Greg Baker, on May 18, 2015
On the field of battle we once heard Ready, Aim, Fire! Similarly, in today’s business environment, where working effectively is the name of the game, people must Engage, Align and Execute! If you want to be good at what you do, whether it is systems engineering, finance, HR, management consulting or some other discipline, here is your prescriptive advice:
Greg Baker, on June 14, 2012
While the genesis of unintentional conflict is often obscured, the costly disruption and dysfunction that result from it are usually quite visible. Such was the case with our story about Jane and her client Sandy in our last Advance Update, Managing Unintentional Conflict in Business. Let’s revisit the story and then discuss how to resolve the issue, or in this case avoid it by acquiring the skills to manage unintentional conflict.
Jane is meeting with her new client, Sandy, to make some recommendations for how to address some pressing problems on their project. Jane loves to engage in small talk and storytelling with people, including clients, to build relationships. (more…)
Greg Baker, on October 17, 2011
Twenty years ago consulting skills were the exclusive domain of professional consultants. Today, consulting skills are the new business 101. They belong to everyone in business and have become essential for getting results in today’s complex web of people, organizations, and business relationships.
Greg Baker, on October 5, 2007
Last month we talked about the nature of customer focused leadership and organizations. But how do you know if you have a customer focused organization? How do you build one? This month I want to share a consultant’s secret for understanding and building customer focused organizations.
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Greg Baker, on October 6, 2006
For sixteen years the professionals at Advance Consulting have been teaching our clients what we know. In turn, our clients have been teaching us. Every time we deliver a workshop, coach an executive, or provide a consulting skills development program, we go to school on our clients. We study their circumstances and challenges, as well as their innovation and creativity in transforming and growing their businesses. This constant learning enriches our experience and knowledge. It gives us a unique vantage point to witness extraordinary developments in the business world. From that perspective, this article explains why the need for enhanced consulting skills is so prevalent in business today.