Introduction According to Management Consultancy Association, “management consultancy is the creation of value for organisations through the application of knowledge technique and assets to improve business performance. This can be achieved through the rendering of objective advice and or the implementation of the business solutions” (O’Mahoney 2010). However, Greiner and Metzger(1983) defined management consulting as an advisory service contracted for and provided to organisation by specially trained and qualified persons who assist in an objective and independent manner, the client organisation to identify management problems, recommend solutions to these problems and help when requested in the implementation of solution. The types of projects undertaken by consultant may involve the proffering of specialist technical expertise such as the development of information technology system or generating cultural change within an organisation, help organisations build relationships with outside parties etc. (Wickham and Wickham 2008). They can serve as a change agent, coach, educators or facilitators within an organisation. Management consulting includes a wide range of activities which can be described in different ways. One way is to focus on area of expertise which includes corporate strategy, service quality, human resource management or operations management. Another way is to view the process as a sequence of phases which include initiation, contracting, diagnosis, data collection, feedback, recommendation and implementation (Edvardsson 1989). In organisations, clients look to consultants for advice to solve problems and improve the company. From the survey in 2006 by management consultancy Association 66 per cent of the c... ... middle of paper ... ...ias, O. (2010). Lectures on Management Consulting, MBA Course 2010/11, University of Bradford, School of Management, 17/01/2011. O`Mahoney, J. (2010). Management Consultancy. New York: Oxford University Press. Schuyt, T.N.M., and Schuijt, J.J.M. (1998). Rituals and Rules: About Magic in Consultancy. Journal of Organisational Change Management. Vol 11, No.5, pp.399-406. TheTimes100. (2011). Corporate and Organisational Culture, Edition 12. (Available at: http://www.thetimes100.co.uk/downloads/theory/corporate_and_organisational_culture.pdf [Accessed on 14/02/2011]. Werr, A., Stjemberg, P., and Docherty, P.(1997). The Functions of Method of Change in Management Consulting. Journal of Organisational Change Management. Vol 10, No 4, pp.208-307. Wickham, P.and Wickham, L. (2008).Management consulting, 3rd ed. Edinburgh Gate: Pearson Education Ltd.
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...ancy as “demons”, “thieves”, destructive to organizations. Consultants that make claims of being experts or promising the ultimate solution and do not deliver deteriorate the creditability and trust of consultancy in general. The out-of –the-box solution does not work for every situation and when it does not work the consultant lacks the external resources (or knowledge) to support the need. A clear and concise process with the necessary resources to support the consultant’s claim is essential to being successful for the client and themselves. Building a relationship based on trust and creditability is as equally important as follow thorough and honesty (Zipursky, 2014). Until organizations hiring consultants spend more time validating the creditability before hiring (to weed out the weak) and the consulting industry sets standards, anecdotes will continue to exist.
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2. Kinicki, Angelo, Williams, Brian Management, a practical introduction, Second Edition. New York, New York, McGraw-Hill 2006/2003
The type of management system chosen also depends on and must be suited to the external environment to allow them to be successful. A...
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The world is constantly changing in many different ways. Whether it is technological or cultural change is present and inevitable. Organizations are not exempt from change. As a matter of fact, organizations have to change with the world and society in order to be successful. Organizations have to constantly incorporate change in order to have a competitive advantage and satisfy their customers. Organizations use change in order to learn and grow. However, change is not something that can happen in an organization overnight. It has to be thought through and planned. The General Model of Planned Change focuses on what processes are used by the organization to implement change. In the General Model of Planned Change, four steps are used in order to complete the process of change. Entering and Contracting, Diagnosing, Planning and Implementing, and Evaluating and Institutionalizing are the four steps used in order to complete the process of change in an organization. The diagnostic process is one of the most important activities in OD(Cummings, 2009, p. 30).