Business Consulting Canvas: Solving Problems

Professional Services are on the rise. As the economy improves so does the demand for Business Consulting. The skills, abilities, resources, and knowledge to compete in the modern economy are beyond the grasp of even some of the largest corporations.

Article Contents

Healthier economies breed competition as barriers to entrants are decreased. Competitive advantages that exist in an economic downturn are no longer as influential when the economy improves.

This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in providing advice and assistance to other organizations on management issues, such as strategic and organizational planning; financial planning and budgeting; marketing objectives and policies; human resource policies, practices and planning, and production scheduling and control planning (Gov of Canada).

The process of Consulting not only involves representatives from the client organization, but it also requires it.

The project’s success is greatly increased as internal leaders take up the challenge to champion and own the new project.

BUSINESS CONSULTING STAGES

Having a thorough assessment of the problem to be solved is crucial to effective project planning.

Diagnosing the problem requires the knowledge of those on the ground but often requires the help of a fresh perspective to consider novel solutions.

The organization’s internal project champion AND owner’s responsibility is particularly emphasized in the beginning.

The onset of the consulting process emphasizes the role of the internal project champion to ensure communication is clear

Whether the focus is strategy, operations, tax, finance, HR, or IT, business consultants are a staple of corporate life. Today, over 700,000 consulting firms provide services across virtually all aspects of business globally. From defining strategic direction to simply serving as an additional pair of hands for outsourced work, consultants have become inextricably linked to the success of most large organizations.

GENERAL BUSINESS CONSULTING AREAS

The type of consulting offered will depend on the business, industry, and problem to be solved but the following service trends are present across these different areas:

The tools used are identified and tailored depending on the presenting problem and the organization’s needs. What is the problem to be solved and what are the intended goals? Starting with these questions the business consultant and internal stakeholders begin the journey of assessing the situation.

The Consulting Stages – Quiz

Business Consulting helps to bridge the corporate gap between the present and the desired future. The next step is to find what has been tried so far and design new solutions.

Effective execution of the project, and realization of the desired goals, will not occur unless the assessment is correct and the solutions are appropriately identified.

Execution of the project then involves identifying who is responsible for each step, how success is going to be evaluated, and insuring this information is freely available to everyone involved.

After the project is complete the team will check it for progress, impact, and compare it against the criterion for success. The consulting process comes to an end where it began by assessing the business situation to confirm the problem was solved.

BUSINESS CONSULTATION PLANNING TOOL

Article: “Normative Models in Innovation Consulting” is available online:  Enter

Resources:

Kaplan, S. (2017, September 11). The Business Consulting Industry Is Booming, and It’s About to Be Disrupted. Retrieved from https://www.inc.com/soren-kaplan/the-business-consulting-industry-is-booming-and-it.html

Summary – Canadian Industry Statistics. (2017, May 31). Retrieved from https://www.ic.gc.ca/app/scr/app/cis/summary-sommaire/54161