Can someone shed some light on an operations consulting engagement they have been a part of?
What specifically does a consulting firm do in this situation? Is it strategic sourcing/process improvement/design?
The reason I ask is because many firms lump their Stategy and Operations roles together, and I have a solid understanding of the strategy side, but do not know much on the operations end.
If anyone has some input that would be great. Thanks!
I work in operations consulting. Think of the strat. side handing off a plan, and then the ops. side installing that plan.
I don't know which level you get down to at your specific firm, but for instance I am right now in Sao Paulo, Brazil implementing an initiative to increase efficiency at a specific plant based on observed potential capacity/efficiency. I work with the EVP of the country down to his management team (even shop-floor level if we need to) in order to install a management system that's focused on continuous improvement while generating savings based on a few cost-cutting, efficiency-improving initiatives (That's consultant-speak. Learn it, love it.)
Basically, it's the other end of the strategy bit. Strategy is more glory, more money, but this is a stepping stone to a strategy position, and to be honest with you this has more tangible results. You either do it right and get the savings or you don't (a lot of flack on the strat. side is that they leave behind a plan and leave).
I've installed in office settings (logistics management control systems, engineering systems) all the way down to manufacturing shop floors. I'm not going to lie, I love consulting (for now) and I'm using it as a stepping stone to top-flight MBA, but the guys who can't get into strat. positions and don't mind proving themselves can have fun in ops. consulting (at the right company) and get the experience doing it. For instance, I've got tickets to 3 WC games and alt-travel all around South America (and France next month for a long weekend) on the company's dime.
BTW - we analyze, design, install, and measure the project for tangible results - in order to give you a complete idea based on your question.
Ops consulting is a pretty nebulous term. The Ops consulting @"egsc" described gets called operations, implementation, or results delivery. I would expect lots of this type of work at PwC, Accenture, some Deloitte groups, etc. Many firms also include cost-cutting, strategic reductions, and offshoring/outsourcing under the ops umbrella. For the traditional strategy powerhouses (e.g. McKinsey's Ops practice), ops can refer to more strategic initiatives. I.e. "how can a firm compete on speed or customization?" through sourcing, partnership, or process reinvention.
Operational Consulting - Back Office? (Originally Posted: 11/27/2012)
I met several people who work in Deloitte S&O and most of them are involved in operational work. Is this considered to be back office since they are working alot with people from operations at the banks? Thanks
You sir are an idiot. Deloitte S&O is one of the best consulting groups out that, it's behind MBB, but it's hardly "back office", use the search function.
S&O itself is not back office, it's just the strategy/ops consulting division of Deloitte Consulting. It is still a FO consulting role since it's client-facing work.
There's a difference between working with the client's back office, and being in the back office.
I guess a more appropriate quesiton would be how relevant is working in a BB's back office to working in Deloitte's S&O?
Does anyone have any insight on past projects with S&O specifically dealing with back office at a bank?
Because working with client's back office is assisting them with the work they do right? Like risk management, regulatory ..... How different is the operations consulting work?
Risk management and regulatory aren't S&O. S&O is as the name implies strategy work and operational improvements.
Risk management isn't operational work?
any one
Moreover, audit is also a little bit of client facing as well but that doens't make it FO. I think the work should be the basis for whether it is FO or not right?
being a wedding planner is FO if you work at an events company. got it?
Not S&O, but MBB examples I know include cutting BO headcount and helping them move toward outsourcing.
Forget the terminology of FO & BO in this case. The concept applies well to banking but not so much in consulting. Now that we're operating outside of the "FO/BO" framework, I can tell you that S&O is likely Deloitte's highest regarded group. In my opinion it falls shy of MBB's reputation but is head and shoulders above the rest. Don't let the word "operations" scare you due to the people on WSO who constantly talk poorly about it - they are likely just reciting a common misconception to sound informed.
By the way, if you absolutely must compare FO/BO to consulting, I'd say FO = client facing consulting and BO = internal support work. I know people who work for McKinsey (sounds great on paper) but its all internal grunt work.
By "Operational Consulting", what specific areas of consulting is everyone talking about? Is it defined as anything non-strategy? HR consulting? IT consulting?
Examples:
how are insurance surrenders processed? what gates must be cleared before payment can be calculated? how are payments processed?
how do we check a walk in patient into the hospital most efficiently? how do we ensure that the doctor has the right file with the relevant information?
how do raw materials become the finished product? where can the process be more efficient? how can a new form of technology be incorporated in the process?
how does the client book trades? how can the data be centralized?
what sort of KPIs should be used for each department?
as you can see, you're not the guy doing the back office work. you're advising on how they should best do it.
Major issue with back office, operations, etc. consulting is when you exit for client, you might be in client's back office.
top operational consulting companies? (Originally Posted: 07/20/2010)
I am very interested in operational consulting What are the best companies to gain good experience?
GE
alixpartners alvarez and marsal kroll zolfo cooper cereberus oliver wyman huron consulting restructuring/operational consulting practices at the Big4 ..portofolio management and due diligence roles at various HF/PE funds
how about LEK and Booz & Co? I think they have operational practices
Companies that produce products that have to meet an extremely high level of quality (6 Sigma).
You can add McKinsey, BCG, and Bain to that list too. They do plenty of operations work.
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