ACTION PLANNING

• With action planning, the consulting process enters the third phase.

• This phase includes developing possible solutions to the problem diagnosed, choosing among alternative solutions, presenting proposals to client, and preparing for implementation of chosen solution by the client.

• The client’s involvement in the action planning should be even more than in the diagnostic phase. This is because :

• - planning work on possible solutions should only be undertaken if the client is fully familiar and in complete agreement with the approach taken.

• - Action planning requires the best talent to be mobilized and all good ideas to be examined.

• - The client’s personnel can do a great deal of design and planning work with back up from the consultant, thus reducing the cost.

• - Participation in action planning generates commitment.

• - action planning provides a new range of learning opportunities for the client. These opportunities will be lost if the consultant were to proceed alone.

• Searching for Possible Solutions :• The client expects the consultant to recommend

the best solution to the problem.• But it is rarely possible to point to an obvious best

solution.• Most problems may have more than one solution.• The action planning phase therefore starts with a

search for ideas and information on possible solutions to the problem.

• The objective is to search for all feasible alternatives and subject them to preliminary evaluation before starting detailed design and planning work on one proposal.

• Orienting the Search for Solutions :• The main consideration is the nature of the

problem, especially its technical characteristics, complexity and the degree of newness.

• The consultant in collaboration with the client will have to decide whether to direct search towards commercially available solutions or towards a new solution.

• It is necessary to decide as to how far this search should go. Should it be limited to the client organization or should the solution be searched in outside organizations.

• Using Experience : • In finding ways of improving the client’s

situation, the consultant often draws from his experience.

• The purpose is to present to the client the advice that is ‘state of the art’

• The consultant must also avoid the temptation to choose the most comfortable way.

• Creative Thinking :• Creative thinking is the relating of things or

ideas that were previously unrelated.• There are five stages in creative thinking

process :• 1. Preparation : Obtaining all the known facts

and restating the problem and the purposes pursued.

• 2. Effort : Divergent thinking to generate multiple ideas, concepts and approaches. It is important to note that frustration is often encountered in effort but more often than not, it will lead to good ideas.

• 3. Incubation : Leaving the problems in one’s subconscious mind while one gets on with other things. This gives opportunities to pick up additional ideas from what one sees or hears in the meantime.

• 4. Insight : The flash of illumination that gives an answer and leads to possible solutions of the problem.

• 5. Evaluation : Analyzing all the ideas obtained in all the previous stages so as to find possible solutions.

• Barriers to creative thinking : • Creative thinking is restricted by • - self-imposed barriers• - belief that there is always one right answer• - conformity or giving the expected answer.• - lack of effort and courage to challenge the obvious.• - evaluating too quickly• - fear of looking foolish.

• Developing and evaluating alternatives : • Preselecting ideas to be pursued : Since it

would be impossible to pursue a large number of ideas, a preselection must be made.

• The selection of ideas must be made in close collaboration with the client.

• Working on alternatives : After the preselection, the detailed design, systems development and planning work should in theory be started on all alternatives shortlisted.

• Work on the ideas may be started in a phased manner, that is, taking two or three ideas at a time and working on them upto a certain level.

• The other way maybe to start with the idea that had received the approval of the maximum number of people.

• Evaluating Alternatives : • When action planning has started, a

preliminary evaluation may be made to eliminate ideas and reduce the number of ideas on which the consultant and client will work.

• A comprehensive evaluation is required when the client finally opts for one particular idea.

• In management consulting, the following situations prevail :

• - alternatives that are ideal by all criteria are rare. In most cases there is a need to weigh the positive and negative consequences of several alternatives.

• - the number of criteria is high; certain basic criteria are met by all the alternatives, and further criteria have to be examined.

• - some important criteria are difficult, if not impossible, to quantify.

• - the evaluation involves different criteria that are not directly comparable.

• - there is strong subjective element in evaluation.

• Presenting the action proposal : • When work on action proposals and the

evaluation of alternatives has reached an advanced stage, the consultant has to consider the time and form for the presentation to the client.

• This will depend mainly on the type of project and the working relationships between the consultant and the client’s managerial and specialist staff.

• The Presentation : • Most consultants prefer to make an oral

presentation backed up by written evidence and using audiovisual aids to support the case.

• The objective of the presentation is to gain the client’s acceptance of the recommendations.

• A presentation should not be made unless the consultant believes that the probability of acceptance is high.

• The consultant’s presentation should work through logical series of steps, building up the case for recommendations in an effective manner.

• The consultant must be absolutely honest with the client.

• Depending on the circumstances, acceptance at this point may be in principle only.

• Plans for implementation : • An effective proposal not only mentions what

to implement, but also how to implement.• A plan for implementation should always be

included in the proposal.

• The Decision : • It is the client and not the consultant who

decides what solution will be chosen and applied.

• On no account the client must feel under duress.

• The decision taken on the consultant’s proposal may be the final point of an assignment, if the client wants to undertake the work personally.

• If the client prefers to involve the consultant in implementation, the decision will act as the introduction to the next step.