Strategic Management Consulting

Information

Think like a top tier strategy consultant! You learn how to diagnose strategic business issues and develop effective strategies like the world’s top tier strategic management consulting firms, such as McKinsey & Company. The proven successful and highly valued problem-solving method of these firms enables you to develop highly effective solutions to complex strategic business issues. Moreover, you will learn to work faster and more efficient. These skills and knowledge are also valuable for you, if you do not seek a consultancy career but want to become an entrepreneur or a manager.
In a series of case workshops, you learn to apply this method to various cases, and a real world consulting project. You form together with fellow students a consultancy team to conduct a consulting project. You learn how to identify the real issue instead of the assumed issue. You develop the skills to dig deeper into issues to uncover insights that other people miss. By developing and testing hypotheses about causes of issues and subsequently about solutions to those issues, you will be more focused and you will reach results faster. You also learn to design customized analyses that target the specific issue, rather than using off-the-shelf analytical frameworks. Moreover, you develop the skills to design a structured PowerPoint presentation that is really convincing. You gain insight how to translate strategies to action plans in order to achieve real impact. Finally, you develop a better understanding of the ins and outs of the strategy consulting firm and the industry.
 
Format
The course consists of eight sessions that are divided into sessions about practical application of the consulting approach – method and techniques - and sessions about developing insight into the consulting firms and the industry. All sessions are highly interactive, with sufficient room for discussions, student presentations, and small group exercises. In each session, you will apply your new knowledge and skills on consultancy cases.
 
Moreover, we offer case workshops with top tier firms. During the past years, various top tier consulting firms participated, among others (in alphabetic order): A.T. Kearney, Bain, Booz, BCG, and Roland Berger.     
   
To further develop your knowledge and skills, you form with fellow-students your own consultancy group, and conduct a consultancy project for an organization of your choice (typically a relatively small organization from your own network).
 
Lecturer
Dr. Marc Baaij is an associate professor of strategic management. In the past, Marc worked for The Boston Consulting Group (BCG), as a strategy consultant and later as a manager of research. Besides his scientific research and education activities, Marc trains and coaches managers and consultants in the structured problem-solving method and techniques. Marc (co-) authored various international and Dutch books on the structured problem solving method of the top tier strategy consulting firms. In 2014 his latest book came out, titled: An Introduction to Management Consultancy (published by Sage).