This study investigates the reasons behind the departure of female partners from the Big Fouraccounting firms' consulting services and explores how these women overcame obstacles toreach partner level. By examining the factors influencing their career progression and theirdecisions to leave, we sought to contribute to a deeper understanding of gender dynamicswithin the Big Four accounting firms’ consulting services. Using a qualitative approach, the study used in-depth semi-structured interviews with formerfemale partners from the Big Four firms in Western Europe. The research used an inductivemethodology, allowing participants' narratives to shape the exploration of factors influencingtheir career decisions and experiences within these organizations. The findings reveal thatfemale partners often leave due to a sense of being trapped within rigid organizationalstructures, which limit their roles and growth opportunities. Despite high salaries, womenprioritize career autonomy and meaningful challenges, which are scarce at partner levels.Effective mentorship and supportive leadership were crucial for overcoming career obstacles.However, the absence of such support often led to dissatisfaction and departure. The studyhighlights the importance of structural reforms to create more flexible career paths and the needfor dedicated mentorship programs to support women's career advancement. We suggest themetaphor of a "Closed-Loop" to illustrate the systemic barriers and hierarchical culture thatconstrain women at partner level. Addressing these issues requires a comprehensive approachto promote gender equity within the Big Four accounting firms’ consulting services.

This thesis focuses on how small to medium-sized management consultancies internationalise, as this is an under-researched area. Investigation focuses on identifying the factors that facilitate international market success for these small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the challenges they encounter, and how those challenges have been overcome. The relevance of SME internationalisation theories is explored for SME management consultancies in the UK. The study is exploratory, phenomenological and framed within an interpretive research paradigm. Primary data was gathered qualitatively using multiple (9) case studies, collected principally through semi-structured interviews. This empirical research, one of the first to focus solely on SME management consultancies, finds the owner/founders as the key driver of internationalisation. Their past experience enables an international outlook and brings established networks to firm formation. The findings highlight the relevance of intangible resources: the firms’ skills, competencies and networking capabilities, as integral to successful internationalisation. Additional key critical success factors are niche market specialisation, firm reputation, firm location, ability for service provision modification and the role of technology. There are observed firm size-related differences in the challenges these firms face, with smaller-sized firms being more vulnerable to challenges from the external environment, including the 2008 financial crisis. Firms are able to overcome these challenges with the help of their networks. Other challenges stem from the firm’s service provision: difficulty in finding skilled staff and communication with clients. The findings suggest applicability for other knowledge-intensive firms. The research contributes to closing the gap in literature on how firms successfully provide services internationally and in so doing advances theoretical understanding of SME service internationalisation. This theory-building research demonstrates partial relevance of Stage Theory, Networking Theory, and Born Global Theory, but overall the resource-based view was found as the most relevant to understanding the internationalisation process of SME management consultancies. This sets a foundation for further research on the internationalisation process of other knowledge-intensive firms.

The aim of the thesis is to present the roles of the pedagogical consultant at primary school and high school. The theoretical part is focused on term the educational consultant (regarding legislation, requirements for education). The thesis is occupied with history of educational consultancy, the content of the work of educational consultant, the cooperation with pedagogical and psychological counseling. The practical part is implemented by the qualitative research.The research consists of the dialogues with educational consultants from primary school and secondary school. It studies their job duties,the content of their job, the most common topics and educational difficulties and their solving.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-29T14:16:21Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 FERNANDA CALDAS DE AZEVEDO.pdf: 1433724 bytes, checksum: 1eb47aca2fce212188d49452c0091c7c (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013-05-14 / Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico / Founded in a critical perspective, the purpose of this dissertation aimed to capture the business consulting of Social Work in the face of productive restructuring. Therefore, this area of professional practice was understood on the basis in the study of capitalism in its different phases and in particular of the productive restructuring (1970), which allowed the expansion of precarious work relationships, strengthening professional outsourcing process, and providing opportunities the expansion of business consultancy in the area of Social Work. Therefore, a qualitative approach was used, consisting of exploratory field research which mapped four consulting business in the state of São Paulo, which offer the practice of social work as one of their services and semi-structured interviews with social workers-business consultants. The interviews were analyzed according to the following axes: forms of commodification of the labor force, the construction process of individual and collective identities, the organization and the conditions of work, safety conditions of work and the conditions of participation in the professional class. The analytical path performed demonstrated and reaffirmed the logic for restructuring the capital and destroying of the working class, with hiddenness of social and salary losses, the priority attention to business demands and secondary care to the working class, expansion of professional experience in consulting through quarteirização (outsourced companies that outsource their services) indicating a capillarization of precarization for the professional who occupies this space and for the professional category - and among other things, there is a trend towards substitution of business professionals (formal employees) for business consultants (freelance). In summary, the issue becomes relevant for pointing out the precarization of world of work through the professional category of Social Workers; therefore this issue should be a concern of professionals, of category as a whole, and of the institutions of professional representation / A proposta desta dissertação, embasada em uma perspectiva crítica, teve por finalidade apreender a consultoria empresarial de Serviço Social em face da reestruturação produtiva. Compreendeu este espaço de atuação profissional a partir do estudo do capitalismo em suas diferentes fases e em particular a da reestruturação produtiva (1970), que permitiu a expansão da precarização das relações de trabalhos fortalecendo o processo de terceirização profissional oportunizando a ampliação de consultorias empresariais na área do Serviço Social. Fez uso de abordagem qualitativa, constituída por pesquisa de campo exploratória que mapeou quatro consultorias empresariais no estado de São Paulo que oferecem a prática do Serviço Social como um dos seus serviços, e entrevista semi-estruturada com Assistentes Sociais-consultoras empresariais. As entrevistas foram analisadas a partir dos seguintes eixos: das formas de mercantilização da força de trabalho; do processo de construção das identidades individual e coletiva; da organização e das condições de trabalho; das condições de segurança de trabalho e das condições de participação na categoria profissional. O percurso analítico realizado demonstrou e reafirmou a lógica reestrutiva para o capital e destrutiva para a classe trabalhadora, com ocultamento das perdas sociais e salariais, atendimento prioritário às demandas empresariais e secundário à classe trabalhadora, expansão da atuação profissional em consultorias por meio da quarteirização, o que indica uma capilarização da precarização para o profissional que ocupa este espaço e para a categoria profissional e, entre outros aspectos, há uma tendência de substituição de profissionais de empresas (celetistas) por consultores empresariais (autônomos). Em suma, a temática torna-se relevante por apontar através da categoria profissional dos Assistentes Sociais a precarização do mundo do trabalho e por isso deve ser uma preocupação tanto dos profissionais da categoria no seu conjunto quanto dos órgãos de representação profissional

Unemployment rate is all time low in Europe and this results in shortage of skilled workers. At same time technology changes are on their boom which puts new requirements of skills including diversifying competencies. The companies like consultancy faces issues to find right people with right skills and at right time. This unavailability of resources impacts the strategic goal of company. Smaller companies need to compete with mid-size and large companies over the same skilled workforce. Due to the lack of branding and company recognition, this can cripple the companies to grow and gather a completive advantage. Previous work has failed to address this issue, especially related to the smaller IT consultancies which is the fastest growing segment. The 99% of all business in Europe represents by small or medium size companies. IT consultancy companies represented the most growing and major contributor in value creation in information and communication sector in Europe. Therefore, the main purpose of this study was to answer in what way the low unemployment rate affects the strategical process and execution for small IT consultancy companies. Furthermore, this study looked into the role of recruitment process to attract and retain skilled employees. A qualitative approach combined with semi-structured interviews was used as the main methodology to gather empirical data and answer the key problems of this study. The semi-structured interviews were chosen due to the possibility to give the interviewers a freedom to speak and explain moderately, especially strategy processes, which are different from one company to other ones. This study found that small IT consultancy companies had little or no formal structure in the strategical processes in relation to the literature available in the topic, but still highlighted and expressed that strategy is important for the companies. Although if small IT companies want to grow, they must rethink the organizational structure. All studied companies are providing high salaries, freedom of work, technology learning, and job satisfaction as a key tool to attract talent. All companies in general asked the most critical questions on how to grow their business with the basis of their own limitations. Unfortunately, none of the companies reviewed and monitored their objectives on frequent and regular basis.  This study found that the low unemployment rate plays a critical role which can increase the profit margin, but cannot increase the number of employees and potentially minimize the importance of the strategical process. The study also found that low unemployment rate creates a healthy competitive environment where all large and small consultancy companies enables each other to grow instead of competing.

This Master thesis provides a framework for analysis of the resource planning and allocation processes within an IT consultant firm. The aim is, to identify information, which can be reflected in an information system. The framework has been developed using multi-grounded theory method, considering theories from the areas of information systems design, project business performance, enterprise planning, and project planning. Based on a main process view and hypothesized information requirements, the dynamic processes of sales, project resource planning, miscellaneous activity planning, project portfolio planning, resource allocation and general management are discussed, along with their underlying concepts. A case study has been conducted, to test the validity of the framework and to evaluate its applicability. The findings are compared and contrasted to our frame of reference during analysis. From a reflection on the analysis, changes are proposed to the firm under study, as well as our framework.

Orientador: Adriana Maria Bernardes da Silva / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Geociências / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-16T21:03:16Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Merlin_PatriciaStahl_M.pdf: 2213973 bytes, checksum: f0a1ee877ed68f0294f83d0ba7e56e94 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010 / Resumo: Sob a perspectiva das redes informacionais postuladas por uma nova divisão territorial do trabalho, surgem novas atividades e instituições voltadas à produção, circulação e gestão da informação, a fim de fornecer insumos às empresas e aos órgãos públicos que visam racionalizar suas funções diante da complexidade do mundo atual. Neste sentido, dentre as instituições produtoras de informações atuantes no Brasil, destacaremos a ação do SEBRAE (Serviço Brasileiro de Apoio às Micro e Pequenas Empresas) como agente estruturante de uma rede de trabalho informacional que reorganiza o território conforme as necessidades da globalização. Como um importante agente da modernização brasileira, o SEBRAE fomenta as novas especializações produtivas e contribui para o surgimento de novos serviços que modificam a estruturação e o funcionamento das cidades. Não obstante, o SEBRAE vem atuando como um importante agente ideológico propulsor de um empreendedorismo urbano, que enaltece o ambiente empresarial e influencia os órgãos públicos municipais a reorganizarem seus territórios em virtude de novos paradigmas empresariais. Neste sentido, buscamos neste trabalho problematizar a atuação do SEBRAE como difusor das informações gerenciais mas principalmente, como agente propulsor de uma nova urbanização atrelada a uma informação territorial / Abstract: According to the perspective of the postulated information networks by a new territorial division of labor, new activities and institutions arise and they are focused on production, circulation and management of information in order to provide raw materials of information to the companies and also to the public organs which are concentrated on rationalizing their functions because of the complexity of today's world. Therefore, many information producer institutions are in Brazil, but let's point out the action of the one of them: SEBRAE (Brazilian Service of Supporting to Micro and Small Business) as structuring performer of an international network of information labor that reorganizes the territory according to the globalization necessities. As an important performer of the Brazilian modernization, SEBRAE encourages new productive specialization and contributes to the emergence of new services which modify the structuring and function of the cities. In spite of that, SEBRAE has been performing as an important ideological agent, propeller of an urban entrepreneur, which exalts the business atmosphere and influences municipal public organs to reorganize their territories due to the new business paradigms. Thus, this study intends to put in doubt SEBRAE performing as disseminator of management information but mainly as a propeller of a new urbanization related to the territorial information / Mestrado / Análise Ambiental e Dinâmica Territorial / Mestre em Geografia

Orientador: Adriana Maria Bernardes da Silva / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Geociencias / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-12T03:14:53Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Farias_HelioCaetano_M.pdf: 2786175 bytes, checksum: a6740e8972ea453bf25c82d019343b5d (MD5) Previous issue date: 2008 / Resumo: A presente pesquisa visa contribuir com a interpretação sobre uso do território brasileiro a partir da análise do BNDES. A escolha desta instituição deve-se a sua importância no planejamento, financiamento e execução dos principais projetos de desenvolvimento vivenciados pelo país desde meados do século XX. A história do BNDES se confunde com a história da integração do território e da industrialização nacional, ambas alicerçadas numa política de superação do subdesenvolvimento. Criado em 1952, no governo de Getúlio Vargas, o Banco tornou-se, desde então, imprescindível aos principais projetos ou planos nacionais das mais diversas orientações. No período atual, com a intensificação da racionalidade da globalização na formação socioespacial brasileira, o BNDES tornou-se central na elaboração e operacionalização de um quadro normativo e territorial favorável à internacionalização do território. O vigoroso processo de privatização coordenado pelo Banco, com o aval das empresas de consultoria, tem ampliando a desigual geração e apropriação de riqueza, bem como intensificado o uso corporativo do território. / Abstract: The present research intends to contribute with the interpretation about the use of Brazilian territory, using, for this, BNDES' analysis. The choice of researching this institution is due to its planning importance, financing and execution of the major development projects, lived by country since half of XX Century. BNDES' history is confused with the history of territory integration and with national industrialization, both based on a politics of underdevelopment overcome. Born on 1952, on Getulio Vargas government, the Bank has been, since then, essential to the major projects or national plans of distinct orientations. In the present days, with the intensification of globalization rationality on Brazilian socio-space formation, BNDES has been a central point for the elaboration and operationalization of a normative and territorial scene, in favour of the territory internationalization. The vigorous privatization process coordinated by the Bank, with the endorsement of consultancy companies, has been enlarging the unequal generation and appropriation of richness and intensifying the corporate use of territory. / Mestrado / Análise Ambiental e Dinâmica Territorial / Mestre em Geografia

This research examines the practice of process consultancy in Sweden with a particular emphasis on working in disturbing and uncomfortable situations. The managerial discourses that consultants are working in are dominated by an abstract language with a relentless eye towards imaginative futures in the form of visions, missions, strategies, and goals (Stacey 2011, Mowles 2014). Based on linear casuality thinking that comes from the natural sciences, the assumption is of predictability and control. Therefore, disturbing, uncomfortable, or conflicting situations arising in practice are generally overlooked, avoided, or suppressed as they - per definition - are neither predictable nor controllable. Although process consultancy in many respects gradually has changed from delivery/expertise of ready made concepts into more of conversational facilitation, speaking partnerships, inquiry and coaching, disturbing and uncomfortable moments are still generally being avoided or overlooked. This research is a narrative-based inquiry that has served as a basis for engagement in literature, reflections, reflexive inquiries, and conversations with fellow researchers, members of faculty, and other practitioners. Out of this iterative and intese process, the arguments have emerged and developed. In describing a multitude of uncomfortable and disturbing situations from my practice, and while paying close attention to them in local context, a view of these situations as problematic and avoidable has moved into a wider and deeper understanding regarding what might be taking place among us. Interpreting directives, policies, and strategies - what to do and how to do it - in order to find the most functional ways forward is imperative in organisations. Hence, corrigibility and definite inquiries into worlds of practice and relations are necessities. As ideologies and intentions among people differ, problems and disturbances are inevitably encountered in processes of particularising (making concrete in specific contexts) generalised plans and strategies, which, in turn, creates different and new generalisations (Stacey 2011, p. 358). Utilising process consultancy in order to 'deal' with the above situation may, however, paradoxically enhance anxiety and disturbancies even more. In drawing attention to disturbances as central, 'normal', and generative (normforming), I have come to think of the actual process in process consultancy as having felt dissolving qualities. As 'states' of body/mind are temporary, shifting, and changing when we are being influenced and influence others and ourselves (constrain and enable) at the same time as we speak, a sense of solution often occurs in the process. Rather than solving or resolving issues - a more traditional approach, intentionally aiming at fixing something - acts of conversations and reflexive inquiries are not aiming anywhere in particular. They are explorative and mind-moving and make us re-identify or re-form our sense of self. Hence, in the process of 'loosening up or breaking apart' identity, a sense of solution (I refer to as dissolution) is felt to emerge. This process can be disturbing per se, and the newly gained thinking - also of a temporary kind - can be felt as 'better' or 'worse' or neither, as movements and outcomes are unpredictable. In process consultancy, the understanding of people as an elusive science - changeable, fluid, and plural (messy and needy rather than tidy and rational) - is helpful in order to understand 'stuckness' and enable movement by taking experience seriously rather than engaging in excessive quantification or being futuristic and idealising.

The focus for this research project was on the use of technology in bridging a perceived gap in sport psychology. This gap is present between the three main contexts in which sport psychology is practised, namely the individual consultancy, the lecture hall and the sports field. These contexts are removed from one another due to cost implications, time constraints and distance challenges. I propose that by using technology, in the form of video-taping athletes, these challenges can be overcome. Thus leading to better service delivery by sport psychologists on the one hand and more fulfilled and informed clients on the other. An example of this, in a practical situation, is this research project done with the golfers of the Tshwane University of Technology Golf Academy (TUTGA). Six of these golfers were video-taped while playing a round of golf. Then they were interviewed individually, using narrative practice interviewing techniques, about their experiences on the course. Lastly they were interviewed in a group session so as to ascertain how they experienced being video-taped on the course and how they experienced the use of video technology in the sport psychology process. Copyright 2007, University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. Please cite as follows: Bezuidenhout, T 2007, Bridging the sport psychology gap in golf, MA dissertation, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, viewed yymmdd < http://upetd.up.ac.za/thesis/available/etd-09302008-132016 / > E1115/ag / Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Psychology / unrestricted