Consulting Skills Training Course

Participants can convert an initial client request into a clear, agreed assignment definition.

• Client interviews that surface stated needs, latent needs and decision criteria
• Five Whys and problem statements separating symptoms, causes and consequences
• Stakeholder maps identifying sponsors, users, blockers, influencers and decision makers
• Project charters defining deliverables, assumptions, exclusions, milestones and acceptance criteria
• RACI matrices clarifying accountable owners, contributors, approvers and informed stakeholders
• SMART success measures linked to operational, financial or service outcomes

Participants can break complex client problems into prioritised, testable lines of enquiry.

• MECE decomposition to divide ambiguous client problems into manageable workstreams
• Issue trees linking a top question to testable subquestions
• Hypothesis-driven problem solving to prioritise evidence and avoid unfocused research
• Logic chains connecting activities, outputs, outcomes and client value
• 80/20 prioritisation using impact, uncertainty, effort and time criteria
• Problem statements framed with context, complication, question and intended decision

Participants can plan research, conduct structured interviews and assess the quality of evidence.

• Research plans specifying questions, sources, collection methods, owners and deadlines
• Source triangulation across interviews, documents, systems data and external benchmarks
• Interview guides using funnel questions, probes, paraphrasing and neutral language
• Fact logs separating verified evidence, assumptions, interpretations and unresolved questions
• Root cause analysis through fishbone diagrams and causal validation
• Data quality checks for completeness, consistency, timeliness and outliers

Participants can use practical quantitative methods to explain performance and support recommendations.

• Baseline calculations for costs, volumes, cycle times, error rates and capacity
• Driver trees modelling revenue, cost, service or productivity performance
• Scenario analysis using base, upside, downside and sensitivity assumptions
• Excel pivot tables for segmenting operational data and testing patterns
• Waterfall charts explaining variance between plan, actual and forecast
• Benefits cases distinguishing cashable savings, avoided costs and qualitative gains

Participants can plan, govern and control a consulting assignment from mobilisation to close-out.

• Work breakdown structures converting recommendations into sequenced deliverables and activities
• Critical path analysis identifying dependencies, milestones, float and schedule risks
• RAID logs tracking risks, assumptions, issues, dependencies and response owners
• Workplans assigning tasks, estimated effort, dates, owners and review points
• Weekly governance routines covering decisions, escalation routes and progress reporting
• Change-control requests assessing scope, timing, cost and quality implications

Participants can build stakeholder support and handle challenging client conversations constructively.

• Stakeholder salience assessment using power, legitimacy and urgency indicators
• Influence plans matching messages, channels, timing and sponsor involvement
• Consultative questioning that tests assumptions without provoking defensiveness
• Active listening through paraphrase, summarising, silence and calibrated follow-up questions
• Resistance diagnoses distinguishing interests, fears, incentives and information gaps
• Difficult conversations structured with facts, impact, requests and agreed actions

Participants can communicate consulting findings and recommendations in a concise executive format.

• SCQA framing to establish situation, complication, question and answer
• Pyramid Principle messages with governing thought, grouped arguments and evidence
• Storyboards sequencing executive presentations from decision need to recommended action
• Slide headlines written as assertions rather than topic labels
• Data visualisation choices matched to comparison, trend, distribution and relationship
• Executive summaries distinguishing recommendation, rationale, implications and immediate decisions

Participants can develop evidence-based recommendations with clear ownership, benefits and implementation steps.

• Options appraisal using weighted criteria, trade-offs, risks and implementation feasibility
• Decision matrices scoring alternatives against agreed client priorities
• Recommendations tied explicitly to evidence, benefits, costs, owners and timing
• Implementation roadmaps staging quick wins, pilots, scale-up and controls
• Benefit-realisation plans establishing measures, baselines, targets and review cadence
• Client-ready reports separating findings, conclusions, recommendations and supporting detail

Participants can organise their consulting workload, seek feedback and apply a focused professional development plan.

• Personal effectiveness audit identifying energy drains, habits, strengths and development priorities
• Weekly planning using time blocks, priority rules and protected preparation time
• Meeting discipline through agendas, decision records, action logs and follow-ups
• Feedback requests framed around observable behaviours, impact and next actions
• Consulting development plan with goals, practice opportunities, mentors and measures
• Application commitments scheduled for the first thirty days after training