Consultation

BASK definition: the KSAOs needed to work with organizational stakeholders to evaluate business challenges, identify opportunities to design, implement and evaluate change initiatives, and build ongoing support for HR solutions that meet the changing needs of customers and the business.

The consulting process (BASK)

Discovery → Analysis and solution → Recommendation → Implementation. Expanded:

1. Contracting / entry: agree on the scope, roles and expectations with the internal client.
2. Discovery / diagnosis: gather data through interviews, surveys and records to find the root cause, not just the symptoms.
3. Analysis and solution design: develop options and evaluate them.
4. Recommendation: present the options with their pros, cons, costs and a recommendation.
5. Implementation: support the rollout.
6. Evaluation and follow-up: measure the results and adjust.

Effective consulting techniques (BASK)

• Understand the organizational culture.
• Know the areas and limits of your own expertise (bring in specialists or legal counsel when needed).
• Set reasonable expectations; avoid overpromising.

Key components of client interactions

Listening, empathy, communication and follow-up.

★ In scenarios where a manager asks for a specific solution ("I need a training program"), the best consultant first diagnoses the real problem. It may not be a training issue at all; it could be unclear expectations, poor tools or the wrong hire.

Change management models

Lewin's three-stage model (Kurt Lewin)

1. Unfreeze: create readiness by explaining why change is needed and reducing resistance.
2. Change (move/transition): implement the new processes and behaviors with support and training.
3. Refreeze: reinforce and stabilize the change through policies, rewards and culture.

Force field analysis (also Lewin): list the driving forces that push for change and the restraining forces that resist it. You can move toward change by strengthening the driving forces or, often more effectively, by reducing the restraining forces.

Kotter's 8-step change model (John Kotter)

1. Create a sense of urgency
2. Build a guiding coalition
3. Form a strategic vision and initiatives
4. Communicate the vision ("enlist a volunteer army" in later versions)
5. Empower broad-based action by removing barriers
6. Generate short-term wins
7. Sustain acceleration; don't let up (consolidate gains)
8. Anchor the changes in the culture (institutionalize)

McKinsey 7S model

Seven interdependent elements must be aligned for an organization to work effectively:

• Hard S's (easier to define and change): Strategy, Structure, Systems
• Soft S's (harder to change): Shared values (at the center), Style (leadership), Staff, Skills

Changing one element affects the others. The model is used for organizational analysis and change planning.

Kübler-Ross change curve

This model was adapted from Kübler-Ross's grief stages. It describes the individual emotions people go through during change: shock/denial → anger → bargaining → depression → acceptance, often summarized as moving from resistance to commitment. Leaders provide information in the early stages, support in the middle, and direction and involvement in the later stages.

ADKAR (Prosci)

Individual change requires Awareness of the need, Desire to participate, Knowledge of how to change, Ability to implement it, and Reinforcement to sustain it. ADKAR is not named in the BASK but appears widely in HR practice.

Your course's change continuum

People move from resistant → neutral → welcoming:

• From resistant to neutral: emphasize why the change matters now, assemble a core team and communicate a clear vision.
• From neutral to welcoming: communicate constantly, empower stakeholders and create short-term wins.
• To maintain the change: sustain progress and embed the new practices.

Change rollout approaches

Organizational change processes (BASK)

The core steps are: obtain leadership buy-in, build a case for change, engage employees, communicate the change, and remove barriers.

Common reasons change fails: no executive sponsorship, poor communication, no involvement from the people affected, underestimating resistance, and declaring victory too early.

Why people resist change: fear of the unknown, loss of control or status, job insecurity, habit, mistrust, lack of information, and change fatigue.

To reduce resistance: communicate early and honestly, involve people in planning, offer training and support, acknowledge losses and reward adoption.

Service excellence

• Treat managers and employees as internal customers.
• Set and meet service standards (SLAs), use issue tracking (HR ticketing systems), and measure customer satisfaction.
• Design HR service delivery around the employee experience, using self-service, HR knowledge bases and AI digital assistants for routine questions, with human HR for complex issues.

What effective Consultation looks like (situational judgment cues)

• Diagnose before prescribing. Ask questions and gather data.
• Present options, not just one answer, and explain the tradeoffs.
• Know your limits: refer issues to legal counsel or specialists when needed.
• Partner with leaders through implementation and follow up.