The Microcosmic World of Consulting – Part 1
The world of consulting is about getting opportunities to add value, have a systematic process to deliver the envisaged value proposition and create the basis for a good reference for getting future business. Thus the “Engagement Cycle” in a typical consulting organization can broadly be categorized as follows: 1. Sales Cycle, 2. Delivery Process, and 3. Relationship Management All the above three engagement steps are spruced across any engagement cycle. Though overall the above steps are essentially one after the other, it is important to note that the engagement cycle is definitely not a sequential process and the first and third steps can occur intermittently. For example, relationship management is an on-going activity usually done by senior managers or partners of consulting firms. Similarly the sales processes could be spread over the entire delivery assignment because the meat is in mining more business from an existing client. Hierarchical Structure: Before understanding the de