Presentatie titel

Rotterdam, 00 januari 2007

Strategy and Consultancy Training

Annemarie PetersRobin Schuessler

Strategy and Consultancy, Theory and Skills IBKIMC00M4

Lectures and portfolio about strategic paradoxes (text book de Wit) (lecturers Stiphout / Gijsbertse)

One training session consultancy meeting week 2: now

Consultancy meetings based on strategic management summaries from week 3

Bring management summaries to meeting, three hard copies and mail to two supervisors

What is important in a consultancy meeting?

brainstorm session

Consultancy

Find out about needs, wishes, interests, values and criteria of person advised*

Tell what is important for you (questions you have, management of expectations, how you work)

Identify things you have in common

Advice: find creative solutions and alternatives which satisfy both parties

Select the best option

 

* You can do this in the consultancy meetings by involving the customer in every step of the conversation. Ask the customer for his opinion; ask him whether he agrees with your point of view etc.

Structure consultancy meeting weeks 3-8 

Introduction Introduce yourselves, roles, procedure etc.

Problem analysis Analyse problem, define paradox. Relate problem to the paradox. The problem may be redefined.

Advice Define criteria the solution should meet.Discuss all possible solutions*On the basis of the criteria the best solution is selected. In the cases from your text book the solution is the perspective the customer should adopt.

* It is also possible to present the best solution first and to use alternative solutions if the customer has objections to the first solution you presented.

 

Roles (a, b, c)

3 consultants (only consultants write management summary)

3 managers

3 members of the jury

All groups have to study chapters from de Wit to fulfill their roles.

teams

Make teams of 3 now: every team is composed of at least one exchange student and students from different disciplines.

every team has every role twice

Group is divided into two groups of 8 or 9 student

Group 1: 11.20

Group 2: 12.20

each group consists of a group of consultants, a group of managers, and members of the jury

these roles change every week

Paradoxes: definition?

Control – Chaos

Revolution – Evolution

Responsiveness – Synergy

Markets – Resources

Competition – Cooperation

Deliberateness – Emergence

Globalization – Localization

Compliance – Choice

Profitability – Responsibility

These paradoxes will be dealt with in the lectures on Monday morning.

Paradox

A statement or situation which seems impossible or is difficult to understand because it contains two opposite facts or characteristics

In the text book cases the opposite facts are opposite perspectives.

Cultural differences

“Culture is more often a source of conflict than of synergy. Cultural differences are a nuisance at best and often a disaster."     Prof. Geert Hofstede, Emeritus Professor, Maastricht University

Be alert to the cultural aspects of the paradoxes

Geert Hofstede

The most important thing is that there is a real conversation, an exchange of ideas between consultant and customer.

Language of diplomacy

Language of consultancy

I would like to suggest the following procedure.

Could you clarify that please?

Firstly, secondly, thirdly

Would it be a good idea to…

I was wondering whether…

What do you mean by?

In conclusion

May I summarize

Does this summarize the outcome of this meeting well?

Role play

A Dutch ICT company has been taken over by ITCOM, an American ICT company. There is a clash of business cultures between the Dutch employees and the American management.

Make pairs: A is consultant, B is the client (in the consultancy sessions there will also be a C group, the jury).

Prepare your role: client or consultant (15 min). Consultancy meeting in front of class (feedback from class.

Evaluation

 

Both groups:

Study the language of consultancy

Consultants:

Make a good problem analysis (describe the paradoxes and perspectives).

Give advice about the possible solutions (be creative) and select the best.

Make sure that this satisfies the client’s needs.

Clients:

Prepare questions, objections, resistance from the perspective of the client

Case 1

The American company has a very strict dress code and strict regulations on tidiness of the working environment. Dress code: dark blue or dark grey suit, white shirt, inconspicuous tie, no beard. Working environment: no family photographs, no pictures on the wall, no personal items. The dress code and office regulations have met with a lot of resistance among Dutch employees. Some of them refuse to follow American policy regarding these matters. They turn up in jeans and jumpers and put drawings of their children on the wall. The American HRM manager of the Dutch subsidiary hires a Dutch HRM consultant to solve this problem.

 

Case 2

The American Management has the opinion that absence through illness is far too high in The Netherlands whereas in America it is very low or almost non-existent. For example, in the USA people with a broken leg, order a cab to drive them to work or take a leave when they are ill. The American management of ITCOM is used to being able to dismiss people more easily and they can not understand Dutch labour relations. The American HRM manager of the Dutch subsidiary hires a Dutch HRM consultant to solve this problem.

 

The Management Summary

Good structure

Front page with title, names, student numbers et

Problem analysis (decribe the paradoxes and perspectives)

Advice (describe the criteria the solution should meet, describe possible solutions and a well-substantiated choice for the best solution)

See checklist management summary

Max 2 A4

Good contents

Do research on the cases (figures, graphs etc.)

Good English

No grammar and spelling mistakes

Written in your own words (no copy - paste work): this is fraud / plagiarism

no google translate

Planning / structure meeting 1

Consultancy meeting: 30 minutes.

Use 10 minutes max to present your advice. Each student presents part of the advice. Even in the presentation stage make sure there is interaction with the customer (= team of managers)

Use 20 minutes for conversation with customer/ managers

Planning / structure consultancy meeting 2

5 minute feedback from jury

10 minute break for students: lecturers confer

10 minute feedback from lecturers on meeting and management summary

Bring three hard copies of your management summary to the meeting !!!