By Carter McNamara on February 24, 2017
Peter Block, in his seminal consulting book, Flawless Consulting, writes, “There is a set of skills that is an essential part of consulting over and above technical expertise and interpersonal skills – and these are consulting skills” (Jossey-Bass, 2000, p. 6). Yet, the myth continues that technical and people skills are sufficient for successful consulting. […]
By Carter McNamara on February 13, 2017
Here’s an Example of a Disconnected Conversation A couple of weeks ago, a friend of mine and I were talking about a particular consulting project. We just weren’t connecting in our conversation somehow — I kept repeating my points and he kept repeating his. It felt like we were disagreeing somehow, but neither of us […]
By Carter McNamara on January 23, 2017
See Challenges in Consulting to Small Organizations (Part 1 of 3) and Challenges in Consulting to Small Organizations (Part 2 of 3). 8. The focus of consultant projects can change frequently. Smaller organizations, like larger organizations, are dynamic and complex. New and different problems can arise at any level in the organization. However, in smaller […]
By Carter McNamara on January 16, 2017
See Challenges in Consulting to Small Organizations – Part 1 . 5. The organizations are often too small to justify or pay for expensive outside advice. Even when struggling with recurring issues, many small organizations hesitate to spend money on what is seen as diverting valuable dollars from sales and services. So when they do […]
By Carter McNamara on January 12, 2017
Small organizations are often like small families, with all of the ensuing dynamics and challenges that we encounter in families of our own. This presents special challenges for consultants when working to help leaders of these organizations to solve problems and learn at the same time. However, this also presents opportunities for the consultants who […]
By Carter McNamara on December 28, 2016
As we clarified in Parts 1 and 2 of 3, if your clients don’t participate in the consulting to improve their organization, then you are faced with the dilemma: “Should I just do the work for the client, or should we keep slipping deadlines in the project”. However, long-lasting change will not occur in their […]
By Carter McNamara on December 20, 2016
As we clarified in Part 1 of 3, if your clients don’t participate in the consulting to improve their organization, then you are faced with the dilemma: “Should I just do the work for the client, or should we keep slipping deadlines in the project”. However, long-lasting change will not occur in their organization if […]
By Carter McNamara on December 12, 2016
A common question that we get is “How can I get my clients to participate in the consulting project when they seem too busy to even attend our meetings?” This question is relevant whether you are an internal or external consultant. In those situations, you are faced with the dilemma: “Should I just do the […]
By Carter McNamara on July 27, 2012
(Guest post from John Scherer, Co-Director of Scherer Leadership International. This is the sixth blog post in a six-part series about the history of Organization Development, “On the Shoulders of Giants.”) NOTE: What I have learned about Kurt Lewin I received from four main sources. My mentor and NTL buddy, Ron Lippitt (one of Lewin’s first […]
By Carter McNamara on June 26, 2012
(Guest post from John Scherer, Co-Director of Scherer Leadership International. This is the fifth blog post in a six-part series about the history of Organization Development, “On the Shoulders of Giants.” (In the last issue, we featured the work of Kurt Lewin, the ‘grandfather’ of the change movement, and the teacher of one of John’s […]
Carter McNamara of Authenticity Consulting, LLC, provides organizational development, consultant training and Action Learning services, and is developer of the Free Management Library. [Read more ...]