DIGITAL MANAGEMENT CONSULTING
Syllabus
EN
IT
Learning Objectives
TRAINING GOALS:
The goals of the course in "Digital Management Consulting" is to train future management consultants to be deployed in digital transformation projects, providing them both a general knowledge on the consulting profession and a specific knowledge on managing digital consulting projects.
More specifically:
KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING
Develop an understanding of the management consulting industry, the understanding
of consulting projects, related diagnosis and solution development, its communication
and implementation.
APPLYING KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING
Understand and apply the tools management consulting firms use in order to manage
their digital projects, with a specific focus on Design Thinking and Agile.
MAKING JUDGEMENTS
Understand the approach management consulting firms use in order to manage their
business and their professionals, especially when dealing with Digital Transformation
projects.
COMMUNICATION SKILLS
Understand how to structure the presentations and communicate the evidence from
the management consulting projects in order to get the customer “buying-in”.
LEARNING SKILLS
Build (transferrable) management consulting skills, such as structured problem solving,
design thinking approach and agile consulting project management.
The goals of the course in "Digital Management Consulting" is to train future management consultants to be deployed in digital transformation projects, providing them both a general knowledge on the consulting profession and a specific knowledge on managing digital consulting projects.
More specifically:
KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING
Develop an understanding of the management consulting industry, the understanding
of consulting projects, related diagnosis and solution development, its communication
and implementation.
APPLYING KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING
Understand and apply the tools management consulting firms use in order to manage
their digital projects, with a specific focus on Design Thinking and Agile.
MAKING JUDGEMENTS
Understand the approach management consulting firms use in order to manage their
business and their professionals, especially when dealing with Digital Transformation
projects.
COMMUNICATION SKILLS
Understand how to structure the presentations and communicate the evidence from
the management consulting projects in order to get the customer “buying-in”.
LEARNING SKILLS
Build (transferrable) management consulting skills, such as structured problem solving,
design thinking approach and agile consulting project management.
Prerequisites
None
Program
The course is structured in two parts:
PART 1: Management Consulting fundamentals
• Overview on management consultancy
- Nature and role of consulting
- Management of a consulting firm
• Management of a consulting project
- Problem diagnosis and solution development
- Communication and implementation
• Overview on digital management consulting
- Digital transformation challenge
- Digital disruptors in consulting
PART 2: Digital Management Consulting approaches and tools
• Design thinking methodology
- Main steps and applications examples
- Impacts on the consulting work and the value delivered to customers
• Agile methodology
- Main steps and applications examples
- Impacts on the consulting work and the value delivered to customers
• Configuring a Enterprise-based application
- Main steps and functionalities of an application platform (such as CRM)
- Key steps in configuring it and delivering value to customers
PART 1 will be based on a mix of lectures on theory and interactive sessions to discuss the emerging issues.
The reference readings are:
- Baaij, M.G., An introduction to Management Consultancy, Sage, 2014. In particular:
• Management consultancy (chapter 1 and 2)
• The management of consultancy firm (chapters 7, 8 and 9)
• The management of consultancy projects (chapters 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15)
- Cerruti, C., Tavoletti, E. and Grieco, C. (2019), "Management consulting: a review of
fifty years of scholarly research", Management Research Review
- Tavoletti E., Kazemargi, N., Cerruti, C., Grieco, C. and Appolloni. A. (2021), “Business
model innovation and digital transformation in global management consulting firms”,
European Journal of Innovation Management.
PART 2 will be based on a mix of lectures on the techniques, testimonials and
groupworks on the topics.
The reference material is made of the course slides and reports from leading-edge
consulting companies (included in the course website).
PART 1: Management Consulting fundamentals
• Overview on management consultancy
- Nature and role of consulting
- Management of a consulting firm
• Management of a consulting project
- Problem diagnosis and solution development
- Communication and implementation
• Overview on digital management consulting
- Digital transformation challenge
- Digital disruptors in consulting
PART 2: Digital Management Consulting approaches and tools
• Design thinking methodology
- Main steps and applications examples
- Impacts on the consulting work and the value delivered to customers
• Agile methodology
- Main steps and applications examples
- Impacts on the consulting work and the value delivered to customers
• Configuring a Enterprise-based application
- Main steps and functionalities of an application platform (such as CRM)
- Key steps in configuring it and delivering value to customers
PART 1 will be based on a mix of lectures on theory and interactive sessions to discuss the emerging issues.
The reference readings are:
- Baaij, M.G., An introduction to Management Consultancy, Sage, 2014. In particular:
• Management consultancy (chapter 1 and 2)
• The management of consultancy firm (chapters 7, 8 and 9)
• The management of consultancy projects (chapters 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15)
- Cerruti, C., Tavoletti, E. and Grieco, C. (2019), "Management consulting: a review of
fifty years of scholarly research", Management Research Review
- Tavoletti E., Kazemargi, N., Cerruti, C., Grieco, C. and Appolloni. A. (2021), “Business
model innovation and digital transformation in global management consulting firms”,
European Journal of Innovation Management.
PART 2 will be based on a mix of lectures on the techniques, testimonials and
groupworks on the topics.
The reference material is made of the course slides and reports from leading-edge
consulting companies (included in the course website).
Books
- Baaij, M.G., An introduction to Management Consultancy, Sage, 2014. In particular:
• Management consultancy (chapter 1 and 2)
• The management of consultancy firm (chapters 7, 8 and 9)
• The management of consultancy projects (chapters 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15)
- Cerruti, C., Tavoletti, E. and Grieco, C. (2019), "Management consulting: a review of
fifty years of scholarly research", Management Research Review
- Tavoletti E., Kazemargi, N., Cerruti, C., Grieco, C. and Appolloni. A. (2021), “Business
model innovation and digital transformation in global management consulting firms”,
European Journal of Innovation Management.
Course slides and reports from leading-edge consulting companies (included in the course website).
• Management consultancy (chapter 1 and 2)
• The management of consultancy firm (chapters 7, 8 and 9)
• The management of consultancy projects (chapters 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15)
- Cerruti, C., Tavoletti, E. and Grieco, C. (2019), "Management consulting: a review of
fifty years of scholarly research", Management Research Review
- Tavoletti E., Kazemargi, N., Cerruti, C., Grieco, C. and Appolloni. A. (2021), “Business
model innovation and digital transformation in global management consulting firms”,
European Journal of Innovation Management.
Course slides and reports from leading-edge consulting companies (included in the course website).
Bibliography
Additional (optional) readings from HBR and leading management consulting companies, FEACO yearly report on the Management Consulting Industry plus manuals on the main methodologies:
• R. Curedale, Design Thinking Process & Methods (5th Edition), 2019
• PMI -Project Management Institute, Agile Practice Guide, 2019
• R. Curedale, Design Thinking Process & Methods (5th Edition), 2019
• PMI -Project Management Institute, Agile Practice Guide, 2019
Teaching methods
Conventional lecture mode (frontal lesson) and interactive (the students will be required participate actively in the class discussions and group work).
Exam Rules
The exam is specific for attending and non-attending students and evaluates the overall preparation of the student, the ability to integrate the knowledge of the different parts of the program, the consequentiality of the reasoning, the analytical ability and the autonomy of judgment.
Furthermore, language properties and clarity of presentation are evaluated, in compliance with the Dublin descriptors (1. Knowledge and understanding) 2. Ability to apply knowledge and understanding; 3. Making judgments; 4. Learning skills; 5: Communication skills.
For attending students (participating to the classes and the groupwork), the exam will
be based on a written test (50%) and a groupwork (50%).
The written test will last 50 minutes and will be made of 4 open questions, namely:
- two questions on Part 1 – Management Consulting fundamentals (slides+articles)
- two questions on Part 2 – Digital Management Consulting approaches and tools
A sample test will be provided in the teaching materials on the course web site
allowing students to see in advance the test structure.
The groupwork will simulate a consulting assignmentand/or an hackathon for solving a business issue.
For non attending students (non participating to the classes or the groupwork), the
exam will be based on a written test (100%). It will last 1 hour and 15 minutes and will
be made of 6 open questions, namely:
- four questions on Part 1 – Mgmt Consulting fundamentals (textbook+slides+articles)
- two questions on Part 2 – Digital Management Consulting approaches and tools
A sample test will be provided in the teaching materials on the course web site
allowing students to see in advance the test structure.
The exam will be assessed according to the following criteria:
Not suitable: important deficiencies and / or inaccuracies in the knowledge and understanding of the topics; limited capacity for analysis and synthesis, frequent generalizations and limited critical and judgment skills, the arguments are presented in an inconsistent way and with inappropriate language;
18-20: just sufficient knowledge and understanding of the topics with possible generalizations and imperfections; sufficient capacity for analysis, synthesis and autonomy of judgment, the topics are frequently exposed in an inconsistent way and with inappropriate / technical language;
21-23: Routine knowledge and understanding of topics; Ability to correct analysis and synthesis with sufficiently coherent logical argument and appropriate / technical language
24-26: Fair knowledge and understanding of the topics; good analysis and synthesis skills with rigorously expressed arguments but with a language that is not always appropriate / technical.
27-29: Complete knowledge and understanding of the topics; remarkable abilities of analysis and synthesis. Good autonomy of judgment. Topics exposed rigorously and with appropriate / technical language
30-30L: Excellent level of knowledge and in-depth understanding of the topics. Excellent skills of analysis, synthesis and autonomy of judgment. Arguments expressed in an original way and with appropriate technical language.
Furthermore, language properties and clarity of presentation are evaluated, in compliance with the Dublin descriptors (1. Knowledge and understanding) 2. Ability to apply knowledge and understanding; 3. Making judgments; 4. Learning skills; 5: Communication skills.
For attending students (participating to the classes and the groupwork), the exam will
be based on a written test (50%) and a groupwork (50%).
The written test will last 50 minutes and will be made of 4 open questions, namely:
- two questions on Part 1 – Management Consulting fundamentals (slides+articles)
- two questions on Part 2 – Digital Management Consulting approaches and tools
A sample test will be provided in the teaching materials on the course web site
allowing students to see in advance the test structure.
The groupwork will simulate a consulting assignmentand/or an hackathon for solving a business issue.
For non attending students (non participating to the classes or the groupwork), the
exam will be based on a written test (100%). It will last 1 hour and 15 minutes and will
be made of 6 open questions, namely:
- four questions on Part 1 – Mgmt Consulting fundamentals (textbook+slides+articles)
- two questions on Part 2 – Digital Management Consulting approaches and tools
A sample test will be provided in the teaching materials on the course web site
allowing students to see in advance the test structure.
The exam will be assessed according to the following criteria:
Not suitable: important deficiencies and / or inaccuracies in the knowledge and understanding of the topics; limited capacity for analysis and synthesis, frequent generalizations and limited critical and judgment skills, the arguments are presented in an inconsistent way and with inappropriate language;
18-20: just sufficient knowledge and understanding of the topics with possible generalizations and imperfections; sufficient capacity for analysis, synthesis and autonomy of judgment, the topics are frequently exposed in an inconsistent way and with inappropriate / technical language;
21-23: Routine knowledge and understanding of topics; Ability to correct analysis and synthesis with sufficiently coherent logical argument and appropriate / technical language
24-26: Fair knowledge and understanding of the topics; good analysis and synthesis skills with rigorously expressed arguments but with a language that is not always appropriate / technical.
27-29: Complete knowledge and understanding of the topics; remarkable abilities of analysis and synthesis. Good autonomy of judgment. Topics exposed rigorously and with appropriate / technical language
30-30L: Excellent level of knowledge and in-depth understanding of the topics. Excellent skills of analysis, synthesis and autonomy of judgment. Arguments expressed in an original way and with appropriate technical language.