Annotated Working Draft and Hotspots in Business Consulting

1. Communication and Persuasion in Business Consulting

 Rhetoric and communication are absolutely critical to business consulting. Half of consulting is data analysis and strategic planning, but the other half is presentation to clients. Consultants must be able to present their ideas confidently and convincingly, or they will be dismissed as worthless musings.

2. Storytelling in Business Consulting

Storytelling in business consulting plays an important role, both in fictional and non-fictional stories. Fictional stories can be used for motivation and proving a point. Non-fictional stories are a great way to demonstrate in more emotionally involving terms a point that has already been proven by data and analysis.

3. Business within the History of Civilization

Romans were very pro-business. They spread uniform coinage across the known world, built roads to improve trade, and even had subsidies to help encourage shipping. They also had large plantations, the forefathers of our modern mass agriculture. Business consulting itself didn't actually begin until more modern times.

4. Institutional Authority and Communication in Business Management Consulting 

The main authorities in consulting are the big three consulting firms. They largely control the industry by leading in innovation and choosing which potential consultants can work with them. They also publish papers and hold events to promote themselves.

Hotspot #1 (in the field): The important role of communication in the workplace. This really is half of the job as a consultant. You can have the best idea in the world for a client, but if it isn't well-presented, then it won't be implemented and your work will be viewed as a waste.

Hotspot #2 (personal): This has some overlap with the first. I definitely realize that my communication skills are going to be critical, not only in doing my job, but in securing one. I feel that if I don't continue to take measured steps to improve my oral and written communication, then I'll fall behind. 

Hotspot #3 (personally interests me in the field, but never actually made it into any of our blog posts): One thing that really interests me about the whole world of business is the potential to do good. Many people see business people as greedy or power-hungry, and there is power in business, since the main goal is to get large groups of people to behave how you want them to (i.e. buy your product). This power is often used for getting rich, but can be brought to bear on social and economic issues that governments and charities can only begin to scratch.