Management consulting began to develop in the early 50s of the last century. Since that time, the International Labor Organization began to pay considerable attention to the development of management consulting services and the dissemination of experience in member countries. In Russia, the starting point for the development of consulting is considered to be the 90s, when the emergence and development of private business began.
Fundamentals of Management Consulting
According to the European Federation of Economics and Management Consultants, management consulting is the provision of independent advice and assistance on management issues, which may include identifying and assessing problems and opportunities, developing recommendations for taking appropriate measures and assisting in their implementation. The main goal of management consulting is to increase the efficiency of the company and identify factors that prevent this. The quality of the solution to the problem should be as high as possible, subject to time and financial constraints. It is necessary not only to develop ways to improve the current situation, but also to show possible ways to independently solve similar problems in the future, that is, to develop the client's skills of analysis, evaluation and effective action.
The degree of involvement of the client in the process depends on the type of service, but if the client does not take any part at all, the effectiveness of the consultant's work will be minimal.
In the process of achieving the main goal, a number of tasks can be solved in various directions, respectively, according to the types of tasks, management consulting can be conditionally divided into four main groups.
- Strategic consulting. Development of strategies to achieve long-term and short-term goals and detailed plans for their implementation. Strategic consulting helps build an effective business model.
- Marketing consulting. Research and development of the company's marketing strategy.
- HR consulting. Analysis of the activities of managerial personnel, including certification and development of recommendations based on the results of its implementation. Development of personnel motivation systems and their implementation.
- Building a management system in a company- analysis and optimization of systems management accounting: distribution of powers, functions, responsibilities, creation of a system of business processes and a system of forecasting and information exchange, building an optimal structural and functional scheme of an organization.
The main principles of management consulting as a service are competence, specificity, consistency, creativity and efficiency.
The main regulatory documents in the field of management consulting are:
- the Constitution of the Russian Federation (Articles 8 and 74);
- Civil Code of the Russian Federation (Article 128 and Chapter 39);
- Federal Law of the Russian Federation of July 27, 2006 No. 149-FZ “On Information, information technology and on the protection of information”;
- Federal Law of the Russian Federation of July 27, 2006 No. 152-FZ "On Personal Data";
- Federal Law of the Russian Federation of December 30, 2008 No. 307-FZ "On Auditing".
On a note
Unfortunately, in Russia there is still no separate law that defines the concepts, essence, principles of consulting and the responsibility of consultants.
Reasons for ordering management consulting services
Most often, managers of companies turn to management consulting specialists for help in crisis situations, when not only a successful future, but also the existence of the company as a whole depends on the further development strategy. According to the consultants themselves, two categories of companies need management consulting services the most:
- Stable companies reforming. This may be an expansion, a change in the type of activity or form of ownership, a merger with another company. In order for changes to occur without harm to the company, consultation with specialists will be required. For example, the services of a consultant are often used by firms moving from the status of "family" to the category of medium and large, with the number of employees from 500 to 1000 people.
- Large companies whose owners want to receive objective information about the state of affairs in order to move from current operational management to strategy management. The task of the consultant is to make this process as transparent and painless as possible, completely eliminating the possibility of losing business.
However, there are other situations where management consulting can bring tangible benefits:
- The need to automate business processes. Usually in this situation, a preliminary survey of the enterprise and the identification of the need for reorganization are always carried out.
- Finding new ways to compete by building a new marketing policy.
- The desire to ensure the reliability and security of the company's development and strengthening its reputation in the eyes of partners and customers.
The results that the company receives from management consulting can be divided into several groups: direct and indirect, quantitative and qualitative. (see Table 1).
Table 1. Results of management consulting
|
RESULTS |
Direct |
Indirect |
|
quantitative |
|
|
|
quality |
|
|
As an example, we can cite a situation from the practice of the KSK group company.
A young construction company working on a large project worth 30 million rubles ordered a management consulting service. During the implementation of this project, problems constantly arose, resulting in the risk of missed deadlines and receiving a large fine from the customer. During the consulting process, it was revealed that the company lacks a well-defined organizational structure.
The operational and control functions were separated, which allowed the owner to get an objective opinion on the state of affairs and make the right management decision. The main departments of the company were also identified and the areas of responsibility of each of them were formulated. A step-by-step plan for the implementation of all changes was prepared for the client. This solution helped implement an important project for the client, avoided a contract fine of 2.4 million rubles, and provided the company with the opportunity to develop and increase the scope of work. The cost of implementing the project of KSK groups amounted to 1 million rubles, ROI (Return On Investment, "return on investment") - 140%.
Management consulting technologies
In modern management consulting, three main approaches are usually distinguished:
- Expert approach. It consists in studying the existing company management structure, identifying its features and problem areas, developing expert recommendations and putting them into practice. At the same time, the expert's opinion is practically not discussed, he independently makes all decisions, and the client's duty is only to provide the necessary conditions for the consultant's work. Expert advice can be carried out in several forms - advice (recommendation), a client's question - the consultant's answer, a written report (draft, analytical note), express analysis, in-depth analysis. At the same time, the effectiveness of expert advice directly depends on the level of competence of the expert himself, his professionalism and understanding by the client of the proposed recommendations, combined with the willingness and ability to implement them. An expert approach is advisable to apply in cases where the problem is not related to specific circumstances in the client's company, there is no need for in-depth diagnostics. In this case, the client needs the help of an expert offering a ready-made standard solution or gaining knowledge on standard procedures, norms and regulations.
On a note
There are no experts who are objective and 100% competent. Each of the specialists will bring to the conclusion their personal experience, attitude towards the client, their understanding of the task and vision of the situation.
- Project approach. This approach is targeted and represents the creation and development of specific projects in a particular area of the company. It allows you to focus all resources on solving problems in one direction, carry out targeted consulting, plan the desired results and ensure their achievement. Stages of project consulting:
- drawing up a task for the project;
- stage-by-stage preparation of the project with the participation of the client's specialists and stage-by-stage delivery;
- providing consultations necessary for the implementation of the project;
- participation of the consultant in the implementation of the project to the extent determined by the client.
- Process approach does not provide a solution to the problem. The consultant in this case helps the client develop own way problem solving using various techniques. The process method requires the active participation of the client, and the consultation itself is seen as a process consisting of certain actions, using certain technologies, tools and methods. Consulting takes into account the specifics of the company as much as possible and is aimed at carrying out systemic changes in it. During process consulting, methods aimed at maximizing interaction with the client are used: organizational diagnostics and organizational intervention. Diagnostics is aimed at collecting information about the state of the company by monitoring the activities from the inside, conducting individual and group surveys, and studying documents. The result of the diagnostics is a report. Organizational interventions are associated with the impact on the company, in order to make the necessary changes in its activities and consolidate them. The most important condition for effective process consulting is the willingness of the people participating in it to actively interact with the consultant, analyzing problems and developing solutions.
In some cases, management consulting requires a combination of all three approaches to achieve the desired result.
Consulting Methods
There are a great many methods of management consulting, the most popular (if not traditional) of which in Russia are SWOT analysis and business coaching.
The abbreviation SWOT fully reflects the very essence of the analysis (see Fig.):
S- strength ( strength);
W- weakness ( weakness);
O- capabilities ( opportunites);
T- Problems ( troubles).
Rice. SWOT analysis model
SWOT analysis helps answer the following questions:
- Does the company use strengths or distinctive advantages in its strategy? If the company does not have such advantages, then what of its strengths could be?
- Are the company's weaknesses its most competitive vulnerabilities? It is they who do not allow the use of any favorable circumstances? What are the weaknesses in without fail require adjustments in terms of strategy?
- What favorable opportunities can give the company a chance to develop successfully using its current access to resources and the current level of skills of employees?
There are three methods of SWOT analysis:
- Express SWOT- the most common type that helps to identify the strengths of the company. It is these parties indicated in the analysis, in combination with external capabilities, that are able to counteract threats. In addition, SWOT analysis also reveals weaknesses.
- Consolidated SWOT-analysis makes it possible to obtain information on the quantitative assessment of factors identified using other methods, as well as to develop a strategy and activities to achieve strategic goals.
- Mixed SWOT Analysis is a combination of the two previous types.
SWOT analysis can be used to analyze the factors of the competitive environment, plan and implement company strategies, and competitive intelligence. Its advantages include ease of implementation and efficiency of use, identification of links between the company's capabilities and real problems, between strengths and weaknesses, the absence of the need for extensive information for calculations, determining the future prospects for the company's activities, the ability to evaluate profitability indicators.
The shortcomings of the SWOT analysis include the lack of temporal dynamics and quantitative and evaluative indicators in it.
Business coaching
The word coaching comes from of English language like "training" or "training". Business coaching is understood as a method of individual work with clients, aimed at jointly finding ways to solve a problem, developing the ability to see these ways, make informed decisions and take responsibility for them. With the help of coaching, the customer gets the opportunity to reach a new level of understanding of business processes in his company, formulate a development strategy and ways to achieve strategic goals.
As part of business coaching, several methods can be used:
- Methods of testing, training and conducting business games. According to experts, the information received remains in memory for a long time if all channels of information transmission are used and workshops, allowing in a game situation to check various options for solving client problems and choose the most optimal one.
- Methods for activating creative thinking. These include brainstorming, the Delphi method (used when a group gathering is not possible and consists in collecting individual opinions anonymously), the expert assessment method, the goal tree method, and scenarios, which are logically sound descriptions of possible events, taking into account various factors.
- Neuro Linguistic Programming Method.
- Nominal groups method. It is used in cases where it is necessary to identify and compare several individual opinions in order to get a decision that one person cannot make in a short time.
- Methods of organizational self-diagnosis. With their help, employees of the company can independently establish signs that characterize the state of the organization. Self-diagnosis leads to self-analysis of the participants and contributes to their self-development.
Business coaching professionals can use a combination of several methods to produce the most effective results. Coaching brings positive results, if used for those employees of the company who, by their nature of activity, are required to make independent decisions, but at the same time have teamwork skills.
Service delivery stages
The management consulting process includes several stages (see Table 2). The very first step towards the implementation of a consulting project is the realization by the client that he has a problem that he would like to solve with the help of consultants.
Table 2. Stages and stages of the counseling process
|
Stages and stages |
Procedures |
|
|
|
Training |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Completion |
|
The implementation of a project within the framework of management consulting can last from several days to several months - depending on the size of the company and the complexity of the task.
How to choose a consulting company?
With this question, we turned to Denis Predein, head of the Management Consulting practice at KSK Group:
“If there is a need to involve a consulting agency, pay attention to several important factors. Of course, this is the experience of the company, the staff of experts, the availability of publications in the professional press, the list of clients ... But the most important selection criterion in attracting business consultants is their ability to concisely and clearly express their thoughts, awaken fresh ideas in the client, identify viable goals and justify ways their achievements.
Many managers and some consultants are unable to answer a simple question: "What is strategic consulting?". Often, this service means multi-page analytical reports filed in a folder, endless SWOT analyzes, alternative business strategies ... At the same time, strategic consulting is expert assistance to management in finding answers to two questions:
- What is the goal for the business?
- How to reach this goal?
The answers to them allow us to get out of the "fog" into which managers often wander in crisis situations, being under the yoke of solving tactical problems. The answers to them allow you to abstract from the daily business fuss and see what is called the light at the end of the tunnel - a clearly formulated, achievable, measurable goal in time and in financial terms. Answers to them allow you to focus on specific means and stages of achieving the goal. The approved action plan, depending on the specific task, can be “titled” as “Increasing the value of the company by 2 times in three years”, “Reducing production costs by 15% in 3 years” or “Growing net profit by 5% annually for 5 years ". To solve such problems, there are KSK groups.
For more than 20 years of management consulting, we have hundreds of successfully completed projects of varying complexity and industry focus, being one of the leaders in Russia in strategic, tax and legal consulting (according to the Expert RA rating agency for 2015). And by the way, with us you can get an initial consultation absolutely free of charge.
P.S. is a reputable, dynamically developing consulting company, consistently ranked among the top 10 largest agencies in Russia in the areas of strategic planning, organizational development and personnel management (according to the Expert RA rating agency for 2015). The company currently employs 350 industry specialists. The client pool is about 1000 firms.
Editorial opinion
The services of professional consultants are vital for an enterprise, not only in crisis situations. “Outside view” allows you to assess the problems, risks and opportunities of the company from a different angle. Independent expert opinion, recommendations for taking appropriate measures and assistance in their implementation can significantly increase business efficiency.
consulting management consulting russia
Consulting. Characteristics and principles
One of critical factors The effective functioning of a market economy is the formation of an adequate economic environment, the most important element of which is the market infrastructure. Such an infrastructure is an interconnected system of enterprises and organizations that serve the movement of goods, services, money, securities, labor and provide a significant acceleration of their turnover. Particular attention should be paid to the management infrastructure as one of the components of the infrastructure complex. The management infrastructure creates the necessary conditions for the high-quality and efficient functioning of the serviced areas of the national economy and contributes to the formation and close interaction of all elements of the infrastructure complex. Management infrastructure facilities must develop faster than other elements of the infrastructure complex in order to actively influence its formation as an integral system.
In terms of integration Russian economy in the world, issues related to business services are acquiring great value for business leaders. All of them are faced with the transformation of forms of ownership based on the denationalization and corporatization of enterprises, with rising prices, foreign investment and the interweaving of Russian and foreign capital, as well as a change in their internal structure, bringing it closer to those proportions that are characteristic of the world economy as a whole. Only after this can the country begin to move towards the world level of economic efficiency, which is the main goal of the transformations.
Organizations and management consulting firms, or consulting firms, form the backbone of the management infrastructure.
In the broadest sense of the word, counseling as a form of giving independent advice has been in everyday practice for as long as humanity has existed. However, as a type of professional activity, it originated relatively recently.
Other types of professional services in business predate consulting. Historically, the first type of professional external services was legal: entrepreneurs have not been able to do without the services of lawyers and notaries for several hundred years. Later, in late XIX century, as the economy became more complex and the corresponding development of economic sciences, a new area of \u200b\u200bprofessional services began to form - consulting in economics and management, that is, management consulting in the proper sense of the word.
There are many definitions of management consulting. There are two main approaches to counseling.
In the first case, a broad functional view of counseling is used. Fritz Steele defines it this way: “By consulting process, I mean any form of assistance with regard to the content, process, or structure of a task or series of tasks, in which the consultant is not himself responsible for completing the task, but helps those who are responsible for it.”
The second approach considers counseling as a special professional service and highlights a number of characteristics that it should have. According to Larry Greiner and Robert Metzger, “Management consulting is a contracted and service-based consulting service to organizations through specially trained and qualified individuals who help the client organization identify management problems, analyze them, make recommendations for solving these problems, and contribute, if necessary, to the implementation of decisions.
Both of these approaches complement each other quite well. The European Federation of Associations of Economic and Management Consultants (FEACO) defines management consulting as providing independent advice and assistance on management issues, including identifying and assessing problems and opportunities, recommending appropriate measures and assisting in their implementation.
The American Association of Consultants in Economics and Management (ACME) and the Institute of Management Consultants (IMC) adhere to the same definition.
If you try to bring all these definitions to a common denominator, you get something like this: consulting is a type of intellectual professional activity in which a qualified consultant provides objective and independent advice that contributes to the successful management of a client organization.
Like any other professional activity, consulting has its own special principles, according to which any activity in this area should take place. It:
competence;
reputation;
compliance with ethical standards;
observance of the interests of the client;
orientation to broad public interests;
system change;
staff involvement;
scientific character;
flexibility;
creativity;
concreteness and objectivity;
efficiency;
maintaining relationships at the proper level.
Western theorists of management consulting distinguish the following character traits management consulting.
First, consultants provide professional assistance to executives. Experienced consultants go through many organizations and learn how to use the experience gained, helping new and old clients in different situations. Hence, they are able to recognize general trends and common causes of problems. Moreover, professional consultants constantly monitor the literature on management issues and the development of theories of methods and management systems, as well as the situation in the market. Thus, they act as a link between management theory and practice.
Secondly, consultants mostly give advice. This means that they are only advisors and do not have the direct power to decide on changes and implement them. Consultants are responsible for the quality and completeness of the advice. Clients bear all responsibility that stems from the acceptance of advice.
And thirdly, counseling is an independent service. The consultant evaluates any situation, offers objective recommendations on what to do to the client, without thinking about how this could affect his own interests. The consultant must have the following types of independence: financial; administrative; political; emotional.
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The concept of management consulting
Definition of management consulting
Consulting is considered from the point of view of functional and professional approaches.
1. From the point of view of the functional approach, consulting is a type of activity aimed at providing assistance to the client, taking into account his interests. At the same time, the consultant is not responsible for how the client uses his service, that is, it is not the consultant who is responsible, but the client.
2. From the standpoint of a professional approach, consulting is a consulting service, working under a contract and providing services to clients, from the standpoint of specially trained and qualified persons who help identify management problems, analyze them, give recommendations on solving these problems and assist, if necessary, in the implementation of these solutions.
Goal -> Situation -> Problem -> Decision (the process of implementation, not the fact of acceptance).
According to the definition of the European Federation of Associations of Consultants in Economics and Management FEACO, management consulting is the provision of independent advice and assistance on management issues, including the identification and assessment of problems and opportunities, the recommendation of appropriate measures and assistance in their implementation.
Components of counseling: process, expertise, service, method.
Counseling Features:
1. Professionalism.
Knowledge of the management situation.
The presence of practical experience in its resolution.
Possessing the skills of sharing experience, identifying problems, searching for information, analyzing the situation, communicating with people, planning changes and overcoming resistance to change.
2. Consultation. The consultant does not have the right to make decisions, but only recommends what can be done to resolve the situation.
3. Independence.
Financial, having your own account and the consultant's lack of interest in how to dispose of the client with his advice.
Administrative, lack of communication and subordination.
Political.
Emotional, from family and friendship ties.
Management consulting as a business service
With the beginning of market reforms in the economy of the Russian Federation, a new industry appeared - business services. Business services are activities that carry out macro- and microeconomic regulation and maintain optimal proportions of the economy, engaged in servicing the main and infrastructure production, as well as public administration.
Business service - professional and always paid.
The demand for business services appears as the economy develops, and their role is determined by the fact that they create the basis for the growth of well-being and social satisfaction of people (in other words, they help people).
Business Services features include:
1. Formation of components of control systems. (HR systems, technology, logistics, etc.)
2. Implementation of current maintenance of management processes (legal, audit and other project support).
3. Provision of consulting services.
4. Creation, distribution, implementation of management innovations.
The value of business services is that they:
1. Create conditions for the effective functioning of our economy.
2. Contribute to the formation and close interaction of all elements of the infrastructure complex.
3. Release organizations from the need to create additional service units and hire additional staff.
As a rule, business services are provided simultaneously for several types of activities, one of which is dominant. Business services require different regulation, from free implementation (consulting) to compulsory licensing (audit), attestation, certification and accreditation.
Most business services firms provide advice in their area of expertise.
1. Consulting services are part of business services.
2. Management consulting - one of the types of consulting services.
3. Management consulting is part of a business service.
From a business service point of view, consulting is an activity carried out by professional consultants and aimed at serving the needs of commercial and non-profit organizations, individuals in consultations, training, research work on the problems of their functioning and development.
1. Are the product of consulting activities.
2. Have their own life cycle.
3. Intangible.
4. Heterogeneous.
5. Cannot be rendered for future use.
6. Can be provided in advance.
7. Can be integrated by different firms.
8. Have a low capital intensity.
In the European Directory of Management Consultants, there are 104 types of consulting services, grouped into 8 groups:
1. General management.
2. Administration.
3. Financial management.
4. Personnel management.
5. Marketing.
6. Production.
7. Information technology.
8. Specialized services.
Consulting services are carried out in the following forms:
1. One-time consultations.
oral representation
Written representation.
pre-prepared questionnaire.
2. Information service.
Providing statistical reports.
The mode of making forecasts for the development of the economy and its industries.
Information on legislation.
Providing information about the reliability of partners.
3. Expertise.
Examination of independently compiled by the client business plans.
Examination of investment projects.
Contract review.
Examination of financial transactions.
4. Consulting project.
Problem diagnosis.
Development and implementation of solutions.
Search for partners.
Negotiation Project.
Development of management documents accompanying management processes.
Goals, objectives, principles of management consulting
The main goal of management consulting is to improve the quality of management, increase the efficiency of the client firm and increase the productivity of its staff.
Main goals:
1. To correct the situation.
2. For improvement.
3. Tasks for innovation.
4. Combined type.
Principles:
1. Scientific.
2. Flexibility.
3. Progressiveness.
4. Continuity.
5. Safety of the system in the process of counseling.
6. Changing the system as a result of counseling.
7. Specificity.
8. Glasnost.
9. Competence.
10. Dynamic.
11. Creativity.
12. Efficiency.
Classification (typology) of management consulting
1. Based on the results, they are distinguished.
Product consulting.
Providing consulting, process consulting.
2. By radicality
Revolutionary.
Cosmetic Consulting
Routine counseling
3. By goals
Target
Multipurpose
4. By types of tasks to be solved
Operational
strategic
5. By implementation mechanism
Object management consulting
Polyobject consulting
Unique consulting
Standard counseling
6. By performance
Completed
milestone
7. By place of application
intracompany
External
8. By the duration of the impact on the object
Short term
medium term
Long term
9. By application functions
Scientific research consulting
Practical advice
10. By degree of impact
shock counseling
Creeping
11. By the number of objects
Individual
Collective
12. By levels and areas of management
Branded
Industry
Municipal Consulting
State consulting
13. By the scale of the organization
Micro-Counseling
macro consulting
14. About teaching methods
Active
Routine
mutual learning
15. By types of management activities
Scientific and technical
Socio-economic consulting
16. According to the method of self-assessment of the head
reflexive
critical counseling
Subject, methods and participants of management consulting
Subject
From the position of a consultant, the subject of management consulting is a consulting service.
From the position of a manager, the subject of management consulting is the consultant's client relations.
Management Consulting Methods
Came from management and therefore they are identical to management methods.
1. Dialectical.
2. Logical.
3. Empirical.
local or special
1. Methods of the technical aspect, allowing to carry out consulting services for the analysis of information, the study of the situation, the search for problems, the development of alternative solutions. Among these methods, the methods of questioning and writing a report are the most widely used.
2. The methods of the human aspect are implemented in the client relations consultant system and are based on psychology.
Participants in the management consulting process
The clients of the consulting organization may be
1. Unhealthy organizations for which a management consultant is the last chance to survive.
2. Exemplary organizations, those that invite a consultant to find new directions for development and strengthen existing situations.
3. State structures.
4. International organizations and corporations.
There are two main types of consultants.
1. Consultant organization.
2. Consultant is an individual.
Types of consulting organizations
1. Large, multifunctional consulting firms (500-1000 consultants), with branches in various countries. They are generally referred to as full-service management consulting firms. Focused on large clients.
2. Management consulting services, formed as divisions of large accounting firms and having a size and function similar to large consulting firms.
3. Small and medium-sized consulting firms (from a few to 100 consultants) engaged in: firstly, general management consulting for small and medium-sized businesses in a limited geographical area; secondly, special management consulting in one or more areas; thirdly, strictly specialized activities in one or more industries or services.
4. Organizations providing special technical services (think tanks).
5. Consulting units in a management institution are created in the firm as part of a consulting organization. The consulting organization, at the same time, leases its personnel to this firm for the training of its managers.
6. Single consultants, they are more experienced (an employee of the firm), cheaper, more loyal to the client than firms. The strength of solo consultants is in a highly individualized and flexible approach to the problem.
7. Consulting professors. For them, counseling is a hobby that provides additional income.
8. Non-traditional sources of counseling services. Suppliers and sellers of computer equipment, commercial, insurance and banking organizations. Other organizations that have converted their internal management consulting groups into external consulting services.
9. Internal advisory services.
Stages of development of management consulting
In 1914, the first consulting firm appeared in Chicago under the leadership of Edwin Buza and received the name "Business Research Service". The first management consultants did not deal with management, but with issues close to production. By the 1920s, they decided that it was more profitable for them not to engage in consulting in the field of production, but to consult management.
1. 20s, the first stage of management consulting, the stage of formation. The first managers realized that it was more profitable for them to engage in consulting. The first consultant in the field of management relations. Mary Parker Folet - Human Resources Consultant, Harold Whitehead - Marketing Consulting, McKinsey Family - Financial Consulting.
2. 30-40s. The stage of the triumphal procession of consulting around the world. It flows from the USA to England, from there to France. As a result, a European school of consulting is being formed. Also, consulting is gradually beginning to penetrate into the public sphere.
3. 50-60 years. The golden years of counseling. There were 50,000 consultants in America. The following qualitative changes have taken place in counseling
New management strategy services emerge
Technological progress has given life to such types of consulting as consulting on computers, technology, telecommunications and communications
The emergence of an aggressive strategy to stimulate business activity.
Accounting and auditing firms began to engage in consulting in order to diversify their activities.
Internationalization of consulting - the emergence of the first joint firms and the opening of representative offices of firms in various countries.
Emergence of internal consultants.
Progress in the methodology of counseling is associated with an increase in the number of its types.
Increasing the competence of clients in the use of consultants
4. 70s to the present. Species diversity counseling. Currently, there are many new types of consulting services.
Services by areas and functions of management, general management, finance, production, marketing and personnel.
Consulting services for evaluating the effectiveness of organizational change, consulting on methods for identifying problems, developing programs for organizational change and improving management efficiency.
Services on sectoral problems, single-industry and multi-industry consulting.
Advising on new types of services, i.e. advising on the merging of management and engineering processes; consulting on the training of managers; advising on the selection and transfer of technologies; consulting on patents and licenses; advising on studying the market reaction to a new product.
Clients are most often interested in a complete package of services formed by crossing traditional services. Among the many areas of consulting, three are closest to management consulting:
1. For engineering and technical issues.
2. On legal issues.
3. Accounting.
2. Management Consulting Process
The management consulting process is understood as the joint activity of the consultant and the client in order to solve a specific problem or set of tasks and implement the desired changes in the client organization. This process includes several stages, stages, phases. There are three stages in the management consulting process.
1. Pre design.
2. Design.
3. After design
Three steps in the management consulting process.
1. Diagnostics (problem identification).
2. Development of solutions.
3. Implementation of solutions.
Process phases:
1. Preparation. In the preparation phase, the consultant begins to work with the client. It includes
First contact with the client (meetings, conversations, discussion of issues).
Preliminary diagnosis of the problem (analysis, comparison and diagnosis of the solution to the problem).
Task planning for a consultant (synthesis methods).
Offer to the client regarding the task.
Conclusion of a consulting agreement.
2. Diagnosis. It is a deep analysis of the problem being solved, based on the study and analysis of facts. It also establishes the essence of the problem under consideration: what is it (problem); how wide it is; which aspect of it is decisive or dominant; whether the organization is seeking change to address the problem. This phase includes:
Determining the structure of the data and deciding whether to collect it.
Fact-finding and data collection.
Fact analysis.
Feedback from the client, including the preparation of an initial report and conclusions drawn from the diagnosis.
3. Action planning. It is aimed at finding a solution to the problem, including:
Development of solutions.
Evaluation of alternative options.
Formation of an offer to the client (review methods).
Planning for the implementation of decisions (descriptive methods).
4. Implementation. Strictly checks the correctness and feasibility of proposals prepared by the consultant in cooperation with the client. Includes:
Assistance in implementation (mentoring).
Correction of proposals (methods of analysis).
Personnel training (training methods).
5. Completion. It is final and includes:
Evaluation of the actions performed by the consultant (comparative methods).
Preparation and acceptance by the client of the final report (descriptive and psychological methods).
Settlement with a consultant for obligations in accordance with the contract (financial and legal methods).
Behavior of negotiations regarding further cooperation (psychological methods).
Consultant leaving.
Counseling is not only a method of intervening in the activities of the client in order to provide services. It is closely related to education scientific research and information.
The role-based nature of management consulting
The counseling process involves two partners, the consultant and the client. The client pays for the services of a consultant on certain conditions. The consultant works for the client for a certain time and for the agreed remuneration. However, the consultant's advice may or may not be accepted by the client. The client may consider the consultant to be an outsider, of little importance to his organization, and shelve even the best report. It follows that it is necessary to properly build and maintain a consultant-client relationship. These relationships are not easy to build. Initially, the consultant and the client may have different views on the outcome and the way the task is completed. To avoid this you must:
1. Together clearly define the problem for which the consultant was invited.
2. Realize what the desired result should be and how to achieve it.
3. Define the roles of the consultant and the client in completing the assignment.
The roles adopted depend on the situation, the expectations of the client, and the profile of the consultant. There are many consultant roles, of which the main roles are resource and process consultants.
Resource Consultant: assists the client with experience and skill, provides information, diagnoses the organization, examines feasibility, proposals, develops a new system, trains staff, and so on.
Management cooperates with the resource adviser, but is limited to providing information as requested, discussing progress made, accepting or rejecting proposals, and asking for further advice.
Process Consultant: Acts as a change agent and tries to teach the client's organization how to solve its own problems by familiarizing it with organizational processes, their likely consequences, and interventions to drive change. Whereas the resource consultant tries to suggest to the client what to change, the process consultant mainly suggests how to change and helps the client to go through the process of change and solve human relations problems as they arise.
Initially, pure resource consulting (expertise) was quite common. Currently, it is used only in situations where the client wants to use the consultant's knowledge, but does not expect changes in the organization from him. In most cases, both roles should be seen as complementary and mutually beneficial. At the beginning of a consultation, the role of the resource consultant allows you to become familiar with the client's organization and demonstrate the best qualities of a specialist in his field. You can then continue to act as a process consultant trying to involve the client in finding solutions within the system.
Consulting in Russia and in the world, the market of consulting services
In a modern market economy developed countries consulting stands out as a special branch of infrastructure in which 700,000 people are employed in the United States, and the annual turnover is $ 50,000,000. In Russia, professional consulting support for business is provided by private consulting firms, of which there are several hundred. Among Russian firms there are 45 large ones (and this is good), 32 of them are in Moscow (and this is bad). In addition, on Russian market there are 12 joint consulting firms, in particular, all the big five are represented. Using the experience of Western consultants in Russia has the following positive and negative aspects:
1. Transfer of foreign experience,
2. New statement of tasks,
3. New solutions,
4. New business and general culture,
5. Good command of consulting methodology,
6. Preparation for entering foreign partners.
1. High cost of services,
2. Large requirements for the organization and preliminary preparation of the client,
3. Language barrier,
4. Difficulty in communication due to cultural differences,
5. High requirements for living conditions,
6. Condition for compliance with commercial and information security.
More than 175 consulting firms operating on the territory of the Russian Federation are members of the Association of Consultants in Economics and Management (AKEU). It is an authorized and full member of FEACO. In addition to her - ACUOR (Association of Consultants for Management and Organizational Development). NGPC - National Guild of Professional Consultants.
Characteristics of the marketconsulting servicesinRussia
Scope of consulting services.
1997 - 340.5 million rubles
1998 - 407.8 million rubles
1999 - 916.5 million rubles
1. The level of specialization of Russian firms is lower than the level of specialization of firms operating in a mature market.
2. Management consulting is often combined with trade or production.
3. The application of Western methods to Russian conditions is impossible without adaptation.
1. The need for a radical shift in industry creates a consulting boom.
2. Russian entrepreneurs are fully aware of their own limitations in solving key issues and understand the need for consultants.
3. The Russian educational potential made it possible to train domestic consultants.
1. Not qualified and underdeveloped demand for services.
2. Unwillingness of the client to pay an adequate price for services.
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