The Role of a Consultant - Essay Example

? Consultancy Report Introduction With the advent of technology, organizations around the world continue to grow in scope, size and scale (Simon, ). These days, companies are accepting projects which are highly convoluted as well as multifaceted in nature (Kerzner, 2013). In spite of that, the necessary advancement required for the organizations to effectively, efficiently and successfully accomplish the projects is yet to be achieved. The areas in which some organizations still lack the required competencies are project management practices, methodologies and policies. As a result of that most of the companies are continually focusing on the single projects to the detriment of the project portfolio as a whole (PMI, 2013). It is indispensable for the companies to identify the loopholes in their system so as to ensure their goals and objectives get successfully fulfilled. Assessing the current practices of organizations and comparing it with the industry recognized best practices will strongly assist them in discovering the gaps. In the similar manner, the loopholes of a company in its project management area can be identified by comparing it with the industry recognized best practise project management. The role of a consultant in such scenarios becomes highly visible. In this context, a consultant or a subject matter expert plays a crucial role in identifying those gaps and focuses on the opportunities that drives improvements and augments the business performance of the client organization (Kennedy, 2007). Hence, from the discussion it is evident that the role of a consultant is to identify the problems and make suitable recommendations to get rid of those problems (Biech, 2008). Although, from a broader aspect the process may look simple and uncomplicated but in reality the consultancy process involves several complicated tasks. The theory of consultancy foster organizations to explore alternatives those are unknown to the company itself and ultimately help them to choose the most viable and promising option from the lot. In addition, consultants also play a critical role in the implementation process of the alternative course of action. This report gives insights into how a consultancy project should be undertaken and how it would add value to the client organization. In doing so, suitable examples pertaining to the subject of concern well be provided. Discussion How to Undertake a Consultancy Project It is essential for the organizations to know the fact that a consultant would not make decisions for the companies, purchase specific products and provide standard services. Consultant’s just acts as a support for organizations to solve a problem rose due to specific reasons or recommends companies on how to improve their performance levels. In other words, a management or a strategic consultant is responsible for assisting organizations to enhance their performance levels, through the evaluation and analysis of the active organizational issues, and simultaneously develop plans for improvement. An organization may draw up the services of consultant on a number of grounds, encompassing gaining external piece of advice and admittance to the consultants' specific know-how. A company faces different type of challenges which may take place due to the internal or external business environment. For example, an internal issue for a company can be defaulting HRM systems, failed car park pricing strategy, and failed staff retention strategies, unfeasible new cafe bar, failed strategy of launching of fully serviced apartment building and failed perception assessment of the staff members. In the similar way there can be external problems as well for the company. Some of the issues in this context can be integrating quality, environment and health management systems, marketing plan for a new hotel, and competitor and market analysis for a firm of accountants, health issues awareness campaign, finding sponsors for an event, plans for setting up a charity and developing an environmental management strategy among others. In order to address the issues of the clientele, consultants need to be fully aware of the industry recognised best practice. Apart from that consultants also need to pursue suitable methodologies or guidelines for analyzing and finding an appropriate solution for the problems being faced by the company. Moreover, the methodologies applied are also crucial for affirming the desired outcome. In this context, I have been assigned the task of a consultant I will be taking the 7 step approach proposed by Burtonshaw-Gunn (2008). My Approach to Consultancy In order to highlight the consultancy procedure in a detailed way an example will be provided about what will be approach taken to address that issue. The issue or the example chosen in this context is the case of BAE Saudi Arabia. It has been observed that BAE Saudi Arabia has been experiencing a plunge in the levels of employee performances. Most of the managers and supervisors of the organization has been complaining about the low work efficiency by most of their staff members. The declining performance levels can create alarming situation for the companies as this will have a direct impact on the overall productivity of the organization. The first task necessary to provide a solution the task is to scrutinize all the important factors that can be a possible cause for the low work efficiency and unsatisfactory performance of the employees of BAE Saudi Arabia. Once, I have been assigned the role of a consultant, the first and foremost task is to select the issue, topic, or item that will be investigated. This step of consulting is probably the most imperative and can act as a foundation. Moreover, several authors also argue that the definition of problem statement helps in understating the nature of the problem which in turn helps in finding the solution for the same with ease. In the context of BAE, the problem identified is the poor performance level of the employees. The second step in the approach is recording. In this step, data about the area of concern will be collected. The more the data collected, increases the chances of finding the most appropriate solution. In this context, in-depth information pertaining to the performance levels of the employees will be recorded. The information will range from the historical performance of the employees. In addition, the time since a fall in the performance levels of the employees is being witnessed will be also identified for the purpose of identifying any possible external causes. Another important data set in this context is the identification of industry-recognised best performing employees. If this can be discovered the factors driving them to perform at the highest level can also be identified simultaneously. In order to address the issues more effectively, it is necessary to collect primary data as well. The primary data will be collected from the employees as well as the managers. The employees will be asked about the possible causes of low performance levels. Apart from the employees, the manager will be also asked questions about the possible causes of low performance levels of the employees. In this context both quantitative as well as qualitative data will be recorded. For example, the quantitative data will be recorded in the form of the number of output per day, total duration of work etc. In the similar way, qualitative data will be recorded in the form of their quality of work and standardization of work. It is believed that with the availability of these data sets will help in understanding the issue with ease. Once the required data is collected about the area of concern the third step that I will take is the examination of all the possible constraints, options and opportunities. The examination step will be one of the most critical steps towards ensuring an effective solution being suggested to the client company, BAE Saudi Arabia. Moreover, in this step alternative courses of actions can be developed by which the problem of the company can be solved. The analysis of the data collected in the previous stage will be also carried out in this phase. Together with the processed data and information on the industry-identified best practices, it is evident that a number of alternative courses of action can be developed for the prevailing issue. In the context of BAE, I will be analysing their concerns and simultaneously develop alternative courses of action for their issue of poor employee performance. The fourth step in this context is to define the appropriate solution for the problem. The definition is also important as in this step the most appropriate solution for the issues will be presented. However, before suggesting the most appropriate solution to the client several analyses will be carried out. In addition, numerous factors will be considered before making the final choice. One of the important one is the assessment of cost that the company needs to incur for implementing the desired solution. In addition, the time required for successfully implementing the change will be also addressed. Since the issue is related with the management of performance of the employees, time in this context is highly sensitive. As longer the implementation, the longer the underperformance will continue. According to several authors, the implementation of a change within organizations also impact several other associated factors (Weiner, 2009; Cain and Haque, 2008; Salvendy, 2012; Carayon, 2011). Hence, I will also evaluate the possible areas that can get impacted due to the intended change. Furthermore, a cost benefit analysis of the strategy will be also carried out to test the viability of the strategy. In the context of BAE, I will be examining the cost and time requirement for the strategy and will simultaneously carry out a cost benefit analysis. Finally on the basis of that the solution will be recommended to the client company. The fifth step in this consulting approach is to develop the solution. In this stage I will be developing the solution further. In this situation, the assessment of the tools, equipments and communication techniques required for implementing the study will be identified. In the context of BAE Saudi Arabia, I will be discussion the proposed strategy with the senior managers and executives of the company for the purpose of gauging their take on the solution. A number of scholars have mentioned that it is equally important to discuss the plans with the client to ensure better coordination and cooperation. The sixth step in this consultancy approach is probably the most vital one and is referred to as the install phase. In this stage, the equipments identified in the earlier stage, the process and the plan formulated will be implemented. In this stage, I will be extremely careful as improper implementation may result into negative consequences and may ruin the efforts put in for solving the issue. The implementation phase is also important because in this process, the company can experience strong resistance from the employees who will consider the new strategy or process is threatening for them. However, one thing is evident that before finally implementing it, I will be conveying the employees about the benefits of the new strategy and how it can offer them with new opportunities. Since the issues is related with the performance of employees in BAE Saudi Arabia, there is possibility of strong resistance from the. As a result of that possibility, I will be also developing a contingency plan so as to avoid anything unwanted and minimize the impact on the company. Figure 1 – Consultancy Approach (Source: Burtonshaw-Gunn, 2010) Once the implementation stage gets over, major part of the consultancy process is accomplished. The final step in the consultancy process and important for gaining benefits of this change for a longer period of time is maintenance. In this stage, the strategies, processes, tools and equipments used are maintained. However, in this stage a consultant has hardly any role to play other than providing support. Once the strategy is implemented, the control goes into the hands of the company and they encompass the duty of efficiency practising the strategy. In the context of BAE Saudi Arabia, once the strategies get implemented I will be arranging a session for transferring knowledge to the concerned authorities of the client company. The principal intention of this knowledge transfer (KT) session is to make them competent and familiar with the new system. Although, the control will be in the hands of the company and they will be carrying out the required activities for change management, but I will remain associated with the company and will assist them in future if there are any further issues. In my opinion, supervision is one of the most critical elements of undertaking a consultancy project. Since consultancy projects involve several team members working for a single project, the management of those people is an essential task. It is my duty to ensure that everyone who is a part of the consulting project achieves their goals by fulfilling the tasks allotted to them in timely manner. I will be overseeing the progress of the individual members of the team and inform others about the progress. Moreover, I will be also looking after the problems faced by the team members and will try to offer them with proper solution. Therefore form an overall view point; I will be playing the role of a liaison to the client company and team members of our company, so as to improve the communication between the involved parties and augment the level of coordination among the team members. Value for Client Overseeing and delivering large consulting assignments require high efficiency of the consultants. In addition, delivering a project on time or accomplishing the task of the clients within the deadline requires effective planning from the part of the consulting company (eHow, 2013). In my opinion, the key to successful consulting project is the commitment towards a tight schedule, coordination between the consultant firm and client firm and availability of the required resources. Therefore it is imperative to have a combination of sound plan and coordination so as ensure effective outcome. In addition, the availability of this combination will result quicker and accurate solution of the problem. Hence, hiring an external consultant for curbing the internal issues of an organization does not harm their standings and operations in any way; rather it can have a positive impact on the whole organization. It is evident that a number of companies are taking the advantage of the services of an external business consultant. In this context, a number of authors have put emphasis on the fact that companies take the assistance of an external business consultant for the principal purpose of solving complex problems in an efficient way. In addition, another set of scholars lay emphasis on the fact that external consultants are hired by companies so as to ensure their complex problems gets solved within the earliest possible time. The principal motive is however to reduce the impact of the arsing problem on the company and minimize the risk levels. Moreover, consultants focus directly on the problem of the company and do not shift his or her thinking from the subject of concern. As a result of that, it is obvious that the suggestion or the ideas provided by the consultant to deal with those challenges will be far more superior that the one which would have been developed by the organization itself. Another reason is that, consultants have more experience of dealing with issues and have come across multifaceted problems, which has made them enough competent to tackle challenging issues. Therefore, from this discussion it is evident that consultants add value for the client organization. In most of the cases, companies generally take the help of a consultant to solve a business problem. However, at time consultants are also hired for implementing a new technology or a new process in the organization. Although, organizations can alone also implement a new strategy or a process, given the opportunity, organizations all over the world have a knack of taking the help of a consultant. However, there are number of companies who try to deal with the business challenges with the help of their own employees. Yet, there is a belief “it is always better to bring a consultant” (Apesf, 2013). According to Alan Leaman, Chief Executive of Management Consultancies Association, “the use of management consultancy is an accepted business practice in many sectors. The author further emphasizes on the fact that “the Value of Consulting presents the findings of a pioneering research programme to quantify the value consultants add” (MCA, 2010). Companies use management consulting services for the principal purpose of providing wide range of services to their customers. The value additions are made in the form of strategy definition, formulation and implementation, implementing large-scale IT programs, increasing operational excellence, coaching individuals, and providing expert suggestions in highly expertise and specified fields. A number of scholars in this context put emphasis on the fact that man agreement consultant are highly valued for their independent standpoint, their capability to drive a project and also their technical expertise. In general, a consultancy project is meant for adding value to the client organizations. This is reason why consultancy tasks are often deemed as “value addition”. Hence in the similar way, the approach proposed by me to address the issue at BAE Saudi Arabia is expected to provide several benefits to the client organization. One the biggest benefits for BAE Saudi Arabia to use me as one of their external consultant is that they will be that I will be able to bring objectivity to the issue, which will not be possible for them to bring out from the staff members. Moreover, as an external member to the organization, I will be able to observe the problems in more details. At times, companies often fail to recognize their problems as they are unable to get the broader view of the organization. A number of researchers in this context have put emphasis on the fact that having individuals from outside of the company highly assist companies to spot the core problem areas and which in turn can help in addressing the problems more effectively as well as efficiently. I will be also able to gather the required information for solving the problem faced by BAE Saudi Arabia, which at time may become difficult for the employees of the organization. Moreover, the internal staff members may hesitate to disclose the information, if they observe and feel that disclosing the findings may hamper their professional career or can endanger their position. For example, if the employees assigned for the task of unearthing the problems faced by the company found that his or her boss is responsible for a problem in organization, the authorised employee will be indecisive whether to unveil it or not. In such tricky situations, employees often intentionally present falsified statement for the purpose of safeguarding his or her position in the company. On the contrary, I will have the authority to point directly on the responsible person irrespective of the designation or positions he or she holds in the company. Hence, the only inference to this discussion is that whatever may be the actual reason for a problem, it is difficult for an employee of the organization to unearth those facts exactly, but a consultant, being an external member of an organization will be able to unearth the issues with ease. In the similar way, I will be also adding value to the client organization in terms of improved operational excellence, increased overall employee and organization productivity and streamline business process. The following are the possible benefits or value additions for the BAE Saudi Arabia for using me as one of their external consultant. The strategy to be suggested for the company is expected to effectively address the issue faced by BAE Saudi Arabia currently. The issue identified is the low performance levels of the company and hence it is anticipated that employee performance will be improved and the company will be able to experience an overall growth in the productivity. With the knowledge transfer (KT) session, it is strongly believed that the company’s ability to deal with employee performance management issues will increase to a great extent. Moreover, the knowledge transfer session will also add value to the firm in the form of increased ability to maintain and practise a strategy for a longer period of time. Since the problem identified in the company is related with the management of employee performance, it is obvious that a certain level of resilience is sure to take place. However, on successful implementation of the strategy it is expected that the company will be able to learn about how to deal with the change resistance. Apart from the aforementioned value additions, I will be helping the company to curb the issue of employee performance management by putting my previous experiences as well as domain expertise into practise. In addition, the speed and objectivity I will be bringing to the organization is also vital. A number of business houses around the world run the venture out of sheer gut feel. However, with the increasing complexity of business, even large organizations are being forced to lay emphasis on data analysis and reporting for the principal purpose of identifying organizational change needs. In large organizations, despite of the availability and mass analysis and reporting resources, there is a doubt over the extent to which executives uses those resources and or spent times in understanding the organizational problem (Brekiri, 2010). In the context of BAE Saudi Arabia, I will be helping the company to reduce these constraints. Moreover, I will drill down deeper to the issue of low performance level of the employees of BAE, which in turn will allow me to come up with the best solution. Lastly, I would also like to accentuate the fact that I will be creating value for the client company by ensuring improved performance by the employees of the client company, highlighting on the ways by which they can maintain their performance levels. Hence, from an overall viewpoint, with the expert advice it is believed that the client organization will actually reach a position, which would not have been possible for them to progress on their own (MCA, 2012). It is believed that the aforementioned approach of consultancy will provide the client organization with a large number of benefits and will add value to their system. Conclusion In order for a company to run its operations well, it is essential that they have a clear idea of what to do, when to do and how to do. There a numerous factors and elements that a company should know about the market place. For example, a company must be aware of competitors, consumers, market trends and the opportunities of market. Having knowledge on these factors greatly help companies to run their business successfully. However, in order to get better control and in-depth knowledge about the mentioned a company must have business consultants. The study revealed that business consultants provide companies with expert advice and share their valuable experiences so that companies are able to deal with the prevailing challenges. Moreover, the study also highlighted that consultants play crucial roles in the field of communications, operations, strategic planning, human resource, marketing and other areas of business. 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J., 2009. A theory of organizational readiness for change. [online] Available at: [Accessed 26 June 2013]. Read More