
Management Consulting in Practice
Award-winning International Case Studies
Fiona Czerniawska(Author)
Kogan Page Ltd (Publisher)
1st Edition
Published on 27. August 2004
Book
Hardback
304 pages
978-0-7494-4281-1 (ISBN)
Article exhausted; check for reprint
Description
This authoritative new book explores the relationship between top management consultant teams and their clients. It presents through a series of case studies, from both the private and public sectors, best-practice consulting at the sharp end of contemporary management across all management disciplines.
The case studies are drawn from the MCA Awards, which recognise Best Practice in all the categories of management. Firms present qualifying client engagements for evaluation by a distinguished panel drawn from industry and academia.
Each case study explores a unique business situation and the way it was tackled by the team, and also examines how those teams responded to challenges during their projects and the unexpected lessons they learned. The case studies are embedded within an explanatory framework that draws out common themes, relates the case studies to generic models, and discusses how their approaches can be applied in other businesses.
Case study clients include the International Olympic Committee, Sun Microsystems, Apache Corporation, Aon, Tesco, BT Business, MoD, Westminster City Council, BAE Systems, GCHQ, Sainsbury's Supermarkets, Home Office, Transport for London, and NHS Trusts.
The case studies are drawn from the MCA Awards, which recognise Best Practice in all the categories of management. Firms present qualifying client engagements for evaluation by a distinguished panel drawn from industry and academia.
Each case study explores a unique business situation and the way it was tackled by the team, and also examines how those teams responded to challenges during their projects and the unexpected lessons they learned. The case studies are embedded within an explanatory framework that draws out common themes, relates the case studies to generic models, and discusses how their approaches can be applied in other businesses.
Case study clients include the International Olympic Committee, Sun Microsystems, Apache Corporation, Aon, Tesco, BT Business, MoD, Westminster City Council, BAE Systems, GCHQ, Sainsbury's Supermarkets, Home Office, Transport for London, and NHS Trusts.
Reviews / Votes
"No element of modern management goes uncovered. A clear demonstration of the tangible and intangible benefits that can result from a client-consultant relationship." MBA Business "Czerniawska [is] one of the world's leading commentators on the consulting industry." Consulting to Management "Full of useful insights." Long Range Planning "Collects case studies from the most recent Management Consultancies Association's Awards for Best Management Practice winners in order to explore how these firms and their clients succeeded in ensuring high-quality consulting." Journal of Economic LiteratureMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Cloth over boards
Dimensions
Height: 234 mm
Width: 156 mm
ISBN-13
978-0-7494-4281-1 (9780749442811)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
New editions

Fiona Czerniawska | Paul May
Management Consulting in Practice
Award-winning International Case Studies
Book
09/2006
1st Edition
Kogan Page Ltd
€57.08
Article is exhausted; no reprint
Person
Fiona Czerniawska is one of the world's leading commentators on the consulting industry. She is the Director of the UK Management Consultancies Association's Think Tank and the founder and managing director of Arkimeda, a firm that specialises in researching and consulting on strategic issues. She is also a Programme Director at London Business School's Centre for Management Development. Paul May is a business technology author, consultant, systems architect and business development executive. Paul formed the independent e-commerce consulting practice Verista in 1998. He has since undertaken strategy and implementation projects with well-known global companies such as BP Amoco and Siemens, and with business-to-consumer and business-to-business e-commerce startups in the UK and USA.
Content
CONTENTS About the Management Consultancies Association About the Authors Foreword Acknowledgements Introduction 1 - The power of working together Reasons for selecting a particular consulting firm The challenge of consulting projects The client-consultant relationship Meeting client expectations Summary - key lessons for managers and consultants 2 - What sets excellent consulting apart? Foundations of good consulting Projects that exceed client expectations The best of the best Case study 2.1 Customers driving local services Case study 2.2 Reinventing a core offer Case study 2.3 How to build a new digital city every two years 3 - Change management Change and scale Public and private faces of change management consulting Summary - key lessons for managers and consultants Case study 3.1 Living the brand - for real Case study 3.2 Delivering safer buses Case study 3.3 Electronic payments for 13 million citizens 4 - Human resources Advising versus doing Summary - key lessons for managers and consultants Case study 4.1 Protecting the benefits of staff in transition Case study 4.2 Diagnosing and treating workforce ailments Case study 4.3 Standing down, moving forward 5 - Operational performance The five pillars of operational consulting Miracles and parables Summary - key lessons for managers and consultants Case study 5.1 Blue skies, blue bills and online breakthroughs Case study 5.2 Smarter methods to beat constraints Case study 5.3 Relocating the organization and redesigning its mind Case study 5.4 Bringing rationality to bear 6 - Business strategy Strategy consulting: smaller, leaner, fitter Summary - Key lessons for managers and consultants Case study 6.1 Changing people for a change Case study 6.2 Releasing the future from the present 7 - Technology exploitation Five hallmarks of success IT consulting: leaner and fitter? Summary - key lessons for managers and consultants Case study 7.1 Closing the net on persistent offenders Case study 7.2 Great journeys and small steps Case study 7.3 Mobile technology as enabler and enforcer Case study 7.4 When small businesses go global 8 - Outsourcing Second generation outsourcing From advice to delivery Summary - key lessons for managers and consultants Case study 8.1 Evolving the outsourcing market Case study 8.2 Outsourcing for outcomes Case study 8.3 Gearing up for renewed battle 9 - Electronic trading Pull not push Getting the technology right Technologists, coordinators and bridges Summary - key lessons for managers and consultants Case study 9.1 Pioneering multi-channel voting Case study 9.2 Collaborating systems drive down costs Case study 9.3 A knowledge portal helps close the deprivation gap Case study 9.4 Flow, streams and the erosion of resistance References Index
CONTENTS
About the Management Consultancies Association
About the Authors
Foreword
Acknowledgements
Introduction
1 - The power of working together
Reasons for selecting a particular consulting firm
The challenge of consulting projects
The client-consultant relationship
Meeting client expectations
Summary - key lessons for managers and consultants
2 - What sets excellent consulting apart?
Foundations of good consulting
Projects that exceed client expectations
The best of the best
Case study 2.1 Customers driving local services
Case study 2.2 Reinventing a core offer
Case study 2.3 How to build a new digital city every two years
3 - Change management
Change and scale
Public and private faces of change management consulting
Summary - key lessons for managers and consultants
Case study 3.1 Living the brand - for real
Case study 3.2 Delivering safer buses
Case study 3.3 Electronic payments for 13 million citizens
4 - Human resources
Advising versus doing
Summary - key lessons for managers and consultants
Case study 4.1 Protecting the benefits of staff in transition
Case study 4.2 Diagnosing and treating workforce ailments
Case study 4.3 Standing down, moving forward
5 - Operational performance
The five pillars of operational consulting
Miracles and parables
Summary - key lessons for managers and consultants
Case study 5.1 Blue skies, blue bills and online breakthroughs
Case study 5.2 Smarter methods to beat constraints
Case study 5.3 Relocating the organization and redesigning its mind
Case study 5.4 Bringing rationality to bear
6 - Business strategy
Strategy consulting: smaller, leaner, fitter
Summary - Key lessons for managers and consultants
Case study 6.1 Changing people for a change
Case study 6.2 Releasing the future from the present
7 - Technology exploitation
Five hallmarks of success
IT consulting: leaner and fitter?
Summary - key lessons for managers and consultants
Case study 7.1 Closing the net on persistent offenders
Case study 7.2 Great journeys and small steps
Case study 7.3 Mobile technology as enabler and enforcer
Case study 7.4 When small businesses go global
8 - Outsourcing
Second generation outsourcing
From advice to delivery
Summary - key lessons for managers and consultants
Case study 8.1 Evolving the outsourcing market
Case study 8.2 Outsourcing for outcomes
Case study 8.3 Gearing up for renewed battle
9 - Electronic trading
Pull not push
Getting the technology right
Technologists, coordinators and bridges
Summary - key lessons for managers and consultants
Case study 9.1 Pioneering multi-channel voting
Case study 9.2 Collaborating systems drive down costs
Case study 9.3 A knowledge portal helps close the deprivation gap
Case study 9.4 Flow, streams and the erosion of resistance
References
Index
About the Management Consultancies Association
About the Authors
Foreword
Acknowledgements
Introduction
1 - The power of working together
Reasons for selecting a particular consulting firm
The challenge of consulting projects
The client-consultant relationship
Meeting client expectations
Summary - key lessons for managers and consultants
2 - What sets excellent consulting apart?
Foundations of good consulting
Projects that exceed client expectations
The best of the best
Case study 2.1 Customers driving local services
Case study 2.2 Reinventing a core offer
Case study 2.3 How to build a new digital city every two years
3 - Change management
Change and scale
Public and private faces of change management consulting
Summary - key lessons for managers and consultants
Case study 3.1 Living the brand - for real
Case study 3.2 Delivering safer buses
Case study 3.3 Electronic payments for 13 million citizens
4 - Human resources
Advising versus doing
Summary - key lessons for managers and consultants
Case study 4.1 Protecting the benefits of staff in transition
Case study 4.2 Diagnosing and treating workforce ailments
Case study 4.3 Standing down, moving forward
5 - Operational performance
The five pillars of operational consulting
Miracles and parables
Summary - key lessons for managers and consultants
Case study 5.1 Blue skies, blue bills and online breakthroughs
Case study 5.2 Smarter methods to beat constraints
Case study 5.3 Relocating the organization and redesigning its mind
Case study 5.4 Bringing rationality to bear
6 - Business strategy
Strategy consulting: smaller, leaner, fitter
Summary - Key lessons for managers and consultants
Case study 6.1 Changing people for a change
Case study 6.2 Releasing the future from the present
7 - Technology exploitation
Five hallmarks of success
IT consulting: leaner and fitter?
Summary - key lessons for managers and consultants
Case study 7.1 Closing the net on persistent offenders
Case study 7.2 Great journeys and small steps
Case study 7.3 Mobile technology as enabler and enforcer
Case study 7.4 When small businesses go global
8 - Outsourcing
Second generation outsourcing
From advice to delivery
Summary - key lessons for managers and consultants
Case study 8.1 Evolving the outsourcing market
Case study 8.2 Outsourcing for outcomes
Case study 8.3 Gearing up for renewed battle
9 - Electronic trading
Pull not push
Getting the technology right
Technologists, coordinators and bridges
Summary - key lessons for managers and consultants
Case study 9.1 Pioneering multi-channel voting
Case study 9.2 Collaborating systems drive down costs
Case study 9.3 A knowledge portal helps close the deprivation gap
Case study 9.4 Flow, streams and the erosion of resistance
References
Index