David A Fields
MAY 13, 2015
Ahab, a world-renown fishing expert from Piscandi Consulting receives the following email: Hi Ahab, I’m Ishmael from Beldad Industries. Our catch rate is down 12% versus last year. Can you help us? If you’re Ahab, could you close that project? Should you? Well, I’ll tell you what I think… I have no idea. You see, I don’t know whether Ishmael’s project is a minnow, a redfish, a yellowfin tuna or a whale shark.
Management Consulted
MAY 10, 2015
HAY GROUP CONSULTING. In this firm profile, we do a deep dive into Philadelphia-based Hay Group, a darling in the boutique organizational consulting realm. A global firm with a very interesting history, they’re known for motivating, developing and training their clients’ staff as well as the for research they carry out on the companies they work with.
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Tom Spencer
MAY 10, 2015
(Source: Flickr ). If you had all the time in the world but not much money, then your capacity to create new ideas and connect with people would be great, but your capacity to consume would be limited. On the other hand, if you didn’t have much time but had a lot of money, then your capacity to create new ideas and connect with people would be limited, but your ability to consume would be considerable.
MishTalk
MAY 10, 2015
A self-proclaimed "progressive capitalist" (hypocrite) store owner in San Francisco complains about Proposition J which voters passed with a 77% approval rate hiking the minimum wage to $15. Capitalism for Me Socialism for Thee The National Review details the plight of Brian Hibbs, owner and operator of Comix Experience, an iconic comic-book and graphic-novel shop on San Francisco’s Divisadero Street, of the city’s new minimum-wage law.
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David A Fields
MAY 13, 2015
A consultant sent me the following question: I have been approached by a company that wants to market through affiliates. Their approach is to pitch free assessments that diagnose problems then call upon specialists to man the projects. I would administer the assessment then, depending on the client and the work that needs to be done, I would get some portion of the follow-on work.
Management Consulting Connection brings together the best content for management consulting professionals from the widest variety of industry thought leaders.
Tom Spencer
MAY 14, 2015
I recently had the good fortune to speak with Nigel Lake , CEO of Pottinger , a global corporate advisory firm based in Sydney, Australia. Nigel is a truly original thinker who combines a good sense of humour with sharp strategic insights and clarity of thought. I had originally intended to ask Nigel some questions about Pottinger and its recruitment process, but I thought better of it.
MishTalk
MAY 13, 2015
Economists were surprised by the dismal retail sales report this morning. That's not surprising because economists are nearly always surprised. The Bloomberg Consensus retail sales estimate was a rise of 0.0%, but sales came in at 0.0% and the details were ugly, emphasis mine. Consumer confidence may be strong but it still is not translating to strength for consumer spending.
David A Fields
MAY 10, 2015
A consultant asked me this question: Do you send a copy of your book cold or use it as a follow-up to a phone call? Here’s the answer I gave when I was originally asked this question: I never send a book cold. I do know people who have sent out a LOT of books cold then followed up with a phone call, and they have had some success.That approached worked better 25 year ago than it works now.
Strategy+Business
MAY 10, 2015
Because nonprofits play an essential and powerful role in shaping society and culture, they require the utmost professionalism in their leaders. Frances Hesselbein, approaching her 100th birthday, has become the world's leading advocate for management skill in the social sector. As head of Girl Scouts of the USA and then as chief executive of Leader to Leader (now the Frances Hesselbein Leadership Institute), she has parlayed her skills as a networker, catalyst for change, and management thinker
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Tom Spencer
MAY 11, 2015
Price and value, there is a difference. Price is what you pay for something; the number of dollars that you need to part with in order to obtain it. Value is what you receive; the positive feelings or practical utility that the object or the experience imparts. I recently had my birthday, and I was delighted to receive a wonderful birthday present from my family in Sydney.
MishTalk
MAY 11, 2015
Microsoft has finally abandoned its bug-ridden update model process. Extreme Tech reports Windows 10 will be the last version of Windows. For the last few decades, Microsoft would sit down and build a new version of Windows every three years or so. This new version would start shipping on new PCs, but by and large, consumers didn’t run out and buy the new version to upgrade their computers.
David A Fields
MAY 10, 2015
A consultant asked me this question: “Should I ask a decision maker what their preferred form of communication is; i.e., phone, email, tweet, etc.?” What advice would you give this consultant? Do you think it’s wise to ask a decision maker how they prefer to communicate? Have you done this in the past? Here’s the answer I gave: You bet. It’s a terrific practice to ask clients and prospects whether they prefer phone, email or something online.
Strategy+Business
MAY 10, 2015
Emerging markets need a fundamental reversal in approach. The conventional wisdom advocates implementing large-scale economic and institutional reforms that shape the overall business and political environment. It would be more effective to selectively use reform initiatives tailored to each country's unique mix of business dynamics and industries, to improve domestic firms' resources and capabilities at each stage of a country's economic development.
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Tom Spencer
MAY 13, 2015
(Source: Flickr ). Another question that may come up in the consulting interview is “have you ever failed at anything?” This question is designed to assess your ability to learn from experience, and overcome obstacles. In preparing a response to this kind of question, develop a story about a time that you were not able to achieve a goal, how you adapted your approach, ultimately achieved success, and what you learnt from the experience.
MishTalk
MAY 12, 2015
Every month the Fed does a Survey of Consumer Expectations for inflation, earnings growth, income growth, and consumer spending growth. In the microeconomic data overview, the Fed provided charts for the first three sets of expectations. I downloaded the data and created my own chart of spending expectations. First let's consider some details from the report.
Gina Abudi
MAY 14, 2015
Changing the Minds of Employees in Finance I was working with a mid-size professional services firm that was implementing a new financial system. The CFO asked me to work with him to help him manage this project with his team, with a focus on managing communications and change. He had a project manager who would [.]. The post Case Study: Moving Resisters of Change to Change Champions – Part I appeared first on Gina Abudi.
Strategy+Business
MAY 10, 2015
In the complex and fragmented consumer landscapes of many emerging markets, consumer products companies and retailers have much to gain by working together. Collaboration can yield short-term benefits--and can ultimately create more sustainable, more efficient business environments.
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.
Tom Spencer
MAY 12, 2015
(Source: Flickr ). In the consulting interview, your interviewer is likely to ask you the following straightforward question, “why consulting?”. Relevance of the question. The question is relevant for two reasons: Your interviewer is likely to ask it in the interview; and. You will be much more likely to succeed (in the interview and afterwards) if you can clearly and passionately articulate in your own mind the reasons why you want to work in the consulting industry.
MishTalk
MAY 14, 2015
Here's a new one. ECB president Mario Draghi cautions that ECB policies may " lead to financial instability and worsen income inequality." Place that warning in the " duh " category. For duh details, please consider Draghi Warns Central Banks Against ‘Blind’ Risk-Taking. Mario Draghi has warned central banks to beware of the risk that aggressive monetary easing, including mass bond buying, could lead to financial instability and worsen income inequality.
1 to 1
MAY 12, 2015
Periodically, a big brand will announce plans to invest millions of dollars in its customer service activities. In some cases, the same company continues to stumble a year or two later. We've all seen it before. Improving customer service isn't simply about throwing money at the problem or adding agents. Because customer care is multidimensional, organizational leaders also need to evaluate their customer care processes, the technologies they have in place, the criteria used to recruit and train
Strategy+Business
MAY 14, 2015
If firms become mired in the successful practices that got them to where they are, they may stop looking for new ways to exploit resources and opportunities.
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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
Seth Godin Blog
MAY 10, 2015
100% certainty is not a variation of 96% or even 99%. It's a totally different category. Certainty is binary, yes or no. The question, "are you sure it will work" is not about the work , it's about the sure. If you need to know that it's going to work, then you've committed to a very clear path. Some people go to work or school and do nothing except the things that they are sure about.
MishTalk
MAY 13, 2015
Judge Rejects Bondholders' Lawsuit Over Pension Debt In bankruptcy, the federal courts have ruled that cities can reduce pension obligations. They can, but they don't have to. In Detroit, bondholders were sacrificed to maintain police and fire pensions with minimal haircuts. On Monday, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Meredith Jury ruled against bondholders in favor of Calpers in the San Bernardino bankruptcy.
Melissa Agnes
MAY 9, 2015
Welcome to episode #048 of The Crisis Intelligence Podcast, with Garth Rowan and Melissa Agnes. I recently had the great honor and privilege of giving a TEDx Talk in the City of LA. The topic of my TEDx talk is “The Secret to Successful Crisis Management in the 21st Century” In this week’s episode of The Crisis Intelligence Podcast, I did something a little different from what I usually do.
Gina Abudi
MAY 11, 2015
Convert Resisters to Champions A key success factor in managing change initiatives is to convert resisters to champions. You can’t convert everyone – some will just continue to resist until eventually they decide to leave the organization. But you can create a number of them. Those you convert will eventually get a number of others [.]. The post Managing Change Initiatives appeared first on Gina Abudi.
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