Developing a consulting mindset

2012

1
Introductions

• Name

• Role

• Client/Account

• Skills essential for successful consulting

2
Learning Objectives

• State the definition of a consultant

• Recognize the different roles of a consultant
• List the Goals of a consultant
• Recognize the different types of consulting
• Recognize the elements of the following consulting models:
• McKinsey 7 S framework
• 7 C Framework of consulting
• Theory of constraints
• Component Business Model
• List the traits of a good consultant
• State the difference between a consultant/expert and a trusted
advisor

3
Consultant: A definition

Google search for “consultant” yields 516,000,000 results

A consultant is the one who:

• borrows your watch and tells you the time?
• asks the waiter what the restaurant's core competencies are?
• decides to reorganize his family into a “team-based organization”?
• believes you never have any problems in your life, just “issues” and
“improvement opportunities”?

4
Consultative mindset: I don’t need it!!!

“Infosys has mainly been seen as a

development/technology organization. I
believe Infosys needs to spend additional
time and effort in marketing itself as a
solutions provider including
consulting/business solutions.”
------------------------------------------------ - Infosys Client in C-Sat
A famous Consultant!

 Important / valuable
position
 Holds no actual power –
yet has great influence
 Low profile
 Can be trusted
 Acts as “auxiliary brain”
 Cannot afford to be “yes
man”
 Can argue with the Don

6
Top Client Complaints About Consultants

Consulting Too costly, too arrogant Don’t help the client

deliverables/plans are too Too focused on selling become more
complicated, execution of their pre-packaged capable/competent
their plan is either not solution and not providing Portray a ‘vendor’
feasible or not sustainable what the client really behavior. Not able to strike
Have not seen any needs the connect as a peer /
industry-specific value Stating the obvious to the partner.
addition client but using more No accountability for the
Don’t really understand complex management consequence of their
business value jargons solutions

Slide 7
And the Oscar goes to …….

Technical
Expertise

Diagnose 
Marketing
Solution

Bedside
Communication
Manners

Slide 8
Roles of a consultant

Expert
Pair of Hands
Collaborative

9
Goals of a consultant

• Provide value added contribution

• Establish a collaborative relationship
• Problem solving
• Balanced attention to both technical and business
problems/relationships
• Developing client commitment

10
Consulting Process - Stages

Scope Definition
 Identify the client
 Identify client objectives
SCOPE  Identify topics for investigation
 Identify outputs to be produced

Data Collection
 Determine hypotheses to be
tested
 Frame and select questions to be
DATA
asked

Logic Development for Problem Solving

 Consulting Models applied

CONCLUSIONS & RECOMMENDATIONS

11
Types of Questions

• Open Questions
• Closed Questions
• Situation Questions
• Problem Questions
• Implication Questions
• Need/ Pay-off Questions
• Specific Questions
• Leading Questions
• Hypothetical Questions
• Reflective Questions

12
Types of Consulting

• General Management consulting – McKinsey & Co

• Strategy consulting – McKinsey & Co
• Industry specific consulting - Oil and Gas, Retail, Manufacturing and
Functional practices
• Accounting consulting – Deloitte, PWC, E & Y, KPMG – Full service
accounting firms, Tax Audit, Risk Management, Outsourced
accounting, Bookkeeping (Short /near term) – Different from Financial
Consulting (Long term investment and planning)
• IT consulting – Infosys

13
 Porters Five forces model

Reliance providing end to end IT

services

Clients
Vendors – Transport, Competitors
Catering Services, Security,
Sobha

On premise Hosting vs Cloud

Computing
Typewriters vs Computers
Consulting Models

15
Consulting Models -1

McKinsey 7S Framework

• Robert Waterman Jr., Tom Peters – 1980s

• Hard S Elements – Strategy, Structure, Systems
• Soft S Elements – Skills, Staff, Style, Shared
Values

16
 Approach of top management

Capabilities and How are people

competencies developed, trained
present in the and motivated
organization

Hierarchy,
Departments, Processes and
Values that the Procedures
Reporting Structure
organization upholds

Plan of action an organization develops to

accomplish an objective

17
 The 7S Framework

Infosys Style
Authoritative, Participative,
Delegative

Infosys Skills Infosys Staff

Skill central, COD, Leaders, Future Leaders
SI Academy ILI , Employees

Infosys Structure Infosys Systems

Verticals, BITS, Infosys values Policies, Processes,
PPS, CSSI C LIFE ALCON, PBS,IPM+, CCD

Infosys Strategy - Infosys 3.0

Build Tomorrow’s Enterprise – Innovation,
Transformation, Operations, 7 Themes

18
The 7S Framework worksheet

19
Consulting Models - 2

7C Framework of Consulting (Mick Cope)

• Client (OUTCOME, Change Ladder - ABCDE)

• Clarify (Diagnosis, Phase Mapping, Shadow
Dancing)
• Create (CREATE) and Change (Y Curve)
• Confirm (Qualitative, Quantitative measures)
• Continue (Resisting and Reinforcing forces),and
Close (Relationship build)

20
The 7 C Framework

21
The 7 C Framework - Client

Meta Macro Micro

Past Present Projected

Heart Head Hands

O T
U R
T U
C S
O T
M
E

22
The 7 C Framework - Clarify

Phase Mapping
Diagnosis Shadow Dancing

Life-cycle risk Culture

CLARIFY
System Construction Decision Makers

Stakeholders
 The 7 C Framework - Create
Divergent Convergent

CREATE

Challenge Evaluate

Randomize Test
Explore Appraise
The 7 C Framework - Change

High

Letting go Looking forward

Performance

Dispose Discover

Low

Time
The Y Curve
The 7 C Framework - Confirm

Qualitative

Qualitative Qualitative
in-process Outcomes
In-process

Outcomes
Quantitative Quantitative
in-process Outcomes

Quantitative
The 7 C Framework - Continue
Consulting Models - 3

Theory of Constraints
• Dr. Eliyahu Goldratt - 1999
• The Goal – 1984, Critical Chain - 1997
• A chain is no stronger than its weakest link
• 5 Focusing Steps
• TOC Thinking Tools

29
Theory of Constraints – Five Focusing Steps
• Identify the system’s constraints (bottleneck –
physical, non-physical)
• Decide how to Exploit the system’s constraints
• Subordinate everything else to the above decision
• Elevate the system’s constraints
• If in the previous steps a constraint has been broken Go
back to step 1, but do not allow inertia to cause a system
constraint (Reinvent the wheel)

30
Theory of Constraints – Five Focusing Steps
Identify the constraint – Critical – Payroll ; non Critical - Benefits

Exploit – Provide Additional training

Subordinate – Delivery of all the modules were subordinated

Elevate – Brought the delivery on track

Go Back – Once project was on track, we went to the other process

Theory of Constraints – TOC Thinking Tools
• What to Change
• Current Reality Tree
• Evaporating Cloud

• What to Change to
• Future Reality Tree

• How to Change
• Transition Tree
• Pre-Requisite tree
Theory of Constraints – Evaporating Clouds
US Payroll expertise cannot be self
taught

Maintain High Project Hire team with US

Quality standards specific skill set

Successful US
Payroll Cloud
implementation

Maintain Low Project Hire team with

Costs generic SAP skill set

US Payroll expertise can be

self taught
 Theory of Constraints – Current Reality Tree

Managers are frustrated, inconsistent and

confuse their subordinates

Hire team with US Hire team with

specific skill set generic SAP skill set

US Payroll US Payroll
expertise expertise can
cannot be be self taught
self taught

Maintain High Project Maintain Low

Quality standards Project Costs

Successful US Payroll implementation

Theory of Constraints – Future Reality Tree and
Transition Tree
Successful US Payroll implementation

Maintain High Project Maintain Low

Quality standards Project Costs

Hire a temporary US Payroll expert

while the current team shadows to Injection
ensure High Quality and Lower
costs
Theory of Constraints – Transition Tree

Successful US Payroll implementation

Logic of
Hire a temporary US Payroll expert how to
while the current team shadows to move from
ensure High Quality and Lower present into
costs the desired
future

Pre- Requisite tree is :

• A breakdown of tasks into its various obstacles
• Attaching an intermediate objective to every obstacle
• Co-ordinate tactics and actions of everyone involved.
Consulting Models - 4

Component Business Model

• Technique developed by IBM to model and
analyze an enterprise.
• Entire business in a simple framework that fits
on a single page

37
The need for CBM model
The IBM Component business model What it is?

http://www-935.ibm.com/services/uk/igs/html/cbm-bizmodel.html
 Stages of Component Business Model
• Insight
• Architecture
• Implementation/Investment
Processes with the different stages of the CBM model
The IBM Component business model - Focused thinking

http://www-935.ibm.com/services/uk/igs/html/cbm-focus.html
 The IBM Component business model - Faster response

http://www-935.ibm.com/services/uk/igs/html/cbm-fast.html
The IBM Component business model – HR domain

Learning eRecruitment Performance

Insight
Solutions Management

Value Added Non value adding activities

Activities
Architecture
Learning Solutions eRecruitment
Performance Management

Feasibility - Functional , Technological ; ROI ;

Implementation
Time taken
Training and Event Management
Learning Solutions without employee self service
Learning Solutions with employee self service
Traits of a good consultant

Technical
Client Handling
skills(Domain Interpersonal Skills
Skills
specific)
• Public Cloud : • Assertiveness • Negotiating wants
Microsoft Azure, • Confrontation Skills • Coping with mixed
Amazon, • Listening motivation and
Salesforce interests
• Negotiating
• High Performance • Diagnosing and
Systems: Analyzing issues
HADOOP • Funneling data
• Monitoring • Working with
Products resistance
• Marketing • Running meetings
• Finance • Not taking things
• Manufacturing personally

45
The difference between experts and advisors

46
The journey

Service Trusted
Partner Consultant
provider advisor

47
What does it take to be an effective advisor? Building your map..

Understand Understand
Stay Current
People Infosys

Understand From Good Tech Understand

Technology Lead to an Advisor Business

48
What we learnt:

• We will now be able to:

• State the definition of a consultant
• Recognize the different types of consulting
• List the Goals of a consultant
• Recognize the different roles of a consultant
• Recognize the elements of the following consulting models:
• McKinsey 7 S framework
• 7 C Framework of consulting
• Theory of constraints
• Component Business Model
• List the traits of a good consultant
• State the difference between a consultant/expert and a trusted
advisor

49
 Thank you