Course Highlights
The course for internal consultants will:
- Suggest a framework for identifying issues, crafting data-supported solutions, and evaluating those ideas.
- Provide suggestions and tools for managing stakeholders and facilitating change.
- Offer guidance for creating and delivering succinct presentations.
Program Overview
Internal consultants can play an important role in driving positive change and continuous improvement across all aspects of a business. With their deep knowledge of organizational processes and culture, they are uniquely positioned to influence operations, streamline procedures, and support the development of innovative products and services. This three-part course is designed to build the skills internal consultants need to analyze challenges, develop impactful solutions, and communicate effectively with stakeholders at all levels.
In the first segment, participants will explore the essential responsibilities of internal consultants, from identifying and prioritizing areas for improvement to analyzing root causes and evaluating potential solutions. They’ll gain practical tools for building problem statements, creating issue trees, and applying the MECE (Mutually Exclusive, Collectively Exhaustive) principle to ensure comprehensive and unbiased analysis.
The second segment focuses on stakeholder management and strategic communication. Participants will learn how to identify key stakeholders, understand their influence, and address any talent or influence gaps that may impact project success. They’ll also develop strategies for neutral questioning and crafting communication plans that foster alignment and buy-in, ensuring that proposed solutions are understood and embraced by everyone involved.
In the final segment, the course shifts to presentation skills, equipping participants with techniques for crafting and delivering concise, compelling presentations. From defining the presentation’s purpose to segmenting audiences and structuring information, participants will develop skills to communicate their findings and recommendations with clarity and impact. By practicing effective storytelling and learning how to anticipate and address questions, they’ll be ready to deliver polished presentations that drive action and inspire confidence.
Throughout the program, participants will work through real-world scenarios and case studies, gaining hands-on experience with tools and frameworks that they can immediately apply in their roles. By the end of the course, participants will be equipped to manage projects effectively, build productive relationships with stakeholders, and present their insights in a way that supports informed decision-making and lasting organizational improvement.
Segment One Objectives
At this segment’s conclusion, participants should be able to:
- Explain the role of an internal consultant, the skillset needed, and the challenges often encountered.
- Determine their level of involvement: describe, prescribe, or implement.
- Describe the current source of their work and future workstreams.
- Articulate goals and objectives.
- Identify assumptions, knowns, and unknowns.
- Differentiate symptoms and root causes.
- Determine if the results from a solution would be significant and worth pursuing.
- Craft a focused problem statement.
- Build an issue tree.
- Explain the MECE principle.
- Identify solutions and the data to support the validity and feasibility of those answers.
- Craft a data-backed hypothesis: “If we do X, we should achieve Y because.”
- Evaluate, select, prioritize, or eliminate solutions.
- Define success and any measurements associated with it.
Segment One Modules
- Starting with a Solid Foundation: Defining the Role, the Responsibilities, and Workstreams
- Plotting the Course: Articulating Goals, Objectives, and Assumptions
- Separating Symptoms and Root Causes: Confirming Problems
- A Flexible Set of Tools: Trees and More
- Moving from Statement to Solutions: Finding Options
- Assessing and Selecting: Choosing a Path
Segment Two Objectives
At this segment’s conclusion, participants should be able to:
- Identify a project’s stakeholders.
- Determine roles and assemble a team.
- Identify and mitigate any influence or talent gaps.
- Communicate purpose, expectations, boundaries, and other essential information.
- Assess a stakeholder’s influence and buy-in and plan accordingly.
- Use questions to guide thinking.
- Explain unbiased questioning and neutrality’s role in assessment.
- Choose a communication strategy.
- Select an appropriate level and frequency of communication.
- Socialize ideas and solutions.
- Troubleshoot common problems and challenges.
Segment Two Modules
- Determining the Cast: Identifying Stakeholders and Team Roles
- Starting Out on the Right Foot: Communicating Purpose and More
- Managing People: Understanding Influence and Attitude
- Using Questions: Guiding Thinking to Stay Neutral
- Following a Plan: Getting Communication Strategy Right
Segment Three Objectives
At this segment’s conclusion, participants should be able to:
- Identify a presentation’s purpose and goal.
- Segment an audience and decide what is important to each group.
- Determine an appropriate level of information.
- Decide on a framework and identify content pillars.
- Make design decisions based on how an audience consumes a deck: standalone versus support to speaker.
- Use headings to help an audience skim.
- Write a headline that communicates the main message of a slide or chart.
- Work through a checklist to eliminate common distractions.
- Anticipate questions and prepare appendix materials.
- Use a “this slide is about…, and it’s important because….” framework.
- Clear complicated slides and charts.
- Increase efficiency with templates and story frameworks.
Segment Three Modules
- Articulating the Goal and Purpose: Finding Why
- Forming the Narrative: Crafting the Story
- Communicating Quickly: Using Headlines and Other Time Savers
- Eliminating Distractions: Cleaning Up Charts, Graphics, and Text
- Delivering Succinctly: Maintaining Focus
- Refining and Repeating: Creating Templates and Frameworks
By the conclusion of this three-part course, participants should be able to explain what internal consultants do, navigate an engagement framework, manage relationships, and succinctly present information.
Target Audience
This virtual training program is designed for groups that want to:
- Strengthen internal consulting skills to drive business improvements.
- Develop a standardized approach to problem-solving, stakeholder management, and presentations.
- Enhance the effectiveness of teams functioning in a consulting capacity within the organization.
Suggested Format
- Three-Part Virtual Classroom Course
Questions This Page Answers About Internal Consulting Skills Training
- Who can help my team develop their internal consulting skills?
- My team functions as consultants within our organization. Who can help us standardize our approach?
- Who offers a training course for internal consultants?