Module 5: Effective engagement

This module helps consultants make a smooth transition from being part of an engagement team to taking responsibility for managing and successfully delivering engagements. The course shows how to select the best type of consulting intervention, reduce the associated risks and use the principles of project management to deliver a good result to a satisfied client. Workshop style is highly interactive around participants’ experience and real-life case studie s.

Consultants have to deliver their expertise into a client organisation from outside the structure. Without effective engagement with the client, the message is lost and time wasted in frustrating politics. Consulting engagements can be highly complex with multiple work streams involving teams of both consultants and client staff. Good management is vital for both sides. The client is usually paying a lot of money to achieve a real change in the organisation. They have every right to expect that the consultant will steward their resources well and provide the right outcome, on time and within budget. The consultant equally needs an effective engagement. They need to make a profit and enhance their reputation to build brand and grow the business through follow-on work. Good engagement management is a ‘must have’ on every project.

This course meets the requirements of two units of the Institute of Consulting’s Diploma in Management Consultancy as follows:

Unit DMC 08 Managing Consultancy Interventions

This Unit is about managing consultancy interventions. It builds on the concept of the consultancy cycle considering a range of approaches to consultancy and the phases of the consultancy process. It examines alternative models, looking at different phases of consultancy interventions identifying the typical inputs, deliverables, risks and issues at each stage of the cycle. It explores the complexity of the operating environment and identifies some of the strategies and tools used to manage each stage effectively.

Aims: to help you learn how to:

Learning outcomes: when you have completed this unit, you will know how to:

Define different approaches to consultancy.
Choose an appropriate intervention style.
Recognise the inputs, deliverables and skills required at each stage of the cycle, producing outputs where appropriate.
Identify some of the risks associated with each stage of the cycle.
Identify strategies and tools for managing the cycle effectively.

Describe the stages in the consultancy cycle and the risks associated with each stage.
Describe a model for managing the consultancy cycle and how you would use the model in one of your interventions with clients.
Identify the key activities involved at each stage in the consultancy cycle, and their application in achieving the required outcomes.
Describe the implications and strategies for operating effectively at each stage of the cycle.

Unit DMC 09 Effective Project Management

This Unit focuses on how to manage consultancy projects effectively. It introduces the different skills and techniques required at each stage of the consultancy cycle and the importance of risk and quality assurance in managing the project outcomes.

Aims: to help you learn how to:	Learning outcomes: when you have completed this unit, you will know how to:
Develop a project management strategy. Develop a set of success criteria for a project. Establish suitable governance and support structure for a project. Identify and manage risk and quality issues.	Explain the principles and methods of programme and project management and evaluate their use within the consultancy context. Describe the key components of a project to enable effective delivery of a consultancy intervention. Describe the factors affecting quality of delivery within a consultancy project context. Explain the need for an effective infrastructure to ensure project delivery.

CMI Management and Leadership Awards

We were delighted to be a finalist for the CMI Management and Leadership Awards in the Outstanding Training provider category.

What our delegates say

A wonderfully interactve course with lots of practical exercises. Finpro

This is a really excellent course on what consultancy is about, and how to deliver consultancy work

High calibre course

Surprisingly applicable to a wide range of projects. I recommend going on the course

Provides pragmatic tools and framework to survive consulting projects

It provides widely applicable skills and a good balance of taught/exercises