DeVos Fieldwork Consulting Swiss Style - One Student's Experience
The language of business is universal and entrepreneurial success knows no geographic or cultural boundaries.
The DeVos Fieldwork Consulting experience provides value to both the clients and our students, a hands-on experience that benefits all involved.
What is Fieldwork Consulting? Fieldwork Consulting is an academic exchange process between businesses & The DeVos Graduate School's Full-time MBA teams. Acting in the role of business consultants, MBA teams work with the client to identify & assess business problems and create actionable recommendations and opportunities for clients to implement.
Linda Pinzon, from Colombia, MBA Management (Swiss MBA Program), recently completed her fieldwork experience with Ecointesys. Let's see what she has to say:
What does this company do? Ecointesys specializes in handling life-cycle assessment (LCA) for companies in different industries ranging from banking to telecommunications. Their service provides a state-of-the-art carbon footprint analysis of the environmental impact of a given product or service. They have worked with companies such as Nestlé, Swisscom, Swiss Airlines, and many other small to medium enterprises. The overall objective of our consulting project was to provide guidance on positioning and marketing strategy in order to initiate their services in North America.
Why did you choose this firm? We had the option to pick from six completely different projects each with different business objectives. I chose Ecointesys because my knowledge of the environmental management industry was very limited. As a big supporter of various environmental initiatives, I thought this company would be a great learning experience. The opportunity to work with experts in the field of environmental engineering was an excellent way to increase my knowledge in a demanding industry. Also, seeing a growing interest in America towards environmental issues following a global environmental trend and initiative, I saw a great opportunity for Ecointesys to succeed with their services.
What was your initial assessment of its situation? Strengths? Weaknesses?
Strengths:
- Excellent product in a very demanding industry (Environmental Management Services.
- Expertise in the field (Ph.D. Engineers.
- Extensive research and developmentWeaknesses:
Weaknesses:
- Complex industry to understan.
- Time management in relation to working with our client and going to school as a full time student
What challenges did the firm face? One of the main challenges for Ecointesys was the lack of a business model for the company. After applying a Line-of-Business (LOB) Strategy, we identified a major gap in the company's business structure and the job functions inside the company. Our consulting group worked alongside the founder to define an organizational structure and job profiles that best fit the organization. We also assessed and recommended future projections as expansion takes place within the company.
In addition, Ecointesys needed assistance in creating a marketing strategy to position their consulting services in the North American market and a business development strategy to define their new software solution.
How did you help solve these challenges? It was a constant learning activity for both sides-our client and our group of consultants. In every interaction with the client, we tried to gather as much information as well as provide them with updates of the progress of our analysis. All of the information, tools, and guidance provided by Sr. Fieldwork Consultant, Georgia Abbott, and the DeVos faculty helped us create a final report to our client with our feedback as well as tactical and strategic recommendations. "Fieldwork Consulting is a powerful experience for both the client and the MBA students. Our NU consulting expertise and process are unparalleled by other universities. Northwood University is committed to mobilizing their students into real-life business situations and this is building our reputation as a valuable asset to clients' businesses. Our students provide a strategic complement, a creative perspective and "new eyes and ears. for actionable recommendations and results for the clients who engage in this academic exchange process. It is a win-win, no question," says Abbott.
The strategy schematic was a great tool in defining what the real challenges were for the company and their overall Line-of-Business strategy.
How were your interactions with the personnel of the firm? Minimum. Yves Loerincik (founder and owner of Ecointesys) was excellent in providing the information and the time needed to our project. He was consistent and attentive in translating any material necessary for the project to succeed.
How well prepared were you for the task at hand? What went into preparing you? Classes? Discussions with faculty? At first, my knowledge of the industry was minimal. Our group had to spend extra time researching and understanding the basic drivers of the industry which presented quite a challenge for us. We then worked as a group to prepare as much as we could for this industry. Our different backgrounds helped us to unify our industry knowledge from different dimensions. For example, one of the group members had a chemistry degree and experience with The Dow Chemical Company, another had entrepreneurial experience, and I had the accounting and banking background from working in United States. All of these viewpoints made it easier for us to see different angles in our market analysis.
Classes and discussions were the best tools for our consulting work. Without them, we couldn't have made any progress with our clients. Our core knowledge and preparation came from the teachings of our MBA program. For example, the strategy schematic from Dr. Fairbairn helped us define the Line-of-Business strategy of Ecointesys. Our Managerial Marketing class was instrumental in helping us execute a marketing strategy for our client. Every class had a connection to our project.
What were the outcomes for the firm as a result of your recommendations? Excellent! I was very enthusiastic when presenting our recommendations to our client and he seemed thrilled to listen to our recommendations. Today, I am still in contact with Mr. Loerincik electronically and look forward to helping him succeed in different regions of North America, as I still believe his product has much more potential than he envisions.
What personal/professional outcomes have resulted from this endeavor? After working as a training consultant and as a DeVos graduate, I acquired a deeper understanding of the consulting business and potentially will open my own consulting firm in the educational sector. I am working on a project with Latin American clients - providing assistance for education in United States and Europe. At the moment I need more time to complete my business plan and efficiently put it in practice.
Did you enjoy what you did? Why? Tremendously! I enjoyed the challenge of working in an unknown industry alongside Ph.D. experts from the field. I enjoyed the professional experience of consulting with a company practicing in Europe and with a multicultural range of employees and clients. But I mostly enjoyed working with my team helping our client succeed. I would love to see how Ecointesys will emerge in the future, hopefully increasing its revenues and profitability. I believe this company has great potential in North America.
What was the most surprising or interesting aspect of this experience? I will have to confess, at the beginning of the project, I had some doubts of my ability to deliver the best possible outcomes for my client. I had never worked as a consultant and felt a little inexperienced to deliver efficient results. As I got involved in the program, participated in class discussions, and with the guidance of our senior consultants, strengthened my skills and delivered a quality project. This was a great achievement in my professional career and the most self-fulfilling experience of this program. Overall, the most interesting aspect of this experience had to be EVERYTHING! From the moment I had my first client visit to the final presentation to my client. I than. The DeVos Graduate School of Management for the incredible and invaluable experience I had!
