Professional Services Advisor

This program seeks to provide professional services practitioners with refined exposure to the skills and tools necessary to build a successful career and practice, whilst addressing their micro and macroenvironmental challenges. To do so, it addresses the major needs areas of trust and communication (Modules 1, 2 & 3), leadership (Modules 4, 5 & 6), marketing in the very specific professional services context (Modules 7, 8, 9 & 10) and acquiring and keeping clients (Modules 11 & 12).

Trust & Communication (Modules 1, 2 & 3)

The first three modules provide professional services practitioners with an effective grounding in client trust and how it can be developed, tools to develop effective client interactions and the ability to influence, to persuade. The foundation need for trust in relationships with clients is well understood in the professional services sector. However, what is much less understood is how this trust is defined and indeed developed. Drawing on the current research on trust, participants will learn how to bridge this gap. Effective communication is not what we say, it is what the other person hears. This module has been designed to provide tools to ensure communication effectiveness, after all we are being paid for these insights, so need to make sure they are refined, targeted and valued. The third module develops participants’ ability to persuade, via exploration of classical and contemporary ideas on rhetoric and persuasion.

Leadership (Modules 4, 5 & 6)

The leadership modules move participants beyond management of self to management of others, encompassing effective leadership, people development and effective change management. Participants will analyse their own management style against best practice and further develop these skills and capabilities. The people development module provides participants with up-to-date and practical frameworks to develop human resource policies, plans and practices. The change management module utilises contemporary techniques and processes which participants will use to effect change within their own organisation.

Marketing Professional Services (Modules 7, 8, 9 & 10)

Modules 7 through 10 explore marketing from a very focused professional services standpoint. Firstly, by considering the nature and characteristics of advisory/consultancy services and value creation activities of trusted advisors. Participants will then use proven models to segment and then target attractive client groupings. Explicit decisions are then taken with regard to positioning and branding for the practice/professional services practitioners which are most likely to resonate with targeted client groups.

Acquiring and Keeping Clients (Modules 11 & 12)

The final two modules deal with business development at both the tactical and strategic level. Module 11 allows participants to better understand consultative selling and further refine their own style. The final module provides participants with an understanding of the importance of strategic client relationships and management, and tools and approaches to ensure they are effectively fostering the correct relationship – across the continuum from transactional to partnerships