Jisc Change Agents' Network Conference 2024

Business Consultancy Project (BCP) is a Level 6 module within the Faculty of Business and Law. Students work in a team of about four students and act as consultants to address a business challenge or project for a local organisation from the private, public or third sector (such as charities, not-for-profits and community organisations). 

Past projects include developing a marketing plan for a local charity to increase its profile and support fundraising activity, creating solutions to improve a firm’s sustainability using the UN Sustainable Development Goals and Circular Economy concepts, and an analysis of pricing models for different target market segments for a local SME.

BCP enables students to gain employability skills for the modern world by developing teamwork, project management, design thinking and consultancy skills, and learning to practically apply business concepts from across different degree courses. It gives students relevant, real-world experiences to include on their CVs and discuss at interviews from within the supportive environment of a taught module.

Following an introductory kick-off meeting, clients provide ongoing direction and guidance, and students provide regular progress updates at weekly project meetings. The students will work as an independent, diverse team, managing priorities to achieve the project aims. The students and clients are supported throughout the module by a seminar tutor, a Business Support Coordinator and the online SEKE Toolkit.

Much of the learning will be off-campus, meeting key stakeholders and conducting tasks such as customer surveys and interviews for primary research. The students are encouraged to take on an experimental and entrepreneurial approach, and they will learn key skills in the seminars.

Assessment takes the form of a presentation to the client and a written recommendations report, followed by a reflective essay. The coursework is a mix of 60% group work and 40% individual assessment.

The key learning outcomes for the BCP module are

• Work effectively in a consultancy project team, whilst developing your skills in communications, cross-cultural collaboration and creativity.

• Successfully develop and manage a consultancy project for a client, using relevant problem-solving and project management methods.

• Critically apply business and management concepts to analyse your client's situation, design and evaluate solutions, and develop a sustainable implementation plan.

The workshop will follow the below structure:

• Icebreaker - do you currently run live client projects? 

• Introduction to BCP - what it is, how it works for students, how it works for clients

• Round table discussions

• What are the key employability skills students need for their futures?

• How can client-led projects support the acquisition of employability skills?

• How could we assess employability skills through client-led projects?

• Feedback to the group and questions