Essential Consulting Skills

Prerequisites:

Anyone who works as an internal or external consultant or senior business analyst. Anyone who works as a coach to a consulting team. Anyone who manages a consulting team.

Course Description:

A 4 day course for technical and professional people who have to interface with customers to understand their needs, maximize opportunities and provide best value service.

The programme will use a range of techniques including syndicate work, group discussions and presentations, real life customer situations and case studies to ensure that all learning styles are catered for.

Feedback and input will come from the peer group as well as the trainer. Delegates will complete a number of questionnaires to give them an insight to their behavior, influencing and business communication styles.

This course is only available as a closed or onsite course. If you are looking for a public scheduled course, please see .

This course includes the following modules:

Setting the Scene

• Clarifying the consulting environment
• Activities carried out by consultants
• The attributes needed for effective consultancy
• Personal assessment: A questionnaire to determine your communication style

Building and Managing Relationships

• The importance of building and maintaining rapport
• Impact management: Using ?¢‚Äöá®Ä∫The 3Vs Visual, Vocal and Verbal assertiveness
• Relationship management: Identifying sponsors, ?¢‚Äöá®Ä∫friends and ?¢‚Äöá®Ä∫foes
• Using assertive behaviours to influence
• Understanding the difference between assertive, aggressive and passive behaviours
• Identifying customers personality styles using Transactional Analysis
• Understanding and using the four ?¢‚Äöá®Ä∫working styles behaviour to build relationships and influence effectively

Situation Analysis

• The 6 Essential Communication Skills (Engaging, Listening, Confirming, Questioning, Offering, Observing)
• Using ?¢‚Äöá®Ä∫Gap Analysis to fully understand customers needs
• Creative thinking techniques including mind mapping and fishbone analysis to solve problems and make effective decisions
• Identifying and creating the customers ?¢‚Äöá®Ä∫problem statement
• Using effective decision making and problem solving techniques to manage costs, profitability and performance

Presenting Solutions

• The art of effective negotiations
• Understanding the difference between product features and benefits
• Dealing with customers reservations, concerns and objections
• Effective presentation skills

Summary and Conclusion

• Ensuring that you leave the customer feeling satisfied
• Agreeing follow up actions and activities
• Determining personal learning points
• Creating your personal action plan