Strategic Consultancy Summary
325087
This document provides an overview of the strategy consulting lifecycle, blending
classic management theories with the practical "hard" and "soft" skills required to
succeed in the field. At its core, strategy is defined as making vital, difficult-to-reverse
decisions aimed at improving performance within complex, uncertain environments.
1. Foundations and Strategic Analysis
The consulting journey begins with a dual-focus analysis:
• External Analysis: Utilizing tools like DESTEP (General Environment) and
Porter’s Five Forces (Industry Environment) to understand market
attractiveness.
• Internal Analysis: Using the Resource-Based View (RBV) to identify resources
and capabilities that are Valuable, Rare, Inimitable, and Organized (VRIO) to
create sustainable competitive advantage.
2. The Consulting Process: Intake and Proposal
A structured six-step process guides engagements:
1. Intake: Using the SCQ (Situation, Complication, Question) framework to
define the "real" problem. Consultants are encouraged to use LSD (Listen,
Summarize, Do ask questions) to build client rapport and ensure the question
is feasible and strategic.
2. Proposal: The bridge between intake and contract, covering problem
description, hypothesis-driven perspectives, team expertise, and cost plans
(Time-based, Project-based, or Value-created).
3. Problem-Solving and Logic
Consultancy relies heavily on Hypothesis-Driven Logic (making an "educated guess"
early on to manage data overload, then iteratively testing it). The primary tool for this is
the Issue Tree. To be effective, an issue tree must be MECE (Mutually Exclusive,
Collectively Exhaustive), ensuring no overlaps and no gaps in the logic.
The MECE Principle: Every idea fits into exactly one box, and all boxes together cover
the entire problem space.
,4. The Consultant's Toolkit
The document categorizes tools across the strategic management lifecycle:
• Design/Innovation: Ansoff’s Matrix, BCG/GE-McKinsey Portfolios, Blue Ocean
Strategy, and the Business Model Canvas.
• Implementation: Kotter’s 8-Step Change Model, the McKinsey 7S Framework,
and the Balanced Scorecard.
• Capgemini's Benefits Logic: A specific framework that connects strategic goals
to operational drivers and project solutions from right to left.
5. Presentation: The Pyramid and Storyboarding
Consultants don't just "report"; they "storyboard." The process moves from creating an
overall structure to refining active titles that tell a story. The Pyramid Principle is the
gold standard for communication:
• Top: The Advice (Answer First).
• Middle: Primary Arguments.
• Bottom: Supporting Data and Analysis.
Slide design emphasizes Active Titles (short sentences summarizing the takeaway) and
the use of "relatively full" slides that balance hard evidence with interpretation.
6. Implementation and Ethics
The final stage is Implementation, where the focus shifts to Change Management, HR,
and IT. While strategy and execution were once separate, modern consultants often stay
involved to protect their reputation, bridge the "expertise gap," and capture financial
incentives. Throughout this, a consultant must maintain Independence, Objectivity,
and Confidentiality.
,Contents
0. Foundations of Strategy ........................................................................................ 4
1. Strategy ........................................................................................................... 4
2. External Analysis............................................................................................... 5
3. Internal Analysis ............................................................................................... 8
4. Business-Level Strategy ................................................................................... 13
5. Corporate-Level Strategy ................................................................................. 15
6. Structure and controls..................................................................................... 17
1. Introduction ....................................................................................................... 21
2. Industry ............................................................................................................. 23
3. Scoping and Ethics ............................................................................................. 25
5. Process ............................................................................................................. 26
6. Intake and SCQ .................................................................................................. 27
Problem-Solving Models ..................................................................................... 29
SCQ (and H) ....................................................................................................... 31
Intake and Situation-Complication-Question (SCQ) model .................................... 35
Hypothesis-Driven Logic......................................................................................... 37
8. Proposal ............................................................................................................ 39
9. Issue Tree .......................................................................................................... 41
10. Tools ................................................................................................................ 46
Tools - Introduction ............................................................................................. 46
Tools - Process, Definition, and Analysis............................................................... 47
Tools - Design, Innovation, and Implementation .................................................... 50
10. Tools (d) 2024 Capgemini Invent - Benefits Logic Model ................................... 54
11. Gathering and Analyzing Data ............................................................................ 55
12. .................................................................................. Presentation: Storyboarding
............................................................................................................................. 57
Presentation Structure ........................................................................................ 57
Storyboarding..................................................................................................... 58
Pyramid Presentation .......................................................................................... 60
Building of Pyramids ........................................................................................... 61
13. Presentation: Slide Design................................................................................. 63
15. Implementation ................................................................................................ 65
, 0. Foundations of Strategy
1. Strategy
What is strategy? Strategy is
1. Making and implementing vital decisions that are difficult to reverse
2. Aimed at increasing performance
3. In an environment that is characterized by high complexity and uncertainty
4. Through the rational use of scarce resources
How do you design strategy?
The classical strategic management process:
Formulate goals:
- Mission: why we exist
- Values: what we believe in and how we behave
- Vision: what we want to be
Confrontation:
- TOWS matrix:
o SO: use strengths to exploit opportunities
o ST: use strengths to avoid threats
o WO: exploit opportunities to overcome weaknesses
o WT: minimize weaknesses and avoid threats
Formulate strategy (different levels):
- Corporate-level strategy
- International strategy
- Business-level strategy
- Functional strategy
Implement strategy (examples):
- Entry and exit modes
- Change management
325087
This document provides an overview of the strategy consulting lifecycle, blending
classic management theories with the practical "hard" and "soft" skills required to
succeed in the field. At its core, strategy is defined as making vital, difficult-to-reverse
decisions aimed at improving performance within complex, uncertain environments.
1. Foundations and Strategic Analysis
The consulting journey begins with a dual-focus analysis:
• External Analysis: Utilizing tools like DESTEP (General Environment) and
Porter’s Five Forces (Industry Environment) to understand market
attractiveness.
• Internal Analysis: Using the Resource-Based View (RBV) to identify resources
and capabilities that are Valuable, Rare, Inimitable, and Organized (VRIO) to
create sustainable competitive advantage.
2. The Consulting Process: Intake and Proposal
A structured six-step process guides engagements:
1. Intake: Using the SCQ (Situation, Complication, Question) framework to
define the "real" problem. Consultants are encouraged to use LSD (Listen,
Summarize, Do ask questions) to build client rapport and ensure the question
is feasible and strategic.
2. Proposal: The bridge between intake and contract, covering problem
description, hypothesis-driven perspectives, team expertise, and cost plans
(Time-based, Project-based, or Value-created).
3. Problem-Solving and Logic
Consultancy relies heavily on Hypothesis-Driven Logic (making an "educated guess"
early on to manage data overload, then iteratively testing it). The primary tool for this is
the Issue Tree. To be effective, an issue tree must be MECE (Mutually Exclusive,
Collectively Exhaustive), ensuring no overlaps and no gaps in the logic.
The MECE Principle: Every idea fits into exactly one box, and all boxes together cover
the entire problem space.
,4. The Consultant's Toolkit
The document categorizes tools across the strategic management lifecycle:
• Design/Innovation: Ansoff’s Matrix, BCG/GE-McKinsey Portfolios, Blue Ocean
Strategy, and the Business Model Canvas.
• Implementation: Kotter’s 8-Step Change Model, the McKinsey 7S Framework,
and the Balanced Scorecard.
• Capgemini's Benefits Logic: A specific framework that connects strategic goals
to operational drivers and project solutions from right to left.
5. Presentation: The Pyramid and Storyboarding
Consultants don't just "report"; they "storyboard." The process moves from creating an
overall structure to refining active titles that tell a story. The Pyramid Principle is the
gold standard for communication:
• Top: The Advice (Answer First).
• Middle: Primary Arguments.
• Bottom: Supporting Data and Analysis.
Slide design emphasizes Active Titles (short sentences summarizing the takeaway) and
the use of "relatively full" slides that balance hard evidence with interpretation.
6. Implementation and Ethics
The final stage is Implementation, where the focus shifts to Change Management, HR,
and IT. While strategy and execution were once separate, modern consultants often stay
involved to protect their reputation, bridge the "expertise gap," and capture financial
incentives. Throughout this, a consultant must maintain Independence, Objectivity,
and Confidentiality.
,Contents
0. Foundations of Strategy ........................................................................................ 4
1. Strategy ........................................................................................................... 4
2. External Analysis............................................................................................... 5
3. Internal Analysis ............................................................................................... 8
4. Business-Level Strategy ................................................................................... 13
5. Corporate-Level Strategy ................................................................................. 15
6. Structure and controls..................................................................................... 17
1. Introduction ....................................................................................................... 21
2. Industry ............................................................................................................. 23
3. Scoping and Ethics ............................................................................................. 25
5. Process ............................................................................................................. 26
6. Intake and SCQ .................................................................................................. 27
Problem-Solving Models ..................................................................................... 29
SCQ (and H) ....................................................................................................... 31
Intake and Situation-Complication-Question (SCQ) model .................................... 35
Hypothesis-Driven Logic......................................................................................... 37
8. Proposal ............................................................................................................ 39
9. Issue Tree .......................................................................................................... 41
10. Tools ................................................................................................................ 46
Tools - Introduction ............................................................................................. 46
Tools - Process, Definition, and Analysis............................................................... 47
Tools - Design, Innovation, and Implementation .................................................... 50
10. Tools (d) 2024 Capgemini Invent - Benefits Logic Model ................................... 54
11. Gathering and Analyzing Data ............................................................................ 55
12. .................................................................................. Presentation: Storyboarding
............................................................................................................................. 57
Presentation Structure ........................................................................................ 57
Storyboarding..................................................................................................... 58
Pyramid Presentation .......................................................................................... 60
Building of Pyramids ........................................................................................... 61
13. Presentation: Slide Design................................................................................. 63
15. Implementation ................................................................................................ 65
, 0. Foundations of Strategy
1. Strategy
What is strategy? Strategy is
1. Making and implementing vital decisions that are difficult to reverse
2. Aimed at increasing performance
3. In an environment that is characterized by high complexity and uncertainty
4. Through the rational use of scarce resources
How do you design strategy?
The classical strategic management process:
Formulate goals:
- Mission: why we exist
- Values: what we believe in and how we behave
- Vision: what we want to be
Confrontation:
- TOWS matrix:
o SO: use strengths to exploit opportunities
o ST: use strengths to avoid threats
o WO: exploit opportunities to overcome weaknesses
o WT: minimize weaknesses and avoid threats
Formulate strategy (different levels):
- Corporate-level strategy
- International strategy
- Business-level strategy
- Functional strategy
Implement strategy (examples):
- Entry and exit modes
- Change management
