Not every machine learning consulting company knows what they’re doing. Some come in with polished decks and fancy words, but when it’s time to build something useful, they fall short.
If you're thinking about hiring a consulting partner, here’s how to figure out if they really understand your use case, or if they’re just good at selling.

1. They Focus on Your Goals, Not Just Their Tools

A solid partner doesn’t start by talking about their tech stack. They start by asking what you're trying to solve.
If your goal is reducing churn, they should talk about how to measure that and what kind of models might help. If they jump straight into infrastructure without asking about your KPIs, that’s a problem.
The best firms tie everything back to business value.

2. They Ask Smart, Specific Questions

Good consultants are curious. They ask about your weird edge cases, your messy data, and what didn’t work in the past. They want to know where your models break, not just where they succeed.
If their questions make your data team pause and think, you’re probably in good hands.

3. They Build, Not Just Plan

A real partner doesn’t stop at strategy. They show working prototypes. They explain why a certain model makes sense and what the tradeoffs are. They know how to get models into production, not just onto slides.
If all you see is talk and no working code, move on.

4. They Handle Scale and Change

Machine learning is never set-and-forget. Your use case will change. Your data will grow. A strong firm designs systems that adapt with you.
They plan for retraining, model drift, and versioning. They choose tools that won’t box you in a year from now. They think long term, even if your project is short term.

5. They Don’t Disappear After Deployment

The best partners don’t just hand over a model and leave. They stay involved.
They monitor model performance, flag risks, and help you make small changes before they become big problems. They also train your team, so you’re not stuck depending on them forever.

Questions to Ask Before You Sign

Here are a few questions that reveal a lot:

• What happens if the model underperforms?
• How do you handle model drift?
• What percentage of your past pilots went into production?
• Can you show examples similar to our use case?
• If they hesitate or dodge, trust your gut.

Final Thought

Hiring a machine learning consultant is a big decision. You need someone who gets your problem, builds for your future, and sticks around to make sure it works.
When you find that team, things just click.
And that’s when machine learning starts to actually work for your business.