c Laurel Wood, MBA, CMC
Agentsof innovation CMCs bridge the gap between need and results
The magazine for members of CMC-Canada
consult Summer 2012
“Strategic discomfort is all about focus. It is about building an entrepreneurial culture in a successful organization.�
08
Game Changers Glenn Yonemitsu, CMC & David Tait
Inside
Canada’s economic action plan16 Perceptions of management consultants20 Passion in the profession22 Departments: 03 editor’s note; 04 it’s a wonderful life; 06 industry insights; 14 coast to coast; 26 how’s your asset? 28 buzz; 31 remembering; 32 focus; 33 top of mind
consult magazine Summer 2012 1
Ethical Behaviour: Best Practices for Management Consultants Ethics are important for anyone in business. They're particularly important to consultants because of the high level of trust that organizations grant them and because of the access that many consultants have to the confidential and proprietary inner workings of the firms that employ them. But it’s not always a black and white issue. ‘Ethical Behaviour: Best Practices for Management Consultants’ provides participants with a set of best practices developed to improve their knowledge and ability to make the best ethical decisions in their management consulting practices. In addition, it explores how to resolve ethical dilemmas frequently faced by management consultants. Stand out from the crowd. Show your clients a commitment to “a higher level of management consulting,” and differentiate yourself from the competition. This is a required course for the Certified Management Consultant (CMC) designation. Cost: $495.00 for members | $625.00 for non-members. Length: Approximately 6 hours, followed by an on-line exam. Upcoming Dates: August 29, Online
September 18, Vancouver, BC
October 9, Victoria, BC
October 11, Atlantic Canada
November 15, Toronto, ON
November 20, Vancouver, BC
November 23, Ottawa, ON
January 15, Vancouver, BC
1-800 -268 -1148 | 416 -860 -1515
Please go to cmc-canada.ca for more details, course dates, and registration information.
AT CMCCANADA
Editor’s Note Technology and the changes it brings is a topic running throughout this issue. Developments in digital technologies, social media, and so on can be overwhelming, and our main feature article explores how best to decide which to adopt, and which can be safely observed from the sidelines. One trend that cannot be ignored is the growing use of content marketing, as highlighted by Carl Friesen. He discusses how major clients are using online content as a differentiator in consultant selection and provides tips for effectively showcasing your expertise online. Even traditional technology can have an unexpected impact – as evidenced by the television satire ‘House of Lies,’ which has recently thrown management consultancy into the public spotlight in an unfortunate way. Tony Wanless demonstrates how this may have done the profession a favour, by highlighting the lack of understanding about what we do, and the need to address this through trust building and advocacy. Along with a helpful overview of Canada’s Economic Action Plan and its digital technology components, a fascinating look at the agri-science sector, and other regular columns, the features in the following pages are sure to provide a thoughtprovoking read about the dynamic environment in which we work, and some helpful tools to navigate it with. HAROLD SCHROEDER FCMC, PMP, CHRP, CHE PRESIDENT SCHROEDER & SCHROEDER INC.
A Stronger CMC-Canada for a Stronger YOU Last year, the National Board of CMC-Canada made a courageous decision to invest in the function of business development to grow our association. Growth is important, not just because of economies of scale, but because there is strength in numbers. More members mean a louder voice… especially important as we gear up for the ‘Building Awareness’ campaign. In the past year, we have hired a full-time business development professional, worked with our regional Institutes to develop new growth campaigns, and reviewed our value proposition to ensure that CMC-Canada remains an attractive decision for members and prospective members. In the spring, we launched our ‘Refer-aMember’ campaign titled, ‘A Stronger CMCCanada for a Stronger YOU.’ This is the first major growth campaign since the Executive Stream Task Force (ESTF) of 2008. To ensure new members are being developed with up-to-date material, we have refreshed our entire major pre-certification professional development curriculum. Plus, we have added some outstanding new programs, like Interpersonal Skills and Project Management for Consultants. Early results are promising, but we have much work to do. We have added new members at a rate approaching that of the ESTF. The quality of these new members has been impressive. Most will pursue certification. About 50% will qualify for the entry stream and the other 50% will certify through the executive stream.
When StatCan planned the launch of the Consulting Price Index, we were there to help. When the National Research Council Industrial Research Assistance Program (IRAP) was tasked to implement the Digital Technology Adoption Pilot Program (DTAPP), CMC-Canada was there. Other professional associations see the Certified Management Consultant designation (CMC) as complementary to their specialist designation. Most recently, we have been collaborating with the Human Resources Professional Association (HRPA). Combined with our strategic alliance with CMA Canada, and our long-standing relationship with CICA, we are in good company. Universities have seen the value too. New relationships with the University of Waterloo’s respected Faculty of Engineering (CBET), the Queens School of Business, and the Alberta School of Business are a testament to our strength. It has been a hectic year at CMC-Canada, but very rewarding. Growth doesn’t come easily and there are many bumps in the road, but when there are some wins, it is that much more satisfying. All of this activity leads to a stronger profession, and that leads to a stronger YOU. Thank you.
GLENN T. YONEMITSU, MBA, CMC CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER CMC-CANADA
VISIT
We have made great strides in collaborating with large firms, and our pre-certification professional development is being adopted by a number of firms.
cmc-canada.ca
Creative and Art Direction, Design: Aegis Design Inc. Cover Photo: Roth and Ramberg Photography
Consult is published simultaneously on the Internet at consult-magazine.ca
Consult Magazine is published semi-annually by the Canadian Association of Management Consultants (CMC-Canada).
Copyright 2012 – Canadian Association of Management Consultants. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.
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consult Publisher: Glenn Yonemitsu, CMC Editorial Board: Harold Schroeder, FCMC, Mike Appleton, FCMC, Eric Inthof, FCMC, Ron Knowles, FCMC, Peter Milley, FCMC, Greg Richards, FCMC, Tony Wanless, CMC Editor in Chief: Harold Schroeder, FCMC Managing Editor: Andrea Vandenberg Contributing Writers: Lynn Bennett, FCMC, Mary Blair, Blaine Canitz, CMC, Carl Friesen, CMC, Lacy Lauks, Jim Love, FCMC, David Tait, Darrell Toma, CMC, Andrea Vandenberg, Tony Wanless, CMC, Laurel Wood, CMC, Glenn Yonemitsu, CMC
Consult welcomes unsolicited manuscripts for publication, comments, letters to the editor, or ideas on themes. Please send all feedback and address changes to Canadian Association of Management Consultants (CMC-Canada), PO Box 20, 2004-401 Bay Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M5H 2Y4 or via email to consult@cmc-canada.ca
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consult magazine Summer 2012 3
PHOTOGRAPHER: NATION WONG
Gus Gillespie, FCMC, P.Eng, enjoying his sailboat.
IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE
Meeting life’s challenges with flying colours In retrospect, Gus believes his management consulting career choice suited him perfectly. It has given him and his family a wonderful life. BY MARY BLAIR, CMC-CANADA
Airplanes have fascinated Gus since he was six years old and one flew by, seemingly just over his head. So, after Grade 13, he joined the Royal Canadian Air Force, spent two years at Royal Roads Military College in Victoria, and finished an Electrical Engineering degree at Royal Military College in Kingston. After graduation, Gus finished his pilot training and flew the supersonic CF-101 VooDoo interceptor aircraft, before joining the Central Flying and Navigation School in Winnipeg. In 1971, the RCAF wanted to send him to Ottawa into a ground job with no access to flying. Instead, he accepted a scholarship to McMaster University. While there, Gus worked for one of his professors on a research project that gave him a taste for management consulting. Approaching graduation, Gus accepted a position at Woods Gordon (an independent Canadian consulting firm that eventually became part of Ernst & Young). He and wife Barb took possession of a new 23-foot sailboat (the down payment was made with a student loan) and spent the summer circumnavigating Lake Ontario. The next 18 years were spent working on a variety of projects, including assignments across Canada, the States,
Europe, and the Middle East – and welcoming two sons into the family: Dan and Adam. By 1991, Gus was spending too much time on the road, so he struck out on his own. His client base changed when he started his own company, moving from large projects for major companies to smaller projects for regional manufacturers. He renewed his flying qualifications and bought his own plane so he could more easily access clients in central North America. Some client relationships have been sustained for more than 20 years and Gus serves on the some of their boards, working as an advisor on a retainer basis rather than on projects. This transition has been a conscious and fulfilling choice, and is providing a rewarding transition into eventual retirement. In 1996, CMC-Canada was approached by the National Research Council to assist in setting up what became the Canadian Technology Network (CTN). Gus devoted a lot of volunteer time to this project. Hundreds of small Canadian businesses benefitted from the work he and other CMCs volunteered, and CMC-Canada now enjoys a national agreement with NRC-IRAP as a direct result.
Gus is an honoured Fellow of the Ontario Institute (FCMC), a Life Member, and an Ontario President’s Award winner. Since he became a Certified Management Consultant in 1977, he has sponsored 40 new members, was a Comprehensive Marker of the written exams, and conducted assessments of CMC candidates. He’s been a President and Past President of the Ontario Institute, and served on a number of committees. Several years ago, Gus co-founded the informal ‘Beaches’ branch of CMCs who meet irregularly at the Ashbridge’s Bay Yacht Club in eastern Toronto. His boat is moored there, and Gus devotes both time and muscle to the Club. In retrospect, Gus believes his management consulting career choice suited him perfectly. It has given him and his family a wonderful life (he and Barb are still in their ‘starter house’ in the Beaches). He’s met many fascinating people who started as clients and became good friends, has been involved in incredibly diverse situations, and he’s always learning – never remaining static. And as most CMCs will attest, management consulting isn’t for anyone intimidated by the prospect of constant change. However, it is never boring!
consult magazine Summer 2012 5
INDUSTRY INSIGHTS News and information about the management consulting industry and profession.
Global Consulting Revenues Grow
StatCan Launches Consulting Services Price Index (CSPI)
Global consulting industry revenues (including HR, IT, strategy, operations management, and business advisory services) will be about $391 billion in 2012, according to Plunkett Research estimates. This represents reasonable growth from $366 billion in 2011.
In 2010, Statistics Canada embarked on a project to improve its measures of price dynamics in the consulting services industry. The Index will collect information on the prices of several consulting services such as management, human resources, environmental, and scientific and technical consulting services. From this data, price indexes are constructed measuring changes in these prices over time. This survey is part of the Services Producer Price Index Program (SPPI) at Statistics Canada, and has been developed with contributions from CMCCanada. This initiative will fill an important data gap in the area of economic statistics and will result in a more comprehensive set of service price indexes.
Consulting is a somewhat cyclical industry. Consultancies posted significant growth from 2005 through 2007. However, 2008-09 marked a challenging period throughout the world, in light of the global economic slowdown and shrinking corporate budgets. In general, major consulting companies, including leading firms in man-agement consulting and HR consulting, along with other advisories such as accounting firms, found themselves with substantial drops in business during 2009, in many cases 5% to 10%. Some companies cut their employee rosters and/or restrained hiring. India’s largest outsourced business and technology consulting firms were complaining that
clients were delaying or cancelling projects as 2009 began. However, as of late 2009 and into early 2012, corporate profits in general have grown dramatically, meaning that executives are somewhat more willing to authorize new consulting projects as long as they see the potential for a good return on the cost. During 2010-11, for example, India’s leading consultancies enjoyed substantial growth in employee count and revenues, as did most of the global consulting firms based in the U.S. and EU. While corporate profits have been growing, government budgets in the U.S. and much of Europe are under tremendous pressure at the national, state, and local levels, where large tax revenues were down. This has been particularly hard on some consulting firms, since governmental agencies are prime clients for consultancies.
POSITIVE FACTORS FOR THE CONSULTING INDUSTRY OVER THE MID-TERM:
1
Continued growth in health care expenditures and significant changes in health care coverage are creating demand for consulting projects. This includes a focus on digital health records and a dramatic need for greater efficiency and cost control.
2
Consultancies that focus on projects that clearly reduce business costs and enhance operating ratios in a reasonably short period of time will find a ripe corporate market (such as consultants who focus on cash flow enhancement, supply chain efficiency and manufacturing efficiency).
3
Consultancies that have deep experience in debt restructuring and financial workouts will remain in high demand, particularly in the fields of commercial real estate and debt-financed acquisitions.
4
Vast new labyrinths of government regulation will create numerous opportunities for consultants who can show companies how to navigate rapidly changing relationships between government and certain industries, or deal with government oversight, particularly in financial services and health care.
5 6 7
Consultants who assist firms in lowering employee benefits costs are in high demand. Consultants in environmental specialties, such as carbon emissions and energy efficiency, will be in high demand. Consultants and advisors in the fields of corporate expansion into emerging markets, information technology, mergers and acquisitions will be in high demand.
Source: Plunkett Research, Ltd. (Copyright © 2012) http://www.plunkettresearch.com/consulting-market-research/industry-trends
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During the summer and fall of 2011, CMC-Canada worked with Statistics Canada by bringing together industry leaders to participate in information sessions, and to discuss aspects of the project’s design and development. Statistics Canada is pleased to announce that data collection is now underway for this survey. If you would like more information on the details and methods, visit http://www23. statcan.gc.ca:81/imdb/p2SV.pl?Function=ge tSurvey&SDDS=5194&lang=en&db=imdb&a dm=8&dis=2 You may also e-mail Statistics Canada at sppi.consulting@statcan.gc.ca or contact the survey administrator Mark Ruddock at 613-951-3698.
Grow!
The International Council for Management Consulting Institutes Celebrates its 25th Anniversary
The Institute of Management Consultants USA, in conjunction with the International Council of Management Consulting Institutes (ICMCI), will host a conference for management consultants at the Lake Buena Vista Palace in Orlando, FL, on October 4-6, 2012. Grow! The Conference for Successful Management Consultants, will help consultants from all sizes of firms to grow their practice. Hear from Charles Green, co-author with David Maister of ‘The Trusted Advisor’ speak about ‘Building Trusted Advisor Relationships.’ Or, understand ‘From Good to Guru: How to Become a Thought Leader,’ with Vicki Sullivan. Ford Saeks will discuss, ‘Innovative Marketing Mastery for Consultants,’ and Lenny Mendonca, from McKinsey and Company will share his thoughts on, ‘The Changing Nature of Business in Society.’ Members of the Canadian Association of Management Consultants receive the member rate. Visit cmc-canada.ca/go/otherevents for more details and to secure your spot.
EN 16114 In the last issue of Consult, we reported that the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) had issued the standard for management consulting, EN 16114. What does this mean? “The European Standard, ‘EN 16114 – management consultancy services,’ is an essential step for our industry. The commitment of all stakeholders involved in the development of the standard was driven by the prospect of more professionalism, better results from consultancy projects, and reduced barriers to cross-border trade in management consultancy services,” said Dr. Ilse Ennsfellner, Vice Chair of the International Council of Management Consulting Institutes and Chairperson of CEN/TC 381 Project Committee. The implementation and application of EN 16114 will improve transparency and understanding between clients and management consultancy service providers – a challenge expressed often by both clients and industry representatives. Visit www.en16114.eu for more information.
ICMCI’s core activities, focused on the promotion and improvement of the CMC value proposition, are designed to:
In May 1987, 32 management consultants from 10 countries met to explore the common ground between Professional Institutes and Certified Management Consultants (CMCs). At the end of the meetings, CMC-Canada became one of seven founding members of the International Council for Management Consulting Institutes (ICMCI). Since that day, ICMCI has grown to include Institutes from 50 countries around the globe, where the CMC designation is recognized. ICMCI’s primary role is to support National Certifying Institutes of Management Consulting, such as CMC-Canada. ICMCI will officially celebrate its 25th anniversary at its 2012 Annual Conference, which is being held concurrently with the IMC USA Grow! Conference, in Orlando, FL on October 4-6. In recognition of the role management consulting plays in world trade, ICMCI was granted Non Government Organization (NGO) status with Special Consulting Focus by the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) in 2001. Last year, ICMCI was instrumental in getting the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) to issue EN 16114 that recognizes the management consulting service standard.
•
Achieve common objectives to improve the profession.
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Elevate standards of management consultants worldwide and increase acceptance of management consulting as a respected profession.
•
Encourage reciprocity between national institutes with recognized universal standards and adherence to an International Code of Conduct.
•
Promote the value of the CMC to international bodies who influence the selecting and use of management consultants.
But, things are changing. ICMCI’s Breakthrough Strategy is designed to help ICMCI deliver more value to its member Institutes. Building a global community, and helping consultants to network around the globe is one initiative. Other priorities include attracting the large firms to adopt the CMC designation; building links to academia; providing more support for the National Institutes; strengthening the branding of the designation; ensuring a strong CMC standard; improving the governance model; and building a sustainable business model for ICMCI, are the key initiatives. A number of Canadian CMCs are involved in the committees advancing the ‘Breakthrough Strategy.’ Randy Baldwin, Alice Kubicek, Doug Macnamara, Dwight Mihalicz, Christa Hornberger, Gordon Harris, Noreen Irvine, Jim Parker, Leigh Harris-Fowell, Nick Lal, and Britt Haddy, are just a few of the Canadians volunteering to strengthen our profession around the globe.
CMC-Canada is one of the leaders of the ICMCI movement. Richard Harris, FCMC, Partner at KPMG Toronto, serves on the Executive Committee of ICMCI. Val Sluth, FCMC, from CMC-SK, Genevieve Bonin, FCMC, from CMC-ON, and Michael Thompson, FCMC, from CMC-BC, serve as Canadian Trustees to ICMCI. Former CMC-Canada leaders such as Heather Osler, Nick Shepherd, FCMC, Mark Nesbitt, FCMC, and Gerry Humphries, FCMC, have and continue to play key roles. consult magazine Summer 2012 7
GAME CHANGING ACTING LIKE AN ENTREPRENEURIAL USING STRATEGIC DISCOMFORT BY DAVID TAIT, ALIXPARTNERS LLP & GLENN YONEMITSU, CMC, CMC-CANADA
PHOTOGRAPHER: NATION WONG
consult magazine Summer 2012 9
Are you playing in a dynamic industry, where the competitive landscape is fast changing and unforgiving? How can you be a winner today and also tomorrow? The stock market and newspapers are littered with companies that were dominant, took their eye off the ball, and paid the price.
Headlines scream that Research in Motion (RIM) is in a ‘death spiral’ and that there will be little forward momentum left when the next operating system, Blackberry 10, is released in the first quarter of 2013. Yet, as recently as 2007, the Blackberry was hailed as, 1 “the undisputed king of the corporate email market.” Just a few months earlier, the Financial Times reported, “Research in Motion is certainly living up to its name. Shares in the Canadian maker of BlackBerry mobile 2 email devices jumped 20 per cent on Friday.” The future looked bright and didn’t foreshadow the current challenges RIM faces today, just five years later. Ironically, the FT article ironically compared RIM with Apple, “BlackBerry is enjoying success in mobile e-mail like Apple’s iPod/iTunes is in digital music.” Little did RIM executives and shareholders know that Apple would not only encroach on mobile e-mail, but would dominate smartphones in a short period of time. RIM is now vastly outsold by both Apple and Samsung, neither of which were making smartphones five years ago. But RIM isn’t the only company that has faced challenges like this. Many companies have owned their markets, but lost the lead – former leaders such as MySpace (social networking), Dell (build-to-order computers), Palm (handhelds), Nokia (cell phones), Janus Capital (growth investment fund), Blockbuster Entertainment (video rental), Digital Equipment Corporation (minicomputers), and even Apple Computers in the mid-1990’s. How do market leaders lose their lead? How can a company with a dominant market share allow a new entrant to steal its momentum? How can successful leaders miss a fundamental change to the basis for competition in their space? Part of the blame for failure of these industry leaders was due to overconfidence. They tasted success, which bred
10 consult magazine Summer 2012
confidence, which then caused complacency. The leaders believed the strategy that made them successful would continue to do so, and they knew their space best. It is this ego or arrogance that may be the primary issue that caused a lackluster response to new entrants or technology. Entrepreneurial Roots Consider an emerging firm with a hot, new technology or concept. They have an energetic workforce team, and they are focused. Expenses are building, cash reserves are scarce, revenues are just building, and these factors cause a sense of urgency. Everyone at the company knows they will “eat what they kill.” This situation describes many of the early stages of the companies mentioned earlier. Apple Computer needed to get a deposit from its only customer before the Steves (Jobs and Wozniak) could even could afford to buy the parts to assemble the computers. There was a hunger to succeed. Developing companies focus on a single goal – survival. Survival means you have to be better than the competition. You can’t just be equal, you have to be significantly better, to get attention and win customers. Revolution wins, as opposed to evolution. Witness Palm’s emergence as the leader in digital organizers in the 1990s against formidable competition from leading technology companies like Sharp. The Palm Pilot was like no other handheld. It forced millions of professionals to learn to write an entirely new alphabetic script to communicate with its devices. The Apple I and II were the first real personal computers and the Macintosh launched the first ‘graphical’ interface. MySpace was the first networking site where individuals shared their personal information with friends. The Apple I and II were the first real personal computers and later, the Macintosh launched its first ‘graphical’ interface. These hungry companies created or changed their industries.
This is the space where ‘strategic discomfort’ rests.
incremental innovation
evolutionary
disruptive
Success Breeds Complacency Then, as companies enjoy success, either the company gets funded thanks to a private placement or IPO, or they get acquired, all with an unbelievably high valuation. Money changes things. Hunger is replaced by confidence, greed, and arrogance, which leads to comfort, overheads and slower, evolutionary product development.
Perhaps this culture works for industries that are stable and the basis for competition is static. However, for dynamic, rapidly-changing, highly-competitive environments, it is best to nurture an entrepreneurial culture that generates the right attitude, creates urgency, and encourages out-of-the box thinking and breakthrough product development.
high
Take Google for example. It now offers industry – leading compensation, options, three square meals a day, games rooms, oil changes, rides to work, health clubs, and toilets that blow dry your bottom. Most progressive companies offer employee share ownership plans, options, and luxurious conference incentives/rewards. Wealth creation for the individual becomes the focus, instead of success for the firm.
Nurturing an Entrepreneurial Culture? Does this kind of paternalistic coddling create the right culture and generate a return on investment for the company, or alternatively, does it create overhead and bureaucracy that inevitably kills innovation and revolutionary development? Safety, care, and comfort take precedence.
financial services
PC operating system
low
GOOGLE OFFICE
industry competitiveness
Strategic Discomfort How do companies in dynamic, rapidly changing indusDo the creature comfortscompetitive tries stay hungry, stay focused on revolution, and keep doled out bywith Google or even dynamic the more mundane, but stable the conservatism from invading? generous benefits offered evolution andbydisruptive ‘The Best Employers’, create a more loyal, hard working, landline smartphone They keep changing the game. In two words, it is all about, and dedicated work force? carriers Mfgstrategic discomfort. When managers allow employees to set their own objectives and work independently with ‘lots of rope,’ and Strategic discomfort is a leaders create a culture of comfort, does this generate a leadership concept. It is about return on investment for the firm? Does it keep the firm stable and monopoly managing the culture, keeping hungry, with revolutionary product development? predictable
low
speed of change
the firm nimble, on edge, uncomfortable, and hungry.
Steve Jobs has been credited with being a visionary, someone who was crystal clear on knowing what the consumer high wanted. He not only knew how to apply technology in a way that simplifies user interactions, but Jobs did something else, possibly more important. Jobs’ leadership style kept everyone on the edge and in a space where they were never truly comfortable. This kind of culture is high pressure, causes employee stress and might not be for everyone, but it kept people on their toes, as they never felt complacent. Jobs created so much tension and anxiety that few employees would risk not giving 100% effort. His attention to detail and harsh feedback created an environment where employees were always over prepared and ready to answer, should they face a Jobsian question and answer session. In Jobs’ authorized biography, stories became legend, where, “word got around about Steve going into meetings, saying, “This is @#%!,” and firing people on the spot. People worried about getting trapped with him in an
consult magazine Summer 2012 11
elevator for a few seconds, afraid that they might not have 3 a job when the doors opened” to the extent that many employees purposefully chose to take the stairs rather than risk such an encounter. Jobs might not be the most loved leader, but did he generate results? The strategic discomfort concept builds upon the pioneering work of Clay Christensen in “The Innovators Dilemma” and Jim Collins and Jerry Porras’ work in ‘Built to Last.’ Christensen suggests there is a scale, where the two opposite polar ends are evolutionary (most companies) and disruptive technologies (revolutionary companies). In between, there is ‘incremental innovation.’ Collins and Porras suggest that great companies know what issues to keep sacred and what must change with competition.
became predictable and evolutionary. Wealthy employees were comfortable and not aggressive or hungry. The Blackberry 10 operating system may have great new benefits. But, it is needed now, not later, to stop consumer defections. It was promised in the spring of 2012, but will not be delivered until early 2013, indicating that the firm has lost the hunger and cannot hit deadlines as it did earlier. Tolerance of missed deadlines has become accepted company culture as witnessed by the delayed release of Blackberry 7 devices and long delays surrounding release of its table and subsequent operating system upgrades. Not for Every Situation But strategic discomfort is not for everyone. It is difficult and may have negative implications if applied in the wrong industry or situation. What type of environment are you competing in? For companies in a stable and predicable industry, where the speed of change and incremental the relative level of competitiveness are low,innovation then the need to remain aggressive and rapidly change is not as high. But watch your back because disruptive innovation may creep up on any industry.
It is tough to keep the rapid pace of change going – operating in the disruptive mode can only last for so long. It is hard on employees over the long-term. But, by operating in the hybrid stage, incremental innovation is sustainable for a longer period of time. evolutionaryDetermine whether the speed of change in your industry
When Ted was leading the company, 11 pm on Sunday evening was not sacred. Ted would call his managers, whenever he needed them. Rogers was renowned for his knowledge of details and investigated expenses down to the smallest amounts. During his leadership, the company aggressively pursued its vision of multimedia convergence while becoming the largest wireless operator in Canada, because of his dogged determination, strong leadership, and the desire of company managers not to encounter his wrath. Companies like Research in Motion have experienced success, but once their managers and leadership were ‘in the money,’ other interests took precedence, innovation died, and conservatism grew. Product development
12 consult magazine Summer 2012
high
Ted Rogers, the visionary founder and CEO of Rogers Communication, clearly maintained a level of strategic discomfort. One executive, who joined another Canadian telco after an unfortunate encounter with Ted, stated “at my new company, the meetings are boring. We create a plan, and have regular updates to review progress. At Rogers, we created a plan, and then met again three days later to hear Ted rip it apart and force us to start again.”
In terms of industry competitiveness, are the main players the same from five or ten years ago? Or, are there competitors who were not even in business a few years ago? Six years ago, Nokia, Sony-Ericsson, and Motorola were the leading mobile phone manufacturers. Samsung was a minor player and Apple had not yet entered the market. But, by 2011 – Samsung overtook Nokia in units shipped, while Apple surpassed Nokia in profits generated from smartphones. Today, Apple has sold more than 175 million phones.
competitive with stable evolution landline carriers
dynamic and disruptive smartphone Mfg
stable and predictable financial services
monopoly PC operating system
low
This culture can be considered ‘strategic’ because it is preplanned and premeditated. To outsiders, it may appear that it is based on the personality of a dynamic and charismatic leader. By continually challenging the organization to surpass stretch targets, and then beat them again, some of the most successful companies thrive, grow, and dominate their industries based on maintaining strategic discomfort over a long period of time.
industry competitiveness
Incremental innovation is all about building a culture where there is always some lack of comfort. This helps generate the right level of accountability and results.
is high. Has the basis for competition remained consistent over the past five years? Or, are there new technologies or products that have changed the whole business model? Have you moved upmarket to avoid price competition?
low
high
speed of change
d
Leaders must create a sense of urgency and can do so by ensuring the project team members know there is an inordinate amount of attention on the success of the team. The strategic discomfort concept is directly aimed at industries weird spacing the speed of change and industry competitiveness are high. These are industries where new entrants or ‘disruptors,’ as defined by Clay Christensen in ‘The Innovator’s Dilemma,’ are rampant and always presenting themselves. Companies that play in this quadrant must remain hungry and need to continually revolutionize their product offering – due to the competitive threat. Building a Culture of Discomfort It all starts with leadership. Strategic discomfort requires great discipline, focus, and attention by company leaders. There some key tactics that leaders can employ to create this strategically uncomfortable culture.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Providing significant leadership attention and visibility Building personal commitment Creating great urgency and dependency on a key project Communicating high expectations – ‘stretch’ objectives Setting tight timeframes Directing scarce resources to ‘the’ project and limiting resources to other projects Setting frequent milestones and udates
Leaders must create a sense of urgency and can do so by ensuring the project team members know there is an inordinate amount of attention on the success of the team. The leader can also increase the hunger by allocating a disproportionate amount of resources to support this project, combined with a scarce allocation of similar resources to other projects. Finally, setting frequent milestones where team members and leaders hold each other accountable helps keep the project moving forward in a timely fashion. Strategic Discomfort is Strategic Choice All this may sound like the team is being placed in an unenviable and high pressure position, but this is exactly
the type of environment that leads to superior performance. Think of the most successful teams you've been a part of, where people delivered beyond their skill level, and chances are they also achieved the most significant and unlikely event. As well, many leaders may suggest that Strategic Discomfort is nothing more than focusing the company’s resources and isn’t that… strategy? Too many leaders are not strategic: they spread critical scarce resources thinly across too many priorities. They fail to focus, yet very few priorities will really make a difference. They succumb to too many pet projects because it is easier than saying no. They fail to find the focus that causes strategic discomfort and challenges an organization to perform beyond expectations. Alan Deutschman, in his book chronicling Steve Jobs return to Apple in 1998 wrote, “Still, there was always an undercurrent of tension, and Steve would occasionally upbraid people if they didn’t seem to realize the urgency of the situation. Gil had made extensive cuts, but Steve was going to cut a lot more. Steve said that he would keep only the great products and the profitable products. If something were unprofitable but strategic, its managers 4 would have to argue for its continued existence.” By never losing focus on the basic entrepreneurial tenets of focus, survival, and discipline, companies can stay hungry. The pressure tactics outlined above are no different than replicating the natural culture felt by emerging companies, fighting for survival. Strategic Discomfort is all about focus. It is about building an entrepreneurial culture in a successful organization. It changes the game. And in the end, vision, focus, discipline, and urgency are what strategy is all about – the allocation of scarce resources to initiatives that are prioritized as most important to your company.
1. 2. 3. 4.
‘Rim Blackberry Pearl 8100’, (London, UK: Personal Computer World, January 2007). ‘RIM/BlackBerry’, (London, UK: Financial Times, September 29, 2006). Walter Issacson, ‘Steve Jobs,’ (New York: Simon & Schuster, 2011). Alan Deutschman, ‘The Once and Future Steve Jobs’, (New York: Salon.com, October 11, 2000).
DIG DEEPER:
• Glenn Yonemitsu, CMC, is the Chief Executive Officer of the Canadian Association of Management Consultants (cmc-canada.ca) and David Tait, is a Director of AlixPartners in their New York office. Both authors focus their practices on strategy and leadership.
consult magazine Summer 2012 13
COAST TO COAST Events, news, and happenings at CMC-Canada
Vancouver Victoria
“Lean is more than a tool, it’s a philosophy requiring a cultural shift in an organization from traditional to value-added ways of doing business.” Dan Florizone, Saskatchewan Deputy Minister of Health
Dan Florizone, Saskatchewan Deputy Minister of Health, spoke at a sold-out February 28 event in Vancouver about his province’s LEAN journey since 2005. He explored how ‘Lean Thinking’ has been implemented in Saskatchewan’s healthcare system to improve quality and service, and to reduce costs. Lean is based on the continuous pursuit of improvement by eliminating all non-value adding activities and reducing waste within an organization.
BC
14 consult magazine Summer 2012
Plans are well underway for CMC-Alberta’s fifth annual conference: this year in Calgary (in October). The Alberta Institute hosted two
AB successful luncheon events in Calgary and Edmonton in February to help raise the awareness of the CMC designation to MBA students and other attendees. In April, a panel of four seasoned FCMCs (Don Cummings, Chris Lavin, Dawn Ringrose, and Jane Somerville) explored how to build and run a successful consulting practice – how values help drive who you are, and how the market will recognize that in your work, thereby building credibility and trust. The group discussed the ‘business management aspect’ of a firm and how to build a leveraged business model for success.
Calgary
The Essentials of Management Consulting course was held live for the first time in Saskatchewan in April. Eighteen people attended the three-day course. A day after hosting an information
SK session and networking event for
prospective members, CMC-SK presented ‘Cocktails and Facebook’ on March 1. Attendees enjoyed a presentation with David Bellerive, who demonstrated how to leverage social media, and how social networking methods such as LinkedIn and Facebook can add value to a consulting practice.
NEWFOUNDLAND AND LABRADOR
St. John’s
QUÉBEC
NEW BRUNSWICK
Québec City
PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND NOVA SCOTIA
“Mission driven is to overcome the resistance to change.” Dr. Chris Bart, DeGroote School of Business, McMaster University
Greater Toronto Area
Douglas Finkbeiner Q.C., Partner, Taylor McCaffrey LLP provided his perspective to Manitoba members in April on professional liability and risk mitigation to minimize the likelihood of being sued, losing money, or losing your practice. Members from coast to coast are reminded to ensure their Errors and Omissions Insurance meets their needs. In January, the Manitoba Institute MB was a sponsor of WinnOvation 2012, where innovators worked to convince judges that their idea had the highest potential to return the maximum amount of money to investors. Audience members cast a vote to determine the winner of the ‘Certified Management Consultants’ Audience Vote.’ The winner received a prize package including services from CMC-Manitoba members and $1,000 in cash.
ON At the GTA’s Leadership Thought Forum, Dr. Chris Bart, DeGroote School of Business, McMaster University – an expert on mission statements – focused on how vitally important the mission statement is to every organization. Based on over 20 years of research, he demonstrated how to transform your organization's mission statement from murk into a masterpiece that inspires action and achievement. “Five reasons why someone won’t do what you want them to do: 1. They don’t know what. 2. They don’t know why. 3. They don’t know how to do it. 4. They don’t care. 5. They don’t get it.”
“Today's consultant must be able to not only utilize the power of social and digital media for their own personal branding and business promotion, but are increasingly called upon to assist clients with their own evolution into the digital and social media world.” Lyle Wetsch, MBA, MSc, Mgmt, Associate Professor of Marketing, Faculty of Business Administration, Memorial University of Newfoundland speaking to members in St. John’s on social media.
This April 18 session provided members in Atlantic Canada with an introduction to the rapidly evolving world of social media, followed by a lively Q & A.
AC
Eastern Ontario
ON “On average, the Government of Canada spends more than $90 million per working day on Goods and Services. In the 4th quarter, the average spend per working day jumps to $130 million!” – Shereen Benzvy Miller, Director General, Office of Small and Medium Enterprises and Client Engagement Sector, speaking to members in Ottawa in December 2011.
consult magazine Summer 2012 15
CANADA’S ECONOMIC ACTION PLAN: HOW CMCs CAN HELP CREATE A NATIONAL CULTURE OF
INN V BY LAUREL WOOD, MBA, CMC, MNP LLP & LACY LAUKS, MSc, MNP LLP
Canada’s productivity challenges have long puzzled economists and researchers. However, if there is one thing that the experts agree upon, it is that investing in innovation will be a key driver of both long-term productivity growth and an increased per-capita standard of living. In addition to innovation, investment in capital equipment is also considered essential and unfortunately, these are two metrics 1 on which Canada has chronically lagged . The impact is evident: between 2000 and 2010, Canada’s labour productivity (output per hour worked) grew at an average annual pace of 0.9 percent. That is about half the growth rate experienced by other G7 industrialized countries 2 and only 40 percent of the increase realized by the U.S.
16 consult magazine Summer 2012
The federal government’s Economic Action Plan (EAP) was first introduced in 2009, in part to correct this trend. It was also developed to mitigate the effects of the severe global economic downturn by encouraging spending, addressing infrastructure needs, accelerating housing construction, and fuelling job creation to support local businesses and communities. That plan has now evolved into the federal government’s Economic Action Plan 2012 (EAP 2012), which focuses on the central challenges the economy is facing over the long-term, including increased competition from emerging markets, a global economy that remains fragile, heightened demand for public finances and social programs, and, most importantly, supporting innovation and productivity growth.
VATION “Moving the needle on innovation to create productivity gains and enhance Canada’s global competitive position comes down to what individual Canadian businesses can accomplish. They must inspire, empower, and hold accountable the individuals and teams responsible for delivering results. They have to establish a compelling vision and clear strategy, optimize processes, assure quality, and design organization structures for efficiency and competitive advantage. As professional consultants, these are things we help clients with everyday,” explains Ed Mansfield, MS, Ph.D., MNP Partner and Economic Consulting Leader.
Of course, one cannot have a discussion about enhancing Canada’s position in the global economy without talking about the critical role of technology in business. Here too, Certified Management Consultants (CMCs) have an interest and a part to play. Canada’s Digital Economic Strategy is aimed at propelling the country to the forefront of the digital economy, thereby positioning us to compete globally. As stated by the Minister of Industry, the Honourable Christian Paradis: “As a nation, we need to take more risks, think more creatively, and act more boldly 3 to claim our place in the global digital economy .” The Digital Economic Strategy dovetails with the goals of the Economic Action Plan by addressing some of the issues underlying the complex challenge of increasing Canadian competitiveness. A few of the highlights are:
consult magazine Summer 2012 17
Laurel Wood, MBA, CMC Executive Vice President, MNP LLP
“Investing in innovation will be a key driver of an increased per-capita standard of living.”
Ed Mansfield, Ph.D. MNP Partner and Economic Consulting Leader, MNP LLP
“Moving the needle on innovation to create productivity gains and enhance Canada’s global competitive.”
• A goal to position Canada as a leader in the creation, adoption, and use of digital technologies and content by 2020. • Investment of significant funds to leverage increased private sector investments in early-stage risk capital, including a $400 million investment to support the creation of large-scale venture capital funds led by the private sector. • Allocation of $110 million per year for the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC-IRAP), doubling the support available to companies. • Expansion of the Industrial Research and Development Internship Program to help students get hands-on research experience in innovative Canadian firms, while giving businesses access to the talent they need to compete. • Investment in Broadband Canada to bring faster Internet speeds to nearly 218,000 Canadian households and commitment to make more spectrum available through the upcoming spectrum auction. “At MNP, our entrepreneurial approach to our own business inspires our consultants to be innovative in optimizing strategy, process, people, and technology in
18 consult magazine Summer 2012
Mackenzie Kyle, MBA Author of Making It Happen and MNP’s Managing Partner for B.C.
“Our teams work collaboratively with clients to unlock the potential in every situation.”
client situations. Whether for public sector organizations, that are perpetually compelled to do more with less, or private sector companies where the business environment is ever changing, our teams work collaboratively with clients to unlock the potential in every situation.” says Mackenzie Kyle, MBA, author of Making It Happen and MNP’s Managing Partner for B.C. Consulting. Public policy makers must help create the conditions for success by supporting innovation and productivity improvement as the global economy continues to shift. At the same time, Canadian businesses must take up the challenge of developing and implementing gamechanging strategies. As professional consultants, CMCs can help bridge the gap between understanding that change is needed, and determining how to create results at the organizational level. To play our part, we must continue to invest in our own knowledge and expertise and understand the important role we play in contributing to a national culture of innovation. 1. http://www.irpp.org/cpa/briefs/sharpe.pdf 2. CD Howe Institute Commentary Fiscal and Tax Competitiveness. Rewarding Innovation: Improving federal tax support for business R&D in Canada by Mark Parsons 3. http://news.gc.ca/web/article-eng.do?mthd=tp&crtr.page=1&nid=670829&crtr.tp1D=1 DIG DEEPER:
• Canada’s Economic Action Plan: www.actionplan.gc.ca/eng/index.asp • CMC-Canada Announces Agreement with the Digital Technology Adoption Pilot Program (DTAPP): www.cmc-canada.ca/Media/documents/20120210-DTAPP_Release.pdf
Youroffice away from theoffice. Introducing the CMC Business Lounge Stuck in downtown Toronto and need a place to hang your hat? Want to catch up on work, prepare, or unwind between meetings? Your business demands a higher level of communication and productivity—no more noisy coffee shops, dropped calls, and rushed emails. Located in the heart of Canada’s financial district, the CMC Business Lounge offers 1,500 sq. ft. of modern office space available for your use. Book space for client meetings, signings, or just drop in and have a flexible place to work—whatever your need, we have you covered. CMC-Canada members can access the CMC Business Lounge with a nominal daily fee, a monthly fee, or our best value, an annual subscription. To subscribe/for more information, please visit cmc-canada.ca or email businesslounge@cmc-canada.ca
cmc-canada.ca/businesslounge
PERCEPTIONS OF MANAGEMENT CONSULTANTS BY TONY WANLESS, CMC KNOWPRENEUR CONSULTANTS
20 consult magazine Summer 2012
PHOTOGRAPHER: LYLE STAFFORD
“The general public has little familiarity with management consulting or what it involves. Surprisingly, many business people (and potential clients) don’t either.”
We’ve all heard the jokes. The management consultant who can’t tell the difference between a sheep and a dog but still ultra analyzes how a farmer should tend his flock; that consultants are slick and shady salesmen who often haven’t a clue what they’re talking about – but certainly sound good when they say it.
use of the slogan “A higher level of management consulting,” and promotional campaigns aimed at impressing in the minds of the public and industry that CMCs are a cut above the sea of people calling themselves consultants these days.
Is this the perception of management consultants – that they are a collection of greedy, often grasping, obfuscators or over-analytical fools who spend far too much time selling their expensive services and far too little creating tangible and actionable results? If so, then Certified Management Consultants (CMCs) and non-CMCs alike, have a reputation problem that requires a great deal of repair.
“The perception is out there because people have no knowledge of what management consulting means,” observed Glenn Yonemitsu, CEO of CMC-Canada. “Partly that’s due to the nature of what we do. People think it [consulting] comes out of our heads. They don’t recognize that it’s not an art – it’s a science. Also, much of what we do is confidential so we’re not allowed to talk about it.”
It is, of course, difficult for the general public to understand what management consultants do – they rarely meet or hear of them except when they are told that some ‘consultants’ have told their employers to cut staff. This general public view is reinforced in pop culture, such as the book, ‘House of Lies: How Management Consultants Steal Your Watch and Then Tell You the Time,’ by Martin Kihn, as well as the television comedy series also called ‘House of Lies.’ The show’s characters display every vile characteristic of the joked-about consultants. But more seriously, this view may be spreading among clients and potential clients in the wake of some high-level sins committed by ‘management consultants’ in the United States. These incidents involved insider trading by management consultants who moved over to the client side, but they paint working consultants with the same brush. Tom Rodenhauser, managing director of Kennedy’s Advisory Services, commented on recent events involving consultants and ex-consultants, and described the state of the profession’s perception: “Client concerns regarding consultants are increasingly focused on the ‘trust issue’... The global financial crisis and ensuing recession put a notso-flattering spotlight on the consulting industry... bashthe-consultant underlies the fact that consulting remains inherently unregulated.” The Canadian Association of Management Consultants (CMC-Canada) is attempting to change this perception with its certification programs – a form of self-regulation –
But it can be a hard slog because the general public has little familiarity with management consulting or what it involves. Surprisingly, many business people (and potential clients) don’t either.’
CMC-Canada goes to great lengths to educate the public about management consulting, particularly on its website, but it will take some time, Yonemitsu says. “It took 20 years of this kind of investment for the CMAs to break through in the public perception.” But it requires more than just public knowledge, adds Sheila Carruthers, an FCMC who operates the Calgarybased communications and corporate social responsibility firm CSR Strategies and occasionally is brought in by companies to do reputation management or repair. It requires trust and management consultants’ best method of gaining that trust lies with the differentiating power of the Code of Professional Conduct. “Reputation is hard to gain and easily lost,” she said. “My reputation (as trustworthy) is that I can stand behind the Code. I have found that it’s a door opener because it inspires confidence.” “If we’re to improve the management consultant’s reputation, we have to promote the Code. It’s a leverage point beyond our personal corporate reputations.”
DIG DEEPER:
• Martin Kihn, ‘House of Lies: How Management Consultants Steal Your Watch and Then Tell You the Time:’ www.martykihn.com/index.html • HBO House of Lies: www.themovienetwork.ca/series/houseoflies/ • Code of Professional Conduct: www.cmc-canada.ca/go/code
consult magazine Summer 2012 21
PASSION IN THE PROFESSION
“Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young.” —HENRY FORD
TEACHING CMC-Canada’s mission is to “advance the practice and profile of management consulting in Canada through the education and certification of consultants.” To achieve this, the association encourages its members to complete the required courses to obtain their Certified Management Consultant (CMC) designation – demonstrating their commitment to best practices in management consulting. The individuals featured here are the ‘front-line workers’ who help raise the standards of the profession and teach members what it takes to be a great, not simply good, consultant. Not only have these leaders obtained the CMC (or FCMC) designation, they also dedicate their time to train the next generation of management consultants – sharing their extensive knowledge, experience, and passion for the profession. BY ANDREA VANDENBERG, CMC-CANADA
22 consult magazine Summer 2012
PHOTOGRAPHER: NATION WONG
FROM LEFT TO RIGHT:
Janice Horne, CMC, Partner, Advisory Services, KPMG LLP Nicholas Lal, MBA, CMC, Senior Manager, Advisory Services, KPMG LLP Christopher J. Carter, CMC, PMP, Senior Manager, Advisory, KPMG LLP Raheel Zaman, MBA, CMC, P.Eng, Senior Manager, KPMG LLP
WHAT DO YOU LIKE THE MOST ABOUT TEACHING?
WHAT ARE YOUR GOALS FOR THE ‘ESSENTIALS OF MANAGEMENT CONSULTING’ COURSE?
Christopher:Every time I teach, I get re-energized and re-motivated. It reminds me why I became a consultant in the first place. In my view, consulting can be a calling, and I love the twoway learning that results in this type of course: I learn from the participants and I can share my experience and perspective with others who are starting out on their journey.
Christopher: To help participants see consulting as a process undertaken by them and their client. The best deliverable is not in fact the report you leave behind, but the process of how the client was engaged to produce the deliverable – and most importantly the momentum developed to sustain the desired outcomes.
Nicholas: I enjoy the opportunity to engage those who are new to the profession of management consulting and to learn from their many experiences. I can utilize and develop different skills beyond those I use in my day-to-day career.
Nicholas: To give every student the opportunity to engage in a fun, informative, and interactive course in which they are able to learn, strengthen, and apply the fundamental competencies and tools of management consulting.
Raheel: Helping others develop a better understanding of something that may be a part of their professional lives. It’s a wonderful way of sharing lessons learned… so others can benefit from our collective experience. Teaching is a way for me to further extend my own knowledge of the subject area that I am presenting.
Raheel: To help ‘de-mystify’ the management consulting craft by demonstrating the logical relationship between analyses, distilling the findings, and constructing options for moving forward – through the use of process, tools, and subject matter expertise.
WHAT IS YOUR TEACHING PHILOSOPHY? Raheel: The material must be presented in such a way as to connect with the participants. Keep it practical, and reinforce through examples and real life ‘learnings.’ Anticipate the questions or areas that the participants may find challenging and develop an approach to help extend the understanding in this area. Christopher: My philosophy, to the extent that I have one, is best described as ‘less is more.’ Wading through content is not my style – I vastly prefer to facilitate a conversation about the implications of key concepts. My role is to provide a learning frame, within which the participants draw on their experience to make content come alive. Nicholas: To facilitate meaningful discussion around each content area so each student has the opportunity to contribute their own knowledge and experience to the class. In addition, it is important to explore new or challenging areas so that we can each continue to advance our skill set and grow as professionals.
consult magazine Summer 2012 23
PHOTOGRAPHER: JEREMY BREHM
LEFT:
Sheila Carruthers, MBA, CMC, CSR Strategies Inc. Shilpa Stocker, MBA, FCMC, Westwinds Management Solutions Inc.
RIGHT:
WHAT DO YOU LIKE THE MOST ABOUT TEACHING? Shilpa: The diversity of skills, capabilities, and technical expertise that students have gives us the opportunity to provide an enriched learning experience. Especially true with adult learners, the ‘classroom’ becomes a journey for everyone in the room that participates. Sheila: I learn more about management consulting every time I deliver the course. I try to keep up to date on tools and processes being used by consultants – particularly my peer CMCs, plus I learn from the course participants, who are often subject-matter experts. WHAT ARE YOUR GOALS FOR THE ‘ESSENTIALS OF MANAGEMENT CONSULTING’ COURSE? Shilpa: I find that individuals who participate in the course are looking for a framework for the activities that they are already conducting in their consulting work. So, one of my goals is to provide context and structure for their consulting activities. Additionally, ensuring that participants adhere to the Code of Conduct
24 consult magazine Summer 2012
and understand the importance of keeping the client’s best interest at heart as they seek and execute consulting assignments. Sheila: To impart to each course participant an appreciation for the value of being a professional management consultant and give him or her the tools and processes they need to be effective. Course participants often tell me their greatest take-away is their new self-confidence in working as a consultant. WHICH PART OF THE COURSE DO STUDENTS RESPOND MOST FAVORABLY TO? Shilpa: While students seek the framework and the foundation, they also enjoy being able to align theory with practice. We help them with this alignment by sharing our experiences and asking them to share their practices as we discuss the consulting process and the tools that are applicable at each stage of the process. Theoretic discussions about processes and tools provide a foundation for the learning, but the scenario and practical-based discussions add life to the classroom and result in brain
‘muscle’ memory that will live on in consulting engagements. Sheila: The hands-on part, i.e. exploring the process of management consulting by working through the case study. WHAT IS YOUR TEACHING PHILOSOPHY? Shilpa: To me, success in teaching means that the instructor as well as the participant walks away with a greater understanding of not only the course material, but the strength of its application in practical settings. No two classes are alike, even though the course material maybe the same. As an instructor, after each course offering, I walk away with ways to enhance the course content and delivery as a result of what I have learned from the participants. Teaching is a win-win for instructors and participants alike! Sheila: I do my best to draw upon the course participants’ expertise and experiences. Even though sometimes I find myself having to lecture some pieces of information, I see my role as being more of a facilitator of knowledge transfer and use that approach as much as I can.
PHOTOGRAPHER: NATION WONG
Peter Milsom, CMC, PMP, Strategic Advisor (Consultant), Business Analysis & Data Management (BADM) Division, Environment Canada Murray Kronick, FCMC, Principal, Business Performance, Interis Consulting Inc. RIGHT: Ron Brophy, MBA, CMC, Managing Partner, The Northbridge Group Inc. LEFT:
MIDDLE:
Murray: I believe in the timeless expression of “the best way to learn is to teach.” Teaching keeps me at the top of my game, keeping me current, and allows me to connect with up-andcoming management consulting professionals.
importance of the Uniform Code of Professional Conduct and how the CMC designation can set them apart from other management consultants. 3. I have a responsibility to contribute to the development of the course content, to keep it current and relevant in an ever-changing market.
Ron: It’s a privilege to share the proven concepts, processes, and tools of the management consulting profession with keen young minds intent on pursuing consulting as a career choice. It feels good to know that I’ve played a role in helping them earn the CMC designation.
Murray: To ensure that all professional management consultants use a consistent framework and approach to engaging our clients. Indirectly, this also make our clients better buyers of our services, and differentiates CMCs from other practitioners in the eyes of the client.
Peter: There are huge rewards in taking one’s experience and providing the lessons learned from successes or, better yet, failures in a simple memorable example. I continue to invest in courses and attend conferences, and I really enjoy passing on the tried and true methods, processes, and tools (frequently ‘re-packaged’), as well as leading edge content.
Peter: My goal is to provide real life examples and stories from the field to put the training material into perspective, and show where these tools and processes provide real value to the client.
WHAT ARE YOUR GOALS FOR THE ‘ESSENTIALS OF MANAGEMENT CONSULTING’ COURSE?
Ron: There are two aspects of the course that seem to resonate with them. The first is the team-based competitive environment that simulates a real client-consultant relationship and pits teams against others who compete for the business. The second is how the facilitators bring the management consulting process to life by sharing their own client experiences to highlight the underlying fundamentals of a successful relationship with clients.
WHAT DO YOU LIKE THE MOST ABOUT TEACHING?
Ron: I have three goals: 1. It is not just about transferring knowledge about the management consulting process and tools. It’s just as much about lighting a fire in the bellies of CMC candidates and getting them excited about the profession. 2. To instill in the students the fundamental
WHICH PART OF THE COURSE DO STUDENTS RESPOND MOST FAVORABLY TO?
Murray: First, the overall 5-step process framework – I liken it to first seeing the picture on the box of the jigsaw puzzle you have been working on, with only a few pieces. Second, the ‘war stories’ that we as experienced instructors share with the participants to bring the material alive. WHAT IS YOUR TEACHING PHILOSOPHY? Ron: The delivery of course content on its own is not going to motivate or inspire a student to say, “I want to be a management consultant. I want to be a CMC.” I believe that the course content, the learning, and the process needs to be brought to life in the context of the facilitator’s real life experiences, successes, and failures. Only then can the student begin to draw on his or her own client relationships for the learning to take hold. Peter: Teaching is a conversation. Providing a one-way monologue to the students will neither educate nor inspire the class to want to learn more and continuously question the context. The dialogue has to be two way. When the class is passionately engaged and completely ignoring their PDAs, you have an opportunity to push the envelope so they want to learn more. Courses like this provide unique opportunities for professionals to realize where their strengths and weaknesses are, and where to focus their studies. Murray: FIRE – Fun, Interactive, Respectful, and Engaging!
consult magazine Summer 2012 25
PUT YOUR EXPERTISE IN THE BEST LIGHT. FROM A CONSULTANT’S POINT OF VIEW, CATCHING THE ATTENTION OF POTENTIAL CLIENTS LIKE JANET’S BANK MEANS DEVELOPING A CONTENT MARKETING PROGRAM THAT SHOWCASES THEIR EXPERTISE, SO THAT THEIR ‘TRACKS’ CAN BE FOUND BY ONLINE SEARCHERS.
HOW’S YOUR ASSET?
WOULD A POTENTIAL CLIENT LOOKING FOR YOUR EXPERTISE FIND YOU? BY CARL FRIESEN,
CMC GLOBAL REACH COMMUNICATIONS INC.
I had lunch recently with a friend I’ll call ‘Janet’ who works with one of Canada’s biggest banks, managing a team that sources external expertise when the bank needs to solve a specific problem but doesn’t have the skills in-house. As Janet told me, “we hire a ton of consultants.” I figured she could shed some light on how the bank determines whether a self-proclaimed ‘expert’ is best for a particular assignment. She said that the process starts with a researcher doing online keyword searches to compile a list of consultants. Janet’s team then gets to work qualifying people on the list. They look for articles that each purported ‘expert’ has published, papers they’ve authored, speaking engagements completed, their blog, how often they’ve been quoted in the news media, courses they’ve taught, and other indications of expertise. Eventually, it will come down to fact-finding interviews with subject-matter experts on the short list, and then selection of the best service provider. So, let’s imagine that Janet’s bank has a need that exactly matches your area of expertise. Would her researcher pull up your name as someone connected to the expertise he was asked to search for? And if so, would the team find enough evidence of your expertise to put you on the short list? Companies like Janet’s bank are living with the results of a decade-long trend towards a focus on core competencies, outsourcing much of what is not part of their direct service offering. They also live in a rapidly-spinning world in which they need to cope with new challenges constantly. So, they need to look for outsourced expertise – and it’s usually a highly specific set of skills.
Three types of content that are the most powerful for showing expertise, are:
Trend Think of a topic your would-be clients are facing – maybe dealing with the growth of cloud-based systems – and give your informed opinion on it. Describe its past and present, and your view on the future. Provide advice on how to avoid problems and gain benefits.
News Analysis Pick a recent development that will affect your market – possibly a disruptive new technology or new legislation. Analyze its effects and give your recommendations.
Review Think of a piece of software, hardware, app, book, or other product that people in your market might buy. Describe how it compares to its competition, and analyze its strengths and limitations.
Think like a publisher In some cases, you can publish your ideas through already-existing media such as business and trade magazines that are read by people in your market. These publications’ websites are also good places to get your ideas in front of the right people – as are the sites of professional and trade associations. Many influential bloggers are interested in contributions from others. Your LinkedIn profile is a good place to publish content – through links in the Update section of your profile, in Publications, and in Events, where you list the presentations you have given. Bring your ideas to life through a slide show – done in PowerPoint, uploaded to SlideShare, and posted on your LinkedIn profile. Teaching courses, while famously low-paying, is a good way to demonstrate credibility. Think beyond the traditional classroom to conducting webinars, and being part of online learning programs such as Udemy. A determined and consistent Twitter program can help you become a recognized source of information in your area of expertise. It’s important to recognize that demonstrating thought leadership requires long-term commitment and investment. But it pays off when prospective clients take the initiative to contact you, and they are already well aware of the value that you offer.
DIG DEEPER:
• • • •
Thought Leader: www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thought_leader SlideShare: www.slideshare.net Udemy: www.udemy.com CMC-Canada Member Directory: http://www.cmc canada.ca/ Find_A_Consultant/member_search.cfm?group=Member%20Directory
consult magazine Summer 2012 27
BUZZ News directly from the Institutes and Member Services Committees (Chapters)
01/CMC-British Columbia Announcements Last year’s strategic plan is having an impact: partnerships have been fortified and we are witnessing a slowdown in lapsed memberships and an increase in new applicants. The attendance, quality, and frequency of our professional development events has drastically improved, and we sense renewed excitement about CMC-Canada membership and the great value it brings members and their clients. At least one major consumer of management consulting services has declared the CMC designation to be a desirable qualification in procurement. New board members • Jean Douglas, President of Douglas Communications Inc. is our new Council Secretary, replacing Deb Bourne. • Gerard Edwards, Senior Partner at Incisive
Marketing Inc. is a new Director-at-Large. • Mary O’Callaghan, Partner Advisory Services
at KPMG is also a new Director-at-Large. New CMCs/FCMCs Congratulations to our newest CMCs: Marg Latham, Dawn McCooey, Monica Morgan, Alexander Ralph, Noel Carawan, Christopher Carmack, Homayoun Khatami, and Doug Walker. Work with other associations • Our joint CMC-BC/CMA-BC annual conference in Kelowna on March 10 was a huge success, resulting in some CMAs seeking certification as a CMC. • Our participation at the annual confer-
ence of the Association of Professional Biologists (APB) in Nelson, BC in early May resulted in similar interest on the part of APB members. • CMC-BC will soon sign a Memorandum
of Understanding (MoU) with its counterparts in Seattle and Portland to create a new Cascadia Region for raising awareness and fostering CMC-Canada membership growth. • We are working on an agreement with
the School of Business at Simon Fraser University (SFU) to stream MBA graduates into CMC-Canada. • Royal Roads University (RRU) is conducting
a study on what it would take to increase adoption of the CMC designation as a desirable qualification in consulting procurement.
28 consult magazine Summer 2012
New policies At our May 17 AGM, CMC-BC passed a bylaw amendment making it easier for members who do not practice management consulting day-in-day-out, but whom nonetheless make a significant contribution to our community of practice (e.g., Professors at Schools of Business), to earn CPD points and retain their memberships.
02/CMC-Manitoba Announcements The Province of Manitoba proclaimed October 20, 2011 as Management Consultants Day in Manitoba. The Day marks the celebration of the twenty-fifth anniversary of the recognition of the Certified Management Consultants (CMC) designation by the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba through The Institute of Certified Management Consultants of Manitoba Act (C.C.S.M. c. C47). 2012-2013 board members President | Randy Baldwin, Kelwin Management Consulting Vice President | Timothy Wildman, Sierra Systems
03/CMC-Ontario Ontario is still lagging behind its stretch goals for membership to get 200 new members in 2012. The results for May and June are the best for many months. The Refer-a-Member initiative started to gain some momentum with a friendly competition amongst Council members for referring members. Ontario CMCs are urged to lend a hand at these events to answer questions about the profession from prospective members. Regulation Steering Committee: The winning bid for the phase 3 work was from a consortium of three firms led by two FCMCs and one CMC, all of whom understand Ontario’s regulatory environment well. The three individuals were involved in the 2006 Ontario by-law update. Their work will answer the following key questions: 1. Do we have a robust regulatory framework? 2. If not, what do we need to do to fix it? The work consists of two deliverables: Deliverable #1 • Review the documents that comprise
the existing regulatory framework.
Past President | Ken Howell, PCGI Consulting Services
• Identify any misalignment or other
Treasurer | David Thompson, Northern Authority
• Make recommendations to fix these issues.
Secretary | Alex Yaworski, PKBW Group Chartered Accountants & Business Advisors Inc.
• Develop a table of contents outlining
Member Services Chair | Timothy Kist, B.A. Robinson Co. Ltd. Registrar | Warren Thompson, Stantec Consulting Ltd. Chair, Advocacy | Inga Sheane, Ernst & Young Orenda Corporate Finance Inc. Member-at-Large | Sandra Foster, People, Process and Technology Inc. New CMCs/FCMCs Congratulations to our newest CMCs and FCMCs: Sean Sweeney FCMC(LM), Scott Baldwin FCMC, and Terry Betker, CMC
issues/vulnerabilities. Deliverable #2 the essential policies that are required to develop a Policy Manual for the Ontario Council. Greater Toronto Area Member Services Committee (Chapter) Update New board members GTA Chapter elections were held in April, and the following individuals have joined the GTA Council as Directors effective April 26, 2012: Communications/Social Media | Gwen Dido Membership | Anil Peer Professional Development Jacqueline (Jackie) Csonka-Peeren They join current Council members: Chair | Marylka Empey Student Intern Program | Nicholas R. Lal Vice Chair | Abe Patricio Member Services | Mary Pearson Volunteers Services | Raj Phalpher Treasurer | Turaj Seyrafiaan Advocacy | Husam Sha’ath Special Interest Groups | Abdul Waheed
2011-2013 Strategic Plan Update Directors met in May to review and refresh the GTA Strategic Plan. As previously committed to our members, the Vision of the GTA Chapter Board is to provide membership value. A Student Intern Program was introduced connecting students seeking experience in the consulting field with consultants who can benefit with the expertise of students.
“Sex, Lies and Mission Statements: Making Mission Matter” by Dr. Chris Bart and Bill Greenhalgh, CEO, HRPA, speaking on “Strategic Issues impacting our Workforce.” Ontario Council is finalizing the business plan for 2012-2013. Resources are focused on membership growth and the certification pipeline.
In response to member feedback, the Chapter held networking events outside the downtown core: in Mississauga last fall, in April in North York, and Pickering in June. There is no charge to attend for these events, and they are an opportunity to bring prospective members to learn more about the CMC designation.
Newfoundland has seen tremendous growth in the last year. This time last year we had 15 members and now we stand at 25 – an increase of 67%.
Special Interest Groups remain a strong focal point to serve the needs of our members, and the Energy and Climate Change SIG has grown to include CMCs from across Canada. The GTA continues to have active representation on the Ontario Advocacy Committee, and has been involved in making pre-sentations to the Ontario Government. Plans are proceeding to hold a signature event this fall, and input via a survey of GTA members will guide the format, topics, and pricing. Additional information on the Strategic Plan is available on the GTA portal on cmc-canada.ca New CMCs/FCMCs A new CMC reception was held in June at the University Club in Toronto. 13 new CMCs received their CMC certificate, presented by Lianti Muller, President of the Institute. In addition, the GTA Chapter acknowledged its dedicated volunteers who serve and support the GTA membership in various capacities. 28 volunteers were recognized with a special certificate for their dedication and contributions. Work with other associations The Leadership Thought Forum seeks to provide a mechanism to foster thought leadership and discussion regarding the range of strategic Human Capital issues affecting organizations. Keynote speakers are leaders in business, consulting, academia, or government, who bring a global perspective to the issues at hand. These events have been jointly hosted with CMA Ontario. Attendees had the opportunity to hear thought leading presentations by Peter DeJager on the “Seven Questions of Change,”
04/CMC-Atlantic Canada
Five people from Newfoundland received their CMC designation this June, which is unprecedented for Newfoundland, and supports holding an awards event in Newfoundland for the first time. Overall, activity across the Atlantic region is at a level never seen before. Breakfast clubs have been established in Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and these venues are proving to be effective mechanisms for engaging both current members and recruiting new ones. These events have also generated new opportunities for professional development events and strengthened the overall CMC network. And we have only just started!
06/CMC-Quebec Georges Sayegh, Preident of CMC-Quebec and Denise Brosseau, Executive Director of l’Ordre des Administrateurs Agrees du Quebec (OAAQ), which manages the CMC designation within the province, travelled to Toronto for a full day of meetings with Glenn Yonemitsu, CEO and Mary Blair, Managing Director of CMC-Canada. Representatives of the two associations have been meeting since 2009 to improve member benefits to CMCs in Quebec and increase the number of CMCs in the province. The following initiatives are underway, and in some cases are already completed: • CMC certification courses will soon
be offered in French in Quebec by approved facilitators. • CMC certification process documents
have been translated into French for use by CMC candidates and OAAQ staff. • OAAQ is securing relationships with
prominent Quebec universities to build awareness of the profession and designation within the province. • OAAQ and Ontario’s Eastern Ontario
Chapter are working together to determine how to produce a French CMC website.
05/CMC-Alberta On the program front, CMC-Alberta is actively planning for our 2012 fall conference, led by Mike Watson, Rachel Foster, and the member services team. In Edmonton, Rachel has also been active in leading a couple of initiatives, including member networking and social events. Her major initiative is a speaker series consisting of six events with a focus on professional development for consultants, including an FCMC panel discussing ‘What it Takes to Be a Successful Consultant’ and discussions of business profitability and collaboration in consulting relationships. On the recruitment side, Scott Aitken led a marketing initiative with events in Calgary and Edmonton to which potential CMC candidates were invited. This resulted in new member applications from a number of participants.
consult magazine Summer 2012 29
Show your passion. The Canadian Association of Management Consultants (CMC-Canada) is proud to offer members a growing range of high-quality products highlighting the Certified Management Consultant (CMC) designation. Browse around our online store, we offer a fast and secure checkout. Wear your designation with pride!
cmc-store.ca
Silk Neck Tie
Silk Scarf
Cutter & Buck Tan Leather Notebook Jotter
Cutter & Buck Computer Case - Men’s
REMEMBERING Remarkable lives lived within the CMC-Canada family. Send in your suggestions for someone to profile to consult@cmc-canada.ca, and put ‘Remembering’ in the subject line.
GAY SKINNER, MBA, FCMC, PMP
1947-2011 BY JIM LOVE, FCMC, CHELSEA GROUP & LYNN BENNETT, FCMC, LEADERSHIP INTELLIGENCE GROUP
"What do you want them to say about you when you leave the room?" The smartest piece of marketing advice I ever got. Why? Because it forces you to look at how you behave when you are ‘in the room’ and to ensure that you conduct yourself in a way that conveys the person that you truly are – and want to be seen as. It’s a task made all the more difficult by the fact that in our business, we’re ‘in the room’ for a very short period of time. It’s not just a matter of how they remember you. Will they remember you at all? Despite the difficulty, there are some people who excel at this. In a short period of time they make a long lasting impression on you: they have a real impact on your life. That was one of the thoughts rolling around in my head as I sat down to write this piece honouring a colleague, a mentor, and a friend: Gay Skinner. And now that she’s left the room, all that remains are the memories – memories that pay tribute to this unique, talented, and truly courageous person. I first met Gay in the aftermath of one of our many strategy sessions for CMC-Canada – one that gave birth to the concept of the SIG (Special Interest Group). It has been said that you can achieve anything if you don’t worry about who gets the credit. That was Gay in a sentence. She took on the role of Chair of the Special Interest Groups and took it on as she did every other task – with joy, energy, enthusiasm, and dedication. She never gave up, even though it took months to get the first groups rolling.
Gay took on the role of Chair of the Toronto Chapter with the same determination and enthusiasm, and it wasn’t the only volunteer activity in Gay’s life. She brought that same leadership to Durham Highlands Chapter of Project Management Institute as their President; University of Toronto Faculty of Management Alumni Association; MBA Women’s Association as President; and as a volunteer of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of Canada. I was proud to put her name forward for a Fellowship, and in the process of doing that research, I found that her consulting clients felt the same way. Gay always had long-running assignments, not because they started that way, but her clients just couldn’t let her go. They would find projects to keep her. Joy, energy, drive, enthusiasm and determination. As I found out in the time I knew her, Gay was simply incapable of not giving her best. So when she pulled me aside to tell me that she had to pull back from activities in the Association, I knew that something was not at all right in Gay’s world. It’s funny, I know a lot of people as colleagues. I’m sure we all do. But at some point, the relationship changes, it becomes more personal – you become truly friends. There’s a bond of loving and caring. You often aren’t sure when it happens. In this case, I am sure. Gay called me after her initial recovery. She was ready to get back to work and was networking once again. I was thrilled to see her. We had a long lunch and she shared with me her struggle and her need to get back to
her profession. And we talked about life, hopes, and our own personal struggles. It was my honour and pleasure to continue to work with Gay for some time after that lunch. She came back – this time supporting me in the Chair of the GTA Chapter, a position that I’d taken when she had stepped down. Our time was all too short, but I did get to celebrate her accomplishments once again. A most happy occasion was when I was able to shake her hand and congratulate her on receiving her FCMC – recognition of her contribution to our profession and her community. Sadly, Gay’s cancer returned. But even then, she not only fought the illness with incredible bravery, she shared that struggle with some of us in a series of emails that took us with her on a journey – she shared the intimate details of her treatments, her life, and her feelings. In reflection, we could all see the illness taking more and more from her but in all those emails, it seemed to me that she never lost hope or that determination that I admired and can truly say – loved. Those emails were a lifeline to all of us. Sadly, the final email came to inform us that the lifeline had ended. Gay had died. It’s taken me a lot of time to process that event – the loss of a friend that I admired so much and who taught us all about how to live, and perhaps more importantly how to face the inevitable end of life. Gay has left the room. She’s reminded us that our time here is all too short. What we do matters. We remember her – warmly and proudly.
consult magazine Summer 2012 31
FOCUS
AGRI-FOOD SECTOR CONSULTING IS GROWING The sector is a large and diverse one. In Canada in 2010, the agriculture and agri-food system directly provided one of every eight jobs, employing two million people, and accounting for 8.1% of total GDP with exports of $35.5 billion. Employment in the agriculture and agri-food system increased by 14% between 1997 and 20101. BY BLAINE CANITZ, CMC, P.Ag, CAC, CYNOSURE BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT GROUP & DARRELL TOMA, CMC, P.Ag, CAC, TOMA & BOUMA MANAGEMENT CONSULTANTS
Consulting is alive and well in the agri-food sector. The scope of the agri-food industry has evolved considerably and now often requires additional terms to adequately describe it. As a result, many colleges that teach the science, economics and business of agriculture and food have added name descriptors like ‘Bioresources’ and ‘Environmental Science’ to more correctly portray their focus. So have many professionals. For several centuries agriculture referred only to the production of food, fiber, and various raw materials. Scientific advancements now allow us to also produce nutraceuticals, biopharmaceuticals, biofuels, bioplastics, organs for transplant, and other industrial products. As a global agri-food producer, Canada continues to become more efficient in both production and processing. Consulting opportunities in agri-food are as diverse and complex as the industry itself. Management consulting opportunities exist at all levels, and agricultural consulting opportunities depend upon the consultant’s 32 consult magazine Summer 2012
particular expertise. The Canadian Consulting Agrologist Association (CCAA) was started in 1974 by several agri-food professionals who recognized the need for special consulting skills to assist the industry to develop.They established the CAC (Certified Agriculture Consultant) designation and from an initial 20 members, grew to over 150. The CAC is now part of CMC-Canada. The equivalent CAC designation is also used in the United States by the American Society of Agriculture Consultants (ASAC). One reason for a mutual designation was the Canada-USA Free Trade Agreement. Most CACs in Canada also hold a P.Ag designation (Professional Agrologist, or Agronome in Quebec). This designation is under provincial mandates and about 9,300 P.Ags are registered in Canada. The practice of Agrology, the application of scientific principles and practices in agri-food, is a profession regulated by provincial legislation with a general intent to protect the public. The environmental consulting practice of P.Ags is expanding in
Canada and other special practice bioscience areas are developing. LEAF: life sciences, environment, agriculture and food covers the sectors that P.Ags work in. A number of CACs are also CMCs as their science-based training led them into management functions. The amalgamation of CCAA and CMCCanada is still in its early stage and some synergies are still to be recognized. The consulting process is similar but the content may vary. Because both designations focus on professional consulting, a key benefit is building the professional brand for ‘Certified Consultants.’ The amalgamation has expanded the breadth of our combined offer and it is now up to the holders of each designation to leverage the relationship into more opportunities and certification awareness.
1. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada DIG DEEPER:
• Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada: www.agr.gc.ca • Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada: www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Agriculture_and_Agri-Food_Canada • CAC designation: www.cmc-canada.ca/go/cac
TOP OF MIND Do you have an opinion, idea, or perspective that you want to share? ‘Top of Mind’ is written by our members to stimulate a dialogue on important issues. Send in your quotes to consult@cmc-canada.ca with ‘Top of Mind’ in the subject line.
Most clients have been conditioned to view consulting services from the perspective of price first, then solving a problem. Educating clients on true, value-based consulting is slow going. Related to the value issue is the perceived value of the CMC designation in the marketplace. Many clients are unaware of the CMC brand, but will often ask you if you have a PMP if you need to run a [change] project. I’ve been educating clients that the CMC/MCBOK is a superset of the PMP/PMBOK. John Gardner, CMC
The client isn’t always right. Then again, neither are you. The idea is to collaborate and challenge each other’s thinking to get the best possible outcome. In so doing, you must demonstrate the client’s best interests, being knowledgeable of their business and your subject matter. When the outcome is arrived upon, the client will then know they are right (and you’ve gained credibility and respect, adding value to the relationship). Wally Hogan, CMC
Game changers are change leaders. There are three different types of leadership— change leaders (requiring all the personal qualities of imagination, passion, and action), business leaders (classic MBA curriculum), and team leaders (getting them to follow us over the top). These three are each very important, but they are not interchangeable. Peter Lawton, CMC
The smart phone was game changing when I first adopted it. I was no longer chained to my desk to reply to email or browse the Internet, nor did I have to rely on spotty wireless on the go. The capabilities today are endless. This tiny device has replaced a multitude of other items that I would have carried around in my purse (paper calendar, address book, daily agenda, calculator, music player, mobile phone, camera, video camera, Sudoku, small photo album, notebook, and even a pen... I could go on). In fact if they came out with iLipstick, I would no longer need a purse! One device multi-tasking like that, thereby using less material and less energy is not only good for business, it is good for the environment. The whole of this virtually limitless device is far more effective then the sum of its individual parts. Suanne McGrath Kelly
Consulting, like all journeys, is exciting and challenging. We know where we want to go and usually how to get there but there are roadblocks and obstacles to overcome. We have to cope with the constant stress of uncertainty. We can’t predict the future. We have no crystal ball. To survive, we must think of the opportunities, as yet unknown, that lie before us. This is our journey. This is the uncertainty. Michael Stanleigh, CMC
consult magazine Summer 2012 33
The Canadian Association of Management Consultants is proud to recognize new Fellows and new Certified Management Consultants in 2011. Anne Bachinski, FCMC Lynn Bennett, FCMC Jules Fauteux, FCMC Alex MacPhee, FCMC Ingrid Pregel, FCMC Shilpa Stocker, FCMC Robert Adams, CMC Eileen Ashmore, CMC Patrick Binns, CMC Richard Brodeur, CMC Lynn Brown, CMC Noel Carawan-Hubin, CMC Ruchira Chatterjee, CMC Mark Chidwick, CMC Kathryn Cosgrove, CMC Bryan Crowley, CMC Franco Crupi, CMC Mary Cunningham, CMC Lynne de Munnik, CMC Steve Demers, CMC Carla Di Cecco, CMC Stephen Donahoe, CMC Suzanne Ebelher, CMC Rod Evanenko, CMC Will Fong, CMC Greg Gavarkovs, CMC Sarah Gayer, CMC Chuck Gilhuly, CMC Chuck Grace, CMC Jeremy Hall, CMC Kees Hamming, CMC
Lawrence Hobbs, CMC Wally Hogan, CMC Kevin Howe-Patterson, CMC Ryan Jackson, CMC Duane Janiskevich, CMC Homayoun Khatami, CMC Galin Kora, CMC Matthew Krofchick, CMC Ergun Larsen, CMC Marg Latham, CMC Douglas Lloyd, CMC Deidre Louw, CMC Jordene Lyttle, CMC Michael Majeed, CMC Nancy Markley, CMC Dawn McCooey, CMC Sachin Mehrotra, CMC Christina Milan, CMC Allen Moxam, CMC Edward Musgrove, CMC Diana Noel, CMC Isobel O'Connell, CMC Alexander Ralph, CMC Lynne Ralston, CMC Javier Sanchez, CMC Reginald Scotland, CMC Lisa Seeto, CMC Nick Simmons, CMC David Ulis, CMC Steven Wildfong, CMC Harvey Yee, CMC