(Part 3) Top products from r/consulting

Man, I'm so late to this thread but hope this doesn't get buried--what you talk about is covered at great length alongside a TON of other empirical evidence and research in a book I love called "The Happiness Advantage."

The argument there is: we think achieving goals makes us happy, but in reality, achieving a state of happiness in life helps us achieve goals. It's a ton of eye-opening research, advice, etc. that I've passed along to others as well as the book itself. Cheers!

Not OP but here are some great books I've read that are either directly or tangentially related. Can't seem to get hyperlinks to work right now for some reason so bear with me on the long links.

Day 1 Reading: Barbarians at the Gate: The Fall of RJR Nabisco

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbarians_at_the_Gate:_The_Fall_of_RJR_Nabisco

Understanding Mergers and Acquisitions in the 21st Century: A Multidisciplinary Approach

http://www.amazon.com/Understanding-Mergers-Acquisitions-Century-Multidisciplinary/dp/0230336663?ie=UTF8&psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00

Creating Value: Mergers and Acquisitions Challenges

http://www.amazon.com/Creating-Value-Mergers-Acquisitions-Challenges/dp/0201721503?ie=UTF8&psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00

1000+ page book good for reference, not reading: The Art of M&A

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/p/art-of-m-a-fourth-edition-stanley-foster-reed/1101371415/2672747763289?st=PLA&sid=BNB_DRS_Marketplace+Shopping+Textbooks_00000000&2sid=Google_&sourceId=PLGoP20456&k_clickid=3x20456

Really good, technical, about valuation: Art of M&A Valuation and Modeling: A Guide to Corporate Valuation

https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=HsSiCgAAQBAJ&source=productsearch&utm_source=HA_Desktop_US&utm_medium=SEM&utm_campaign=PLA&pcampaignid=MKTAD0930BO1&gl=US&gclid=CKuJk8qM-8wCFWObMgod5qUJ2g&gclsrc=ds

If you want ones that come with CDs and Excel workbooks, I've heard really good things (but have not read myself) about the following books:

This one is way too finance-y: Investment Banking: Valuation, Leveraged Buyouts, and Mergers and

https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=investment%20banking%20valuation%20leveraged%20buyouts%20and%20mergers%20and%20acquisitions

Applied mergers and acquisitions:

http://www.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-047139534X.html

There are three types of books on consultancy - self-help type books à la the McKinsey Way, which largely promise to make you more of a consultant, then there are the derisory "they're ripping everyone off" ones and lastly, there is scholarly work. The book I am describing falls in the latter category:

I personally felt that the best introduction to consulting as a profession was O'Mahoney's "Management Consultancy".


This book provides a good introduction to the field, covering the industry as a whole as well as the different sub-types of consultancy there are.
It goes into good depth about the different types of clients and reasons why people buy consultancy services. This is followed by a description of the typical engagement lifecycle, sales approaches, proposal writing, negotiations and how projects are controlled and delivered. The book also covers tools, skills and techniques used by firms and the various types of grades they employ.


O'Mahoney also assembles a third section that covers a more critical perspective of consulting as a profession, which deals with the history of the industry and its professionalisation, the role of consultants in developing the knowledge economy, their role as innovators, but also the relationship between consultancy and the risks inherent in modern capitalism and neo-liberalism.


From this flows a section on ethics, as well as on how to make a career in consultancy.

A lot of young people join the industry without knowing or even understanding the business model and underlying principles these firms are run with. The book sheds light on that too.



All in all, one of the best books there is if you are looking for an academic, comprehensive overview that is not the typical consulting-bashing or sucking-up to industry gurus.


Hope this helps.


Amazon link:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Management-Consultancy-Joe-OMahoney/dp/0199577188

Personally I've found there to be few helpful books which directly relate to management consulting / business strategy. The only one that I've found really helpful is:

• Winning - an overall look on business strategies and philosophies used by Jack Welch (former CEO of GE)
  
  But here are some books that are very helpful in developing people / soft skills essential to effective consultants:
  
  
• Getting to Yes - an incredible book on negotating skills.
  
• How to Argue and Win Every Time - not as argumentative as it sounds, this is a great book which is hugely helpful on how to present your positions and how to get the best outcome for everyone in a situation.
  
• Influence - brilliant book on the ways in which we are influenced to do things.
  
• The 48 Laws of Power - a very Machiavellian put pragmatic look on the ways in which personal power is gained / lost.
  
• Vital Lies, Simple Truths - how to recognise self deception that we're all prone to and how to overcome its limitations
  
• The Blank Slate - a mindblowing book on human psychology and what we're naturally predisposed to be. Helps you to better understand people and their motivations in not just business but all aspects of life. Read from Part 2 onwards.

Look up these two books:

• "McKinsey Way";
  
  
• "McKinsey Mind".
  
  Both are reminiscences written by a former McKinsey consultant and I suppose they are exactly what you are looking for. Lots, lots of interesting insights inside, especially for a newcomer.
  
  After you grasp the idea of consulting from these volumes, and remain eager to read more, you might want to move to books focused on so-called "case interviews". "Crack the Case" and "Case in Point" are good examples to start IMO.

There's a very good Korean drama called Misaeng: Incomplete Life, which is about a Korean trading company. There are a lot of good examples of the Korean business culture in and out of the office. When I was working private sector in Korea, I worked for companies in exactly this industry, so the show resonates a lot with me (minus the hyper-inflated tv drama). The show is streaming on Netflix too!

Also, the book Seoul Man by Frank Ahrens, is a good read on Korean business/life culture. Frank was the highest ranking non-Korean executive at Hyundai (and arguably Korea at the time). I've met with Frank a few times and occasionally chat with him from time to time. He's a good guy.

The Mind of a Strategist, by Kenichi Ohmae (An ex-McKinsey consultant that founded the firm's Strategic Management practice) is the best publicly available book on management consulting. It details the methodology thats required to derive factual, well-thought out strategic insights and it isn't too bogged down with a specific function of a business (e.g. Marketing, PR, finance).

Very few authors or individuals can concisely present to us how the analytical world, strategic world and the competitive world converge. Very few authors can highlight to people, what type of insights are possible.

I will re-read this book over and over again and find something new applicable to the business world from it.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Mind-Of-Strategist-Japanese/dp/0070479046/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1393970749&sr=8-1&keywords=mind+of+a+strategist

In my experience, the best books on the subject:

http://hauteluxe.net/the-book/

https://www.amazon.com/Rethinking-Prestige-Branding-Secrets-Ueber-Brands/dp/0749470038/ref=pd_sim_14_3?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=M0XRA0TNNAQXTJVDF83J

https://www.amazon.com/Kapferer-Luxury-Brands-Grow-Remain/dp/074947436X/ref=pd_sim_14_2?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=M0XRA0TNNAQXTJVDF83J

https://www.amazon.com/Luxury-Essentials-Essential-Insights-Strategies/dp/069236126X/ref=pd_sim_14_66?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=M0XRA0TNNAQXTJVDF83J

https://www.amazon.com/Meta-Luxury-Culture-Excellence-M-Ricca/dp/0230293573/ref=pd_sim_14_24?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=P57W41NY374A29M852WP

https://www.amazon.com/Luxury-Strategy-Break-Marketing-Brands/dp/0749464917/ref=pd_sim_14_1?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=KYS1K5Z8RVH14TC4QH9S&dpID=41kAvjId7eL&preST=_SY291_BO1,204,203,200_QL40_&dpSrc=detail

I think this read is a must:

"The Quest: Energy, Security, and the Remaking of the Modern World" by Daniel Yergin

https://www.amazon.com/Quest-Energy-Security-Remaking-Modern/dp/0143121944

Go ahead and save yourself from future ribbing in here:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/0262026287/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_PI2YAbGKRJSHG

There is a book I highly recommend called Say it with Charts that was written by McKinsey's Director of Visual Communication, Gene Zelazny. It is, IMHO, the bible on how to display information in presentations.

Becoming the Evidence Based Manager by Gary Latham

Leadership BS by Jeffrey Pfeffer

Dying for a Paycheck by Jeffrey Pfeffer

Evidence Based Management by Denise Rousseau and Eric Barends

The Culture Code by Daniel Coyle

Work Rules by Laszlo Bock (of course)

​

And more that are actually based on solid evidence, not stories (sorry, I mean case studies. Same thing).

The Strategy Paradox by Michael Raynor
https://www.amazon.com/Strategy-Paradox-Committing-Success-Failure/dp/0385516223/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1494094612&sr=8-1&keywords=strategy+paradox

There is some use to Clay Christensen's work, especially if you're doing some scenario planning and prompting questions during those types of workshops. Though, you can't just read his books and apply it the way he does. There are a lot of people trying to 'debunk' what he says...but in the 'debunking' it's clear those people don't really understand the concepts.

https://www.amazon.com/Cookie-Monster-Little-Golden-Books/dp/0307010309/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1524169907&sr=8-1&keywords=cookie+monster+and+the+cookie+tree#customerReviews

Depends on what type of consulting, but I found this book to shape my thinking when talking to C-Level folks about strategy. And no, I do not know the author, so pure recommendation

It is all in there but it is poorly structured. Try a more top-down communication style

• First sentence: Wtf do you want? State it and dont say it complicated!
  
• First Paragraph: Why do you want this job and why are you the right guy for it? Select some of the key abilities that qualify you (e.g. analytical skills, leadership experience, intercultural skills .....) - Mirror some of the words that they use in the job description!
  
• Body: Back up the skills that you mentioned in the first paragraph with facts from your experience. Go through the key qualifications one by one e.g. analytical skills: studied maths, data analysis during previous jobs etc