Management consulting is an industry for companies and individuals who work with business managers to help solve problems and improve performance. The practice of management consulting covers a broad range of specialties, and corporations may call on a consultant to solve a single issue or a wider range of problems. If you're a management consultant, you might help a company with human resources issues, or you might guide them in developing a strategy or mission statement. Management consultants can work with a management team for a short period of time or for a longer term.
When you learn management consulting skills, you can find a new career helping clients improve their business performance, or you might be able to supplement your income by consulting in your spare time. Even if you're not looking to branch out into a new career, you might be able to apply your management consulting knowledge in your current workplace, seeking ways for your company to do better and eliminating the need to hire a separate management consultant. The tools that you learn when you study management consulting can benefit you by showing you how to look for opportunities to grow and improve.
When you have a background in management consulting, you can work for a consulting firm or on your own, offering your services and giving corporations insight on how they can do better. Management consulting helps companies solve challenges, and organizations hire consultants on a regular basis. If you have a concentration in a particular subject or aspect of business, you'll be able to address more specific concerns and add value to what you offer. You don't necessarily have to work as a consultant if you apply your management consulting knowledge to your current company to help improve performance.
Online courses on Coursera present you with both a broad knowledge of management consulting and the practical application of those concepts and skills. You can start with the basics of management consulting and move on to specific topics like developing a corporate IT strategy, discovering innovative business models, and cultivating a pricing structure.