Management Consulting in Practice

"Management consultants or at least the benefits they bring are regarded with a good deal of scepticism by big business, and the media delight in telling us of big government project failures. This book does a great job of redressing the balance." Professor Robert Worcester, Chairman, MORI "This book illustrates clearly the experience of working with consultants and the tangible and intangible benefits that can result from an effective client-consultant relationship." Martin Whiteley, Managing Director, Capita Consulting "Whether a proficient consultant or experienced user, this book provides rich food for thought." Professor Timothy Clark, Durham Business School "These case studies provide a fascinating insight into effective partnerships between consultants and their clients... the authors have created a valuable and readable resource for managers, consultants and business students." Victor Smart, Head of External Communications, Audit Commission This important new book explores the relationship between top management consultant teams and their clients. Through a series of case studies, from both the private and public sectors, it presents best-practice in consulting at the sharp end of contemporary management across all disciplines including change management, business strategy, outsourcing, operational performance and human resources. The case studies are drawn from the MCA Awards, which recognize best practice in all categories of management. Firms present qualifying client engagements for evaluation by a distinguished panel of judges drawn from industry, government and academia. Each case study explores how a business situation was tackled by the team, and 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, Ministry of Defence, Westminster City Council, BAE Systems, GCHQ, Sainsbury's Supermarkets, Home Office, Transport for London and NHS Trusts. 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 specializes in researching and consulting on strategic issues. 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. The Management Consultancies Association (MCA) was formed in 1956 to represent the consultancy industry to its clients, the media and government. Today, the Association's members represent around 60 per cent of the UK consultancy sector. www.mca.org.ukCzerniawska, F. is the author of 'Management Consulting in Practice ', published 2006 under ISBN 9780749448189 and ISBN 0749448180.