Management Consultants - The Trusted Advisors
Answering the question "what is management
consulting?" is as difficult as attempting to answer the question
"how high is the sky?"
There are two causes for the confusion about exactly what management
consultants do. First, management consulting is an umbrella term
that encompasses many different careers. Second, management consultants
cannot give specific examples of their work because it almost always
is confidential and highly sensitive.
The essence of consulting is to help a client create
value by providing information and advice which leads to lasting
organizational change in a variety of ways including development
of new strategies, accounting systems, information systems integration,
quality management, process redesign, marketing, distribution channel
development, logistics, leadership training, cost control, productivity
enhancement, leveraging technology, activity based costing, competitive
analysis, human resource strategy and value management.
Experts of all kinds frequently refer to themselves
as "consultants to management," but only those who advise
on the management process itself can legitimately be called management
consultants (though even this generalization is being challenged
today). One definition that has gained widespread acceptance came
not from consultants themselves but from academia.
Management consulting is an advisory service contracted
for and provided to organizations by specially trained and qualified
persons who assist, in an objective and independent manner, the
client organization to identify management problems, analyze such
problems, recommend solutions to these problems, and help, when
requested, in the implementation of solutions.Management consulting
in the United States has undergone a very dramatic change over the
past fifteen to twenty years. The reason for this change is to cater
to an evolving market and to stay competitive. About fifteen years
ago, the emphasis was purely on technology. Clients wanted their
systems to be better and faster. The general thinking was that every
problem could be solved by technology. Organizations implemented
large, complex systems for accounting, customer service, sales force
automation etc., without giving real consideration to the people
who would have to use them. This also led to different divisions
in an organization using incompatible systems, duplication of work
and repeated storage of information resulting in what is commonly
referred to as "technology stovepipes".
Several years of complex implementations were
followed by a flurry of activity in training staff and building
interfaces between systems used by different divisions within the
organization.
About a decade ago, the consulting industry began
its most recent metamorphosis to ultimately reach the state that
it has achieved today. This process began when several top consulting
organizations expounded the concept of total consulting. Moving
away from the traditional technology solutions, clients were now
advised to solve problems by considering a combination of strategy,
process, technology and people.
Consultants began addressing problems at a macro
level across the entire organization and by viewing the organization
as a whole entity. The consultant evolved from a person who recommended
and implemented technology systems to a person who collaborated
with the client and helped resolve business problems affecting the
organization as a whole. The consultant had morphed; he/she was
no longer a technologist but more a trusted advisor.
* * *
About the Author
Dr. Atul Uchil is an entrepreneur, business-owner
and author. In addition to several research papers, Dr. Uchil has
published the following books that are available at Amazon, Barnes
& Noble, Ingram, Baker & Taylor, Borders, BooksAMillion,
Bertram Books UK, Gardners UK, Alibris and many other respected
and recognized national and international book retailers.
- The Corporate America Survival Handbook: ISBN
- 1598000942
- Consulting: A Job or A Lifestyle: ISBN - 1598000640
- I Opted Out: ISBN - 1598000713
For more information about Dr. Uchil and his books
visit =>http://www.uchil-llc.com/books.html
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Atul_Uchil,_PhD
|