Imagine Communications pioneers landmark consulting course

 Consulting as an occupation remains poorly understood in Kenya beyond a few traditional professions such as medicine, law, accounting and human resources. For other professions, tertiary training programmes generally do not emphasise the possibility of their graduates starting their own practice in their areas of specialisation. This is even though some professions can offer vital capacities that are universally required and for which companies and individuals are willing to pay a premium to build.

This situation makes it doubly difficult for those trained in some professions to package themselves as consultants. This is principally because there are very few or even non-existent tailored training programmes specifically for consulting, particularly in many non-traditional fields.

For those who decide to navigate the murky waters and gain the requisite consulting skills through trial and error, the journey towards success can prove to be particularly arduous. Many get discouraged along the way and end up losing opportunities to practice their calling and getting into meaningful self-employment.

Professions such as education, logistics, operations management, counselling, publishing, agronomy, climate science and actuary, among many others, provide services that ought to command a premium. This can only happen when they get appropriately systematised and monetised by those who have expertise in them.

Newer professions that have emerged in recent years, mainly driven by the rapid growth of the digital sector, have also not been easy to formalize outside traditional employment. These include mobile applications development, digital influencing, digital communication strategy development and artificial intelligence and machine learning application, among others.

Fortunately, the market is beginning to respond. Our company known as Imagine Communications, has become a pioneer in this area in Kenya. In January 2025, it launched its flagship course: How to start and grow a consultancy practice. The course is unique in the sense that it does not discriminate professions. Whether one is a doctor, a lawyer or an event organiser, there is something to be learnt by those who are investing in it. Most point out that it has come at the right moment when the formal sector has become unpredictable and the non-profit sector an unwitting victim of shifting funding priorities by international funding agencies such as USAID.

Some of the topics covered in the new course include Why clients hire consultants; Registration, identity and visioning for consultants and their firms; Setting consulting fees; Financial management for consultants; Ethics and best practices in consulting; Bidding to win; and Strategic positioning, among others. Prospective beneficiaries for the course include newly qualified professionals, employees deciding to strike out on their own and even retirees wishing to remain professionally active.

For more information contact Anthony Mugo: ammugo2003@gmail.com

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