ブログの記事につけていたタグは移行できなかったので時間をみつけてはコツコツとつけ直している。過去のエントリーが1200近くあるので時間がかかる。しかしその過程で過去のエントリーを読んでいると忘れていた自分の学びを振り返ったり、思い出に触れたりとなかなか良い時間が過ごせたりする。
いくつも目にとまる中で、改めてここに残したいと思ったのがこのエントリーだった。
今でもこれが誰との、どんな場所での、どういう雰囲気での会話だったのか鮮明に思い出せる。今読んでも改めて自分の胸に刻みたいと思わせるのは自分が成長していないからだろうか。今彼とまたプロジェクトに臨むことがあったら、もっとインパクトのある、価値のある仕事ができるだろうか。
奇しくも今はこの時から5年が過ぎている。彼と同じ年齢になる。
これをきっかけに思い返せば、本当にたくさんの、素晴らしい方々のお世話になってここまでやってきた。その方々へ恩返しというのはおこがましいが、自分が新たに会う仲間であり、自分の後進でありへ返して行きたいと思う次第。
今日で冬休みが終わる。明日から早速2nd Termのケースの海へ。加えて2ndはチームアクティビティが多い。チームでレポートを書く、実際にプロジェクトに臨む等。
コンサルティングのバックグラウンドから考えればく当たり前の活動の仕方。しかしコンサルティングとは3つの点で大きく異なる。その違いがタフさを増すのだろう、そこが面白いチャレンジなのだろうと考えている。
まずヒエラルキーがない。次に頭の使い方・ものの伝え方が違う。最後に各人の優先順位（参画希望度）が違う。
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コンサルティングのプロジェクトではヒエラルキーがある。パートナーがいて、マネージャーがいて、コンサルタントでありアソシエイトがいる。それぞれ実力に裏打ちされた役割の違いがある。役割の違いは背負う責任の重さの違いだ。重い責任を担うからこそ重い意思決定ができ（なくてはならない）し、そのために他のメンバーを動かせる。（ロジックとファクトの前ではヒエラルキーは一切の意味を持たずフラットに議論する）
MBAのチームワークにおいてアサインメントごとにリーダーを立てられるがそれは実力を伴わない。論点をもれなく構造化する、優先順位をつける、閉塞した議論に新たな視点をもたらす、発散した議論をまとめて仮であっても答えを出して前に進む、そういった行動を強引にであってもなし制限時間内でのアウトプットの価値を最大化しづらい。
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コンサルタントの頭の使い方、モノの伝え方は共通だと思っている。そして使う言葉も多少の違いはあれ共通のものが多い。まずイシューを明確にするし、分析・主張をする際には結論があり、サポートするフレームワークがありファクトがある。ファクトと解釈は切り分ける。ミーティングの際にも、ゴールがあり、達成に必要なアジェンダがあり、必要な時間配分をし、その中で答えを出していくよう議論する。細部で悩まず一度最終的に答えるべき問に対する仮説とそれをサポートするロジックを組み上げてしまってから精度を高めていく。等。共通の基本動作がある。
MBAのチームワークにおいてはそれぞれが異なるバックグラウンドを持っており、コンサルティングの経験がない人の方が多い。往々にして自分の業界の話であれば自分の経験を正として話をしてしまいがちであるし、例えば金融系のバックグラウンドの人であれば数字のディテイルに時間を費やす傾向がある。共通のイシュー定義、議論のアプローチでありフレームワークでありの定義なしにそれぞれの得意領域のレンズをつけてケースのファクトと自分の経験、そこからの解釈を混ぜて話をし始めると時間はあっという間に経つ。そして結論はでない。イシューが定義されていないのだから当然といえば当然。ギリギリまで時間を使って、時間がきたからこれくらいにしよう、となるケースが散見される。
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コンサルティングでは基本的にマネージャ以下もしくはメンバーは100％ケースに参画する。なので共通の目的に向かってチーム全員が100％彼女、彼らの時間を投入できる。実際には提案活動であったり、インターナルタスクであったりで時間のやりくりは発生する場合が多いが。
MBAのチームワークにおいては、当然各人がMBAを通じて成し得たいこと、獲得したいものは異なり、結果複数のクラスやクラブ活動、コンペティション等を持って活動する上で優先順位は異なってくる。結果、例えば、チームアサインメントとは言え、あるメンバーはそれに50％のちからを割いてそのクラスでAが取れるようにしたいが、他のメンバーは20％程度でCを避けられれば良い、もしくはクラス貢献で点数を上げられているのでレポートやプロジェクトは程々でいい、というような自体が発生する（だろうと考える）。誰も他人への強制力を持たないし、このあたりどうチャレンジしていくかは楽しみなところ。
コンサルタントであることが優秀であることではない。ただ、プロジェクトというスタイルで活動する上で、うまく標準化されているのだなと感じた次第。上に書いたような点をどうマネージしていくかが、1st Termにはあまりなかった新たなチャレンジなのだと考えている。自分もunlearnしてよりよいチームワークのかたをみにつけていきたい。
で、その2nd Termのクラスたちは以下の7つ。気合をいれて楽しんでいきたい。
Competitive Strategy
Marketing Planning and Implementation
Operations Management
Operational Finance
Managerial Accounting
Communication
Business Spanish Program
たこ焼きが食べたい。
McKinsey’s Marvin Bower: Vision, Leadership, and the Creation of Management Consulting
We are what we speak–it defines us–it is our image. We don’t have customers, we have clients. We don’t serve within an industry, we are a profession. We are not a company, we are not a business. We are a firm. We don’t have employees, we have firm members and colleagues who have individual dignity. We don’t have business plans, we have aspirations. We don’t have rules, we have values. We hare management consultants only. We are not managers, promoters, or constructors. And we are no longer executive recruiters. The big development in concentrating our efforts in our own field came in 1939 when we severed our affiliations with Scovell, Wellington & Company, then exclusively an auditing firm. At that time, we gave up calling ourselves “management engineers” and pioneered in using the designation “management consultants.” Over the years, since 1939, we have resisted various excursions into side lines; and our convictions in this aspect of our firm personality are deep and well crystallized. // Furthermore, the professional approach to attracting clients helps get action on our recommendations. If we are asked to help (and we make proper arrangements), then the client feels some responsibility to aid us in our work and to act on our recommendations. There is a psychological but real difference in attitude between the client who has asked for our help and the one who has been “sold” and hence has a “show-me” attitude.
The Will to Lead: Running a Business With a Network of Leaders
I lately don’ t read books because of my priority in work and private; however, I read the book. The title provoked within my mind that the book has the tips or implications for ideal company in the future like ones I learned from ”THE FUTURE OF MANAGEMENT”（邦題: 経営の未来）
The book starts with five professional responsibilities as I hoped.
P.1
1. To put client interests ahead of firm interests.
2. To adhere to the highest standards of truthfulness, integrity, and trustworthiness.
3. To maintain in confidence the private and proprietary information of client organizations and any sensitive opinions of individuals within client organizations.
4. To maintain an independent position, being ready to differ with client executives and to tell them the truth as we see it, even though that may adversely affect firm income or endanger continuance of the relationship.
5. To provide only services for wichi the firm is competent and that provide full value for the client.
After that, Marvin divides companies into two categories. Ones are managed with comand and control, others are managed with network of leaders. He then describes how to convert from comand and control to network of leaders not only with macro view but also with micro one, how to manage or collaborate with employees, and how to govern such leadership company.
I cite some descriptions impressed me at the bottom of this entry.
Through reading this book, I reconsidered the ideal company I imagine. In such companies, people unleash all of their potential. They never confine their motivations and capabilities in their job descriptions or minimum tasks to achieve business objectives. The outputs of such people conversely realize visions of companies and construct the sheer business targets.
On the other hand, I sometime misunderstood that the company which has sophisticated and strict organization, report line, and management structure equals the one in which people don’t release their potential because of the strict and strong management style to achieve the company objectives. The formula is however not right not only because companies need to such structure and management process to promise business growths with their stockholders as corporations but also because people basically freely to select the company for which they work and then they select one in which they can profoundly enjoy their work (I nevertheless know that it is a little difficult or not simple for people to do so in reality…)
Anyway, people never forget the things above and the other thing that “company” is one of the tools people invented to enjoy their work more effectively and efficiently in past; thus, people never be utilized by such tools.
This is only a rough idea but I believe it is also one of basic thoughts of the will to lead oneself.
P.23-47
The Qualities and Attributes of Leading
-Trustworthiness
-Fairness
-Unassuming Behavior
-Leaders Listen
-A Leader Is Open-Minded
-Sensitivity to People
-Sensitivity to Situations
-Initiative, Initiative, Initiative
-Good Judgement
-Broad-Mindedness
-Flexibility and Adaptability
-The Capacity to Make Sound and Timely Decisions
-The Capacity to Motivate
-A sense of Urgency
P.53
Leaders in a company should react positively when they first meet or get together with their colleagues: That is a good beginning for building self-confidence and self-esteem. A leader always makes a positive impression. People should look forward to seeing a leader.
P.85
Don’t rush conversion. There is no need for speed – no need for an overall master plan. Rather, conversion should be done a step at a time, providing opportunities for creativity and experimentation.
P.87
There will be no need for an organization chart. Such a chart shows positions, responsibilities, and lines of authority, ,who reports to whom: in other words, a “visual” for hierarchy. In a leadership company, coordination is provided through relationships – who leads whom. So after all present command-and-control activities and people have been assigned, there might be a design diagram showing these “coordinating relationships.”
P.157
But perhaps you, as chief executive, are reluctant to let go of authority, which gives you a feeling of security. You need not be afraid of letting go because you can easily take authority back. In fact, one of the problems of converting to leadership is that the learner of leadership slips back into exercising authority. To learn to lead, you must have the will to lead.
I secured a little free time; hence, I describe the thing nowadays I’ve thought. I have no doubt that consulting is not manufacturing business but service business. On the other hand, I saw several case in which consultants behave like manufacturer in problem solving.
Consultants strictly define their job is to achieve the project objectives. (the premise is that the objectives is consisted with the client business objectives) and they also strictly define the structure and contents of their outputs in the project. What elements should be included in their agenda of final reports, what research items they should take with proper logical structure, and what is the hypothesis to answer the question they should answer through the project.
After that, some consultants concentrate to complete all of tasks they designed with minimum effort, most efficiently. The concept sometimes let they regard the client members and other stakeholders as the people who have deeper information in the industry in which the client company operates.
It’s partly right because certainly the client persons do their business in the industry for a long time and accumulate a lot of good/need to improve experiences, skills, knowledge, and insights, but they are simultaneously the people who should go through real business after they define the strategy and tactics with consultants. For example, if the client develop the strategy to enter and expand its business in a certain emerging economy with consultants, and the scope of the project is only developing the strategy, the client should do their business with the strategy without consultants.
Under the above understanding, the consultants who only concentrate to develop the strategy (report or presentation) is like manufacturers because they will output the accurate product the client required (the strategy to enter and expand the client’s business in the certain emerging economy) as their product.
However, as I wrote, the client finally have to establish their business in the economy and gain revenue or profit with limited resource, in limited time. From the viewpoint that the client will encounter after they develop the strategy, the strategy book is not enough even if it’s extremely elaborated and tailored for the client. The client also need confidence, commitment, and belief for success.
From the perspective I described above, consultant have to concentrate not only develop precise strategy on their report but also make the client members more confident to succeed its business, and ignite their motivation more. To achieve them, consultants pay enough attention for the process in their consulting project. it’s not only the process to put out the strategy book but also the process in which the client obtain enough confidence, commitment, and belief for their success in the future.
Needless to say, consultants should avoid the client from bravely going with wrong strategy, to wrong direction, and they also should avoid the client from hesitating to enter the emerging market with embracing the possibly accurate strategy.
