CHAPTER 13

STAFF SELECTION AND DEVELOPMENT

SELECTION OF STAFF
• Matching Staff to the Requirements of the Practice

The people selected to represent the

consulting firm provide services to the
firm's clients and develop future business
will determine
• the level of success,
• the rate of growth, and
• the future of the
consulting practice
 In selecting the consulting staff, some
basic considerations should be taken into account:

1
The kind of consulting practice one plans to build-
specialist or generalist.
The targeted principal market: corporate (big
2 business) or proprietorship (small business)?;
product or service related?

3 The kind of image and reputation the consultant

wants to project and develop.

4 The long-range plans for the consulting practice.

Staff selection should be based on
criteria stemming from the consultants'
stated objectives. Depending on the
primary market being targeted by the
consulting firm, the staff needed may
be technical specialists with the ability
to conduct in-depth assessments and
critical analyses leading to decisions and
recommendations to be implemented
by the client's professional staff.
• Practice and Staff Profile
To develop a profile

• Position Profile
Two part description
1. Should be general in nature
2. Include specific responsibilities and duties

• Person Description
Three Parts
1. Academic credentials
2. Experience
3. Personal traits and characteristics
 Required Skills
Consulting
Technical Skills

Technical Consultant
Specialist V.S
- More
- Less experienced and
experienced, track record
no managerial - should be a
experienced leader
STAFF DEVELOPMENT
 Initial Assignments
Orientation
"the way we do things around here"
Initial experience indicate to the new staff member
what you expect in tetms of behavior and
performance.
As the new consultant become familiar with clients,
market and current projects, he or she should work
under the supervision of the senior staff member.
Exposure to the different
facts of consulting
SENIOR CONSULTANT
Valuable asset
The person who develops clients, manages projects,
supervises and train junior consultants and technicians.
Must be well rounded and experienced.
"How does he manage the development of the entire staff
to maximum effectiveness?"
Critical analysis, conceptualization and decision making
analysis is their responsibility.
 Two responsibilities to face in developing the staff and
exposing junior members to the many facts of consulting
1. Consultant must for growth and expansion by drveloping in-
house talent. Consultant will want to develop clients that will
provide training opportunities and experience for the staff.
Projects should be assign with discretion, to provide training
experience while balancing work load.
2. As an employee the consultant is responsible for each of the
employees with the environment and opportunity for personal
growth and development. He/she also bears the responsibity for
encouraging and motivating the staff toward growth and
personal development. Experience, power and expertise is gain
by contributing to the practice.
Continuing Education
NEW DEMANDS An adequate continuing education today will include as
many specialized seminars as one can make time for, at least one
convention, and a reading schedule that will comparable to that of a
good doctoral program.
TRAINING PROGRAMS The major thrust of an excellent training
program will be an in-house program design by management, taught by
management, and augmented with external seminars and training
courses.
The continuing program should be part of a consultant's business
plan.The program should be structured with forethought and time
tables to ensure that training gets it's share of management's attention.
It requires that the consultant have a bit of internal consulting for
himself in the same disciplined way he/she would for a client.
Types of Training Methods
1. Formal training
2. Ongoing training
3. Informal training
 1. Formal training
Depending on the complexity of the proposed
project, consulting personnel may need to attend a
formal training classes. For instance, if a software
package is to be purchased from an outside vendor,
the personnel assigned to the project may be asked
to attend a vendor-sponsored school. This formal
instruction will enable the project members to
acquire a working knowledge of functional and
technical aspects of the package.
 2. Ongoing training
Every suitable consulting firm should provide
ongoing training that employs a variety of educational
methods and covers various subjects. This ongoing
training might involve a combination of in-house and
out-of-house training programs. Possible out-of-hours
training programs that should be considered include
those offered by the Philippine Institute of Certified
Public Accountants.
 3. Informal training
Every consulting firm should maintain an assortment
of periodicals, research, materials, reference
manuals, and past projecf documentation within its
library and files. It should encourage implementation
projects. College and university libraries are also
excellent sources of training materials.
Degree of Commitment
As the manager of the practice, the owner/
consultant must effectively manage every part of the
organization including those elements that provide
the security, enjoyment, satisfaction, and
commitment of employees in the practice. By
understanding and employing the fundamentals of
participative management, it can manage
commitment.
The general rules of thumb
are to:
1. Select people who share the consultant's values and
business philosophies.
2. Provide an environment that people are comfortable
with and enjoy working within.
3. Demostrate personal interest in each individual
employee.
4. Provide opportunity for career growth and personal
development.
5. Involve the staff in decisions and commitments that
affect them.
6. Maintain open lines of communication within the
organization.
Career Paths Planning and
Progression
One important strategy necessary for smooth and
uninterrupted growth is a well-defined career path
for staff members The demands of the practice will
increase and take on more complex dimensions as
the practice grows, so the consultant should plan
career progression opportunities in advance of
demand.
These are logical questions that every employee will
ask. From the owner/consultant's perspective, there
are two reasons to have a clearly defined plan for
staff progression within your parctice.

1.He/She must devise a workable plan for promoting

competent individuals into positions of increasing
responsibility as the demands of the growing practice
dictate.
2. He/She wants to retain valued staff members by
meeting their needs for personal achievement and
self-actualization.
TEAM-WORKING SKILLS
 Factors that influence the structure of teams and the way in
which they work:
A. Intrinsic Factors
1.Group size
2.Stage in group formation
3.Individual expertise and specialisms
4.Group norms and culture
5 Leadership
6.Individual personalities
7.Group motivation
B. Extrinsic Factors
1.Group task
a.Familiarity
b.Complexity
c.Significance of outcomes
2.Resource availability
3.Group rewards
4.Interaction with other groups
THE PROCESS OF GROUP
FORMATION
1. Formation
2. Brainstorming / Deliberation
3. Emergence of consensus
4. Performance
Managing Team Conflict
Conflicts are an inevitable feature of work.
They are a normal part of the storming stage of team
formation. Conflict may be defined as a situation in
which the goals of one party are incompatible, or at
least are seen as incompatible, with those of another
party.
 Managing conflict presents its own challenges
but some useful general ground rules for its
management are as follows:
a. Address the issue. It is very tempting to ignore conflict and hope it will resolve
itself.
b. Identify parties. The first stage of conflict management must be to recognize who
is involved.
c. Assert the need for resolution. The first responsibility of the leader is to the team
as a whole and its objectives.
d. Understand both sides. Conflicts are rarely black and white: one side right and
one side wrong.
e. Look for common ground. In a conflict situation individuals tend to see their own
position in terms of what makes it different from those of others.
f. Give parties a back-out route. Often, what matters to a party to a conflict is not so
much the position they have taken as their credibility.
g. Be prepared to impose a solution. Ultimately, the progression of the project iks
more important than the concerns of individuals.
Working With External
Supporters and Experts
No team will have all the skills, expertise and insights
to tackle every issue if might face. It may be advisable
to call on outside expert for advice and support.
The following are some basic ground rules that will
make the process more successful:
1. Understand what issue you need advice or support on. As the project
progresses, a number of issues will become apparent.
2. Define objectives. Once specific issues have been identified, be clear as
to the objective of their resolution.
3. Identify who can help. Who will be able to offer advice with the
resolution of the issue? In an academic institution there are enormous
intellectual resources that can be drawn on at low cost.
4. Approach positively. Experts are usually busy people. You will be
making a call on their time.
5. Ensure understanding and integrate findings. Once advice has been
offered, make sure that its implication are understood.
 TRUE OR FALSE
1. The first step in staff selection is to develop a profile of the
type of person the consultant firm needs to achieve business
objectives.
2. Consultant is generally less experienced, has limited or no
manegerial experience, and works in a support role to the
consultants.
3. Senior consultant must be well rounded and experienced.
4. Critical analysis, conceptualization, and decision making
analysis is the senior consultant's responsibility.
 IDENTIFICATION
5. This kind of training might involve a combination of in-
house and out-of-house training programs.
6. By understanding and employing the fundamentals of
participative management, it can manage
_____________.
7. It is an inevitable feature of team working.
8.The first stage of conflict management must be
recognize who is involved.
9-10. Factors that influence the structure of teams and
the way in which they work.