October, 2021

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The Best 2×2 Matrix of All Time for Consulting Firms

David A Fields

As a consulting firm leader, you’re well aware that within every client presentation longer than 30 minutes, every white paper, and every compendium of content beefier than 20 pages, you’re required to present at least one 2×2 matrix. Failure to do so could cost you your consulting license. This was brought to my attention by … Continued.

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The 5-Part Entrepreneurial Consulting Business Plan

Consulting Success

If you want to start a consulting business, then you need to write your consulting business plan. Or do you? I’ve watched countless starry-eyed entrepreneurs “start” their business with a 50-100 page business plan. They spend weeks — or even months — toiling away at their desk after their 9-5 detailing everything about their future.

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7 mistakes new solo consultants make

Jacq Hackett Consulting

Being new to the consulting game can be challenging – especially if you’re going it alone. Here’s seven mistakes new solo consultants commonly make.

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How Much It Costs to Start and Run a Consulting and Coaching Business with Jen Hamilton

Consulting Matters

How much does it REALLY cost to start and run a profitable consulting or coaching business? Jen Hamilton and I talk about what it takes. Jen Hamilton is a business coach that helps coaches and consultants build a business foundation that generates ongoing revenue. Using her background as a former certified public accountant with Price Waterhouse Coopers and as a small business advisor, she helps clients connect their business goals and financial investments.

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PowerPoint Best Practices for Creating Stellar Presentations

Mastering data visualization in PowerPoint will help accelerate your career because it positions you as someone who can present data that drives business decisions forward. think-cell's PowerPoint Best Practices eBook was created specifically for professionals aiming to master the art and science of data-driven storytelling. What’s inside: Practical Insights: Uncover valuable tips for crafting engaging and persuasive presentations.

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7 Common Management Mistakes of Bad Bosses

Rick Conlow

Bad bosses have many things in common – and most of those “things” happen to be the common management mistakes they make. This list does not cover every mistake, but it tackles seven that are worth avoiding. 4 Common Management Mistakes. Relying on your promotion to give you power. A promotion to a management position gives you the title to do your job, but it is your responsibility to get the tools to do your job.

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Your Consulting Firm Can Simultaneously Win More and Deliver More. Here’s How.

David A Fields

Running a consulting firm means constantly balancing the two sides of the consulting cycle: Winning Engagements and Profitably Creating Value for your clients. How do you build both sides of the cycle at once? Life’s great as your consulting firm is bustling through projects. Then, suddenly, it feels like you’re in Times Square at midnight … Continued.

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8 Metrics For Consulting Businesses: What To Track (And Why)

Consulting Success

What metrics for consulting businesses should you track if you want to grow? You’ve heard it before: what gets measured gets managed. But if you don’t even know what to measure, how are you supposed to manage (or improve) it? We’ve had many consultants in our Clarity Coaching Program ask us about what they should. 8 Metrics For Consulting Businesses: What To Track (And Why) is a post from: Consulting Success.

Metrics 246
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Are you cut out for solo consulting?

Jacq Hackett Consulting

If you’ve had a successful career in the government or community services sector, you might be thinking about setting up a consulting business. But are you cut out for it?

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From C-Suite Executive to C-Suite Coach with Adam Schwartz

Consulting Matters

Adam Schwartz was an experienced Chief Communications Officer for a $3b global hospitality company when he unexpectedly got laid off. When he got opportunities, he knew he didn't want to take another corporate job. He wanted to do his own thing, but he didn't know what that was. This sacred crossroads is where he and I started to work on his brand messaging and positioning.

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How to Stay Competitive in the Evolving State of Martech

Marketing technology is essential for B2B marketers to stay competitive in a rapidly changing digital landscape — and with 53% of marketers experiencing legacy technology issues and limitations, they’re researching innovations to expand and refine their technology stacks. To help practitioners keep up with the rapidly evolving martech landscape, this special report will discuss: How practitioners are integrating technologies and systems to encourage information-sharing between departments and pr

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Achieving a Winning Attitude

Rick Conlow

The parable of the contented frog illustrates the obstacles we face in winning. If you boil a pot of water and drop a frog in it, guess what happens? The frog quickly jumps out. However, if you put a frog in a pot of cool water and then slowly heat the pot up, guess what happens? The frog boils to death! How often do people become contended where they are at or with what they are doing?

eBook 117
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The Paradigm of Prestige

CaseInterview.com

There’s a worldview that says the rich people are more important than the poor, the elite are better than the average, and the special are better than the regular. I call this the paradigm of prestige. It is the default premise of many country, company, and academic-institution cultures. It is part of the premise and allure of attending an Ivy League school.

Finance 111
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Could Hiring this Sales Pro Help Your Consulting Firm?

David A Fields

Meet Sheila. She’s a sales wizard. Fearless, charismatic, bright, resilient, persistent. Should you hire her to improve (or take over) your consulting firm’s business development efforts? Sheila doesn’t have a terrific network in the industry you’re targeting and she’s never worked with a consulting firm; however, she’s proven she can open doors and get meetings. … Continued.

Sales 221
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The Science of Building Trust with Clients for Consultants with Sandra Sucher: Podcast #207

Consulting Success

Trust is the foundation of any relationship. This is exceptionally true when it comes to business. You need to establish trust within your team, clients, and customers to grow. So how do you build that trust? Sandra Sucher is a Professor of Management Practice at Harvard Business School and an internationally known researcher on trust. The Science of Building Trust with Clients for Consultants with Sandra Sucher: Podcast #207 is a post from: Consulting Success.

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Savings Consultants Are Needed in Today's Market More Than Ever

Savings Consultants are needed in today’s market more than ever. With an increase in expenses, businesses are looking for opportunities to save. Often unknown to businesses are savings in expense reduction, specialized tax savings, specialized savings including medical underpayments, health benefits cost reduction, zero cost processing, and more. Blue Coast Savings, with over 20 years in business, assists Savings Consultants in helping these companies move toward more profitable businesses.

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Five core consulting skills you need to master to build a successful business

Jacq Hackett Consulting

Making the move from employee to consultant can be extremely rewarding – financially, professionally and personally.

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Customer Confidence in Your Brand Is Most Influenced by Your Employees – Here’s Why

Clarity Consultants

When it comes to customer confidence in your brand, it isn’t your products or services that make the biggest difference. Instead, your employees are the largest contributing factor. If you are wondering why your employees have the biggest influence on customer confidence, here’s what you need to know. Customer Confidence Is Built By Touch-Points. The Customer Experience.

Training 104
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The Greatest Leadership Myth Ever-Busted!

Rick Conlow

The greatest leadership myth is not just about the American culture. Unfortunately, it’s a phenomenon that has infiltrated leadership thought globally. For example, we see the negative side effects of it show up in the media. Almost every day another leader bites the dust because of an indiscretion and receives infamous publicity. Why? What’s the underlying cause for most of these failures?

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The Value of Money

CaseInterview.com

Money can serve many purposes. It can be used to buy things for consumption. It can be used to buy objects that convey status (Rolex, Ferrari, Cartier diamond necklace). It can be used as a way to keep score, such as on the Forbes 400 list of richest people in the world. It can be used to buy other assets — a house, an academic degree, a mutual fund.

Financial 104
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TOOLS and METHODOLOGIES for developing DECISION SUPPORT PACKAGES

This White Paper targets opportunities for Management to develop proficiency in the Decision Framing and Analyses element of input to Decision, & Risk Analyses for Major Project Funding Decisions.

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This Question Will Determine Your Consulting Firm’s Path Next Year

David A Fields

The route from your consulting firm’s current state to your desired future is absolutely crystal clear and straightforward. You could call it Easy Street. Well, except for the obstacles in the way. Those could slow you down. You know…the little speed bumps, the other consulting firms that swerve in your way, the police barricade. But … Continued.

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Consulting Report Template (For Any Type Of Consultant)

Consulting Success

Have one of your clients requested you send them a report on a project you’re working on? Both writing and reporting are essential to being a consultant. Reports help your client understand the work you’re doing and the effect it is having on their organization. On a deeper level, reports are one of the important. Consulting Report Template (For Any Type Of Consultant) is a post from: Consulting Success.

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Consulting as Racketeering: The Fallacy of Corporate Overexpansion

Tom Spencer

The incriminating title of this article was inspired by Charles Tilly’s book ‘ War Making and State Making as Organized Crime ’, which describes an instrumental, … Read the full article The post Consulting as Racketeering: The Fallacy of Corporate Overexpansion first appeared on Tom Spencer.

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Crisis Management: How Did the Financial Services Industry Fare During 2020?

Clarity Consultants

In 2020, the financial services industry had to put its crisis management plans into action. Most companies had to pivot without much notice, ensuring they could adjust to new rules regarding how organizations were (or weren’t) allowed to open and operate during the pandemic. As the year went on, mandates changed, and customer expectations shifted, making continuous change part of the ongoing paradigm throughout the rest of the year.

Financial 104
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Why You Need to Use Case Studies in Sales and Marketing (and How to Start Now)

Case studies are proof of successful client relations and a verifiable product or service. They persuade buyers by highlighting your customers' experiences with your company and its solution. In sales, case studies are crucial pieces of content that can be tailored to prospects' pain points and used throughout the buyer's journey. In marketing, case studies are versatile assets for generating business, providing reusable elements for ad and social media content, website material, and marketing c

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Creating Employee Engagement: 4 Methods That Work

Rick Conlow

Do you want to achieve a higher level of employee engagement, motivation, and performance? Do you want more self-satisfaction and recognition for your efforts? Ramp up your team through four keys approaches to creating exceptionally high levels of employee engagement. Consider, disengagement costs companies close to $2 trillion worldwide. Bottom-line, most companies and managers want employee engagement.

eBook 113
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Change management process: Kotter or Prosci which is better?

Strategic Planning and Management Insights

SME Strategy is a strategy consulting company that specializes in aligning teams around their vision, mission, values, goals and action plans. Learn more about how we can help you and your team create and manage organizational change with our strategic planning and implementation services.

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Expanding Your Network

CaseInterview.com

I attended a software industry trade show last week. (I work with a lot of CEOs in the software as a service industry.) My sole goal was to expand my network by…. Adding Value to Others. This is the secret to expanding your network. It occurred to me that this is the opposite of how most people perceive and engage in “networking.” You expand ties with others by finding ways to help them… to add value.

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Corporate to Consultant: How Managers & Executives Transition to Consulting with Tom Tonkin: Podcast #209

Consulting Success

Stories of executives who transition to consulting are not that uncommon. But how does one successfully venture out of corporate? Joining Michael Zipursky is Tom Tonkin. Tom is the co-founder of The Sales Conservatory and CEO of The Conservatory Group, a management consulting firm where you help businesses with their management, leadership, and sales.

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The Art of Remote Collaboration: How to Successfully Whiteboard with Remote Teams

Just because we're working with a distributed team doesn't mean we have to abandon time-tested tools and methods like whiteboarding. Digital look-alikes often cramp creativity and all but eliminate the humanity of shared interactions. Hardware solutions are also limiting and, of course, expensive and immobile. In an increasingly digital and remote-first world, it’s important for us to select tools and processes that allow us to mitigate if not eliminate the above problems.