Consultative selling is the approach utilized by companies to improve their relationships with customers by addressing their problems. The approach focuses on creating open dialogue and positive relationships with the customers instead of sales (Pereira et al., 2017). Thus, a consulting initiative entails an engagement where the consultant helps the client create the subject matter. However, a successful consulting initiative requires careful planning, early stakeholder engagement and finding the right people for the job. It also entails utilizing a stakeholder matrix to determine the actions which are necessary to align the goals of the stakeholders involved in the project to align with the project.
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Therefore, the paper will present a
report that critically analyses the consulting selling process and how it was
applied to a consulting initiative used by Wyndax Engineering Ltd (WEL). It
will include a summary of background information with a high-level analysis of
the situation. The report will also consider the role played by the members
involved in the consulting initiative utilized by WEL and a rationale for the
approach taken.
Summarizing the background information
The report will utilize the
consulting selling process employed by Wyndax Engineering Ltd (WEL). The design
company is based in the UK, with over 95% of the clients in Europe. The need to
implement the consulting initiative arose when WEL was primarily facing Brexit
and foreign growth issues. The company needed to implement a consulting initiative
approach to address the issues likely to result from extending its trade beyond
the EU. The company had initiated the plans to extend the market as potential
mitigation against any stalemate in the Brexit negotiations. However, the move
was considered a significant factor for them should any issues occur due to
trade deals (Edington, 2021).
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The strategy also included a
transition programme to relocate WEL's systems and processes to Industry 4.0.
This also included replacing its legacy systems and upgrading the software to
align with global corporate governance. The move also resulted in the idea that
grew into a promising opportunity for extending the services offered by the
company to another sector and increasing the revenue. The implementation
resulted in a project that included safety, systems upgrading, corporate
governance approvals, market expansion, human factor and other enabling and
enhancement activities.
With the company's Managing
Director, Risha Patel as the programme's sponsor, Josephine Mensah was tasked
with managing the process as the senior project manager. The project also
included 50 staff members from different levels in the company. The role of
creating a compelling business case was assigned to the manager of the
programme. However, the project was highly focused on ensuring that the market
expansion project generates high revenue and enhances the company's operating
life. It was also crucial to remember that several stakeholders were involved
in this process, whether direct employees or higher management, including the
likes of board members and senior managers. As a result, the successful
implementation of the project required careful planning, early stakeholder
engagement and finding the right people for the job (Morris et al., 2012).
It was also revealed during the
initial discussions that employees were not 'energized' or motivated by the
move to extend the market on a global scale. According to the information
presented by the case study, some of the company's employees were already
seeking alternative futures through severance pay and retirement. We also
realized that the employees were unhappy at the potential downsizing that could
have occurred due to Brexit and the outbreak of Covid 19. Brexit and reaching a
more 'global' market were the scope agreed with the client and to be resolved
through this consult initiative. Therefore, the situation forced the company to
seek help from an immigration and trade specialist consultant to help tackle
the issues. This involved addressing the best approach for the company to
expand its trade at the global level. It also entailed addressing how the
employees who may be affected by the move can be energized and motivated to
view it as an opportunity for growth.
The managing director also
expressed concerns that the company might not manage to adopt the new
technology over time after focusing away from its original target market.
Similarly, the board members were also concerned that the move might put the
firm at risk of not capturing the 'early majority. WEL had to consider its
successful performance in capturing the 'early adopters' phase of the product
life-cycle. The company's technical team was also at variance, considering that
they were anticipating being part of the changes that would be focused on
changing the operational structure. Many considered the move to be the next big
thing that is not focused on the bottom line as the corporate strategy.
However, it was also clear that 80% of the senior managers were willing to
align with the new programme.
In this situation, the consulting
initiative team had worked with WEL on a previous consultancy task. Thus, there
was a pre-existing relationship with the company. The team was able to leverage
its reputation as being among the biggest consulting firms in the industry. The
consulting company also had a broad global brand presence and a positive
reputation in conducting consultation initiatives. Having a good reputation in
consulting initiatives also played a significant part in the aid for approval
from the board members.
Ensuring that the right
consulting team is selected should consider the ability to deliver experience,
expertise, originality of the approach and reputation. According to Wickham and
Wilcock (2021), it is essential to consider the past relationship between the
consulting firm and the client involved. Moreover, it is essential to remember
that people play a massive part in successfully implementing the culturing
project. For example, the 'Process Consultation' may have worked previously as
frameworks and models needed to be set for the firm to resolve the company's
issues (Zipursky, 2022). However, that may not work this time, as WEL's scope
may require a different approach.
The rationale for the approach taken
The primary rationale for the
approach is that the chosen culturing firm had created a good record in
addressing related projects. After receiving bids during the tendering process,
WEL contacted the company requesting their expertise and knowledge in
conducting a consulting initiative. This can sometimes be seen as unethical as
some stakeholders may believe that a 'fair' tender process is to take place.
However, the offering came with due diligence checks as they are to seek
independence within their operations (Brown, 2009). This follows from the
company's history and mission of mending public opinions.
In this instance, WEL had been
referred to work with an Expert model of consulting. The reason for this is
that in this situation, it was clear that the consulting company needed to
address the issue of Brexit, market expansion and motivating employee morale. A
stakeholder matrix was also necessary as a project management tool used to
analyze project stakeholders to determine the actions necessary to align their
goals with the project.
A Process driven approach would
not have been suitable in this regard as it looks to build a framework and
processes to drive forward. Acting as a coach/facilitator role, this would not
have been recommended because uncertainty must be extinguished when such a
drastic change is to be drafted. An expert would come into this with the given
issue, map out the solution according to expertise, and fix the issue.
The consulting skills and models applied to the
consulting initiative
The process of selecting the
right consulting firm entails ensuring that the most qualified firm is chosen
to conduct the consulting initiative project. According to Keenan and White
(2018), It is vital for the consulting process to consider the data methods to
remove bias. According to the article, utilizing the secondary data collected
through external means is vital because the primary resources can be misleading
(Keenan and White, 2018). With the chosen company on board, it was time to
apply the lessons of working with WEL and ensure that the issues at hand were
rectified. This saw workshops being carried out to identify the root cause of
employee demotivation issues. It was important for the stakeholders involved in
the project to express their primary and secondary concerns before the new
program was initiated.
. The team in charge of the
project identified the need to utilize a team that can be considered experts in
consulting. This also included the need to rearrange the company's operational
structure. It is important to note here that no significant changes can be made
without the management's efforts. If the leadership and management are not
optimized, this can seriously hinder moving forward (Juneja, 2019). As a
result, the consulting process also utilized the approach of motivating the
senior management to align their interests with the new program.
The consulting team was made up
of experts in post-Brexit business dealings and helping a range of clients. The
process utilized the Fayol management theory to influence the outcome of the
management project strategy Henri Fayol is widely regarded as the 'father' of
modern management. This included the five management functions: planning,
organizing, commanding, coordination and control (Ward, 2021). The theory was
utilized because it is considered descriptive, not prescriptive; it serves more
as scaffolding, general process, or reminder of duties rather than any
technique. Therefore, it served as a fantastic skeleton to not only drive
operations forward post Brexit but would also see us lifting morale and
re-energizing the employees.
In WEL's situation, it is clear
that the issues occurred because many staff members were not really on board
with the project. However, they positively added to the project once they began
to see the results. This management method saw drastic positive results as it
allowed for a solid structure and everybody knew their respective roles and
responsibilities. Therefore, the main takeaway from this, however, is that the
theory is descriptive, not prescriptive. It serves as scaffolding, general
process, or reminder of duties rather than any technique (Ward, 2021). The team
was also likely to be successful after working on previous consults. For
instance, it can be learnt that the management's disunity and style of
operation were trickling down to the employees. A management theory like
Fayol's would serve as a fantastic skeleton to drive operations forward post
Brexit and see us lifting morale and re-energizing the employees.
Looking to add value to the ongoing
operations of WEL and expand, it was highlighted through the assistance of the
consulting company's global brand and reach into foreign territories. The
process also entails identifying the expansion territories to determine the
possible outcomes of the operations in the coming years (Reynolds, 2021
Stakeholder Analysis
Given that the process required
the involvement of the critical stakeholders in the project, a stakeholder
analysis was also important during the consulting initiative. The analysis includes
identifying and understanding the stakeholders with influence over the project.
It entails identifying the key stakeholder's people before the project begins.
It also includes grouping the stakeholders based on their participation,
influence and interest in the projected project. A good way of visualizing the
different stakeholders is by mapping them out using a metric demonstrated in
table 1, presented in the appendix below. The process of stakeholders analysis
also includes determining how best to involve and communicate with each of the
identified key stakeholder groups throughout the process.
The analysis can be understood to
be the evaluation of the key influential factors in a firm that have an impact
on its operation and success. Table 2 below shows that stakeholders are divided
into different groups with various levels of power, authority, interest, and
satisfaction. In WEL's organizational setup, internal stakeholders must be
primarily identified and communicated. Their needs are met, as they could play
a key role in the success of this project and any further work. If they are
satisfied with the success of this project, they will build a rapport and be
keen to work again, as evidenced above, with the consulting team being
selected. External stakeholders such as consumers, suppliers and clients are
also expected to be managed as their interest is what could drive the business.
It was also clear that the
consulting should consider applying the stakeholder analysis wherever feasible.
This also led to developing good relations with the head of foreign affairs.
Furthermore, it was helpful because the consulting team contained memebers who
were vital in directing limited resources to the appropriate channels.
Moreover, the key member of the project included that most of the work had
already been identified.
Critical evaluation of consulting initiative
Early engagement with key
personnel involved was among the key factors that the process utilized by
consulting initiative had to consider. It was also important for the consulting
team to consider keeping the safety case simple. This is important in inspiring
confidence among the key stakeholders that the system relocating programme will
lead to success. The approach was also important when delivering the solutions
for the company because it is known to play a significant part in motivating
the employees. This includes assuring the key stakeholders and the senior
management that the programme can be delivered without affecting their current
market.
Moreover, the solution
implemented by the consulting initiative team was successful because it was
considered the best approach to ensure effective communication among the
members involved in the project. This includes relocating all team members into
a common building for consistency and ease of communication. Similarly, it is
crucial to identify a model to relate to when implementing a new project in the
company. For instance, Driscoll's What model can be considered to be helpful
when implementing the consulting initiative in WEL. This is because the model
focuses on analyzing what can be expected from the new project in the company.
Therefore, the model can be beneficial in analyzing and learning from the
experience.
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A critical factor in every
consult is the people responsible for ensuring the project's success. This
required the involvement of the critical stakeholders in the project from top
to bottom. The employees had to be identified as feeling the effect of
uncertainty from the changes the company was likely to take action on.
Therefore, the potential result of a Brexit breakdown in the market was
necessary to keep the employees motivated. The employees are humans, and "the
idea that human needs exist in a hierarchy that people strive to satisfy
progressively" (Bridgman, Cummings, and Ballard, 2019). This has
been derived from the workings of Abraham Maslow, who had developed a hierarchy
of needs. The five components come together to create a pyramid structure of
human needs.
A successful consulting
initiative should also consider looking back and reflecting. Therefore, the
model would serve best in implementing the solution for the company by
introducing a stage for considering the results from what occurred after the
implementation of the project. It also considers a follow-up to explore what
was learnt as an outcome of the project. It also entails considering the actions
to be initiated and implemented next time by reflecting on the lessons learnt.
The data returned from the research is more likely to demonstrate that the
employees do not feel appreciated. According to the research, employees feel
more pride in their work when they know that their efforts are noticed by
management. If there is a clear link between responsibility and reward, most
people will also raise the bar (Haeger, 2018).
Additionally, the consulting
initiative will likely be successful by employing Kolb's Experiential Learning
model. The model focuses on investigating how people learn. The model utilizes
the four key stages, which include substantial experience. The stage can be
likened to an experience of something that has happened or is new. "The
next stage involves us reflecting on the experience and noting anything about
it which we have not come across before." (Cambridge, 2019) This may see
the team looking into what happened, but something unexpected may have
occurred, which is what was learnt. Finally, the model also considers the
process of adapting our ideas to different situations.
Similarly, employing a reflective
model can be considered vital for the consulting initiative to succeed in this
case. The model allows the team to assess a situation's different stages.
However, the model is also considered too rigid considering the step-by-step
processes involved. Besides, the model also allows the team to start from
anywhere when implementing the solutions for the company (Cambridge, 2019)
Looking back at the successful
implementation of operations in a growing market like India, It was clear that
WEL could reduce its operating costs by up to 27%. Thus, implementing the
insights presented by Fayol’s theory when introducing the solution can allow
for better planning within management. This also impacted staff morale as they
felt the strong turnaround in leadership skills, paired with improved foreign
matters, resulted in job security and increased productivity by 13% nationally.
As a result, paired with the lower costs and market growth abroad, the growth
of revenue internationally for WEL was around 15% in the fourth quarter.
If this project were to be
repeated, it would have been identified that Maslow's theory of psychological
needs worked quite well, going forward in a workplace environment of a similar
nature. It was highlighted in the final lessons learnt workshop that pointed
out the critical issues indicated by the theory. For instance, appreciation was
a great booster to progress the staff in their motivation as the level of
productivity was not only increased. However, the staff reiterated that they
felt good, secure and happy to work in such a fair environment, which allowed
management to develop projects further as a knock-on effect.
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References
Pereira,
L. F., Jeronimo, C. M., & Ramos, M. R. (2017). Management Consulting
business models a perspective of sustainability. 2017 International
Conference on Engineering, Technology and Innovation (ICE/ITMC).
https://doi.org/10.1109/ice.2017.8279865
Morris,
T., Gardner, H., & Anand, N. (2012). Structuring consulting firms. Oxford
Handbooks Online. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199235049.013.0014
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