Development and Enhancement of Skills in Business Consulting

This article discusses the skills and qualities required for business consulting and how to develop and enhance them. It covers topics such as problem-solving, emotional intelligence, communication, and more. The article also includes a task analysis for skill gaps and resources for study material.

BM562 Consulting in Practice
CW2

Table of Contents
MAIN BODY..................................................................................................................................2
TASK – 1.........................................................................................................................................2
Development and Enhancement of Skills....................................................................................2
Skills that I didn't know at the Start of the Process.....................................................................2
Improvement in the Level of Confidence....................................................................................3
Utilization of the Learning in the Future Career.........................................................................4
TASK – 2.........................................................................................................................................4
TASK – 3.........................................................................................................................................7
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................9
APPENDIX....................................................................................................................................10
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MAIN BODY
TASK – 1
Development and Enhancement of Skills
Having worked as a part of the team to solve the problems of the client's business or in
other words having worked as a business consultant, there are various skills and qualities that I
was able to develop and also able to enhance which I already possessed (Bencheva and Stoeva,
2018). One of such skills and qualities that I was able to enhance here is problem solving skill
which required analysis of enormous and complex data and be able to pin – point the exact
information required by asking relevant and open-ended questions. Also, I was able to enhance
my listening skills by working in this project. I came to understand that it is very necessary to
listen and that too without interrupting the speaker and be able to digest and process the complex
information by organizing the thoughts quickly and responding appropriately.
Another skill that I was able to enhance while working as a consultant to the business
client is being a skilful and intuitive communicator. It involves possessing an expansive and rich
vocabulary and ability to set up a complementary tone to the client setting through which I was
able to communicate my expertise to the client through varied means (Sotiriadou and et.al.,
2020). The skills and qualities that I was able to develop here was development of the emotional
intelligence. Through such an intelligence, I was able to handle the emotions of the client and
manage them under pressure which can build up due to the expectations and deadlines faced by
the client. Therefore, the skills I was able to enhance included problem solving skill, listening
skill and communication skill and the skills I was able to develop included emotional
intelligence.
Skills that I didn't know at the Start of the Process
There were several skills and aspects related to the business consulting that I didn't knew
at the beginning of the process and was able to learn and develop along this process. One of
these skills and aspects includes the skill of emotional intelligence (Kattan, 2022). To be
successful in this line of business consultancy, it is very necessary to develop the ability of
emotional intelligence because this shows that I have interest and passion towards this
professional and I love helping clients proceed in their business. It includes being able to show
politeness and concern towards the issues of the client in hand and realise that the client has
called us to consult and assist them. It involves handling of personnel who are of different age
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and possess different levels of pride and communicate with them effectively without hurting
their pride and sentiments.
For example, while discussing various issues with the board members of the business of
the client I had to take care of how I was communicating to these members as they were of
varied age groups and held different positions in the business and thus had different levels of
pride. So I had to be conscious and careful while communicating with each one of them to
handle them effectively and communicate with them what they wanted to know (Vander Schee,
Andrews and Stovall, 2022). Also, at the times of pressure where client had deadlines to meet
which can be stressful, I was able to calm them and quiet their nerves to work efficiently and
avoid any errors in the situation of panic and pressure.
Improvement in the Level of Confidence
Being able to work with the client's business as a business consultant, I was exposed to
various situations and scenarios which required high – level problem solving mindset and
responding immediately (Koskinen, 2018). Thus, exposure to such a complicated situations
helped me enhance my level of confidence to a great extent such that now, I am not afraid and
nervous to face any such complicated situation.
This enhancement in the level of confidence had been possible due to development of
various skills and qualities due to this process of business consulting. These skills and qualities
includes problem solving skills, listening skills, communication skills and emotional intelligence.
Inculcating such skills helped me gain perspective of the complex and complicated situation by
being able to analyse the situation in hand through collection of relevant data and figures and by
asking relevant and open-ended questions to directly answer doubts and questions under
consideration (Di Gregorio and et.al., 2019). Listening skills and communication skills helped
me in building trust among the personnel of the client's business and resolution of conflict by
being able to see the situation from other's perspective as well.
Thus, it can be said that by working with the team to solve the problems of client's
business my level of confidence enhanced as I understood that everything does not need to be
perfect and made sure that I know what I was talking about as an expert. Because of this
enhanced level of confidence, I was able to think effectively even under the pressure and was
able to generate and achieve desired results for the client and thus was able to improve my level
of confidence as I can my work efficiently and can face the challenges thrown towards me.
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Utilization of the Learning in the Future Career
Now it is universally known that as an individual proceeds and gets promotes in his
career the level of hardships and challenges also increases as he is expected to know more, to
have more experience and to be able to better handle the accountability and responsibility
assigned to him. Therefore, he should utilize the learning acquired at each stage of his career to
evolve and grow and face the challenges of the next stage.
The skills which I developed and enhanced are going to be very assuring that I will be
able to perform very well in my future career. Most importantly, working here, I learnt the art of
problem solving which will help me to organize my time diligently thus inculcating the time
management skills (Winkler, Söllner and Leimeister, 2021). I learnt how to plan a particular
project or assignment and thus be able to anticipate beforehand, possibility of risk which can
arise in the future on the basis of trends, experiences and patterns. I also learnt how to prioritize,
plan and then execute the strategies to meet the multiple demands of the client. I learnt how to
think outside the box and be creative in the times of emergency and urgency. I was able to
handle the pressure and even work under pressure which can occur due to either acceleration in
the deadlines or change in the parameters of the project. This is naturally helpful in the future
career as I will be able to perform more efficiently.
TASK – 2
SKILL GAPS RESOURCES DURATION MONITORING
Analysis of
quantified data for
problem solving.
Study material for
theory understanding,
study material for
understanding
practical implication
of the theory, video
lectures, PPTs for
summarisation,
reading and analysis
of real life problems
and situations, and
practice questions for
2 weeks That the data and
information given are
analysable & easily
understood and the
implication of the
result of such analysis
can be related to the
performance of the
company to which it
relates to.
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clearing the concept
(The importance of
problem solving skills
in the workplace,
2022.).
Expanding
vocabulary
Use of dictionary,
reading magazines,
newspapers and
journals to learn the
technical words,
conversing with
others to inculcate
these technical words
in daily conversations
and maintaining of
diary to record the
important words with
their meanings and
utilization in the
sentences.
4 weeks To be able to
inculcate technical
and effective words in
the speech as well as
during the
communication so
that the receiver of
such message knows
the real intention
behind the message or
the communication.
Emotional
intelligence
Focus on management
and reduction of
negative emotions
through physical and
mental exercises,
focus on being a
strong communicator
through usage of
limited but sufficient
vocabulary, practicing
empathy through
4 weeks To be able to deal
with the emotions and
issues of the
colleagues with
utmost optimism and
resolve them
effectively. And also,
be able to understand
the real situation of
other people in the
organisation without
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focussing on the
verbal as well as non
– verbal cues to be
able to understand the
issues of everyone at
the workplace, take
note of what stresses
you and avoid facing
them when they are
not necessary and
practice optimism to
be able to react to the
challenges positively
and set up for success
instead of getting
demotivated, study
materials on
emotional
intelligence, PPTs to
explain, videos on
importance of
emotional intelligence
and how to inculcate
the quality of
emotional intelligence
(13 Emotional
Intelligence Activities
& Exercises, 2022).
judging them.
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TASK – 3
REQUIRED QUALITIES RELEVANT SKILLS POSSESSED
Fulfilment of marketing offers Worked as a customer services manager and
is able to deal with challenges in hand and
managing immediate and creative response.
Preparation of presentations Worked in the field of face to face customer
service and thus is capable of communication
with the staff and their management.
Analysis of marketing and sales data Having experience as a manager of customer
service, he will be able to report the seniors,
the details regarding regional booking status.
Handling contact management systems Will be able to connect and communicate
with other teams efficiently as he has
experience in field work as a representative of
sales and also face to face sales therefore, will
be able to connect well.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Bencheva, N. and Stoeva, T., 2018. Key Skills and Competences for Social Business Advisors:
Views from Experts. International Journal of Organizational Leadership. 7. pp.413-425.
Di Gregorio, A. and et.al., 2019. Employability skills for future marketing
professionals. European management journal. 37(3). pp.251-258.
Kattan, R., 2022. WHAT MAKES A GOOD CONSULTANT? Journal of Protective Coatings &
Linings. 39(5). pp.32-35.
Koskinen, J., 2018. How to build competencies for a data-driven business: Keys for success and
seeds for failure. Technology Innovation Management Review. 8(10). pp.18-28.
Sotiriadou, P. and et.al., 2020. The role of authentic assessment to preserve academic integrity
and promote skill development and employability. Studies in Higher Education. 45(11).
pp.2132-2148.
Vander Schee, B. A., Andrews, D. and Stovall, T., 2022. Senior business consultant project:
Giving advice while gaining other awareness and career competency. Journal of
Education for Business. pp.1-7.
Winkler, R., Söllner, M. and Leimeister, J. M., 2021. Enhancing problem-solving skills with
smart personal assistant technology. Computers & Education. 165. p.104148.
Online
13 Emotional Intelligence Activities & Exercises. 2022. [Online]. Available through:
<https://positivepsychology.com/emotional-intelligence-exercises/>
The importance of problem solving skills in the workplace. 2022. [Online]. Available through:
https://www.testgorilla.com/blog/importance-of-problem-solving-skills-in-the-workplace/
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APPENDIX
CURRICULUM VITAE
EDUCATION:
Rosedale College
10 GCSE's
SYSTEMS:
MS Word
MS Excel
MS Outlook
Various In-house CRM Systems
PROFILE:
A dynamic, creative and confident individual with integrity and excellent attention to detail. My
strong background in customer service, sales and office administration has seen me deliver
results in fast paced and demanding environments. My experience and acquired skills in multi-
tasking, time management and strategic thinking allow me to meet targets, prioritising as well as
delegating tasks, while managing growth and development and improving procedures within the
business. My enthusiastic and flexible approach enables me to contribute proactively and
resourcefully and adapt to any challenging situation. I am considered a diligent, dependable and
dedicated individual with an optimistic attitude to both work and life.
SKILLS:
 Worked as a customer service manager therefore, am able to fulfil the marketing offers and
also able to deal with challenges.
 Able to respond immediately and creatively to the situations.
 Can prepare presentations and communicate with the customers face to face.
 Experienced as a manager of customer service therefore, can analyse the market and sales
data.
 Communicate and report to the seniors and other teams efficiently and thus can handle
contact management systems.
 Equipped to handle the social media platforms and thus handle public relations effectively.
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