Consultancy for Organisations

Information Management

My expertise in this area is founded on my programme management experience at ICL and my work as MBA tutor and course author (in this subject) with Warwick Business School.

I undertook a virtually unbroken series of assignments in the rail industry, primarily with Railtrack, but have also advised architects and construction companies as well as organisations marketing to consumers.

This is not about the management of IT, but the management of  information itself within organisations, what criteria are used to turn raw data into information and how information is transmitted between and within different organisational levels.

It has been my experience in general that information tends to be tailored at each level to what they believe the next level ‘wants to hear’. I have seen managers suppress what hey think is ‘negative’ and also in other organisations what they think is ‘positive’.

Usually senior management get the feeling that something isn’t quite right with what is being reported but because it usually originates as data at the ‘front line’ they find it difficult to get to the bottom of their concerns.

I have conducted a number of investigations usually involving direct discussion with front line staff and reporting my findings directly back to the Board or Directors concerned.

In this area I am confident in dealing with organisations of any size in any sector, given the appropriate level of senior management support.

Process Management

Having robust , clear, understandable processes will have a massive positive effect on how an organisation operates. If managed well it can eliminate or sharply reduce any form of ‘blame culture’ and make for a much better working environment for everyone concerned.

Often the result of investigation into information or operational problems comes down to the absence of a clear process or reliance of a process that is out of date or no longer fit for purpose.

These are not particularly difficult issues for me to help you resolve but the exercise usually requires a significant attention to detail and examination of what is going on in time that is often unavailable to people who are going about their normal business.

If you already have a good quality and process management team however these matters should be able to be dealt with in-house, however it often needs a fresh pair of eyes looking at it from the outside to enable real progress to be made.

Taking on the job of process review across the whole of a large organisation requires significant ‘manpower’ and I may be able to help you recruit a team to do this. For smaller entities or single departments within an organisation however, I may be able to help directly.

Booking

To discuss what’s best for your needs book a personal call with me.

Business Development

The vast majority of the UK Business population is made up of companies termed ‘Small’ Businesses. I spilt this further into what I call ‘Personal’ businesses that will have less than 5 employees (if any) and are ‘owner managed’ to some extent.

I can help these ‘Personal Businesses’ best though my coaching programmes although dedicated short term consultancy is available for specific issues.

For the ‘organisations with up to around 200 staff (depending on the nature of the business) I provide these specific services

Marketing

I have been a marketing practitioner and consultant since 1969 including assisting companies marketing to the public, to other businesses and to their own staff.

My primary activity at Warwick Business School for around 20 years was a a tutor in marketing to distance learning MBA students and I am well versed in market analysis and strategy.

The main issues I’ve discovered when assisting companies in this field are that there may be no market at all (or a very select market) for what they are doing or that they are attempting to compete with other providers in inappropriate ways. Either that or they have very little idea about what ‘marketing’ actually is, often assuming that it’s just ‘advertising’ or something for which their sales force is responsible.

If you have a ‘marketing problem’ in that you’re not finding enough clients or customers I may be able to help.

Operations

Including process analysis and development and business planning

Drawing on my extensive experience of operating my own businesses and working with other organisations and a manager or consultant I am now able to help you find more efficient and effective ways of operating and controlling your costs and also to hep you develop your ‘business plan’.

The Business Plan is more an operating and process manual for your business rather than an instrument you only use when you want to raise funds. This comprehensive plan covers all aspects of your business and makes it a lot easier for you to persuade people that you do ‘know what you are doing’ should it be necessary to raise funds for further investment.

Organisation

Including, structure, documentation, finance and compliance.

I will look at how your business works and how it is funded on an ongoing basis. I will also review how your business conforms to all the rules and regulations that seem to be coming into force more and more frequently. Just keeping up for some businesses can be a full time job!

I’m not an accountant but I know how business finance should work, and if you have an accountant who only looks at your history over the past financial year n order to keep your tax bill down then I can outline how you can manage your funding going forwards and also introduce you to trusted specialists colleagues who can help you with this and with other ‘technical’ matters more directly.

If you are unsure about any particular aspect of your business or need specific help with an issue I can either assist you directly or find someone else who can.

Booking

To discuss what’s best for your needs book a personal call with me.

Starting or developing your Personal Business over the first 12 months is best achieved by using my Coaching Programmes.

However, it does depend on how much you have already achieved in setting up and starting to operate your business as you may have already covered or be comfortable with much of the material available in the Coaching programme.

In this case I can provide valuable assistance and advice in key specific areas or with key specific issues with which you may be having ‘difficulties’.

And if it isn’t an area that falls within my wide experience and expertise with personal businesses then I can certaily find someone amongst my trusted colleagues who will be able to assist you.

Business Creation

If you are just thinking about a business and are still at ‘square one#’ or even less then the Personal Business Creation System (PBCS) is for you. It’s part of The Freedom Academy. For more information talk to me or check it out  PBCS

Booking

To discuss what’s best for your needs book a personal call with me.

What is a ‘Personal Business’?

I speak about ‘personal vision’ using the ‘Business Vision Workshop’ in different formats according to the time available.

The short presentation lasting 20 to 30 minutes including time for questions is designed to get people thinking about their future and about the business they would love to have and it makes it clear that ‘all things are possible’ if approached in the right way

A presentation lasting 45 minutes to an hour will give time for the audience to ‘do some work’ on themselves and also for a short period of interaction. This goes into a little more depth than the short presentation and provides a better introduction to the overall process.

The full workshop lasts between 2 and 3 hours depending on numbers and demonstrates to the audience some of the ‘how’ in terms of creating the vision of their business and also clarifies what is involved in the process.

At the end of each session I will normally offer participants a personal one-to-one strategy session, free of charge, if they are interested in finding out more.

Booking

To discuss what’s best for your needs book a personal call with me.

Who is a business?

Why have a business?

Why ‘Personal’?

I speak about ‘personal vision’ using the ‘Vision Workshop’ in different formats according to the time available.

The short presentation lasting 20 to 30 minutes including time for questions is designed to get people thinking about their future and about the life they would love to live and it makes it clear that ‘all things are possible’ if approached in the right way

A presentation lasting 45 minutes to an hour will give time for the audience to ‘do some work’ on themselves and also for a short period of interaction. This goes into a little more depth than the short presentation and provides a better introduction to the overall process.

The full workshop lasts between 2 and 3 hours depending on numbers and demonstrates to the audience some of the ‘how’ in terms of creating the vision of the life they would love and also clarifies what is involved in the process.

At the end of each session I will normally offer participants a personal one-to-one strategy session, free of charge, if they are interested in finding out more.

Booking

To discuss what’s best for your needs book a personal call with me.

Who is it for?

What is it for?

What is it?

The Personal Business Coaching programme starts with a personal one to one Discovery Call, usually done over the phone or by Zoom, to determine whether or not I can help you or if I should recommend someone else

It’s followed by a Business Vision Workshop. This can be a live event done individually or in a group, a live webinar OR simply you completing the Business Vision Workbook.

This leads to a personal one-to-one Strategy Session to review your Business Vision and work out what happens next.

Depending on your needs you’ll then enrol on an introductory  Coaching Programme and this can range from the full 90 day private personal coaching programme to the ‘DIY’ programme where you go through a workbook by yourself. I also provide Group options, live, or on line and specially tailored personal face to face coaching over a series of half-days.

Usually this part of the programme is about you creating your ‘Business Plan’ – but it’s not what you might think, it’s a clearly defined and documented Operating Manual for your business, dealing in detail with operations, marketing, finance and compliance – everything you need to make sure you can run your business efficiently and effectively, and, prove it to whoever wants to know!

Following this introductory period various longer term options and more advanced programmes are available according to what you want and how things develop over the first phase. Here we can deal in more depth with marketing and sales, use of information and IT, efficient operations, legal matters and so on.

Booking

To discuss what’s best for your needs book a personal call with me.Select a date and time for a call back to arrange a Discovery Call – Option 1 The conversation with me will last about 25 minutes and is free of charge. I’ll ask you to complete an evaluation form before the call.

The Life mastery Coaching programme starts with a personal one to one Discovery Call, usually done over the phone or by Zoom, to determine whether or not I can help you or if I should recommend someone else

It’s followed by a Personal Vision Workshop. This can be a live event done individually or in a group, a live webinar OR simply you completing the Personal Vision Workbook.

This leads to a personal one-to-one Strategy Session to review your Personal Vision and work out what happens next.

Depending on your needs you’ll then enrol on an introductory Coaching Programme which can range from the full 90 day private personal coaching programme to the ‘DIY’ programme where you go through a workbook by yourself. I also provide Group options, live, or on line and specially tailored personal face to face coaching over a series of half-days.

Normally, and I’ve found this to be the most effective method, you’ll undertake the ‘Dreambulder’ programme which has helped many thousands of people over the last 12 years to get over their ‘problems’ and discover and start to implement the life they would love to live. Over 3 months you’ll listen to a series of audios and complete a workbook with weekly coaching sessions to keep you on the right track. The results have been beyond most peoples’ expectations.

Following this introductory period various longer term options and more advanced ‘Life Mastery’ programmes are available according to what you want and how things develop over the first phase.

Booking

To discuss what’s best for your needs book a personal call with me.Select a date and time for a call back to arrange a Discovery Call – Option 1 The conversation with me will last about 25 minutes and is free of charge. I’ll ask you to complete an evaluation form before the call.