AD ALTA
JOURNAL OF INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH
Table 3: Tools for education implementation
TOOLS
QUANTITY (%)
Competency models
87
Managing according to competence
12
Managing the work performance
65
Balanced Scorecard
7
Knowledge and talent management
12
Project management
100
Incentive mechanisms
100
Career management
92
Source: authors’ own processing
What emerged from the answers is that almost 82% of the
addressed consulting companies reassess the education system
annually and 18% stated that they routinely repeate activities
which proved to be useful in the past.
Graph 4: Evaluation of the education
Source: authors’ own processing
Respondents (n=120) listed the following as being the methods
of evaluating the education (the respondents had multiple choice
questions; table №4):
Table 4: Methods of evaluating the education
METHODS
QUANTITY (%)
Management methodology according to
competence
27
Process of managing the work performance
31
Balanced Scorecard methodology
7
Competency models
87
Management methodology according to objectives
69
Methodology of tools for 360º feedback
12
Source: authors’ own processing
The most common form of education are trainings (92%).
Specialty of consulting companies in the field of consultants’
education
All respondents (n=146) stated that within the consultants’
education, they engage in the development of managerial,
interpersonal, as well as technical skills. Among the managerial
skills, project management (100%), business negotiations (92%),
time management (58%) and decision-making (47%) prevail. In
case of interpersonal skills, respondents most commonly referred
to the education in the field of communication and presentation
skills. Education on technical skills differed depending on the
specialty of individual consulting companies.
Expectations and results in consultants’education
Almost all representatives of consulting companies we addressed
agreed that they expect improvement and consolidation of the
knowledge base, information and higher work/consulting
performance as the result of their consultants’education. They
assume that consultants will be able to respond to trends and
competition and will be better than competitors. They also
assume that consultants’ work comfort, satisfaction and loyalty
will be improved.
The validity of hypotheses has been confirmed.
3.4 Qualitative survey
In the next stage (in May 2018), we carried out a qualitative
survey, using the interview method on a sample of 40
respondents out of those representatives of consulting companies
who participated in the quantitative survey.
In the qualitative survey, we chose the procedure of constant
comparison of the examined phenomena in which we did not
establish the hypothesis. We wanted to know more about the
frequency of consultants’education in the three fields we
mentioned and how the education focus of consultants involved
in management, marketing and environmental consulting differs.
Within the interview, the so-called selective recordings were
made. To support the validity of the qualitative survey, we chose
the following triangulation:
Two research methods: interview and observation.
The situation examined had been observed by two
researchers.
We assessed the obtained results with respect to consulting
companies and clients’ needs.
The interview was based on the prepared scenario. Recordings
were initially processed individually (a set of selected
“representative” interviews was analyzed by means of qualitative
analyses – generating codes using the GTM method), then, all
interviews (n=40) were analysed and structured once more to
provide comparable results. For data analysis, contingency tables
with Pearson's chi-squared test were used.
3.5 Summary of the main results of the qualitative survey
The results showed significant differences regarding the focus of
educational activities of consultants in the fields mentioned
(management, marketing and environmental consulting). While
managers and marketing consultants attend educational activities
in their field of specialization as well as in cross-sectional fields
equally, environmental consultants are primarily involved in
education in the technical and legislative fields.
Within cross-sectional fields, management and marketing
consultants primarily engage in learning languages, interpersonal
competencies and legislation, whereas environmental consultants
learn managerial competencies and languages.
The frequency of education differs according to individual
consulting companies. It is based on existing strategies,
consultants’ personal development plans, development of the
external environment and the interest of consultants on topical
issues. They also respond to the needs and demands of their
clients in solving their tasks and consulting projects.
The results of the survey encourage suggestions for further
research in the field of education and consulting. They enable
meaningful conclusions to be drawn for both consulting
companies and universities, and their focus on the training of
consultants already during higher education.
Summary
Consulting activity is multidimensional and complex. It has to be
efficient and effective, and therefore provided by highly
qualified professionals. This requires strategic and systematic
approach to the education of consultants.
Consulting companies in Slovakia pay attention to the education
of their consultants as an integral part of their strategic planning.
They are aware of the necessity of this process and its benefits
for their own activity, as well as for their clients.
In spite of the positive attitude towards educational activities in
the examined field, it is worth to point out certain limits and
barriers that eliminate potential effects resulting from the
educational activity in the field of consulting. We believe that in
our conditions it will be necessary to increase the professional
competencies of consultants in their field of activity. In case of
consulting companies, there are obvious possibilities for
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