The BCS will create a new specialist group for IT consultants at a
meeting to be held next week, following huge demand from members
and non-members in both consultancies and user companies, writes
John Kavanagh.
The Consultancy Specialist Group, which will be open to non-members
as well as BCS people, aims to promote best practice in the
industry.
It will do this by liaising with academic institutions and other
professional bodies to identify and develop successful methods of
working. The group will also facilitate the sharing of information
and hold events, some with similar bodies.
The BCS Information Systems Examinations Board's certificate in IS
consultancy practice will be promoted and the group will help to
develop current and new qualifications.
The certificate has proved an instant hit. It was developed in
response to demand from people taking the short consultancy skills
workshop in the BCS Professional Development Portfolio series, run
with Knowledgepool. Interest has been further fuelled by the recent
launch of the BCS Professional Advice Register, which provides
information on consultants and security specialists approved by the
BCS.
"Membership of the Consultancy Specialist Group is open to anyone
interested in consultancy, whether they work in consultancy
practices large or small, as sole practitioners, or as internal
consultants in companies or the public sector," says Rajan
Anketell, who will chair the inaugural meeting.
Links are already being forged with other bodies. Anketell has had
offers of help from Mike Kearsley, a member of the council of the
Institute of Management Consultancy and chairman of the IS
Examinations Board, and Anthony Parker, an officer of the BCS Young
Professionals Group.
The meeting will include a presentation by Kearsley on the
development of consultancy.
BCS Consultancy Specialist Group
Membership of the
group will be free, as will the inaugural meeting on 12 February at
ICL, 26 Finsbury Square, London. Registration takes place from
5.30pm, the meeting is at 6pm, with discussion and a buffet from
7.45pm.
Places must be booked via rajan@anketell.com. People can join the
group's mailing list via the same address.
Details of the certificate in IS consultancy practice, the
consultancy skills workshop and the Professional Advice Register
are at
www.iseb.org.uk/conskills,
www.bcs.org/pdp and
www.bcs.org/par.