Management Consulting Management Consulting is a final-year Bachelor of Commerce subject that brings together high-achieving students and industry professionals. Student consulting teams work on a ten week project to apply their skills and collective knowledge in completing business projects of strategic or operational importance for industry, community service and government organisations.
Respected global management consulting firm A.T. Kearney is the lead industry sponsor for this program. The A.T. Kearney Australia Prize for Management Consulting will be awarded to the student with the highest mark in this subject each year.
How the program works
After your project proposal has been accepted, your organisation will be assigned a team of students who will spend one half day per week at your organisation over a ten week period during a semester. The students will engage in extensive research and analysis as their bedrock for generating key project findings and recommendations
Placements commence in March and August of each year
The students are supported in their work by the Subject Director through a series of lectures and seminars on topics such as applied business research methods, project management tools, structured problem-solving and best practice business communication
The project work forms part of the students’ studies. It is undertaken at no cost to the client organisation. The University’s insurance policy covers the students whilst on placements
BENEFITS TO YOUR ORGANISATIOn
You will gain access to a group of high achieving and motivated students who will work in partnership with your organisation to focus, and offer fresh perspectives, on an issue or opportunity that is of significant strategic or operational value
Previous clients have reported that student teams have performed exceptionally well and many have gone on to implement or commercialise proposals from their student teams
In addition to having specific projects completed at no cost, client organisations have a recruitment channel to identify talented potential employees
Intellectual property in the project report is owned solely by the client organisation. Confidentiality is seriously regarded, with written agreements often being established by all parties
THE CONSULTING PROCESS
Students consult with a wide range of people within and outside the organisation (as necessary) to gather and analyse information prior to the preparation of a professional level consulting report of their findings and recommendations
The key deliverables of their consulting project is a 5,000 word report and a final presentation to the client organisation
Students are assisted in the consulting process by the Subject Director and coaches who provide mentoring, advice and direction regarding the project
FEATURES OF A SUITABLE PROJECT The Subject Director discusses the project scope, definition and skills required with the host organisation to determine the suitability of the project. Projects should:
Be of strategic and/or operational importance to the organisation
Be feasibly completed within a ten week period
Require the application of skills and knowledge from business disciplines
Address an open ended question that requires critical thinking and problem solving
CLIENT REQUIREMENTS Having identified and proposed a suitable business project, a client should provide:
Work space for the student group (approx. half a day each week for ten weeks)
Allocation of a staff member of appropriate seniority to facilitate and assist the student team in working effectively within the organisation and with sourcing internal information. Please note that the facilitator’s role is a limited one, as students are expected to be self-directed
A briefing for students on your organisation’s Health and Safety procedures
“The students are incredibly bright and have a lot of energy. They are intelligent and well connected within their own peer groups. They bring a fresh perspective and approach, which is very valuable.” Amanda Ralph Head of Product at Kinetic Super. Host of three Management Consulting teams as Head of Corporate Portfolio at Medibank and as Head of Strategic Market Planning (Director) at KPMG.
“The team produced an insightful and polished report, supported by excellent analysis. They also gave us a presentation that was well prepared and delivered in a helpful and confident manner. I am not an easy person to get glowing feedback out of. This team has done an outstanding job – well done!” Jon Ma Partner, Strategy and Operations, Consulting, Deloitte
To become a client organisation, or to find out more about this exciting program and how it can benefit your organisation, please direct your enquiries to:
SELECTION OF STUDENTS
Hayley Wolfert/ Tracey Skordos Consultants Student Employability and Enrichment
Students selected for this subject have attained excellent academic results, demonstrating a broad range of skills to support them in undertaking the projects. These include:
Faculty of Business and Economics The University of Melbourne 198 Berkeley Street, Carlton Victoria 3010 Australia
critical and creative thinking
research and analysis
written and verbal communication
team work and collaborative problem solving
T: (+61 3) 9035 6707 (+61 3) 8344 7936 E: fbe-industryprograms@unimelb.edu.au W: fbe.unimelb.edu.au/engage/students