THE PROCESS OF
MANAGEMENT CONSULTING
CONSULTING PROPOSALS
Consultant proposals are created, to convince potential clients to make use of
superior services. Putting proposal on paper also helps to avoid confusion later on,
when clients may have assumed that something had been included, that actually
had not.
Consulting Proposals should be concise, clear and informative.
Communication is key to starting and building a
successful business consulting proposal.
Product/Service: Ability to solve business problems.
Team Based work.
Clients: Leaders of corporations, Governments and Non-profit groups.
Consulting Firms
•Focus: Strategy, IT, HR, etc.
•Industry: Healthcare, Financial services, etc.
1. Mckinsey & Company
2. Boston Consulting Group
3. Accenture
4. Deloitte Consulting, etc.
Why Hire Consultants?
1. Lack of Knowledge or skills
2. Flexible Labour Pool
3. Politics
4. Fresh perspective
5. To save money
Consulting Products
Portfolio analysis, Five forces, Value chain analysis, TQM, Core
competencies, Business Process Reengineering, etc.
Types of consulting projects
•Providing advice
•Project design
•Implementation
•Functional management
Consulting Process
Entry
•Purpose Analysis
•Problem Analysis
•Fact Finding
•Fact Analysis
•Feedback to client
•First contacts with clients
•Preliminary problem diagnosis
•Assignment Planning
•Assignment Proposals to clients
Diagnosis
Action Planning
•Assisting with implementation
•Adjusting proposals
Implementation
•Training
Termination
•Developing Solutions
•Evaluating Alternatives
•Proposals to clients
•Planning for implementation
•Evaluation
•Final Report
•Settling commitments
•Plans for follow-up
•Withdrawl
IDENTIFICATION AND DEFINITION OF PROBLEM
Identification of problem start from the moment the consultant is in touch with the
client. Everything is relevant or not?, who made the initial contact and how?, how
the consultant is received at the first meeting?, what sort of questions the client
asks?, if there are any undertones in those questions, what client says about the
business and its competitors?, etc. The consultant has to sort out this information
and then complete the picture by getting some hard data and looking at the
problem from new angles- for example, by talking to people other than those
involved in the first meeting.
Steps for problem identification, definition and solution1. Description of problem(s) to be solved.
2. Objectives and expected results (what is to be achieved, final product).
3. Background and Supporting information.
4. Budget estimate or resource limit.
5. Timetable (key stages and control dates)
6. Interim and Final reporting.
7. Inputs to be provided by the clients.
8. Exclusions from the assignment (what will not be its object).
9. Constraints and other factors likely to affect the project.
10.Profile and competencies of eligible consultants.
11.Requested consultant inputs into the project.
12.Contact persons and addresses.
FACT-FINDING LEADING TO SOLUTION
DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION
What should the new solution achieve?
•What basic purpose?
•What other purposes?
•What level of performance?
•What quality of output?
•What new product, service, or activity?
•What behaviour?
How will the new situation differ from the present?
•Different products, services, or activities.
•Different methods.
•Different system(s).
•Different equipment.
•Different location.
•Different way of managing.
Are the effects likely to last?
•Are the client’s business and market changing rapidly?
•Is competition likely to come with better solutions?
•Is there a possibility that people will revert to present practices?
•Should further developments be foreseen?
Where could solutions and ideas be found?
•In the same unit?
•In the same enterprise?
•From business partners or friends?
•In literature?
•In a research institution?
•In the consulting firm?
•From other consultants?
DEVELOPING STRATEGIC AND TACTICAL PLANS
AND SUBCONTRACTING
Strategic Plans
•Porter’s Five Forces: Barriers, Buyer Power, Customer Power, Substitutes,
Competition.
•4Cs: Customers, Cost, Competition, Companies.
•4Ps: Product, Price, Promotion, Place.
•Scenario Planning: Planning done according to the situations.
Tactical Plans
Some of the tactical plans used in the management consulting are•Beneficiary, Target group: Who will actually benefit from the project.
•Purpose: What purpose is to be accomplished by the project.
•Result: Project must be result-oriented, what results are estimated to be achieved.
•Development Objective: It defines a wider perspective, framework. It tell about the
ultimate or long term objective.
•Immediate Objective: The objective of completion of project successfully and how,
the short term objective.
•Output: What all delivered by the project and what all has to be delivered by the
project.
•Indicator of Achievement: Measurement of whether objective is achieved and how
successfully. A controllable indicator used.
•Actions: A set of actions to achieve and meet objective.
•Input: Resources to be utilized- both quantitative and qualitative methods.
Subcontracting
•Subcontracting is especially prevalent in areas where complex projects are
the norm, such as construction and information technology. Subcontractors
are hired by the project's general contractor, who continues to have overall
responsibility for project completion and execution within its stipulated
parameters and deadlines.
•Subcontracting is a type of work contract that seeks to outsource certain
types of work to other companies. This is a step down from general
contracting, which is a contract overseeing a much broader project in many
cases. Subcontracting is done when the general contractor does not have the
time or skills to perform certain tasks.
•For example: When a building is being constructed, subcontracting becomes
a major deal. A general contractor may take care of a number of tasks,
including the brick-and-mortar construction, but look to subcontractors for
other types of tasks, especially things like plumbing and electrical work.
These disciplines are nearly always subcontracted out.
Advantages of Subcontracting:
Subcontracting offers a number of advantages.
•First, it allows work on more than one phase of the project to be done at
once, often leading to a quicker completion.
•Second, because subcontractors already have the expertise and
equipment to provide the service, it is often much cheaper for them to do
the work than a general contractor who may not have that special
expertise.
•Finally, the subcontractor is usually able to work with a general
contractor on more than one project, thus creating a savings for both in
the long run as a relationship is formed.
PRICING OF CONSULTANCY
What perceived
VALUE services
have on
potential buyers
REAL out of
pocket costs
Competitors
(Direct &
Indirect)
Comparable
Services
Final
Price
What you want
to make per
hour of work
ACQUIRING AND DEVELOPING
TALENTS FOR CONSULTING
Recruitment &
Selection programs
Diversity &
Inclusion strategies
Acquiring
Talent
Profiling & Sourcing
pratices
On Boarding
program design &
Implementation
Global
Leadership
development
Team
Effectiveness
Mentoring
Programs
Top Talent
strategy
Developing
Talent
Virtual
Executive
Coaching
Employee
Development
strategies &
programs
Training
Program
Design &
Delivery