The Consultant’s Toolkit Overview
Organizations look to consultants to provide necessary guidance on important business decisions. Designed for internal consultants with less than seven years of experience, The Consultant’s Toolkit program explores a variety of consulting tools to teach you how to diagnose organizational problems and evaluate potential solutions, enhancing your ability to confidently present recommendations to your clients and drive successful outcomes.
Some of the topics you’ll cover in the program include:
- Strategic frameworks for the consulting process
- Operational diagnostic tools
- Hypothesis trees
- Research methods
- Presenting recommendations
Through a combination of lecture, case discussions, and interactive group exercises, this program focuses on teaching analytic techniques that can be applied in diverse settings, ranging from small and large companies to for-profit and nonprofit organizations.
Who Should Take the Consultant’s Toolkit Training?
This program is designed to offer significant benefits to internal consultants and individuals who are currently collaborating with consultants or seeking to integrate consulting tools and techniques into their organizations.
Participants with less than seven years of consulting experience can expect to discover additional tools to enhance their expanding toolkit. However, those with over seven years of experience may find the content too foundational.
Program participants hold positions such as:
- Financial consultant
- Project manager
- Human Resources manager
- Business Analyst
- Solutions consultant
- Lawyer
- Political strategist
Individuals working within small or medium-sized consulting firms, as well as internal and independent consultants, will find this program most beneficial. This program is not recommended for consultants from the largest consulting firms.
Benefits of the Consultant’s Toolkit Training
The Consultant’s Toolkit program offers the opportunity to develop a strong knowledge base and skills required to complete successful consulting projects.
Participants will learn:
- The baseline for success in a consulting role and an understanding of the consulting process
- Various consulting techniques in areas of strategic formulation, market research, operations, performance management, and project management
- Effective methods for achieving impactful implementation
- Essential consulting skills for collecting, analyzing, and presenting data
- How to engage more effectively with independent consultants working for your organization
Upon completion of the program, you will receive a Certificate of Completion from the Harvard Division of Continuing Education recognizing your achievement.
Curriculum
In The Consultant’s Toolkit, you will learn through a combination of lecture, case studies, and interactive group exercises. Topics covered include:
- An overview of the consulting industry, trends, and the role of consultants
- Step by step strategic frameworks for the consulting process:
- Problem definition
- Discovery and data collection
- Recommendation and presentation
- Implementation
- Operational diagnostic tools
- Hypothesis trees
- Research methods
- Dealing with resistance
Considering this program?
December Schedule
Day 1
- The Consulting Industry Today
- Defining the Problem
- Structuring and Solving the Problem
Day 2
- Essential Consulting Frameworks
- Persuading the Decisionmakers
- Keys for Impactful Implementation
April Schedule
Week 1
- The Consulting Industry Today
- Defining the Problem
Week 2
- Structuring and Solving the Problem
Week 3
- Essential Consulting Frameworks
- Persuading the Decisionmakers
Week 4
- Keys for Impactful Implementation
July Schedule
Day 1
- The Consulting Industry Today
- Defining the Problem
- Structuring and Solving the Problem
Day 2
- Essential Consulting Frameworks
- Persuading the Decisionmakers
- Keys for Impactful Implementation
September Schedule
Week 1
- The Consulting Industry Today
- Defining the Problem
Week 2
- Structuring and Solving the Problem
Week 3
- Essential Consulting Frameworks
- Persuading the Decisionmakers
Week 4
- Keys for Impactful Implementation
Instructor
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![David McIntosh.]()
David McIntosh
David is the founder and president of Creative Business Breakthroughs, where he designs and leads strategic planning sessions and management development programs for businesses and nonprofits. He earned his MBA and AB from Harvard University.
Instructor
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![Shawn O'Connor]()
Shawn O’Connor
Shawn has taught graduate business courses in management consulting, strategy, marketing, and business law at various universities, including Harvard where Shawn has won two Dean's Commendations for Distinguished Teaching Performance.
Instructor
-
![Shawn O'Connor]()
Shawn O’Connor
Shawn has taught graduate business courses in management consulting, strategy, marketing, and business law at various universities, including Harvard where Shawn has won two Dean's Commendations for Distinguished Teaching Performance.
Instructor
-
![David McIntosh.]()
David McIntosh
David is the founder and president of Creative Business Breakthroughs, where he designs and leads strategic planning sessions and management development programs for businesses and nonprofits. He earned his MBA and AB from Harvard University.
Expand Your Network
With participants from more than 100 different countries and a variety of industries, Harvard Professional & Executive Development programs provide you the opportunity to gain fresh perspectives and unique insights as you learn alongside peers with similar roles who face like business challenges.
FAQs
How do I know if the Consultant’s Toolkit program is right for me?
This program is designed for internal consultants and those who work with consultants. If you are looking at training courses to improve the consulting process within your organization, this program is right for you.
The Consultant’s Toolkit will provide internal consultants with the valuable consulting skills they need to succeed. However, if you have more than seven years of experience or work in one of the larger consulting firms, you may find this program to be too fundamental.
How will the Consultant’s Toolkit program help me improve my career or company?
Participating in The Consultant’s Toolkit program demonstrates your proficiency in consulting tools and techniques, making you a valuable asset to your current or future organization. With this program, you can upskill or reskill to show initiative and develop new strengths, which you can demonstrate in your next consulting project.
