IB9SC-15 Business Operations Consulting
Introductory description
Many of our MSc students aspire to work as consultants. While several modules in our portfolios discuss consulting-related issues, only very few are dedicated to developing a deeper understanding of the roles, skills and remit of consultants; specifically those as operations or change consultants.
Module aims
Students will:
- develop a deeper appreciation of the consulting industry and specifically business operations consulting
- acquire the skills necessary to undertake business consulting projects in a wide range of organisations across all sectors and operating in different business environments
- be able to critically assess the design, implementation, use and review of business operations tools and frameworks
- link business operations tools and practices at inter-organisational, organisational and individual levels
- appreciate the main technological, cultural and behavioural aspects related to business operations.
Outline syllabus
This is an indicative module outline only to give an indication of the sort of topics that may be covered. Actual sessions held may differ.
- Introduction to business operations consulting:
- what is its relevance in organisations today?
- what do business operations consultants do?
- the consulting cycle
- In-house vs. external consultants
- Strategic planning and implementation:
- definition of strategic objectives
- design of KPIs and performance targets
- design and use of dashboards
- visualization tools
- Uses of data and technology in the context of business operations:
- big data analytics
- automation
- applications of artificial intelligence
- Process improvement – approaches and related tools and frameworks:
- Total Quality Management
- Business Process Re-engineering
- lean thinking
- Six Sigma
- Behavioural and cultural aspects:
- how to promote change
- how to introduce agile ways of working
- power dynamics in organisations and the roles of consultants
- discussion of multiple cases of success and failure
Learning outcomes
By the end of the module, students should be able to:
- Appreciate the roles of business operations consultants in a variety of organisations
- Analyse and critique the roles of technology (including artificial intelligence) in different contexts
Indicative reading list
Given the applied nature of this module, we will use a range of case studies and illustrations from different types of organizations.
We will also invite business operations consultants to share their experiences.
The academic literature in this field is limited; two books on the management consulting industry that we may use are:
- Wickham, L & Wilcock, J (2020) "Management Consulting: Delivering an Effective Project", 6th Edition. Pearson.
- Witzel, M. 2016. "Management consultancy". Routledge.
Research element
Yes, it will be related to current research projects carried out by OM faculty at WBS and beyond
Subject specific skills
Examine the uses and limitations of business operations processes and theory
Apply various tools and frameworks that are normally deployed in the business operations consulting industry.
Examine and critique a variety of scenarios where consultants (in house and external) interact with clients
Conduct independent research using primary and secondary data.
Transferable skills
Assignment and group work
Study time
| Type | Required |
|---|---|
| Online learning (scheduled sessions) | 9 sessions of 1 hour (6%) |
| Other activity | 18 hours (12%) |
| Private study | 49 hours (33%) |
| Assessment | 74 hours (49%) |
| Total | 150 hours |
Private study description
Private study to include preparation for lectures and own reading
Other activity description
2 hours per week (9 weeks) F2F workshops
Costs
No further costs have been identified for this module.
You do not need to pass all assessment components to pass the module.
Assessment group A
| Weighting | Study time | Eligible for self-certification | |
|---|---|---|---|
Assessment component |
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| Individual Assignment | 80% | 59 hours | Yes (extension) |
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3000 Words assignment . Students will be divided into groups and will tackle a current business operations consulting assignment. Submissions will be individual (80%), and summative feedback will be provided to the assignment. Formative feedback will be provided to activities performed during the module, particularly during the workshops in presence. |
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Reassessment component is the same |
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Assessment component |
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| 15-minute video | 20% | 15 hours | No |
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15-minute video (group) Students will be divided into groups and will tackle a current business operations consulting assignment. Submissions will be group-based (20%), and summative feedback will be provided to the assignment. Formative feedback will be provided to activities performed during the module, particularly during the workshops in presence. |
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Reassessment component |
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| Individual Assignment | Yes (extension) | ||
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Individual Assignment 1000 words |
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Feedback on assessment
Summative feedback will be provided to the assignment. Formative feedback will be provided to activities performed during the module, particularly during the workshops in presence
Courses
This module is Optional for:
- Year 1 of TIBS-N1F2 Postgraduate Taught Business with Consulting
- Year 1 of TIBS-N1F3 Postgraduate Taught Business with Marketing
- Year 1 of TIBS-N1QG Postgraduate Taught Business with Operations Management
- Year 1 of TIBS-N1F4 Postgraduate Taught International Business (MINT)