Week 16, Consulting, Slides

Question 1

Consulting

Answer 1

• “Advise and provide guidance to organizations on how to increase individual and organizational effectiveness”.
• Internal – HR business partner
• External
• Independent consulting
• “Think-tank”
• R & D in firms

Question 2

Training to be a Consultant

Answer 2

• Research methodology
  ** Must keep up with research
  ** Informs best practices
• Systematic problem solving
• Consultation and Applied course work
• Consulting practicum and/or experience
• Master’s vs. PsyD vs. Ph.D. ?

Question 3

Key elements

Answer 3

• Quality
• Technical soundness
• KPI/ROI/Metrics
• Innovation
• Customer focus/Ease of implementation
• Relationship orientation

Question 4

Networking

Answer 4

• The development of reciprocal beneficial relationships
• Committee work
• Small firms and consortium
• Publications and presentations
  ** Form of self promotion
  ** Develop and exhibit expertise
  ** Publishing
  ** Academic Journals
  ** Trade publications
• Presentations
  ** Symposia
  ** Non-IO conferences – go where your clients are
  ** Professional meetings
  ** Luncheons
• Being a “good guy”
  ** I/O world is small
  ** Be cool
  ** Be a Professional!
• Beer and conversation…

Question 5

Client relationships

Answer 5

• Client’s don’t buy services, they buy you (people they trust)
  ** Reliably help them solve problems (even small ones)
• Go out of your way to be available and responsive
• Bring value and expertise
  ** Client brought you in for a reason, don’t be a “yes man”
• Be friendly with clients, don’t be their friend
• Clearly define what you do, and don’t do
• Be accountable. The consulting gig is always your responsibility
• Never cause the client problems
• Listen…don’t sell…
• Do your best to understand what your client does and what their issues are
• Throw them a bone every now and then
  ** Freebies (within reason)
  ** Brain picking
• Be genuine, but be careful
• Play the long game

Question 6

Experiences to leverage

Answer 6

• 3000+ hours of platform time over 17 years
• Coached more than 1000 executives (high potentials to C Level)
• Coached single execs up to 70 (Tech Expo) at a time
• Coached “in situ” for deals up to $3.5 Billion

Question 7

What have I learned?

Answer 7

• Streamlined/systematic processes
• Flexibility, scalability
• Single point of contact
• Don’t memorize material, know material – internalization, beliefs, etc.
• The show must go on…

Question 8

Experiences to leverage

Answer 8

• Large scale, macro-focused, multi-faceted project
• Making 3C concrete with tangible business outcomes
• Strategic application of 3C
• Long-term executive interaction
• Excellent translation opportunities (IO to flight context)

Question 9

What have I learned?

Answer 9

• Business development – “paint the picture”
• Explore the unexplored – value of novel approaches to talent management
• Leading a consulting team – establish vision, delegate, motivate, monitor, adapt, & be the face of the project
• Navigation of wicked political environment – e.g. HR?

Question 10

Experiences to leverage

Answer 10

• Enormous economic impact in the M&A space
• Consistently “winning” in a field of big dogs
• Innovation and expansion of offerings due to high trust levels
• Creating cultural value

Question 11

What is Value?

Answer 11

• Value is ultimately determined by the customer
• The consultant can create an opportunity for value to be created
• Can co-create with the customer to achieve the customer’s mission (Heinonen, et al. 2010)

Question 12

Why are cultural interventions undervalued?
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Answer 12

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