July, 2023

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How to Generate Referrals Without Asking

Successful Independent Consulting

Part 2: Three Steps for Getting Referrals with Your Own Plan Last month, we took our first look at insights from Stacey Brown Randall’s webinar, “How to Generate Referrals Without Asking.” We discovered her penetrating critiques of referral-generating “best practices,” and we learned about the science of referrals. ( Read Part 1 here.) Ultimately, we discovered that the common wisdom isn’t so wise, and that the best referral-generating strategies are the ones that empower referrers to serve thei

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How to Sound Authoritative (and Why it Matters for Your Consulting Firm)

David A Fields

Clients hire your consulting firm because they trust you to help them solve their problems or achieve their aspirations; because they accept your authority in your area of expertise. Conversely, any chink in your perceived authority will weaken trust with prospects and with clients. That can trigger a precipitous drop in perceived value (and fees), … Continued The post How to Sound Authoritative (and Why it Matters for Your Consulting Firm) appeared first on David A.

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Inbound Marketing To Generate Endless Consulting Clients With Phil Alves: Podcast #300

Consulting Success

IIf you want to grow your consulting business and enhance your marketing, you’re in luck! Today, we have a special guest who will share his secrets to success in driving business growth. Phil Alves, the CEO of DevSquad, has a unique strategy to grow his consulting business through inbound marketing to generate endless consulting clients.

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Successful Independent Consulting Conversation with Tom Cagley

Johanna Rothman

I had the pleasure of recording a podcast with Tom Cagley: SPaMCAST 764 – Successful Independent Consulting, A Conversation with Johanna Rothman. I always have a blast talking with Tom, but this time, it was even better. (And not just because he said it was like attending a master class. We discussed the book, including a person's value, why content marketing works, and why not to worry about putting all the content out there.

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State of AI in Sales & Marketing 2025

AI adoption is reshaping sales and marketing. But is it delivering real results? We surveyed 1,000+ GTM professionals to find out. The data is clear: AI users report 47% higher productivity and an average of 12 hours saved per week. But leaders say mainstream AI tools still fall short on accuracy and business impact. Download the full report today to see how AI is being used — and where go-to-market professionals think there are gaps and opportunities.

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Step Up the Food Chain at Your Consulting Firm’s Clients

David A Fields

If your consulting firm offers “sample size” projects such as workshops, training sessions, speaking gigs, or rapid assessments, you may be frustrated when clients don’t trade up to the full-size projects. In theory, “foot-in-the-door” projects sound great. You run a small project with a client, then the clients loves you so much, they hire your … Continued The post Step Up the Food Chain at Your Consulting Firm’s Clients appeared first on David A.

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Making the Air in the Office Cleaner

Harvard Business

Pressure on employers is increasing to ensure that the air is clean in their facilities. The CDC has set a target for air changes in occupied spaces to reduce the risk of airborne infections such as Covid-19. The federal Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, which took effect on June 27, 2023, mandates that employers provide “reasonable accommodations” for pregnant workers.

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Transform Midlife Transitions: Embracing Personal Growth and Self-Discovery with Rajinder Rai

Consulting Matters

Listen in as we engage in a profound discussion with Rajinder Rai, a former pharmacist turned life empowerment coach, as she shares her midlife journey filled with transitions both professionally and personally. Rajinder recounts how personal health issues and her daughter's Hodgkin's lymphoma diagnosis served as a wake-up call, forcing her to reassess her life and priorities.

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How Consultants Can Be the AI Trusted Advisor

Consulting Success

As consultants and advisors, we get paid to tell the future. We’re paid to explain it, help clients to understand it, and to guide them to a better version of that future. AI is the declared future of all businesses. If we are going to be relevant to our clients, we must be one step.

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Common Causes For Project Failure In a Multi-Project Environment

Epicflow

There are times when despite companies’ project management efforts, they fail to achieve the desired results – projects they are running are late and exceed the budget, employees are stressed and overworked, and there are no signs of business growth on the immediate horizon. In the worst-case scenario, improper project/resource management and unresolved problems lead to project failure.

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Less Stress, More Success: Accounting Best Practices & Processes for 2025

Speaker: Duke Heninger, Partner and Fractional CFO at Ampleo & Creator of CFO System

Are you ready to elevate your accounting processes for 2025? 🚀 Join us for an exclusive webinar led by Duke Heninger, a seasoned fractional CFO and CPA passionate about transforming back-office operations for finance teams. This session will cover critical best practices and process improvements tailored specifically for accounting professionals.

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What Your Consulting Firm Must-Do, No Matter What

David A Fields

If your attention is kidnapped by major, unforeseen events, some of your obligations and responsibilities are going to suffer. However, there are two types of activities you must maintain to keep your consulting firm healthy and on track. As a consulting firm leader, you keep a lot of plates in the air, and when you … Continued The post What Your Consulting Firm Must-Do, No Matter What appeared first on David A.

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Building a Learning Culture: Encouraging Professional Growth in Organizations

Clarity Consultants

Organizations that foster a learning culture gain a competitive edge in today’s rapidly evolving business landscape. Companies can enhance employee engagement, attract top talent, and drive innovation by prioritizing professional growth and creating an environment that encourages continuous learning. Here are six essential components to consider when building an organizational learning culture.

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6 Science-Backed Ways to Improve Your Well-Being at Work

Harvard Business

Employee well-being is an organizational issue, not just an individual one. Many factors impact and influence it, including your workload and flexibility, your manager, and the culture within your team. But while you may not have the ability to change your organization or your boss, there are some simple, science-backed things you can do daily to improve your emotional fitness and well-being.

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From Employee to Healthpreneur: Adrienne Barela's Inspiring Story

Consulting Matters

Running a business and maintaining optimal health may seem like a Herculean task, but it's not impossible. In a recent podcast episode, gut health expert and successful entrepreneur Adrienne Barela demystified the intersection of wellness and entrepreneurship. An integrative health practitioner, Adrienne Barela navigated her journey from employee to health and wellness business owner with resilience, determination, and an impressive understanding of the human body.

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PowerPoint Best Practices for Creating Stellar Presentations

Mastering data visualization in PowerPoint will help accelerate your career because it positions you as someone who can present data that drives business decisions forward. think-cell's PowerPoint Best Practices eBook was created specifically for professionals aiming to master the art and science of data-driven storytelling. What’s inside: Practical Insights: Uncover valuable tips for crafting engaging and persuasive presentations.

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How To Write A Consulting Case Study: Guide, Template, & Examples

Consulting Success

When you deliver a successful project, do you publish a consulting case study about it? A consulting case study is a short story about a successful project that explains… The problem your client was dealing with before hiring you; your expertise and process for solving that problem; and the results your expertise and process created.

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How to Prevent Project Failure in Multi-Project Management: Useful Tips

Epicflow

How can you ensure the successful completion of all projects in your pipeline? To be sure that none of the initiatives will fail and your project management efforts will be crowned with the desired outcomes? In the previous article , we reviewed the main factors that lead to project failure in a multi-project environment. In this post, we’re answering the question: how to prevent project management disasters when running multiple simultaneous projects?

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Prospects Ghosting Your Consulting Firm? Proven Follow-Up Sequence

David A Fields

Your consulting firm submitted a proposal to Chlorissa (“Chlo”) Zing, COO at Fantasma, S.A. However, Ms. Zing canceled your scheduled appointment to talk about the proposal, and hasn’t responded to your request to reschedule. Frustratingly, another hot prospect, Luke van Nesht, with whom your consulting firm held a number of promising conversations, has also stopped … Continued The post Prospects Ghosting Your Consulting Firm?

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Effective Training Techniques: Engaging and Retaining Learners

Clarity Consultants

In today’s dynamic corporate world, training programs enhance employee skills, boost productivity, and drive organizational success. However, designing and delivering training sessions that engage and retain learners can be challenging. To make the most of your corporate training initiatives, it is essential to employ effective techniques that not only capture learners’ attention but also ensure knowledge retention.

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Savings Consultants Are Needed in Today's Market More Than Ever

Savings Consultants are needed in today’s market more than ever. With an increase in expenses, businesses are looking for opportunities to save. Often unknown to businesses are savings in expense reduction, specialized tax savings, specialized savings including medical underpayments, health benefits cost reduction, zero cost processing, and more. Blue Coast Savings, with over 20 years in business, assists Savings Consultants in helping these companies move toward more profitable businesses.

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How to Train Generative AI Using Your Company’s Data

Harvard Business

Leveraging a company’s proprietary knowledge is critical to its ability to compete and innovate, especially in today’s volatile environment. Organizational innovation is fueled through effective and agile creation, management, application, recombination, and deployment of knowledge assets and know-how. However, knowledge within organizations is typically generated and captured across various sources and forms, including individual minds, processes, policies, reports, operational transactions, di

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Bain Interview Portal Opens July 10th

Management Consulted

Bain & Company, one of the world’s leading management consulting firms, has exciting news for those undergraduate and MS students who have been invited to interview for 2024 internship or full time roles. The firm’s interview portal is set to… Read Article The post Bain Interview Portal Opens July 10th appeared first on Management Consulted.

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Innovation Storytelling For Consultants: The “Chocolate & Peanut Butter” Of Delicious Client Engagements

Consulting Success

Ahh, the ’80’s. Walkmen. Cowboys with chocolate. Random women eating gobs of peanut butter from the jar while walking down the street. Good times. Reese’s gave us an unlikely combination of flavors that changed how we look at both chocolate and peanut butter. By mixing them together, they made something better. The same is true.

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Is your project a zombie, troll or unicorn? Maybe it’s just confused and needs a rationale

The Management Centre

In this blog, Director, Laura Slater looks at common problems with projects, and gives an overview of =mc ’s approach to Project Rationale. =mc’s Systems Model outlines 3 elements in getting your project rationale right. They are: Driver : what triggered this project? Why was it initiated? Was this in response to a need (various departments need to find information on our service users), opportunity (a new technology has become available which may support our beneficiaries) up which or problem (

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TOOLS and METHODOLOGIES for developing DECISION SUPPORT PACKAGES

This White Paper targets opportunities for Management to develop proficiency in the Decision Framing and Analyses element of input to Decision, & Risk Analyses for Major Project Funding Decisions.

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Don’t Try Improving Business Development Without Asking This Hard Question

Henry DeVries

Learn from business process and systems expert Dafne Tsakiris what the question is and why this question is so powerful.

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Invest In Your People Now: The 6 Biggest Benefits of Leadership Development

Clarity Consultants

Leaders play an extremely vital role in running a business. They help motivate, inspire, and build confidence in their team. After all, things are going to get tough from time to time, and having that shoulder to lean on can genuinely make or break how well a company survives when things become challenging. Their guidance is a tool that is hard to come by, yet many businesses underestimate their power.

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To Help Your Team Grow, Give Them Space to Struggle

Harvard Business

When you see an employee struggling with a task you could do easily, it’s only natural to want to step in and help. But from the other side, this can feel more like micromanagement than support. And when leaders over-function by keeping too much work for themselves, they allow those around them to under-function. We all know how important it is to delegate — both to help employees grow and to create a more collaborative, empowered, productive team.

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Dealing with Ambiguity at Work: 1 Tool You Need

Organizational Talent Consulting

An increasingly ambiguous world impacts all of us. Effectively dealing with ambiguity is a life skill and a contemporary business imperative for employees and leaders at all levels and businesses of any size. Having a reliable way to clarify workplace ambiguity helps you avoid costly mistakes and improve performance. Unclear roles and responsibilities are one common workplace stressor.

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Why You Need to Use Case Studies in Sales and Marketing (and How to Start Now)

Case studies are proof of successful client relations and a verifiable product or service. They persuade buyers by highlighting your customers' experiences with your company and its solution. In sales, case studies are crucial pieces of content that can be tailored to prospects' pain points and used throughout the buyer's journey. In marketing, case studies are versatile assets for generating business, providing reusable elements for ad and social media content, website material, and marketing c

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How To Optimize Your Consulting Business In Uncertain Times With Sean Sheppard: Podcast #299

Consulting Success

In the uncertain landscape of business growth, reaching new heights requires transcending the limits of your own capacity. Welcome back to the Consulting Success Podcast! In this episode, Michael is joined by the exceptional Sean Sheppard, managing partner at U +, a renowned consulting firm with a track record of creating $2 billion in new.

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How to Measure and Prevent Defect Escapes in Any Project

Johanna Rothman

How do you know when you finished a feature? You might have a checklist, to make sure multiple people looked at all the artifacts, and that everything is checked in. (This is easier if you work as a mob/ensemble, pair, or swarm.) In addition, a product leader might approve the feature. Finally, the team, a product leader, or the customer(!) might demo the feature.

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Position Yourself As A Thought Follower With A Niche Industry TV Show

Henry DeVries

You know what’s cooler than trying to be a thought leader with a podcast? Be a thought follower with a YouTube TV show. Colt Briner of Scrappy AF Solutions tells you why.