Management consulting projects need the perfect integration of science and art, and China people pay more attention to the "art" side of management, that is, the philosophy of management. China's ancient management thoughts are all about people and strategy, which is very different from the management science and management consulting we are discussing today. The latter is the product of western civilization applying knowledge to production process and business process. When Chinese enterprises seek the help of management consulting companies, they always hope to adopt scientific and reasonable solutions at the beginning, but they often find that the solution of enterprise problems often depends on the "artistic" grasp of the problems by senior management.
Through the above analysis of consultation, as consultants, we also need to cultivate our own knowledge and methods. On the one hand, we should have a deep understanding of the problem, on the other hand, we should have a systematic method. Consultants have the ability of system analysis, that is, to master the system framework, form methodology, break through the shackles of tools (methods), avoid entanglement in details, and make the final solution of the problem inevitable. Because different people analyze at different levels of thinking, the conclusions will be different, so in group discussion, we must first reach a methodological knowledge. The unification of methodology can reduce communication time and consulting cost.
An excellent consultant should have complete abilities and qualities, including physical fitness, appearance and professional attitude; Knowledge structure should include management knowledge, business experience and IT application knowledge; On the basic ability, we should have the ability of learning and innovation, communication, expression and structured thinking. Communication ability is mainly reflected in the communication with the project leader of Party A. Besides formal communication, informal communication is more important. In terms of expression ability, including oral and written, written expression ability is mainly reflected in the preparation of scheme and PPT; Structured thinking ability refers to the comprehensive ability to systematically analyze problems, effectively express ideas and clearly show plans.
How to use structured thinking for systematic analysis? First of all, we must master the basic methods of structural analysis:
–Explore the possibility of problems through a series of assumptions and questions.
–and seek corresponding materials for specific possibilities.
–and achieve the goal through a series of rigorous logical analysis.
The goal of system problem analysis is to make a structured demonstration on the basis of assumptions and facts.
"Hypothesis: an estimate of the solution to the problem.
"Facts: the management status, data and external cases and data of the enterprise.
"Argumentation: Use comparative methods (original, present and future).
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The structured thinking of consultants is to apply experience and facts to classify problems, find the classification structure, and then estimate solutions through assumptions, through analysis, comparison and induction. For a hypothesis, it must be verifiable, and an unverifiable hypothesis cannot be called a hypothesis.
Structured analysis has two basic principles: starting from the end point and MECE principle. Starting from the end point is to focus on the goal closely, and the classification and hypothesis of the problem should correspond to the goal. MECE principle is the principle of problem classification, and the standard of problem classification should be clear and fully understood, no more or less. Exclusion method should be used when removing major categories, and trial and error method should be used when removing minor items.
There are three tools for structured analysis: logical tree, chart and 80/20 rule. The 80/20 rule is used to determine whether the classification is appropriate and the key issues.
How to use structured thinking to express efficiently? Structured expression has three principles: starting from the end, top-down, and focusing. Starting from the end is to find out why you made this presentation (purpose). Who should I convince? How long is the presentation and demonstration? What do they want to know and expect? What information must I use?
Top-down means introducing the main arguments first, then the basic facts and finally the data. The key points are simple expression, simple structure and consideration of importance, logic and timeliness. Contrast, repetition and metaphor can be used to express the key points.
The level of language communication is a comprehensive reflection of a person's ability, and the "total-sub-total syllogism" should be followed in structured language expression.
"Expression principle 1: There must be a general beginning at the beginning of an expression.
In oral expression, this total is actually to determine a range and explain the problem to be expressed.
What are the questions we are going to talk about to ensure that the audience can keep up with the speaker's ideas.
"Expression Principle 2: Explain from three aspects.
"Expression Principle 3: Finally, the conclusion should be repeated.
Oral expression should repeat its conclusion at the end to impress readers or listeners.
So how do you answer questions with structured expressions? You can't simply answer "no". Give the scope of answering questions first, and then give possible solutions and your tendency. The key to language expression is to have a clear structure, so that others can deeply remember your views and conclusions. This kind of structure requires that the structure we say when expressing it should not be too complicated. Generally speaking, it can be explained by the "trichotomy".
The structure of written expression is similar to language expression, but language expression can use more complex structure and richer levels, and can also explain complex problems through complex graphics and models.