Analysis Of Leadership Development Programs In Consultancy Firms: An Essay.

This assessment is asking you to write a consultancy report for the organisation you are currently working for or have worked for previously. Business consultants are often called upon to help organisations identify sources of inefficiency and provide robust solutions. Your task here is to analyse needs, formulate solutions and propose how you would evaluate methodologies within the context of organisational leadership.

The Need for Leadership Development in Consultancy Firms

The need for leadership development programs is immense in the consultancy firms mainly because the consultancy firms are dealing with the clients and to satisfy the demands of the clients and the customers, it is important to develop the leadership skills of the employees and the workforce. The development of the leadership skills of the workforce will allow the consultancy firms to satisfy the needs and demands of the customers and the clients and therefore earn the trust and the goodwill of the people involved in the various aspects of life. The organization can also frame the policies and implement the strategies in a more effective and efficient manner so that the organization develops the potential of achieving the best result in the competitive corporate environment. There is a greater need to reinforce the practice of transformational leadership in the consultancy firms in order to inspire the workers and the employees to follow the leader and work in a smart way so as to make the organization achieve the best possible result. The report analyzes the need for developing the leadership development programs in the consultancy firms and how its development will augur for the organization in the long run. The report also presents methodology to implement for the successful running of the consultancy firm. The report presents a detailed analysis of the need for leadership development in the consultancy firms.

The Consultancy Cycle is the process of carrying out the process of helping the clients during the Consultancy process. The consultancy process consists of ten phases. These are the discovery phase, the analysis phase, the reporting phase, the strategizing phase, the implementation phase, the reporting phase, the follow up phase, the marketing evaluation phase, the sales team evaluation phase as well as the cohesive unit evaluation phase. The leadership plays a dominant role in the running of any organization. The leadership decides the outcome and the framework needed to be followed to implement the important decisions and policies for the running of the organization. There are various types of leadership which can be implemented in the running of a consultancy (Day et al., 2014). Based on the personal experiences, there is a great need for leadership development in every consultancy as there is a greater need for managing the clients as well as the development of the leadership skills in an organization. There is a need for leadership development because leadership development helps the consultancy firms in the following ways. The best leadership development practitioners are in constant touch with the clients and they make sure that the promotion of the services help the employees develop the leadership skills and capabilities. The leadership development program is a specialty service and not a service. It is the investment which the consultancy makes for the future to develop the capabilities and the performance of the employees and the workers. The most stable of the consultancy firms approach their customers and clients in a very cautious and careful manner to address the issues faced by the customers in their daily lives. The development of the leadership skills among the employees enables the employees to perform at the best of their potential and enable them to face any challenge and situation and not panic during the process. The leadership development consultancies are those firms which offer services which they believe is the best and not just any ordinary service. There is a direct link between the leadership and the organizational outcomes as the efficient leadership skills of the workers enable the organization to progress and satisfy the customers and the clients in a very effective and efficient manner (Gentry et al., 2014). The leadership development programs are essential for the consultancy firms because the firms are challenged with critical problems on a daily basis and it is important for the employees of the organisation to be very well managed and able to solve the issues and concerns of the clients and the customers. These factors enable the consultancy firms to perform at the best of their potential and they invest their money and capital towards the development of the leadership skills in the organization (Kirchner & Akdere, 2014).      

The Consultancy Cycle and the Role of Leadership

In order to effectively manage and develop a consultancy firm, it is very important to organize workshops and training sessions for the employees in order to imbibe in them the culture of leadership and organizational management. The critical problems which confront the organization needs to be dealt with by an effective and able mindset to solve the issues pertaining to the running of the organization. There is a greater need in today’s world to be able to have the interpersonal skills more than the hard skills (Skendall et al., 2017). The leadership development programs need to focus on imparting the knowledge of confronting a difficult situation by using the innovative ideas and skills as well as presenting a new and creative solution to the problem. The ability to think out of the box needs to be developed among the employees and the workers so that the varied problems can be resolved expeditiously. The best consultancy firms are those which concentrate on the various aspects of leadership development and at the same are not overlooking the opportunities to expand in the other areas. These abilities allow the organization to extend the values and the skills towards their clients and thus are able to win the trust and the goodwill of the clients (Buss & Morse, 2014). The best theory which will be used to evaluate the leadership development program will be the Transformational Leadership Theories which states that the process which enables a person to interact with other people and are able to create a stable relationship results in a higher level of trust, which can at a later stage increase the motivation of the employees and result in both the intrinsic as well as the extrinsic development in both the leaders and the followers (Whitworth & Chiu, 2015).  The importance of the Transformational Leadership theories is that the leaders can transform the workers and the employees through their charm and inspirational abilities. The rules and regulations are flexible in an organisation where there exists transformational leadership and the employees of the organization are guided by group norms (Mendenhall et al., 2017). The qualities and the impact of the transformational leadership binds the employees and the workers and there exists a sense of belongingness for the followers and the employees in the group. The subordinates can easily relate as well as identify with the leader of the organization and this positive relationship augurs well for the organization in the long run. The leadership development programs must emphasize on the aspect of developing the transformational leadership in an organization and doing these will enable the organization to prosper and succeed in the competitive corporate culture as well as rise in the hierarchical topography of the corporate world (Cleveland & Cleveland, 2018).        

Benefits of Leadership Development Programs in Consultancy Firms

The practical issues faced while implementing the leadership development programs is that ethic is hard to talk about. In the corporate world where the sole concern is the profit maximization, it is difficult to ascertain whether the scope of following the ethics in the leadership development programs is a viable option. The important ethics which needs to be followed in order to manage the organisation are the ones which emphasize on the honesty, integrity and the fairness of the dealings which the consultancy firms make in their daily lives. In the global competitive corporate environment, the problems which can arise while following the business ethics is immense. It is not always possible to follow the ethical planning and the practical methods while doing business. The challenge is on the leadership to foster an environment wherein the employees are compelled to follow the ethical and the practical methods in their daily activities so as not to hamper the relationship with the clients and the customers. The effective implementation of the transformational leadership skills enables the organization to succeed at a rapid pace and this will entice the subordinates and the followers to imbibe the qualities and the personality of the leader (Meng, Reber & Rogers, 2017). If the leader is doing the work in a very ethical and practical manner, then the followers are forced to act in the same way. The ethical issues which confront the people in their daily lives in the consultancy firms range from the issues such as challenges in the decision to finish a project before deadline and whether to do that work in a qualitative manner or just finish the assignment. These issues are needed to be resolved in a very just and unbiased manner. The leader must emphasize on the aspect of following the ethical and the practical issues confronting the employees in their daily activities (Gurdjian, Halbeisen & Lane, 2014). The leadership skills also enable the workers and the employees to approach a given problem in the most effective manner so that the ethical methods are followed while accomplishing the task. The leadership is often confronted with the paradox of whether following the ethical framework of doing business or working for the profit maximization aspect. Effective leadership development programs coupled with the following of the ethical framework enable the organization to win the trust of the customers and the clients and in the process enable the organization to succeed in terms of both revenue generation as well as gather the goodwill of the people (Turner & Baker, 2017). The ethical implementation of the plans and procedures by the leader also enables the subordinates to respect the leader and the employees and the subordinates are more inclined to work in a more effective and efficient manner towards the betterment of the organization.

Organizing Workshops and Training Sessions for Leadership Development

Every consultant has their own consulting methodology. The methodology are developed over a prolonged period of time and with proper evaluation and methods of consulting, these methodologies are implemented to assist in the smooth running of the consultancy firm. A methodology is defined as the frame or structure or the set of tasks which enables the task to be completed in a logical manner. There are various methodologies which can be implemented for the smooth running of the consultancy firm. These methodologies are the various forms of client engagement procedure which will enable the consultancy firm to achieve higher results. The methodology I would follow would be divided into numerous phases. The initial phase would be bout the preliminary contact with the client, the initial diagnosis of the problem afflicting the client and then submitting a proposal to the client which will focus upon the development of the consulting contract and will involve the signing of the consulting contract. The next phase will involve the diagnosis phase, where the problem shall be defined and measured (Denver & Turnbull James, 2017). This phase will also include the researching of the problem and the problem will be analyzed and the client will be asked to submit their feedback regarding the proposed actions. The next phase will include the action planning which involves the development of the solutions as well as developing the alternative solutions. The next phase will involve the implementation of the strategies and will require action and the training for the performance of action. The last phase will include closure and the termination of the consulting project and will consist of the submission of the final report (Subramony et al., 2018). This phase also involves the briefing about the final plans to follow-up as well as collect the payment, and then disengage with the client. The last step is to set the stage for the future consulting (Roth & Brooks-Gunn, 2016).  All these phases will require thorough evaluation and scrutiny and after thoroughly evaluating the procedures, the final assessment is to be made whether the methodologies have been followed in an effective and efficient manner or not. The leaders of the consultancy firms need to be held responsible and accountable for the practices they follow in the organizational set up and if any discrepancy is observed, they must be held responsible for the act. The main aspects of developing these methodologies is to understand the client as well as understand the needs and demands of the clients. The best methods are framed to meet the needs of the clients and the best opportunity for success are offered based on the strategy which the leaders want to follow. 

The Importance of Transformational Leadership Theories

From the above analysis, the consultancy firms can be enhanced by the leadership development programs and these programs are essential to improve the effectiveness and the efficiency of the consultancy firms. The best practise is to follow the transformational leadership skills wherein the subordinates and the workers are inspired by the leader to work efficiently for the overall development of the organization as well as to achieve the maximum potential of the consultancy firm. The consultancy firms are also able to extract the maximum generation of revenues and profits if the organization is effectively able to utilize the services and efforts of each worker of the organization. The organization can follow the prescribed methodology to be successful in the overall functioning as a competitive corporate entity. There are various aspects of transformational leadership and all these aspects are essential to transform the efficiency and the productivity of the workers of the organization. The organization must focus on the leadership development program in order to establish itself as a global corporate achiever and survive in the competitive corporate environment.  Doing these will allow the organization to succeed as an organization and result in the profit maximization of the organization’s profits and revenues in the long run.

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