Does the role of an energy consultant appeal, but you feel that you need a little more insight into the realities of the role?

What does an energy consultant do?

The new job title of ‘energy consultant’ covers a variety of roles and responsibilities but, fundamentally, energy consultants work with clients to help them make the most of energy use, be that by helping them to reduce their costs, increase their use of green energy, or attain accreditations such as those awarded by the Carbon Trust for offsetting their energy use.

Energy consultants can work within businesses or independently.

An energy consultant might be employed by a large organisation, for example, to help rationalise and reduce their energy use by examining the current levels of consumption and making recommendations on where savings can be made, both in usage and in costs.

A consultant might study all the energy sources used for the last few years across a multiple site manufacturing process, and investigate whether alternative sources of power, such as solar power, could meet needs in a more efficient and/or cost-effective way. It may also be that changing environmental regulations require businesses to improve their usage of renewable energy, and energy consultants would produce technology feasibility studies to determine how to do this and meet the needs of the business.

This would require an extensive amount of data modelling and analytics work, as well as an understanding of the practical implementation of any changes, so energy consultants usually come from an engineering background, although this is not always essential. In this case, an energy consultant might not only analyse usage on a day-to-day basis, but would probably also be employed on bigger projects, such as the setting up of a new factory or the creation of a new building, where energy efficiency can be built in at the design stage.

Some energy consultants work on a contract basis, rather than being directly employed, and in these cases are likely to be involved in projects concerning a major overhaul of a client’s energy requirements, or to be part of larger new projects such as overseeing the installation of a large new plant and ensuring that it meets all the required legal and internal energy usage regulations.

Energy consultant roles require attention to detail and excellent communication skills.

On a day-to-day basis, energy consultant jobs are likely to require writing concise reports summarising results and justifying conclusions, or writing proposals for future work. Good communication skills are vital, as well as the confidence to ask questions and drill down for answers in environments where consultants may be unfamiliar with operations or other staff.

Energy consultants need to be highly numerate and enjoy working with a large amount of data to see where the patterns emerge. A logical mind is essential, as well as the ability to figure out not only theoretical solutions, but also the practical implementation and outcomes of those solutions. The role offers a wide variety of interesting and challenging projects to the right candidate.

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