Think Like A Strategy Consultant – Paul Millerd

Salepage link: At HERE. Archive:

Four-Week Learning Journey With Challenging Weekly Assignments

Week 1

•  Module #1 – Consulting Mindset: Introduction to the basic consulting mindsets, mental models & consulting process

Week 2

• Module #2 – MECE Mind: The powerful framework to help you sharpen your thinking
• Module #3 – From Information To Insight: Introduction to the pyramid principle and synthesizing & organizing complex information
• Assignment: Consulting services MECE assignment & mock chief of staff research assignment

Week 3

• Module #4 – Real World Problem Solving: Using MECE, Pyramid Principle and hypothesis tools to break down real-world problems into problems that can be solved
• Assignment: Using SCQA & issue tress in a real-life Facebook strategy case study

Week 4

• Module #5 – Kick-Ass Presentations: Learn the PowerPoint secrets of strategy consultants, master flow & understand how to craft your message to different audiences
• Module #6 – Beyond Consulting Presentations: Creating Memorable & Persuasive Content: Implement tools from cognitive neuroscience and other disciplines to create memorable messages
• Assignment: You’ll be given an incomplete 19-page presentation which will have missing information. Fill in the information, titles and other missing content and develop a clear storyline based on the lessons

Course Format – Weekly Cadence

The course will generally keep the following seven day rhythm:

While you can complete the course at your own pace, it is designed to be completed in four weeks. You will receive a weekly e-mail giving context for the week and suggested timeline of completing the lectures and assignments.

Two Options: Choose The Support You Want

The People Who Have Gotten The Most Out Of This Course:

• Knowledge Professionals who are in existing roles who working with data, are actively helping to shape the direction of their company, solving complex problems and giving executive-level presentations
• Freelancers & Entrepreneurs who are looking to strengthen their work with a fundamental set of skills, frameworks and processes to help them generate insights, stories and plans for their clients as well as more clearly communicate to business audiences
• Students who are passionate about using the consulting skills now and want to go deeper than case interviews to learn how to work as a consultant and not just land the job(note: if you just want to master case interviews to land a job, this is not the course for you)

Course Outcomes

• Understand and communicate in the “language” of strategy consultants
• Be able to understand the difference between the symptom and a problem
• Understand how to take a large set of complex data, facts & analysis and synthesize it
• Organize a presentation in a clear, simple & persuasive way that inspires action
• Have increased confidence in your bility to lead and structure complex projects

Quick Quiz: What do Sheryl Sandberg, Sundar Pichai, John Legend, Benjamin Netanyahu, Indra Nooyi, Clayton Christensen, Susan Wojicki and Jeff Immelt have in common?

Besides being incredibly successful in their chosen domains, they each spent time at McKinsey, Bain & Company or Boston Consulting Group early in their careers.

Here is Indra Nooyi, the former CEO of Pepsi

“I don’t think I could have gotten here without a strategy consultant background because it taught me inductive thinking. It taught me how to think of the problem in micro terms but also to zoom out and put the problem in the context of its broader environment and then zoom back in to solve the problem”

While he didn’t follow a traditional path after consulting, here is what 10-time Grammy award-winning John Legend said about the experience:

“I learned a lot. I met a lot of great people, I’m still friends with a lot of those folks, too. I think it just ups your level of expectation for the kind of business you want to work with. And how you work in teams, how you come to good decisions as a team, and I think all of those things helped me in my career, as a musician.”

This Course Includes

• Lifetime access (PLUS + VIP editions)
• 2+ hours of lecture content and 25+ lectures
• Simple and easy to understand lectures on MECE, Pyramid Principle, Issue Trees, Problem Solving, Slide Design, Storytelling, PowerPoint and Persuasion
• A fun exercise to help you improve your ability to synthesize & structure
• An in-depth real-world case exercise on Facebook’s shift from desktop to mobile
• An exercise that will enable you to create a complete powerpoint deck with a clear narrative and structure
• Multiple challenging assignments that will enable you to put this principles into practice

What To Expect (How to get the most out of this course, from fellow students)

“To get the most out of this course, its best to take the assignment seriously and to try them before peeking at the solution”

” It may seem “easy” at the beginning, but stick with it. The simplicity of the first couple of modules becomes more useful as you go deeper into the material”

“If you have a project you are leading at work or a major presentation you are developing, this course can be timely and incredibly useful”

(Optional) Upon Completion: Cerftificate & LinkedIn Credential

+Additional Bonus Content

• Bonus Content: 100+ PowerPoint Template Slides that you will actually use ($49 Value including lifetime updates)
• Bonus Content: video on 14 Poweroint Hacks For Making Slides
• Access to LIVE events such as interviews with ex-consultants, Q&A sessions with Paul and other specialized events

Have A Learning Subsidy @ Work?

Use this template to get reimbursed for your purchase

FINANCIAL AID OPTIONS 

I don’t want want financial circumstances to hold someone back with the motivation to learn. If you want to be considered for a reduced gift price, please go through a pay-what-feels-right exercise to determine what works for your situation. 

Course Curriculum

Meet Paul & The Core Concepts!

• Meet Paul: My Story & Why I Spent 250+ Hours Creating This Course (2:27)
• Overview of The Five Modules (1:06)
• Bonus Content! (1:03)

Getting Started – Resources & Suggested Schedule For The Course

• Welcome To Course & Suggested Course Schedule
• StrategyU Monthly Q&A Access – September 2020

Bonus Content

• 100+ Consulting Slide Templates
• 14 PowerPoint Hacks

Welcome To Week 1

• Mission For The Week

Consulting Mindset – How To Think Like A Strategy Consultant

• Module #1 Introduction (0:27)
• #1 The “How” vs. The What (1:48)
• #2 Learning Mindset & Avoiding “Modishness” (3:13)
• #3 Rule Of Three: Why Do Consultants Always Offer Lists Of Three? (2:54)
• #4 Deeper Thinking: Separate The Thinking & Writing (2:44)
• #5 Solutions To Problems: Example Mini Case Study: U of X Needs To Cut $25 Million! (6:08)
• #6 Elements Of Great Teams (3:12)
• BONUS: Overview Of Strategy Consulting (10:33)

Welcome To Week 2: Synthesis & Structuring

• Mission For The Week

Week 2 Assignments & Example Answers

• Assignment #1: MECE & Synthesizing Key Themes
• Assignment #1: FEEDBACK – Plus + VIP Students
• Assignment #1: Suggested Answers (Don’t Peek!)

MECE Mind – How To Think Clearly

• Module #2 Introduction (0:31)
• Intro To MECE: Mutually Exclusive, Collectively Exhaustive (1:39)
• Are we all saying “MECE” wrong? A word from Barabara Minto (1:38)
• Understanding MECE & Examples (8:09)
• MECE Example: Social Media Platforms (4:26)

From Information To Insight: How To Use The Pyramid Principle To Synthesize & Structure

• Module #3 Introduction (1:17)
• Intro To The Pyramid Principle (3:57)
• How The Pyramid Principle Fits In The Consulting Process (2:43)
• Pyramid Principle Part 1: Synthesize & Structure (5:19)
• Mini-Assignment: Synthesizing & Structuring Information
• Synthesis Exercise: Answers
• Pyramid Principle Paul’s Walkthrough: Research => Insights (6:43)
• Preview: Pyramid Principle Part 2 (1:04)
• Bonus: Mapping The Pyramid Principle To A Real PowerPoint Deck (3:19)

Welcome To Week 3

• Mission For The Week

 Real World Problem Solving: Using SCQA & Issue Trees To Help Facebook Shift To Mobile

• Module #4 Introduction (0:18)
• Facebook Case Kick-Off Materials (Case Worksheet & Article) (3:26)
• More Frameworks? Introducing SCQA! (4:32)
• Facebook Case: Define The Problem (2:18)
• Problem Statement Feedback (ALL Students)
• Issue Tree: The Final Framework! (6:23)
• Q&A – Student Questions on SCQA & Problem Solving (2:14)

Week 3 Assignment – Facebook Case

• Assignment #2: Facebook Case: Build The Issue Tree (2:40)
• Assignment #2: FEEDBACK: Issue Tree (Premium)
• Assignment #2: Facebook Case Solution (2:58)

Welcome To Week 4

• Your Mission This Week

 Storytelling & Kick-Ass Presentations: Convince CEOs to change their mind

• Module #5 Introduction (0:46)
• Quick Recap: MECE + Pyramid Principle (1:18)
• Pyramid Principle Part 2: Communicate Top-Down (8:12)
• Structure Your Arguments: Inductive vs. Deductive Reasoning (6:34)
• Sequence The Story: Direct & Indirect Methods (3:06)
• 3 Types Of Presentations & Sample Deliverables (2:53)
• PowerPoint Storytelling: Slide Design & Flow (7:08)

Slide Critiques = Paul Reviews + Improves Real Slides

• Send Me Your Slides Or Presentations! (0:35)
• Critiques & Examples Of Real Slides From McKinsey, BCG & More… (6:15)

Week 4 Assignment

• Assignment #3: Presentation Storytelling
• Assignment #3: FEEDBACK – Plus/VIP Students
• Assignment #3 Suggested Answer (Don’t Peek!)

Beyond Consulting Presentations: Creating Memorable & Persuasive Content

• Impossible To Ignore: 7 Tips For Memorable Presentations (5:18)
• Impossible To Ignore: Perceptive, Cognitive & Affective Persuasion (0:51)
• Beyond Facts – Using Sensory Details & Timelines (2:19)
• Ignite The Brain – Give Words & Pictures A Deeper Meaning (5:41)
• Emotions: Moving Towards or Away From Reward & Punishment (4:50)
• Article: 20 Tips On Creating Amazing Presentations

Interviews With Former Strategy Consultants

• Andrei Lenard – Corporate Strategy Director + 8 Years @ BCG + Roland Berger (58:13)

Course Wrap Up

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