Assessing consultants to a common standard

In March, IMC vice president Richard Popple MIMC CMC and professional registrar Paul Brown spent a week in Bulgaria to assess a group of local management consultants. The consultants’ competence was assessed against the International Council of Management Consulting Institutes (ICMCI) standard, the Certified Management Consultant (CMC) qualification.

The IMC has expended a great deal of effort to make the CMC assessment process more rigorous and a clearer indication of a consultant’s competence.

The new system also acknowledges the myriad routes to consultancy.

Funded by the British Council Sofia, the project enabled the Bulgarians to see the process in action. In addition to the assessment of the professional record and interview, a workshop was run on how to conduct the assessment procedure.

Eight candidates successfully completed the programme and were assessed ready to be awarded the CMC qualification. Paul Brown comments: “The calibre of the consultants was very high and their backgrounds as varied as you would find in the UK. However, many were dealing with newly privatised firms or were involved in preparing organisations for privatisation.”

He continues: “Consultancy is emerging in Bulgaria in very difficult economic circumstances. The consultants were eager to gain an independent endorsement of their credibility and skills.”

The British Council Sofia has indicated that a follow-up programme may be possible in the near future and the Bulgarian Association of Management Consultancy Organisations is looking to become a member of ICMCI.