Emerging Enterprise Consulting

Weekly Course Compass

WEEK I: The Consulting Experience and introduction to the SEE model

20 August: Consulting Course Orientation

This class will introduce students to the SEE Model, the instructor, course syllabus, and expectations of the course. Fundamental differences involved when consulting with a start up business vs. a larger corporation will be introduced. Although many of the course topics parallel the basic business school curriculum, the need to tailor this knowledge to reflect the distinct nature and nuances of the small business consulting environment will be explored.

Guest Speakers: Mary Pat Pace/Sharon Butler, Bonbonerie

This past client will provide his prospective of the consulting engagements and the benefits their business received as a result of the student consultants’ work.

Readings/Assignment to be prepared for Tuesday:

Action Responsibility:

· Bring student application for course to class

· Workbook, Section 2: Review and sign Confidentiality and Non-Disclosure Agreement (in class)

· Workbook, Section 2: Review EEC Employment Contract and sign (in class)

· Workbook, Section 2: Read Client Confidentiality: An Overview

22 August: Introduction to the SEE Model and Layer One: The Entrepreneurial Core

Students will be introduced to the SEE Model, which is the consulting framework to be used by the students when performing their consulting engagements. This model will provide a logical approach to consulting that will facilitate the exploration of the entire business entity during the first seven weeks of the course. The first portion of the course will cover the Entrepreneurial Core of the business including the concept, opportunity and the entrepreneur. Confidentiality is an issue with any consulting engagement and the issues students face when consulting with real businesses will be discussed. Students are expected to keep confidential conversations and processes discussed with their client.

Readings/Assignment to be prepared for Thursday:

· Workbook, Section 3: The Purpose and Goals of Fieldwork

· Book, Chapter 1: The Nature of Strategic Planning

· Workbook, Section 4: SEE Model – YOU MUST REVIEW THE SEE MODEL BEFORE CLASS!

Guest Speakers: Kelly Sauders, Kyger Motors and Laura Waugh, Watson Brothers Brewery and Bistro

Students from previous consulting teams will share their experiences on the consulting engagement including the challenge of developing strong client relationships and the end result of their efforts.

24 August: Introduction to Consulting and Developing Client Relationships

9:30am-12:00pm Upham 1

Consultants from Deloitte Consulting will be on campus to train the students in the Emerging Enterprise Consulting course on how to be an effective consultant. The first consultant training will cover the role of the consultant, the consulting process, what to expect from the consulting experience, and survival tips for the Emerging Enterprise Consulting Course.

Guest Speakers: Scott Ewing, Beth Bowers, and the team from Deloitte Consulting

Week 2: Market and Industry: analyzing your business

27 August: Market and Industry Analysis

Managing and Building an Effective Team: Developing a Team Charter

Entrepreneurs are often very product and production focused, with only a limited understanding of market dynamics. This session will focus on developing an accurate picture of the market, who the customer is, and the segments the client should be focusing upon. We will highlight techniques for obtaining market information from the clients themselves, as well as other secondary sources. Discussion will also focus on learning about your client’s industry, why that is important, and how to go about doing it.

Students will be given their consulting clients and placed in E-teams. The E-teams will discuss their own team charter including setting weekly meeting times and building upon each other’s strengths. How to build an effective team, conflict resolution, and developing a selection process for determining the team client leader and the project manager will be covered.

Readings/Assignment to be prepared for Tuesday:

· Book, Chapter 4: Environmental Analysis: General Environment

· Book, Chapter 5: Environmental Analysis: Industry Environment

· Workbook, Section 5: Secondary Data Resources

· Bring final class schedule to organize weekly team meetings and options for client meetings

Action Responsibility:

· Research your consulting client including their website (if applicable), articles written about the business (www.cincinnati.com) and basic industry information.

· Begin weekly E-team journal entries covering your team charter and team members’ personal information (name, major, e-mail, phone). E-team journal entries are due at 12:00pm Thurs.

· Access the Miami University libraries from a system on the Miami network for information on your industry (www.lib.muohio.edu). Go to “index and databases” and select “business”. From the list that appears, select “Business and Company Resource” and complete a search on your businesses industry. Note: This does not have to be done before class.

· Schedule first meeting with client (client contact information will be given during class)

29 August: Layer One: The Entrepreneurial Core

Map of the Customer Buying Process

The Entrepreneurial Core of the business including the concept, opportunity and the entrepreneur will be discussed further with feedback from each team on their individual entrepreneurs. Time allocation charts will be handed out for clients. Often, consultants overlook core issues because the focus is placed upon the symptoms instead of the real problem. We will spend time in this class learning about how to identify warning signals of core issues, what they mean, and how to tackle and solve core issues. In addition, the client Letter of Engagement will be covered including setting realistic client expectations.

For each product or service there is an identifiable decision making process that a customer goes through before purchase. This process includes certain awareness and criteria factors among other issues. We will be discussing how to determine this process for your client by mapping out the customer buying process.

Readings/Assignment to be prepared for Thursday:

· Workbook, Section 6: Why Customers Really Buy article

· Workbook, Section 4: Managing the Fieldwork

· Workbook, Section 3: Review the SEE Model Layer One

Action Responsibility:

· Give time allocation charts to client

· Discuss extra credit for implemented deliverables due Week 6

Week 3: Understanding your customers and targeting your market

3 September: Monday/Tuesday Switch Day: NO CLASS

5 September: Market Research: Creating a Kick A** Survey

Entrepreneurs often do not clearly understand what their customers want or need. Impressions are often based on a few customer interactions. A survey is an excellent way to verify the needs of the customers. Surveys can be targeted to past customers, current customers, and potential customers to determine the markets needs, evaluate customer satisfaction and obtain other valuable information. The Market Research Action Plan requirements will be outlined in class. Your team will compete against the other teams on how to create a Kick A** survey.

Readings/Assignment to be prepared for Thursday:

· Workbook, Section 7: Market Research: Designing the Questionnaire or Observation Form

· Workbook, Section 7: Market Research: Designing a Questionnaire handout

· Workbook, Section 7: Market Research: Advantages/Disadvantages of Data Collection Methods

Action Responsibility:

· Industry and market analysis due

· Bring ideas of your hypothesis for the market survey that your team could cover in your market research study.

Week 4: layer two: internal operations

10 September: Operations of the Business: Getting to the Heart and Soul of the Business

Organizational Strategy, Management Strategy and People Strategy

Attention will be devoted to operational aspects of the business. Operations are the heart of the business, for this is where the core value is created for the customer. This session will cover operational issues pertinent to the entrepreneur including the company organization strategy, management strategy, and people strategy. Hiring, training, and empowering employees, creating a company culture, and leadership from all levels of the organization will be covered. A key component will involve modeling the production or service delivery system of the entrepreneur to ensure maximum efficiency and effectiveness.

Readings/Assignment to be prepared for Tuesday:

· Workbook, Section 9: Your Management Strategy and Your People Strategy

· Book Chapter 6: Internal Analysis: Evaluating Operational Resources pgs 120-123

· Book Chapter 6: Internal Analysis: Evaluating Human Resources pgs 123-128

· Workbook Section 3: Review the SEE Model Layer Two

Action Responsibility:

· Draft Letter of Engagement due

12 September: Team Meetings with Instructor

E-teams will meet with the instructor for 30 minutes to discuss their progress, letter of agreement, and action plan (no formal class). Format will be given for action plan.

Readings/Assignment to be prepared for Thursday:

Action Responsibility:

· Final Letter of Engagement (must be signed by client)

· Draft Market Research Action Plan and Draft Market Research Survey due at meeting

· For your team journal entry this week, include a paragraph on your business, the deliverables you are working on, and insights/assistance you are seeking. This information will be provided to our Deloitte consultants for the one-on-one meetings.

Week 5: checkpoint: progress on final deliverables

17 September: Layer Two: Understanding Core Issues

Map of the Customer Contact…the Moment of Truth

Customers are the lifeblood of a business – without them, the business will cease to exist. Students will spend time evaluating their entrepreneur’s customer service efforts. Core issues are often overlooked because many surface problems are focused on instead. We will spend time examining how to zero in on a core issue; which frequently involves leadership and internal issues. Inventory controls will be covered including the five types of costs associated with carrying inventory. In addition, areas of quality in terms of product, customer, and employee satisfaction will be discussed. A discussion on how the entrepreneur allocates his/her time will be covered. An outline of the team presentations will also be provided in class.

Readings/Assignment to be prepared for Tuesday:

· Workbook, Section 8: Internal Operations: Inventory Requirements Article

Action Responsibility:

· Time Allocation Charts of How the Entrepreneur Spends His/Her Time and Analysis

· Map of the Operations of the Business due

· Map of the Points of Customer Contact (in class)

· Request financials from client (remember, this information confidential)

19 September : No Class

No class will be held as compensation for the Deloitte Training on August 24. Teams should be working on their presentations.

Week 6: LAYER THREE: EXTERNAL RELATIONSHIPS

24 September: Team Presentations

Writing to Win: How to Ensure your Client Accepts Your Recommendations

Short 10-minute E-team presentations will take place that focus on the consulting teams deliverables. In addition, proposals are the most complex form of business communication. Persuading the smarter buyer in today's market takes clear, concise, and compelling writing and a persuasive value proposition. Discussions on writing Persuasive Business Proposals, will be discussed including utilizing effective business written and verbal communication skills to persuade your client to accept your proposals, and writing to win.

Readings/Assignment to be prepared for Tuesday:

Action Responsibility:

· Handout in class

26 September: Marketing: Building a Solid Marketing Plan

Developing a solid marketing plan to chart the marketing goals of the business is essential to the growth of an entrepreneurial company. Student teams will critique all of the elements of the client’s marketing mix to ensure not only consistency, but the maximal value is being produced for clients. Developing a comprehensive marketing plan that includes not only the four P’s of marketing along with branding, image, and budget allocations will be covered. Client marketing objectives and strategies will be assessed with special attention to issues of positioning and product differentiation.

Readings/Assignment to be prepared for Thursday:

· Book, Chapter 6: Internal Analysis: Evaluating Marketing Resources pgs 110-120

· Workbook, Section 11: From Barbecues to Balls: Promotions that Work

· Workbook, Section 11: Developing a Marketing Plan (students completing marketing deliverables should review this chapter)

Action Responsibility:

· Extra Credit write-up (up to 5 points on assignment grade) for any implemented deliverable (must be signed by client)

Guest Speaker: Vanessa Freytag, W-Insight, Inc.

27 September: One-on-One Consulting with a Deloitte Consulting 2:00pm-4:00pm

Location: Deloitte Consulting Offices in Cincinnati, Ohio

The session will cover the high-level consulting process, developing and refining hypothesis, establishing “unshakeable” facts, and interactions with clients. Student project managers should e-mail the instructor a short description of the business and your final deliverables and include areas that you would like their insights/assistance. All team members must attend the meeting. E-team should come prepared to discuss the three biggest challenges facing you E-team consulting engagement. E-teams will work one-on-one with a Deloitte Consultant on your consulting engagement. Students will be transported via university vans.

Guest Speakers: Scott Ewing, Beth Bowers, and the team from Deloitte Consulting

Action Responsibility:

· Prepare to discuss the three biggest challenges with your consulting engagement with a Deloitte Consultant.

WEEK 7: USING FINANCIALS TO GAIN VALUABLE INSIGHTS

1 October: Accounting and Recording Keeping: Life or Death of a Small Business

SEE Model Review: How to Critically Critique your Business

The class will shift to accounting issues with a review of basic accounting principles. The starting point is understanding the cost structure of the business, and then developing a simple model of how the business makes money. In addition, breakeven will be discussed. When students are consulting to small business owners, there is a need to recognize that owners frequently do not have thorough records that show the full financial picture and history of the business. Discussion will focus on the importance of record keeping, with emphasis on making it relevant and understandable to small businesses. We will also review how the SEE Model can be used to critique your business and the expectations for the SEE Model assignment.

Readings/Assignment to be prepared for Tuesday:

· Workbook, Section 10: Recordkeeping article

Action Responsibility:

· Final Market Research Action Plan and Survey (must be approved by client)

3 October: No Class

No class will be held as compensation for Deloitte training on September 27.

WEEK 8: THE NUMBERS: WHAT DO THEY MEAN AND HOW CAN YOU USE THEM

8 October: Understanding Financial Statements

A consultant must complete financial analysis to truly understand a business. Understanding how the consultant interprets the client’s income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement, and draws implications will be covered in class. Gaining valuable insights into the business by utilizing the financial statements and how to complete ratio analysis will also be covered. Bring your company’s financials to class and be prepared to discuss questions you have after reviewing your clients financials.

Readings/Assignment to be prepared for Tuesday:

· Workbook, Section 10: Financial Ratios and Quality Indicators article

· Book, Chapter 6: Internal Analysis: Financial Resource Analysis pages 97-110

Action Responsibility:

· Map of Economics of the Business plus critique due

· Bring financials to class (remember, this information confidential)

· Be prepared to discuss questions you have after reviewing your clients financials.

10 October: Team Meetings with Instructor