On completion of the course the students will be able to:

1. Understand the business of consulting and the fundamental aspects of consulting work.
2. Understand different sources of client uncertainty and problem ambiguity.
3. Understand key ingredients in advisor-client relationship management.
4. Understand communication strategies for consulting work.

5. Professional use of digital applications linked to consulting content creation for practice-oriented reports.
6. Apply structures for effective communication of consultancy output in writing and presentation when delivering advisory recommendations.
7. Application of project management skills in consultancy projects.
8. Delimit, package, and propose consultancy recommendations in uncertain environments, including critically analyzing the problem, assessing information needs, resource requirements, and task delimitation.

9. Make a sound judgment in the absence of complete information.

The course will be practically oriented and let students engage with real-world problems professionally. The course is designed so that students get the opportunity to work with “real” consulting cases and are trained to “manage” digital business consulting projects.
The course will help students develop skills associated with planning and delivering a digital business consulting project. This includes using digital applications linked to consulting to design consultancy assignment deliverables, e.g., report design, information selection, and presentation strategies and skills. The course also focuses on effective communication strategies to interact with clients, from problem formulation/understanding to the delivery of recommendations. The course will also contain practical skills workshops, allowing students to develop consulting skills.
It will also focus on managing and planning consultancy work – idea generation and brainstorming techniques, as well as information gathering and structuring tools, such as the McKinsey Pyramid. The course also aims to train the students in “selling knowledge as a service” - dealing with uncertain projects and clients in uncertain environments – task definition, task delimitation, client handling, and persuasive project sales and project ending.

Connection to Research and Practice
The course has a strong practical connection. Industry partners will deliver course segments and give guest lectures. The skillsets and tools covered in the course are continuously determined and delivered in collaboration with the consulting industry (guest lectures). The tools taught are of practical relevance, and the teaching mode of the course is also highly practical and applied, where students continuously learn by doing.
The course is multidisciplinary, and course contents are anchored in contemporary research on business communication, project management, and organizational communication.

The course demands that all students actively participate and take charge of their learning. Self-study on online learning platforms is used for individual skill modules. Lectures and workshops provide additional knowledge components. Group projects will allow the students to further apply course contents in practical exercises.

The teaching is conducted in English.

Bachelor’s degree (i.e the equivalent of 180 ECTS credits at an accredited university) with at least 30 credits in Business Administration and 30 credits in one (or a combination) of the following areas: Business Administration, Economics, Industrial Engineering and Management, Business Analytics, Informatics, Information Technology, Communication, Commerce (or the equivalent). Proof of English proficiency is required.

The course is graded A, B, C, D, E, FX or F.

Group work (project, presentation, written reflections) 3 credits – ILO 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
Individual skill modules (in class workshop participation), 1.5 credits – ILO 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
Individual exam, 3 credits – ILO 1, 2, 3, 4, 8

Name of the Test	Value	Grading
Group work (project, presentation, written reflections)1	3 credits	A/B/C/D/E/FX/F
Individual skill modules (in class workshop participation)1	1.5 credits	A/B/C/D/E/FX/F
Individual exam1	3 credits	A/B/C/D/E/FX/F

¹ All parts of the compulsory examination in the course must be passed with a passing grade (A-E) before a final grade can be set. The final grade of the course is determined by the sum total of points for all parts of the examination in the course. Grade is set in accordance to JIBS grading policy.

It is the responsibility of the examiner to ensure that each course is evaluated. At the outset of the course, the programme evaluators in the course must be contacted. In the middle of the course, the examiner should meet the programme evaluators to identify strengths/weaknesses in the first half of the course.
At the end of the course, the examiner should remind students to fill in the survey. The examiner should also call a meeting with the programme evaluators to debrief the course, based on course evaluation data and comments. The next time the course runs, students should be informed of any measures taken to improve the course based on the previous course evaluations.
At the end of each study period, JIBS’ Director of Quality and Accreditation crafts a “Course Evaluation Quarter Report”, presenting the quantitative results from course evaluation surveys. The Associate Dean of Education, The Associate Deans of Faculty, Programme Directors, and JSA President and Quality receive the report.

Academic integrity?
JIBS students are expected to maintain a strong academic integrity. This implies to behave within the boundaries of academic rules and expectations relating to all types of teaching and examination.

Copying someone else’s work is a particularly serious offence and can lead to disciplinary action. When you copy someone else’s work, you are plagiarising. You must not copy sections of work (such as paragraphs, diagrams, tables and words) from any other person, including another student or any other author. Cutting and pasting is a clear example of plagiarism. There is a workshop and online resources to assist you in not plagiarising called the Interactive Anti-Plagiarism Guide.

Other forms of breaking academic integrity include (but are not limited to) adding your name to a project you did not work on (or allowing someone to add their name), cheating on an examination, helping other students to cheat and submitting other students work as your own, and using non-allowed electronic equipment during an examination. All of these make you liable to disciplinary action.

Meister, D. H., Green, C. H., and Galford, R. M. The trusted advisor:20th Anniversary Edition (2021) Free Press, New York.

In addition, a list of articles and online materials will be provided in the course introduction session.