when presented with a problem is to do some research. The research could be qualitative research or quantitative research. This would depend on the problem that needs to be resolved. With the research in hand, the consultant would then devise a strategy which they will present to the client.

Now, what happens after the solutions have been presented to the client would differ from one consulting agency to the next. Some consulting businesses choose to focus only on formulating the strategy and solution. Other agencies might focus on helping with the strategy implementation aspect. There are also some consulting agencies that offer to do both. As you are starting your consulting business, it is best to focus on one thing at a time to avoid piling too much on your plate from the very beginning. Once you’ve gained some momentum, you can slowly introduce other services when you’re ready to expand.

 

What the Business Registration Process Involves

The first thing you need to do before you commence your Singapore company registration process is to decide on the industry your consulting business will focus on. Are you keen to pursue the financial industry? The IT industry? Perhaps digital marketing is more your forte? Or maybe you have a real knack for the business management side of things.

In Singapore, financial technology consulting happens to be one of the most popular consulting business options at the moment. Once you have figured out what type of consulting company you would like to run (and there are a lot of options to choose from), you can move on to the next step. Here is where our company incorporation specialists can step in to help. Per Singapore law, your business name must be officially registered with the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) Singapore.

Prepare and draft your incorporation documents. Our 3E Accounting specialists will be able to assist with that. These documents must have the business activity carefully detailed before you submit them to ACRA. File your documents with ACRA. You can do this with BizFile, ACRA’s online web portal. This makes the process much easier. Prepare the details and particulars of the directors and shareholders of the company. If you are a foreign entrepreneur, you will need to submit a copy of your passport and your address as proof of residence.

Once you receive your certificate of incorporation, register for the Goods and Services Tax (GST). Don’t forget about organising your finances to start your business too. You should have enough funds to sustain your business for at least six to twelve months before you can turn a profit. Without adequate funding, you might find it very difficult to sustain your business for too long in the early stages. You need enough funding to keep your business up and running until such a time when your business can gain momentum. Our incorporation specialists are here to help you every step of the way.

 

Licenses and Permits You Need

The licenses and permits you will need when starting a consulting business in Singapore depend on what field you want to specialize in. For example, if you want to venture into the finance industry, you might require a permit from the Singapore Chartered Accountants to do it. As a renowned corporate service provider in Singapore, we can help you with this.

 

Overall, the company start-up process in Singapore is straightforward. If you have all your documents in order, your business should be ready to go within a day or two. For more information about our company incorporation services in Singapore, contact us today.