Smart/consult is the perfect choice for any business that needs to optimise its operations and performance, accelerate a project or change programme, or get an existing project over that final finishing line. Whatever the size or scope of your project, our consultants will work as an extended part of your team: identifying ways to make your ways of working more efficient and effective, then building and embedding the change you need in order to deliver the results you want. We don’t just look at the technical aspects of change, either: our capability extends right across the change spectrum, and includes communications and engagement techniques that will support and sustain your change activities. Importantly, we can create a real ‘innovation mindset’ among your employees, so that the change delivers long-term benefits right across your division or organisation.
Read on for more information on smart/consult…
From performance optimisation through to major operational transformation, smart/consult is all about optimising your business practices.
Think of our smart/consult capability as a sliding scale.
- On one side, we have Transition Management. This is essentially a change (or a set of changes) to processes and practices which are not structural. The difference you’re looking for here is likely to be qualitative and improvement-based: for example, a desire for enhanced customer service, improved performance ratings, better and faster internal reporting processes, better risk management procedures, and so on.
- On the other side, we have Organisational Transformation. This focuses on larger-scale change that requires functional or organisational change. This difference you’re looking for here is very likely to be quantitative: for example, quicker-to-market product development processes, a more cost-effective supply chain, increased production capacity, and so forth.
This sliding scale from Transition Management through to total Organisational Transformation is quite an important one. Where you are on the scale determines how our engagement with you will pan out. In the simplest of terms, it’s the difference between getting a haircut, or getting a replacement head!
On the journey from Change to Transition
We help you identify opportunities to improve, grow, and generally make the adjustments you need to take your business to the next level. We’ll scope, design and plan how to get you there – then, once everyone’s happy with the approach, we’ll implement those changes, monitoring progress and any potential risks along the way. Where appropriate, we can deploy one or more of our experts to deliver ‘Tasking as a Service’: a dedicated PMO, for instance, or another key role to support the transition.
Below: from Change (left) through to Transition (right), here’s how our smart/consult service offering supports clients going through the first stages of a change journey.
On the journey from Transition to Transformation
To ensure a smooth transition from your as-is to your to-be state, we’ll identify and road-test potential new models that will help you overcome your business challenges. We mitigate the risks using proofs of concept and pilots. Then, once we’ve agreed upon the best model, we’ll begin the implementation – all supported by a robust transition program to make the new ways of working ‘stick’. Where appropriate, we can deploy one or more of our experts to deliver ‘Tasking as a Service’: a dedicated PMO, for instance, or another key role to support the transformation.
From Transition (left) to Transformation (right): our smart/consult service offering is ideal for clients who want to create a more far-reaching, transformative experience.
How we work with clients is really determined by the size, scale and nature of your project or program, and whether we are going to work with you from a Transition Management or an Organisational Transformation perspective. We developed the following descriptions to make it a bit easier for our clients to understand exactly how we’ll be supporting you.
Tasking-as-a-Service (TaaS):
When you have a task that you want us to manage on your behalf, we manage a specialist team of people to complete the task as an insourced service. Our TaaS service is perfect for speeding up a part or the whole of a particular project for rapid impact. TaaS is an entirely flexible service, so you only pay for the capacity you need.
Consultancy:
Dedicated to helping you achieve your goal quickly and effectively, our consultancy service means we can hit the ground running with a well-tested approach that we know works. We apply our expertise from day 1 for immediate impact, and we make a commitment up-front whether to a project outcome, a savings target or task completion.
Expertise on Demand (EoD):
Our network of talent and specialist expertise makes extra capacity available when it counts – for instance, to support customer managed strategies or projects. Specialists include subject matter experts, change specialists, programme & project managers, technical specialists, and more.
Fractional C-level:
We can provide you with access to specialist knowledge and experience to provide leadership, C-suite level expertise who can have immediate impact. Specialists include CIO/CTO, Finance Director, Head of PS, Ops Director, Programme Director, and more. Our Fractional Leadership provides access to senior experience people, part-time but on a full-time basis.
Unlike some other consultancies, stewardship is inbuilt into everything we do. We talk regularly with our clients in order to ensure that everything is on track and that our specialists are delivering to the highest possible standards. We assess and re-assess risks throughout a project’s lifecycle, making any necessary adjustments along the way – this flexibility and adaptability means that projects always run to time and to the agreed budget. Crucially, it removes any element of risk from you, our client.
In other words, when you engage smart/tasking you can be completely confident of a smooth, successful transition or transformation, fully embedded into your business so that it continues delivering the results you wanted – no ifs, no buts, and no exceptions to the rule.
