La consultation est présente dans plusieurs domaines, tels que la psychologie, les ressources humaines, la gestion, l’éducation, l’informatique, et la comptabilité (Bordeleau, 1998; Lescarbeau, Payette et St-Arnaud, 2003; Stern et Tutoy, 2003). Plusieurs entreprises font régulièrement appel à des consultants pour les aider à résoudre un problème, à optimiser un processus ou à former leurs employés. Les individus font également appel aux consultants pour les aider à clarifier leurs objectifs ou à établir un plan d’action pour les atteindre. Ces consultants jouent parfois un rôle de conseiller, d’expert, d’accompagnateur, de coach, de psychothérapeute. Ils aident leurs clients en analysant leurs besoins, en faisant preuve d’écoute, en les aidant à trouver des solutions, à développer un plan d’action ou à acquérir de nouvelles compétences. Toutefois, les mandats de consultation n’ont pas tous le succès escompté et plusieurs facteurs semblent nécessaires pour réussir. L’introduction de la thèse présente la recherche effectuée sur les caractéristiques personnelles des consultants efficaces, car c’est un aspect que le consultant peut développer par l’entremise de l’expérience, de la formation, de la supervision ou du coaching. De plus, étant donné le petit nombre de recherches trouvées sur le sujet, il semblait pertinent et avant-gardiste de s’y attarder davantage. Les résultats sont présentés dans deux articles, l’un présentant les résultats de la recherche documentaire et l’autre présentant les résultats de la recherche exploratoire effectuée. D’abord, le premier article partage les résultats de la recension documentaire sur la consultation, sur l’efficacité de la consultation et les caractéristiques personnelles des consultants qui y sont liées. Six catégories de caractéristiques des consultants liées à l’efficacité en consultation ont émergé des analyses : les caractéristiques sociodémographiques, les habiletés interpersonnelles et intellectuelles, les traits de personnalité, les comportements et les connaissances. Il est à noter que la documentation expose surtout des descriptions basées sur les expériences des auteurs, quelques études de cas et peu de recherches empiriques ou exploratoires. Le second article présente les résultats d’une recherche exploratoire sur les caractéristiques personnelles des consultants liées à leur perception d’efficacité en consultation. Cette étude a été effectuée pour pallier au manque de recherches trouvées sur le sujet. Elle visait à répondre à deux questions : 1. Quelles sont les caractéristiques de personnalité et sociodémographiques des consultants en lien avec a) l’efficacité globale en consultation et b) chacun des critères de cette efficacité? 2. Quelle est la puissance prévisionnelle des caractéristiques de personnalité et sociodémographiques à l’endroit de a) l’efficacité globale en consultation et de b) chacun des critères de cette efficacité? Au total, 135 consultants provenant de quatre cabinets et deux associations de professionnels, de quatre pays différents, ont participé à la recherche. Il a été possible de mesurer deux catégories de caractéristiques des consultants efficaces identifiées dans le premier article : les traits de personnalité (Hogan et Hogan, 2007) et les caractéristiques sociodémographiques, par l’entremise de questionnaires auto-rapportés. De plus, les consultants ont évalué les critères d’efficacité utilisés et atteints dans leurs consultations (Roy, 2008). Ainsi, en analysant les résultats, il est important de considérer qu’ils reflètent la perception de ce que les consultants estiment important pour leur efficacité. L’article présente ces résultats de manière détaillée suite aux analyses corrélationnelles et de régression qui ont été effectuées. La sensibilité interpersonnelle, le fait d’apprécier les interactions sociales et d’être proactif socialement, la sociabilité, l’intérêt à avoir une diversité d’expériences et de contacts, l’ambition, le leadership, la vitesse de passage à l’action, le fait d’être préoccupé par l’opinion des autres et la confiance en autrui s’avèrent liés à la perception d’efficacité globale en consultation, ainsi qu’à plusieurs des critères relatifs à la satisfaction du consultant et à la conduite de son intervention. Pour terminer, la discussion de ce second article, de même que la conclusion de la thèse, font des liens entre ces résultats et la documentation, présentent les apports et limites de la recherche, ainsi que des pistes de recherche futures. / Consultation is an important part of the professional practice in several fields such as psychology, human resources, management, education, informatics and accounting (Bordeleau, 1998; Lescarbeau, Payette et St-Arnaud, 2003; Stern et Tutoy, 2003). Several businesses regularly hire consultants to help them resolve problems, improve a process or train their employees. Individuals also contact consultants to help them clarify their objectives and make an action plan. These consultants can play an expert, partner, coach or psychotherapeutic role. They help their clients by analysing their needs, listening to them, finding solutions, making an action plan or acquiring new skills. Yet the degree of success of the mandates may vary and several factors may affect success. The introduction focus is on the personal characteristics of the effective consultants, because the consultants may improve it by training, coaching, supervision and experience. Moreover, this research is useful and original since only a small amount of studies were found on this topic. The results are presented in two articles, one more theoretical and the other presenting the exploratory research results. The first article presents the literature results on consultation, effectiveness and the personal characteristics of consultants that are related to it. Six categories of consultant characteristics emerged from the analysis: interpersonal and intellectual skills, behaviours, knowledge, socio-demographic and personality characteristics. The literature is based on authors’ descriptions, case studies and a small amount of empirical and exploratory studies. The second article presents exploratory research results on personal characteristics of the consultants related to consultants’ perception of effectiveness. This study was conducted to address the lack of research found on the subject. It was designed to answer two questions: 1) What personality and socio-demographic consultant characteristics are related to a) consultation global effectiveness b) each effectiveness criteria? 2) What is the predictive power of personality and socio-demographic characteristics in relation to a) consultation global effectiveness b) each effectiveness criteria? In total, 135 consultants from four firms and two professional associations participated in the study. It was possible to measure two categories of the consultant characteristics identified in the first article: personality (Hogan et Hogan, 2007) and socio-demographic characteristics, through two self-reported questionnaires. Moreover, the consultants evaluated the effectiveness criteria used and achieved in their consultation (Roy, 2008). Thus, analysing the results, it is important to say that they reflect consultants’ perception of what they consider important for their effectiveness. The article presents these results in detail following correlational and regression analyses that were performed. Personality traits such as interpersonal sensitivity, love for social interactions, being socially proactive, sociability, interest in a variety of experiences and contacts, ambition, leadership, being action oriented, being concerned about the opinion of others, and trust in others seem to be related to the perception of the overall effectiveness as well as to several consultation criteria related to the satisfaction of the consultant and the conduct of its intervention. Finally, the discussion of this second article, as well as the thesis conclusion, make links between these results and the literature results, present the contributions and limits of the research, as well as future research directions.

Diploma thesis deals with Development Propsal of a Motivation Program for Regional Managers in the Southern Moravia Agency which is one of eight agencies of the examined company. Diploma thesis first focuses on the theoretical basis of solved problems, then on the analysis of internal and external influences on the solved problems. At the end of the thesis the proposals are submitted. These proposals should lead to improvements in the motivation and adaptation system and reduction in staff turnover in the Southern Moravia Agency.

The Covid-19 pandemic has affected the world globally and the way humans conduct their work today. Face-to-face meetings have since before the pandemic been the most standard and effective way to do business, but due to the recommendations from the Swedish Public Health Agency workshops conducted by ERP-consultants does now have to be executed digitally. The transition from physical to digital meetings has imposed major challenges for consultants such as replicating the communication, lack of engagement and a higher risk for becoming fatigued. However, there is little to no research from an ERP-consultant's perspective on how to facilitate and conduct workshops as well as how it has now been affected by the ongoing global pandemic. Therefore, the purpose of the study is to gain an understanding of workshops conducted by ERP-consultants, comparing the process of a traditional workshop to digital workshops. In addition, understanding which strengths and weaknesses can be found with traditional and digital workshops. The study also aims to create guidelines that will help ERP-consultants to achieve higher quality in digital workshops. The data was gathered via semi-structured interviews with five ERP-consultants and was split into two stages; first stage aimed at identifying strength and weaknesses, further the second stage of interviews aimed at evaluating the created guidelines. From the interviews several strengths and weaknesses were identified, and the weaknesses acted as a foundation for the creation of the five guidelines. In conclusion, 1) there are strengths in traditional workshops that are lost in digital workshops, and 2) there are added strengths in digital workshops that could not be fulfilled in traditional workshops.  Lastly, the study found that the traditional workshop and the face-to-face communication can not be fully replaced by the digital as it is human nature to connect and socialize with other people.

Cílem této diplomové práce je vytvoření kompetenčního modelu HR konzultanta působícího v mezinárodní personální agentuře. V první části práce se věnuji terminologické definici pojmů a popisu kompetenčních modelů, které jsou zaměřeny na HR profesionály. V praktické části práce jsem čerpala z analýzy popisu pracovního místa, rozhovoru s HR konzultantem a dotazníku. Dotazník byl distribuován mezi HR konzultanty působící ve zkoumané agentuře. Výstupem této analýzy je popis kompetencí a sestavený kompetenční model. V závěru této diplomové práce uvádím, jaké jsou praktické možnosti využití kompetenčního modelu.

Background: Motivation creates meaning in both big and small things. Previous studies have shown that the field of motivation is important as it affects the skills individuals develop, which jobs and careers individuals take on and also how individuals allocate resources such as attention, effort and time. Motivation is essential for both individual well-being and organizational success. In an increasingly globalized world, companies can become more competitive by hiring consultants and reports have shown that the consulting sector is expanding. Purpose and issue: The purpose with this study is to examine how work motivation is founded in consultants and also if there are any factors that differs between full time employed and part time employed consultants. Method: This study is a qualitative case study. Eight semi structured interviews, where the respondents have been answering questions related to work motivation, have been made. The collected empirical data has then been analyzed using a theory synthesis and previous research. Conclusion: The result in this case study has shown that fellowship and relationships, own growth, responsibility, rewards and goals are important elements in motivation. It is, however, a bit problematic to make a general conclusion out of these results because they contain different perceptions, reasonings and opinions among the respondents.

Este trabajo de investigación desarrolla una propuesta de mejora de los procesos de Gestión de Procesos y Desarrollo de Software de una pequeña empresa (PYME) dedicada a la consultoría y proyectos de desarrollo en el sector de la industria del software para las empresas del mercado peruano. Strategic Decision Consulting SAC ha realizado proyectos de inteligencia de negocios en los rubros de outsourcing y desarrollo de software de acuerdo con los requerimientos del cliente que le han ayudado rápidamente a tener una cartera de clientes y posicionamiento en el mercado durante el periodo 2016-2017. Después de este periodo de auge y ante la ausencia de formalización de sus procesos de gestión y de desarrollo la empresa Strategic ha ido perdiendo clientes y contratos por diversos problemas como una gestión ineficiente en el ciclo de desarrollo de software, sobrecostos en los proyectos, insatisfacción de los clientes, incidencias en la calidad del software, retrasos en los entregables entre otros problemas. Todo ello ha llevado a una fuerte caída en la facturación en el periodo 2018-2019. Ante este panorama y en medio de una coyuntura terrible por la pandemia debida al Covid-19 se propone el desarrollo de una propuesta de mejora de acuerdo con el perfil básico de la norma ISO 29110 que propone buenas prácticas para el diseño de los procesos de gestión de proyectos y de desarrollo de software. En el presente trabajo de investigación se realiza una revisión de la industria del software, del tipo de empresa, de la situación actual y marco regulatorio de la industria del software en el Perú. Se revisan los modelos de procesos de software presentes en el mercado como Moprosoft, CMMI, ISO 12207, Prince2 entre otros justificando la elección de la norma ISO 29110 para la empresa. Finalmente se define el alcance y marco de evaluación de la norma ISO29110 sustentando el uso del perfil básico. Se realiza un análisis de brechas de los resultados de evaluación de los procesos y una evaluación económica de implementación de la norma ISO29110 cuya relación costo-beneficio es adecuada a las posibilidades de la empresa. / This research work develops a proposal to improve the Software Development and Process Management processes of a small company dedicated to consulting and development projects in the software industry sector for companies in the Peruvian market. Strategic Decision Consulting SAC has carried out business intelligence projects in the areas of outsourcing and software development in accordance with the client's requirements that have quickly helped it to have a portfolio of clients and market positioning during the period 2016-2017. After this boom period and in the absence of formalization of its management and development processes, Strategic company has been losing clients and contracts due to various problems such as inefficient management in the software development cycle, cost overruns in projects, dissatisfaction from customers, incidents in the quality of the software, delays in deliverables among other problems. All this has led to a sharp drop in billing in the 2018-2019 period. Given this scenario and during a terrible situation due to the pandemic due to Covid-19, it is proposed to develop an improvement proposal in accordance with the basic profile of ISO 29110 that proposes good practices for the design of project management and software development processes. In this research work, a review of the software industry, the type of company, the current situation, and the regulatory framework of the software development sector in Peru is carried out. The software process models present in the market such as Moprosoft, CMMI, ISO 12207, Prince2 among others are reviewed, justifying the choice of the ISO 29110 standard for the company. Finally, the scope and evaluation framework of the ISO29110 standard is defined, supporting the use of the basic profile. A gap analysis of the evaluation results of the processes and an economic evaluation of the implementation of the ISO29110 standard are carried out, the cost-benefit ratio of which is appropriate to the possibilities of the company. / Trabajo de investigación

Som en konsekvens av den tekniska utvecklingen levereras affärssystem alltmer som en molntjänst. Detta innebär att IT-konsulters värdeskapande förändras vid implementering av molnbaserade affärssystem. Besitter IT-konsulterna inte rätt expertis kan det leda till felaktiga beslut samt ineffektiva lösningar. Därmed är det av yttersta vikt att undersöka hur IT-konsulters värdeskapande förändras som konsekvens av implementeringen och användandet av molnbaserade affärssystem. Syftet med studien är att bidra med ny kunskap om hur IT-konsulters värdeskapande kompetens och aktiviteter förändras som konsekvens av implementeringen och användandet av molnbaserade affärssystem. Med hjälp av datadriven tematisk analys har studien undersökt hur IT-konsulters värdeskapande förändras. I studiens slutsats presenteras sex förändringar i hur IT-konsulters värdeskapande kompetens och aktiviteter förändras som konsekvens av implementeringen och användandet av molnbaserade affärssystem. Ett exempel är att IT-konsulters värdeskapande blir att anpassa kundorganisationers affärsprocesser snarare än systemets processer. / Because of the technological development, Enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems are increasingly being delivered as a cloud service. This means that IT consultants' value creation may change when implementing cloud-based ERP-systems. If the IT consultants do not possess right expertise, it can lead to erroneous decisions and ineffective solutions. Thus, it is of the utmost importance to investigate how IT consultants' value creation has changed because of the implementation and use of cloud-based ERP-systems. The purpose of the study is to contribute new knowledge about how IT consultants' value-creating skills and activities changes because of the implementation and use of cloud-based ERP-systems. By using a data-driven thematic analysis the study examined how IT consultants' value creation changed because of cloud-based ERP-systems. The study's conclusion presents six changes in how IT consultants' value-creating skills and activities change because of the implementation and use of cloud-based ERP-systems. An example is that IT consultants' value-creation will be to adapt customer organizations' business processes rather than the system's processes.

Since the late 20th Century, the consulting industry has grown significantly. Today, consulting is a widespread, one-size-fits-all term that includes virtually any form of advice-giving in a business setting. Irrespective of the industry, there is a large market and high demand for consulting. Knowing how to engage clients and ensuring successful consulting has never been more critical for consultancies looking to capitalise on scarce client demand. The purpose of this research study was to gain a collective understanding of those aspects that constitute successful consulting, focusing on the implicit dimensions that influence client-consultant engagement. In this regard, the research study aimed to add value by presenting a new perspective on, and extend understanding of the implicit dimensions influencing the client-consultant relationship by focusing on both clients and consultants though the unique lens of the Psychological Contract. This exploration of the Psychological Contract between client and consultant was conducted through the interpretivist paradigm, or to be more specific, a social constructivist approach. This approach allowed the researcher to explore the Psychological Contract between client and consultant through the constructed meanings that both clients and consultants attach to their experience of the client-consultant relationship, and enabled the researcher to explore their perceptions and interpretations of the dimensions that influenced that relationship. The researcher furthermore applied a qualitative research design and constructivist grounded theory method to explore the subjective meanings of clients and consultants, and to discover their reality. This design and method generated rich, in-depth data and understanding of the participants’ beliefs, perceptions, and subjective experiences to develop a comprehensive framework of the Psychological Contract between client and consultant. / Dissertation (MCom)--University of Pretoria, 2011. / Human Resource Management / unrestricted

Robotic Process Automation (RPA) är en ny teknik med hög potential för organisationer som vill göra stora tids- och kostnadsbesparingar samt möjliggöra för deras anställda att fokusera  på mer värdeskapande arbetsuppgifter. Men med ny teknik tillkommer det nya utmaningar. För  att undvika dessa utmaningar krävs det en bra blandning av rätt metoder, tekniker och  människor. Studien har identifierat kända utmaningar organisationer har vid implementering  av RPA samt varför konsulter spelar en viktig roll vid en framgångsrik implementering. I  studien har en kvalitativ metodansats tillämpats för att få en djup förståelse över ämnet.  Studiens slutsats visar på att organisationer har utmaningar med att sätta upp en intern RPA organisation, förståelsen för vilka resurser som behövs, involvera IT-avdelningen samt valet  av process. Utifrån dessa utmaningar visar studien på att konsultens roll är betydande för  organisationer för att hantera kända utmaningar vid implementering av RPA. / Robotic Process Automation (RPA) is demonstrating remarkable potential in enterprise deployments, saving thousands of hours each year and enabling people to focus on higher-value work. However, with technology comes new challenges. To deal with these challenges, a good mix of people, methods and techniques is required. This study has identified common challenges organizations have when implementing RPA as well as why consultants play an important role in successful implementation.A qualitative method waschosen to interpret and understand the topic in depth. The conclusion shows that organizations have challenges in setting up an internal RPA organization, the understanding of what resources are needed, involving the IT department and the choice of process to automate. Based on these challenges, this study shows that the consultant's role is important for organizations to handle common challenges in implementing RPA

Redovisningskonsultens framtid har, med tanke på digitaliseringen inom yrket, under de senaste åren debatterats både av organisationer och yrkesverksamma inom redovisningsbranschen. Tidigare forskningsstudier uppmärksammar digitala fenomen såsom big data, molntjänster, blockchain, artificiell intelligens, maskininlärning, data mining samt robotic process automation och utforskar hur dessa påverkar redovisningskonsulten. Något som oss veterligen inte är beforskat är vilka digitala verktyg som redovisningskonsulten använder för att hantera dessa digitala fenomen. Denna studie syftar till att, utifrån ovanstående digitala fenomen, undersöka vilka digitala verktyg som redovisningskonsulten använder i sin yrkesroll samt hur denna användning påverkar arbetssättet och kompetensbehovet. Studien har en kvalitativ ansats och har genomförts med hjälp av semistrukturerade intervjuer med sex olika redovisningskonsulter, som är fördelade på fyra olika revisions- och redovisningsbyråer. Resultatet av denna studie indikerar på att redovisningskonsulter använder sig av ett flertal olika digitala verktyg i sitt arbete för att hantera många av de ovanstående digitala fenomenen, men även potentiella kopplingar hur digitala fenomen kan hanteras uppmärksammas. Studien bidrar med en mer positiv inställning till hur arbetssättet förändras samt att det inte alls krävs lika stor kompetensutveckling som tidigare studier visat. / Due to the digitalization within the profession, the future of accounting consultants has been discussed from both organizations and professionals within the branch of accounting the last couple of years. Previous research studies illuminate digital phenomena such as big data, cloud, blockchain, artificial intelligence, machine learning, data mining and robotic process automation and investigate how they affect the accountant. We do not know any previous research studies about which digital tools that can be used by the accounting consultant to deal with the digital phenomena. This study aims to, based on the digital phenomena mentioned above, investigate which digital tools that accounting consultants use in their profession and how it affects their ways of working and competence needs. The study has a qualitative approach and is accomplished through semi-structured interviews with six accounting consultants, from four different auditing and accounting firms. The findings of the study indicate that accounting consultants use several various digital tools in their work to manage many of the digital phenomena mentioned above, but it also pays attention to potential connections of how digital phenomena could be managed. The study contributes a more positive attitude to how the ways of working changes and that the required competence development is not as big as previous research studies have shown.