Management Consultancy Explained Medically - ACLAIM
ACLAIM Africa Limited
Addressing the Leadership and Management Challenges in Africa
By Alfred Brian Agaba FCCA CPA B Com , Managing Director - ACLAIM Africa Limited ,13 August 2024
Organizations – like humans – are born, grow, fall ill, get better, and eventually die. While human beings seek health care from hospitals, organizations may approach Management Consultancy firms to enhance their health. ?
In this write-up, ACLAIM Africa Limited compares the Medical world to Management Consultancy drawing interesting parallels.
1.?? Choice of Hospital
Medical Context: This is the initial contact where a patient reaches out to a hospital for help. They choose a hospital based on: reputation, as perceived from trusted friends/family/media; proximity/accessibility to their location; presence of experts; cost of services, among others.
Management Consultancy Context: Like the medical world, organizations choose and reach out to Management Consultancy firms following referrals from prior users of the services, information in the media about these firms, their accessibility (both physically and financially), and the comfort from the presence of experts expected to facilitate the relief from the organizational pains or anticipated gains.
2.?? Triage to Doctor Consultation
Medical Context: At this stage, temperature, height, weight, blood pressure, among other standard preliminary checks are carried out by a nurse in addition to asking the patient to explain any discomforts that led to their hospital visit. The patient is forwarded to a doctor based on the information received for further examination. This could be to a specialist, for example, a dermatologist if the skin shows adverse symptoms, or a General Physician if symptoms are not very clear.
Management Consultancy Context: Similarly, a Management Consultancy firm seeks to understand the basics of any organization that reaches out, for example, the business they are in, the products/services they offer, the geographical reach, the key stakeholders, the business model, among others. The client is then facilitated by the Management Consultant to share the pain point(s) or symptoms or triggers that led to seeking for help. These could include, for example, declining revenues, low staff retention/performance, unclear strategic direction amidst conflicting priorities, wastage of resources, massive procurement loss, among others. A specific expert, say, a Financial Consultant could be called upon to further examine a presenting symptom of resource wastage.
3.?? Diagnosis
Medical Context: The doctor uses various applicable tools including physical examination, scans, x-rays, urinalysis, complete blood count, among others, to identify the root cause (or disease) responsible for the presented symptoms. The doctor may also refer the patient to a more appropriate specialist if preliminary tests deem necessary.
Management Consultancy Context: As done medically, the Management Consultant may apply various tools such as Business Health Check, Organizational Capacity Assessment, Situational Analysis, Process Analysis, Human Resource Review, Internal Audit, Trends Analysis as may be appropriate. These could be administered through observations, interviews, surveys, focused group discussions, brainstorms, document review, to enable the Management Consultant diagnose the real “disease” that led to the presented symptoms. ??
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4.?? Prescription & Treatment
Medical Context: Once the diagnosis is clear, the Doctor prescribes the applicable treatment regime. This could be administered: as an outpatient, where regular visits are made without staying in the hospital; inpatient, where patient stays at hospital; or even taken into Intensive Care Unit (ICU) if the situation is life-threatening requiring close monitoring. Sensitivity and allergies to medications used in the past are considered before recommending the appropriate treatment. The effectiveness of the treatment is highly dependent on the cooperation of the patient taking the medication as prescribed. ?
Management Consultancy Context: Similarly, the Management Consultant, on appreciation of the root causes of the identified symptoms, makes recommendations to the organization and supports the change management process. This could involve hands-on support (akin to inpatient treatment) or periodic check-ins and guidance (like outpatient treatment). It could even include, initially, outsourcing some of the functions of the organization to the consultant if the situation is deemed grave (a parallel to ICU). The Consultant may inquire to appreciate what attempts have been made in the past to resolve the issue, and examine what the results were before recommending a course of action.?The success of the consultancy partly depends on whether it is implemented by the client as jointly agreed - the consultant's role is to persuade/influence the client to willingly try the recommended direction.
5.?? Patient Review
Medical Context: During and after treatment, the patient's recovery and health status are reviewed to ensure treatment effectiveness and to make any necessary adjustments.
Management Consultancy Context: The Management Consultant conducts follow-up reviews to assess the impact of the implemented changes on the organization. This may involve reviewing agreed performance metrics, feedback sessions, and making additional recommendations to ensure the client is on the right track and the desired outcomes are being achieved.
6.?? Healthy Individual
Medical Context: The patient has fully recovered and is now growing and thriving, and committed to maintaining their health through regular check-ups and a healthy lifestyle.
Management Consultancy Context: The client organization is now performing effectively and efficiently, having successfully addressed the initial issues or seized the identified opportunities. The consultancy relationship may continue with periodic check-ins, ensuring the organization sustains its improvements and continues to thrive.
About ACLAIM
ACLAIM Africa Limited is a consultancy firm whose mission is to address the leadership and management challenges in Africa through consulting, training and outsourcing. Please reach out to us on [email protected] should your organization present “symptoms” that indicate possible “sickness” or if you desire to carry out a full body check to ascertain if all is well; some of the worst diseases do not show symptoms until it is too late. We shall journey with you to identify the root causes, make recommendations considering the context of your organizations, and collaboratively support the treatment process.
[The writer is not a medical personnel and only makes comparisons from observations as a lay person. Any inaccuracies regretted and corrections welcomed]?
Managing Director, ACLAIM Africa Limited
Specialist in Financial Management and Company Operations
2 个月Having read a lot literature about the field, this is the first article that simplifies management consulting in such a way that anybody can understand it. Thank you Alfred; thank you Aclaim
Human Resource Consultant with Infinity Gray
3 个月Great insights in here. Thank you Alfred for sharing
Procurement, Logistics and Administrative Officer at ACLAIM Africa Ltd
3 个月Useful tips: There is no better way to explain what ACLAIM does than relating it to the Medical world. This is because the Medical world apply to all of us. Businesses too need to understand each of these steps to know how healthy or sick they are. Thank you Alfred for sharing.
Internal Medicine Physician at Sanctuary Medical Centre and Nursing Home
3 个月Great advice!