Core Skills in Organisational Consultancy

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Core Skills in Organisational Consultancy

• Chris Powell
• Welcome!Please write your ideas or
  definitionson the whiteboardsand display any of
  the thingsyou have brought about consultancyon
  the tables

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• A consultant is someone who asks to borrow your
  watch to tell you the time
• OR
• A consultant is someone who, when you ask her the
  time points out that you have a watch helps you
  understand why you are asking and helps you deal
  with the implications of that

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Aims

• Explore clarify and practice core skills and
  conditions for providing consultancy.
• Provide reflective learning based on real-life
  situations.
• Understand the difference between formal and
  informal consultancy roles.
• Identify and support areas for further learning
  and development in consultancy.

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Outcomes

• These two days should provide
• A variety of tools and models for application as
  a consultant.
• Understanding of how to establish core conditions
  for successful consulting.
• Understanding of which skills from clinical
  training and work are of use as a consultant (and
  which not!).
• Help in discriminating when to accept or adopt a
  consultancy role.

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Timetable

• 9.30 Introduction
• Session 1 contracting
• Session 2 competences for consultancy
• 10.45 Refreshments
• 11.00 Session 3 consultancy models
• 12.30 Lunch
• 1.30 Session 4 skills practice
• 3.00 Refreshments
• 3.15 Session 5 consultancy tools
• 4.30 End

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Method for dayThe Consultancy Cycle
Phase 3 Collecting data
Phase 1 Starting the consultation Initial
contact Gaining Entry
Phase 2 Contracting
Phase 6 Implementing the plan and taking action
Phase 4 Making sense of the data and diagnosing
Phase 5 Generating options Making decisions and
planning
Phase 7 Disengaging
From Client Centred Consulting Cockman Evans
Reynolds
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Method - Contracting

• Consultant commits to
• Bringing something new ingenuity looking at
  internal consultancy (and when it is
  appropriate) staying interesting responding to
  feedback providing tips allowing for the
  different stages people are at providing useful
  tips for dealing with difficult teams sharing
  expertise providing content as well as process
  providing a safe space getting beyond stage 4
  staying to end.
• Clients commit to
• Staying until the end thinking hard being
  open-minded putting effort in now and between
  the days giving things a go taking risks eg
  sharing experience helping consultant stick to
  his side of the contract letting the consultant
  know if its not being useful letting the
  consultant know if it is really helpful paying
  the consultant bringing material participating
  actively.

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Defining terms

• A consultant is a person in a position to have
  some influence over an individual a group or an
  organisation but who has no direct power to make
  changes or implement programmes.
• A manager is someone who has direct control over
  the action
• A client is the person or persons (work groups
  departments whole organisation) that the client
  wants to influence without exercising direct
  control.
• An intervention is any action the consultant
  takes within a system of which he/she is not a
  part.
• From P Block (1981) Flawless Consulting
• A commissioner is the person who has engaged the
  consultant and ultimately decides the contract.

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Elements of a contract

• The Boundaries of your analysis
• Objectives of the project
• The kind of information you seek
• Your role in the project
• The product you will deliver

• What support and involvement you need from the
  client
• Time schedule
• Confidentiality
• Feedback to you later

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Competences and roles

• What are the key similarities between consultancy
  and clinical psychology competences?
• What are the key differences between consultancy
  and clinical psychology?
• What are the distinctions between the role of a
  consultant and the role of a clinical
  psychologist?

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The Consultancy Cycle
Phase 3 Collecting data
Phase 1 Starting the consultation Initial
contact Gaining Entry
Phase 2 Contracting
Phase 6 Implementing the plan and taking action
Phase 4 Making sense of the data and diagnosing
Phase 5 Generating options Making decisions and
planning
Phase 7 Disengaging
From Client Centred Consulting (1992) Cockman
Evans Reynolds
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The Consultancy Cycle (2)
From A Consultancy Approach for Trainers(1998)
Shaw and Philips
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Roles models

• Purchase Sale Model
• Gaining Entry
• Purchase of expert service customer/supplier
  relationship tendering.
• Diagnosing the situation
• Client manages interface between system and
  consultant. Client defines need.
• Bringing about change
• Consultant takes responsibility for delivering
  the service. Client monitors performance.
• Doctor Patient Model
• Gaining entry
• Client invites consultant to deal with a
  problem issue within the client system
• .Diagnosing the situation
• Consultant accepts problem at face value. Move
  towards a more collaborative relationship with
  client. Joint diagnosis. Consultant has access to
  client group.
• Bringing about change
• Consultant identifies options for change. Gets
  agreement from client to implement a solution.
  Client monitors performance.

• Process Model
• Gaining entry
• Client invites consultant into the client system.
  At the start there is less clarity about
  specific issues and concerns. Attention is paid
  to the client/consultant relationship
• Diagnosing the situation
• Collaborative activity in seeking to explore
  identify come to terms with and then act upon
  issues. Recognition of joint responsibility and
  ownership
• Bringing about change
• Joint action agreed. Client takes a prominent
  role in implementing solutions. Transfer of
  skills between consultant and client.

From Flawless Consulting (1999) Block
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Levels of client / consultant activity
Client activity
Consultant activity
Directive
Non-directive
From Client Centred Consulting (1992) Cockman
Evans Reynolds
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Styles of intervention

• Acceptant style
• Catalytic style
• Confrontational style
• Prescriptive style

From Client Centred Consulting (1992) Cockman
Evans Reynolds
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Consultancy tools - ratings

• Active Passive
• Safe Risky
• Directive Non-directive
• Acceptant - Confrontational

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Consultancy tools

• Relationship building
• Contracting
• Data gathering
• Diagnosis
• Options

• Decision making
• Action planning
• Implementation
• Evaluation
• Disengagement

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Reading on Consultancy Skills

• Client-centred Consulting A Practical Guide for
  Internal Advisers and Trainers (1992) Peter
  Cockman Bill Evans and Peter Reynolds
  McGraw-Hill (out of print)
• Consulting For Real People A Client-Centred
  Approach For Change Agents And Leaders (1998)
  Peter Cockman McGraw-Hill
• Flawless Consulting A Guide to Getting Your
  Expertise Used (1999) Peter Block Jossey Bass
• The Flawless Consulting Fieldbook and Companion
  (2000) Peter Block Jossey Bass
• The Complete Facilitator's Handbook (1999) John
  Heron Kogan Page
• A Consultancy Approach for Trainers and
  Developers (1998) Keri Phillips and Patricia
  Shaw Gower
• Process Consultation. Volumes 1 2 and Revisited
  (1998) Edgar Schein Prentice Hall
• NEW RESOURCES WEBSITE www.thecrimsonkitchen.com

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Contact me

• Chris Powell
• cpowell_at_thetukecentre.org.uk
• 01904 430370