There are a wide variety of specialised roles within management consultancy. Newton (2010) states that “a consultant is not being looked on as a permanent recruit; no badge or title alone will give you any consulting work”. This reflects the fluid and competitive environment suggesting the importance of continual development of knowledge, skills and professional behaviours that maintain consultancy competencies (Institute of Consulting, 2015). 

“Invest into yourself by continuously learning things. The more diverse your knowledge, the more valuable.” – Top three characteristics that contributed to Gringarten’s (2015) success as a management consultant.

Throughout this portfolio, I will reflect and illustrate my learning and development as a professional management consultant within the Elite Edge group.

Institute of Consultancy, and CMI (Institute of Consulting, 2015) defines Management Consulting as a task requiring the use of knowledge, experience, problem solving and analytical skills. The Consultant uses these attributes to “professionally engage” with clients analysing and proposing views of management techniques and practices, adding value to clients’ organisations.

Furthermore, IC and CMI state that a balance between Knowledge, skills and behaviours make an effective management consultant.

-   Market Capability and Knowledge: Application of knowledge using technical skills, business understanding, sector insight and external awareness

-   Consulting Competence: Skills, tools and techniques essential in delivering consultancy services

-   Professional Behaviours: Attributes and behaviours that facilitate a consultants’ market capability and competence

Firstly, I will discuss the consulting essentials – the role and responsibilities of a consultant. This will be followed by a Personal Development Plan – all of which will establish what it takes to become a professional management consultant and help understand the behaviours, skills and attributes that are important as a consultant.

I decided to use Professional Behaviours as the framework to my personal development. Not only does it reinforce market capability, knowledge and competences of management consultancy, but also growth as a prospective Business/ Management professional.  Further-more, I acknowledged skills that correlate with these and would be important as a foundation to developing professional behaviours.

Notably, focusing on the skills below (Table 1.0) allowed me to develop professional behaviours more naturally, that are also transferable across a range of consultancies and professions.

I designed an audit that utilises an adapted version of CMI’s three levels of excellence to rate the progress of skills acknowledged (see KEY).

I used a 1-10 scale to express the understanding that the development stage is the longest – where confidence, skills and techniques, for me, are developed through an extended period. Employers look for experience, not 1 day but often years of.

The audit in question can be seen below and will be used to collate my personal development through-out the project. To facilitate the ease-of-reading I will illustrate my development through a graph at the end of the portfolio.

Essentially a reflective piece – I will employ a timeline that will aid illustrating the reflective process. The use of a timeline will allow me to break down the portfolio into ‘phases’ of the group project, while providing a reference for the reader.

Additionally, I will apply Tuckman’s (1965) stages of small group development model. Easy-to-understand, this model will help me present the group formation and interaction over-time. It consists of forming, storming, norming, and performing (Largent, 2016; Tuckman and Jensen, 2010).

This phase can be reflected by Largent’s (2016) description of the Forming Stage. He uses our own human infant stage as a means of explaining high enthusiasm and low skills, where team members depend on their team leader to ‘explain’ and ‘direct’. Truthfully, my colleagues and I were excited to be a part of a group, in which the structure of, was voted on democratically by the module cohort. However, management consulting although a new realm for us all with little defined skills, didn’t have the group and I depending on our PM to know what to do and how to do it. This wasn’t a case where we knew our team-members beforehand. I know I didn’t. But rather we were all prospective graduates who understood the need to get ahead of tasks.

Initiative was evident through the creation of a communicative WhatsApp group started on the 10/10/2018 (See Image 1). The likes of Persons A, B, I and G talked greatly about the groups first presentation. While I agreed with everyone’s suggestions, I felt we needed an initial group bonding meeting, considering that our first presentation was about ‘our group’. This reflects the second point of Largent’s (2016) Forming description – within this phase it is important that group members are observant of strengths and weaknesses, to find a best fit, personally and collectively, while ultimately getting to know and grow interpersonal skills between group members that take away characteristics of anxiety, guardedness (Tuckman and Jensen, 2010).

The restriction on interpersonal elements through-out the project and the long-term implications.

After our first meeting, Person E and myself invited everyone to spend some time outside of the working environment – only Person B joined. Unfortunately, after the initial meeting (12/10/2018), Person E and my effort to strengthen the interpersonal aspect did not take precedence within the group. This theme is seen through-out, where the lack of interpersonal elements had implications on communication, creativity and team-working elements, resulting in characteristics such as, confusion, anxiety and guardedness (See Image 14). While aspects of the Storming Stage begin to appear in Phase 2; hostility and frustration ensue and are seen to return in the later Norming and Performing Stages (Largent, 2016; Tuckman and Jensen, 2010) – Discussed further in Video 1.

Cassidy Group (24/10/2018 - 23/11/2018)

With the Elite Edge name and Logo official, and our first-presentation over (17/10/2018), we were introduced to potential clients; Cassidy Group and Health Matters. We decided to pitch to both companies, Cassidy being first (24/10/2018).

I see our time preparing for Cassidy to reflect elements of the Storming and Norming Stage. At this point, the group is beginning to explore the task and what needs to be done to accomplish it. While, yes, the group is still forming and efforts to increase the interpersonal level are being made by myself and Person E, the likes of Persons I and G began to show Storming Stage characteristics.

Tuckman and Jensen (2010) suggests that significant conflict can arise as strong-establishment within the group is fought for. This is evident in our group where Persons I and G are seen 29/10/2018 & 30/10/2018 (see Image 2 – 2.3) skirmishing over the content and arrangement of a 5-minute briefing presentation due 31/10/2018. Largent (2016), suggests that any problems should be dealt with in a timely manner to avoid returning to the Storming Stage later, hindering team-working ability.  I reflect this importance in Image 2.3 by mediating overthinking. I reminded the group that the task in question was a 5-minute briefing, in which didn’t need to be polished – essentially, we were presenting our information to ensure we were heading in the right direction.

WORTHY NOTE: 8 weeks in (7/11/2018), and other commitments meant that our former PM could not continue to take lead and initiative in future tasks. A change in PM was the result, and with the change communicated in a timely manner, group emotions were relatively untouched. We consoled the former PM, ensuring their place in the group and voted for the replacement. Everyone had a say in this scenario which helped our team move into the next stage towards the end of Cassidy Group.

Towards the last Cassidy Group presentation, I could see a move through the Storming Stage into Norming. As described by Largent (2016) the Norming Stage is where group cohesion and productivity increases – group members exhibit mutual respect, trust, and cooperation towards each other. This is reflected just a day before our final Cassidy Group presentation. With increased clarity of the task at hand, the group had mutual reluctance for Cassidy Group, we agreed that we’d focus on Health Matters. As a matter of professional practice, we presented for Cassidy Group at our best. See Image 3 (20/11/2018 – 21/11/2018).

Eventually, our group took second place in the bid for Cassidy Group (23/11/2018). Joint feelings that tasks should be distributed more widely became prevalent after failing to impress Cassidy. It was said that our level of data was not as deep or aligned, this meant it was ever more important to spread the weight of tasks more widely, bringing together the skills of our group. Additionally, communication levels were addressed as being insufficient. (Image 4 – 4.2) (A theme I address Video 1)

Health Matters (21/11/2018 – 13/12/2018)

At this point, we can see elements of the Performing Stage arise, where group members are becoming flexible and focused on the tasks ahead. Largent (2016) describes this stage as the point where individuals know and understand what needs to be done, while working in harmony with others to get it done. A team synergy and pride were created after an unsuccessful bid for Cassidy, where mutual feelings within the group boosted motivation for the next stage. (See Image 3, 4 and 6)

Prior to the outcome of our Cassidy effort, we remained disciplined and practiced flexibility to anticipate and cope with pressure. As illustrated, by overlap, on Gantt Chart 1, Directly after presenting for Cassidy we distributed research tasks for Health Matters, wasting no time 21/11/2018 (See Image 5).

Taking on-board feedback from Cassidy phase, depth of research was upped. This impelled the group to develop a proposed questionnaire for HM that would question their employees on succession planning.

Not evidently involved in any client tasks within the last phase, I took on research that delved into knowledge sharing, barriers for knowledge sharing and culture (See Knowledge Sharing Framework). This was a chance for me to utilise and develop research and analytical skills. This can be seen through discussion in Image 7.

Characteristics of the Performing Stage are at its highest, inter-dependency and trust are becoming apparent, evident in Image 6 as our group communicate before the official proposal for Health Matters (Tuckman and Jensen, 2010). 12/12/2018

13/12/2018 – Unfortunately we were unsuccessful winning-over Health Matters. While the group presentation was rated highly, Health Matters (Simon) felt that our work was too academic for his team. With this being rarely said in university graded pieces, the team and I didn’t take it very well initially. But taking it on-board, we became aware that our proposal was quite theoretical and academic – It lacked commercial awareness.

I’ve provided a detailed copy of Elite Edges timeline: see Elite Edge Timeline

Over the Christmas holidays a new potential client arose that would test my commercial awareness, research, analytical and creativity skills.

StadiArena’s product and service relates to arena/ event space. The company was interested in adding new markets to its portfolio – one of which being E-Sports, why it shouldn’t be overlooked and how their product can attract the market.

I was mindful of the task over the holidays and came across a mini docu-series on one of the biggest games in E-Sports. The clip I chose to use, covered an explanation of E-Sports, why it shouldn’t be overlooked, and visualised how StadiArena’s product could be utilised for that market – all in 1 and half minutes. 14/01/2019 (See Image 8)

With my focus to take on more responsibility, I took on ‘What to consider when designing an E-Sports venue’. Through this research, StadiArena would gain more understanding on what it takes to host an E-Sports event, answering their viability question. I contributed my findings to the group. (See Image 10)

Furthermore, to develop my communication and creativity skills, I took lead on presenting and explaining my findings to StadiArena. 06/02/2019

Successful with our E-Sports pitch, StadiArena was interested in developing further ideas for their product and service. With two additional ideas, Paintballing and Airsoft, I chose to take on research on Airsoft (See INDOOR AIRSOFT) as I was familiar with the concept prior to the project. I took lead on research and presentation of my findings for this. Communicating these findings took more of a discussion form. By doing this, I could build a connection with the client that was more interpersonal and engaging than a power-point presentation. (19/02/2019 – 20/02/2019)

StadiArena liked our additional ideas resulting in the employment of our group. (See ELITE EDGE Timeline for more detail)  

This period begins to reflect the Consultancy Cycle (Cockman et al, 1992). Discussion of what StadiArena wants to achieve in their future project took place, not before signing an NDA. Code-named Project George, this was a great opportunity for the group and I to practice discipline and integrity. This reflected the Entry-Stage of the cycle, where the foundation of everything to follow is laid out (20/02/2019).

It can be suggested that as a group we were now firmly in the Performing Stage. This is true, to a certain extent – We understood how to work within the group, and we had a leader that kept on-top-of resources and need-to-dos. I come back to this later and discuss the theme in Video 1. To make evident our ‘Stage’ as a group, we presented a ‘catch-up’ piece (See Image 11). I took this opportunity to present to the module cohort, allowing me to grow further experience in communication and interpersonal skills (27/02/2019).

The same day of the ‘catch-up’ presentation saw the first discussion of ZORB ball activities that would go on to be the basis of our Action Plan – the 3^rd stage of the Consultancy Cycle (Cockman et al, 1992).

From the 27^th of February the group entered the Diagnosis and Action Planning Stages. This included regular inter-group meetings and discussions with the client to diagnose and develop ideas, with the aim of adding value to StadiArena’s implementation of Project- George. (See ELITE EDGE Timeline for more detail)

06/03/2019 As a worthy note, at a meeting this day, I suggested that we utilise visual representation of our idea – I found a “BUBBLE FOOTBALL” video by Manchester City FC. This demonstrated the development of my research, communication and creativity skills. I can argue that this is also experience of commercial awareness, as the video of choice expressed the nature of Project George.

Falling back into the Storming Stage – The theme of restricted interpersonal elements returned, where implications became evident (See Image 12, 13 and 15) through appearing characteristics of Tuckman’s Storming Stage. This prompted a non-work-related meeting (29/03/2019). Agreed by the attendees of the meeting, we won’t disclose any of the discussion. The purpose of the meeting was to let people express their current positions, within a more interpersonal environment. Personally, I feel that nature of this meeting was long-overdue and proved useful for those in attendance. The benefits became apparent in a work-related meeting that I labelled ‘Communicative Team Meeting’ (10/04/2019) (See ELITE EDGE Timeline). Communication in this meeting was evidently higher, with trust and interdependence at an all time high. I discuss this theme in Video 1, with a 20+ year experienced professional in logistics.

REFERENCES for Portfolio

Cockman, P., Evans, B. & Reynolds, P. 1992, Client-centred consulting: practical guide for internal advisers and trainers, McGraw-Hill, London;New York;.

Drucker, P 2007, Management Challenges for the 21st Century, Routledge, Saint Louis. Available from: ProQuest Ebook Central. [10 April 2019].

Gringarten, H. 2015, "Peter Klugsberger: Management Consultant", Journal of Multidisciplinary Research, vol. 7, no. 1, pp. 67.

Institute of Consulting. (2015). MANAGEMENT CONSULTANCY COMPETENCE FRAMEWORK. [online] Available at: http://www.iconsulting.org.uk/~/media/Files/PDF/IC/Management-Consultancy-Framework.pdf [Accessed 21 Apr. 2019].

Largent, D. 2016, "Measuring and Understanding Team Development by Capturing Self-assessed Enthusiasm and Skill Levels", ACM Transactions on Computing Education (TOCE), vol. 16, no. 2, pp. 1-27.

Richard, N 2010, Consultant ebook, The, Pearson Education UK, Harlow. Available from: ProQuest Ebook Central. [9 April 2019].

TUCKMAN, B.W. and JENSEN, M.A.C., 2010. Stages of Small-Group Development Revisited1. Group Facilitation, (10), pp. 43-48.

REFERENCES for Interpersonal Discussion

Dromey J IPA (2014). MacLeod and Clarke’s Concept of Employee Engagement: An Analysis based on the Workplace Employment Relations Study. [online] Acas, pp.9-11. Available at: http://m.acas.org.uk/media/pdf/7/6/08140-MacLeod-Clarkes-Concept-of-Employee-Engagement.pdf [Accessed 18 April. 2019]

Largent, D. 2016, "Measuring and Understanding Team Development by Capturing Self-assessed Enthusiasm and Skill Levels", ACM Transactions on Computing Education (TOCE), vol. 16, no. 2, pp. 1-27.

MacLeod, D. and Clarke, N. (2009, 2012). The Four Enablers - Engage for Success. [online] Engage for Success. Available at: https://engageforsuccess.org/the-four-enablers [Accessed 18 April. 2019].

TUCKMAN, B.W. and JENSEN, M.A.C., 2010. Stages of Small-Group Development Revisited1. Group Facilitation, (10), pp. 43-48.

Watson, P. and Chileshe, N., 1998, September. Total quality management (TQM) and the importance of the post-modernist paradigm. In Procs. 14th annual ARCOM conference. University of Reading (pp. 9-11)