Skip to content

Tag: Consulting

Published on

Upon learning that the Consulting Abroad Program (CAP) would not include travel to South Africa in May, students and faculty alike were understandably disappointed. There would be no in-person visits to the Apartheid Museum in Johannesburg. No late evenings perfecting the presentations at the hotel in Cape Town. No opportunity to meet face to face with the clients at Cenfri, Discovery, Darling Sweet and Lulalend. However, as the Student Administrative Assistant supporting this program, I have been very pleased at how everyone involved in CAP, from students and faculty, to Global Partners and guest advisers, have demonstrated commitment to ensuring the success of the program.

A screenshot of team Lulalend's final presentation deck. 

This occurred because G&EE swiftly decided the program would continue to the fullest extent possible via distance learning. Communication between the students and the Global Partners, which is always done virtually throughout the semester, has continued with minimal interruption. The students have been working diligently to provide valuable recommendations and insights to their clients. Faculty, Student Administrative Assistants, and guest speakers have remained committed to setting the students up to succeed.

Throughout CAP, students gain hands-on experience practicing some of the most important 21st century business skills, such as teamwork, communication, client engagement, satisfying requirements from multiple stakeholders, and presentational speaking. In addition, students have also gained skills working with a variety of virtual communication platforms including Blackboard Collaborate, WebEx, Adobe Connect. Proficiency with these tools will undoubtedly be in high demand, even as life slowly returns to normal.

On April 20th G&EE hosted the virtual Panel Presentations, during which each student team presented their preliminary findings to a group of experts. The South Africa cohort was especially fortunate, as they received feedback and guidance from professionals from Deloitte, the World Bank, and the Embassy of South Africa. As I write this, the students are hard at work incorporating this new advice and putting the finishing touches on their reports and presentations. Although the presentations were delivered virtually, GWSB’s strong professional connections and alumni network in DC were instrumental in securing the evaluators’ participation.

It has certainly been a challenging semester, both inside and outside the classroom. People often say that what really matters in life is not what happens, but how you react to it. Everyone involved in CAP has been very resilient, and I am confident that the students have learned a great deal during the process. Next week, the students will deliver final presentations to their Global Partners, and we will conclude with a virtual happy hour. Although we will be unable to celebrate in South Africa, hopefully we can bring a bit of South Africa’s spirit to DC. Virtually, of course.

Mike Bonfatto is a ‘20 Global MBA Candidate at The George Washington University School of Business.

Published on

Blog post written by Sean Soni

 

Prior to leaving the beautiful country of South Africa, each and every student who had the good fortune to attend this CAP destination discovered something new about themselves and about their enhanced global consulting abilities. The entire CAP South Africa class can agree that after visiting such a remarkable, warm and flourishing country, something within themselves changed forever.

A picture taken by Jannik Milberg (GW MBA 2019) near Hout Bay, South Africa.

It was through the site visitation in Johannesburg and the emotional journey through the Soweto township that our class learned about humanity and social justice within South Africa and the world as a whole. Apartheid was abolished in 1994, however South Africans can still feel the last breath of this oppressive history in everyday life. We walked through the gates of the famous Apartheid Museum in Soweto while unwillingly following the historic signs which stated ‘Whites Entrance and ‘Non-Whites Entrance’. Through the journey to Johannesburg and Soweto Township, the classmates of CAP South Africa realized just how lucky and privileged we were to be studying at the graduate-level in another country.

 

Through the visits to nature-made masterpieces like the world famous Table Mountain and Camps Bay, the classmates of CAP South Africa discovered that beauty surrounds the massive continent of Africa. Beauty in every step of our journey was so abundant and so breathtaking that it was often hard to imagine leaving certain places, like Cape Point.

A picture taken during a CAP site visit and presentation with Executive Leadership Team of The ATNS (Air Traffic and Navigation Services SOC Limited). ATNS provides air traffic, navigation, training and associated services within South Africa and a large part of the Southern Indian and Atlantic Ocean, comprising approximately 10% of the world’s airspace.

Finally, it was through the site visits with real-world companies where we discovered the marvels of South African entrepreneurship and business culture. Our class discovered such awe in the operational innovations of ATNS, impressive utilization of global networks with Aksa Power Generation, and the remarkable sustainable manufacturing process utilized by Sealand Gear. Our class was able to determine that although South Africa has substantial income inequality, the possibilities to create fruitful employment opportunities and chances to innovate are endless within this country and we found that the locals are determined to improve the deteriorating condition of their country.

At this point you must be wondering how our CAP Final Presentations went? Well I am proud to report to you that each separate team “sealed the deal” and dazzled the clients in South Africa. What we all shared in the learning experience of the Consulting Abroad Project in South Africa was that the service to international clients can sometimes create unexpected demands, but it is critical to react with poise and utter professionalism. I can soundly say that each of our classmates did so in remarkable fashion. Furthermore, our class thoroughly enjoyed the entire process of consulting for an international client, from start to finish. Global & Experiential Education, please sign us up for 18 tickets to Cape Town/Johannesburg (no return ticket needed).

 

Published on
Blog post written by Jessica Goodman

 

Final presentation day was a success! Our semester-long efforts culminated in a day when we visited each of our clients, presented our findings, and engaged in a discussion with them about our recommendations. It was such a rewarding experience to make an impact and deliver our product to a group of senior leaders in each of our clients’ organizations.

Photo by Sam Hoffman: CAP Australia enjoys a celebratory dinner after finishing our client presentations.

To get an idea of the level of experience in the room to hear our presentations throughout the day, check out this list of everyone’s titles: General Manager, Co-Founder & Chairman Emeritus, Finance Director, Director of People & Organization, Research & Development Director, Director of Marketing, and Director of E-Commerce.

 

My project team and another team got to share our deliverables with the General Manager and several other department heads. We received very positive feedback! At the end of both of our presentations, the General Manager told us, in front of his team, that he was committed to implementing some of our ideas. Our client even gave us a hug after our presentation!

 

 

Students from other teams shared some comments about the client feedback they received on their presentations:

  • “Our client’s founder liked how we articulated the strategic growth potential from our staffing recommendations.” – Ben Hannibal
  • “Our client appreciated us for our powerful presentation and told us that our financial model would be used to further build on our ideas. Our client was also impressed that so many questions came up from staff as a result of our presentation; they were hopeful it meant that they would get internal buy-in to fund future solar energy projects.” – Girish Balakrishnan

 

Getting positive feedback from our clients was certainly a highlight of our time in Australia. But what left the biggest impression on me was what each of us learned this semester. We all sat down with Dr. Messerli after our final presentations to debrief on our experiences in Australia. My classmates disclosed a range of discoveries – from the more serious insights, such as finding a new career path to explore or making a connection with a new mentor – to the less serious, such as learning the rules of Australian footie and the sleeping habits of a koala. I think it is fair to say that this was an experience that none of us will forget! Now, each of us are heading off to our internships and respective summer plans. And so, with that, I’ll say – that’s a wrap CAP Australia!

Published on
Blog post written by Jennifer Swartz

 

Packing. That seems to be all we are doing these days. I am currently packing up our room in Vietnam, and I cannot believe that we are leaving this beautiful country in just a few short hours. Moreover, I cannot believe that CAP is over. These past few months seemed to go by at a glacial pace, but the past couple of weeks in country flew by. So what now?

 

Well, in an attempt to keep CAP going as long as possible, I want to reflect on the trip and provide three key takeaways, or pho for thought, that future first years can hopefully benefit from.

 

First, it is essential to set up regular meetings with your client from the get-go. The format of these meetings can vary from Skype to phone calls to another form altogether. However, setting up regular meetings throughout the semester provides structure and deadlines for both parties, paving the way for everyone to be on the same page when it comes to overall expectations. Additionally, it allows you to better develop a meaningful relationship with your client. Because of the time and effort we exerted up front, we had a great working relationship with our client by the time we got to Vietnam. In fact, our client took every opportunity to express how much they appreciated our regular meetings and communications.

 

Secondly, make sure your repeatedly ask your client if there is anyone else at the company you should be talking to other than your point of contact throughout the semester. We asked a couple of times towards the beginning of our project, but then dropped the matter altogether. When we got to Vietnam, our point of contact changed, and the colleagues we were working  with had a wealth of knowledge we would have benefited from much earlier on in the semester. In retrospect, we should have asked if there were any other contacts to connect with once our project was a bit further along, as that would have been the best time to touch base. But alas, hindsight is 20/20.

 

Lastly, carve out time to get to know your teammates. We started doing this back in January, scheduling out one team event a month in addition to our team meetings. Team events varied from happy hours at Circa to lunches at local Vietnamese restaurants. These team events enabled us to get to know each other on a more personal level and ultimately work better together throughout the semester. It even resulted in our amazing team of four seizing every chance to spend time together in Vietnam, whether it was hanging out in the pool, learning how to salsa (THANK YOU BORJA :) ), or exploring trendy speakeasys. Overall, these team events helped make us a true team. And my team – the Pho-tastic Pho-r as we jokingly called ourselves – they made my CAP experience one that I will treasure pho-ever.

 

 

Viewing Message: 1 of 1.
 Notice

This site uses cookies to offer you a better browsing experience. Visit GW’s Website Privacy Notice to learn more about how GW uses cookies.