Status update

Implementation of EN 16114, the European Standard for Management Consultancy Services, continues with an objective to ensure that it is widely accepted and extensively adopted to leverage the benefits for all stakeholders – clients, management consultants and European / national institutions.   Work is in hand to develop the standard to become a global ISO standard and this is likely to be in place within two years or so.

Copies are available at www.standards.ie (pdf €38, less 40% for subscribers) and a free-read only version is available through the Austrian Standardisation Institute at www.as-search.at (keyword: 16114).  A Briefing Note on the standard can be downloaded here and a detailed presentation on implementation here.

Knowledge of the standard will become part of IMCA’s common body of knowledge with the guidelines incorporated in practice accreditation and ongoing affirmation processes.

The standard comprises a set of best practice guidelines for consultant / client interaction and is not certifiable (as CMC is).  The standardisation bodies have approved the wording below for practices to indicate compliance with EN 16114 in proposals, contracts, website, etc..

“We offer management consultancy services guided by the European Standard EN 16114.”

“Our management consultancy services are guided by the recommendations of EN 16114.”

The standard’s development arose from the EU’s Services Directive which seeks to make a common market in services in the same way as it has in manufactured goods. The adoption of ‘service standards’, describing the interface between consumers and providers of services, is a key part of this. Management consultancy is one of the first service sectors for which a standard has been developed.

ICMCI took a proactive part in writing the standard and is leading the marketing programme. An IMCA Working Group provided feedback to the drafting through NSAI with two members (Tom Moriarty and Pat Power) as ‘ambassadors’ to support implementation.

The standard was  launched in Ireland at NSAI, Dublin in December 2011.  Pictured below at the launch are members of the IMCA Working Group and NSAI management: (L – R) Pat Power, IMCA; Martin Whelan, Director of Standards NSAI; Tom Moriarty IMCA; Maurice Buckley, CEO, NSAI and Brian O’Kane, IMCA.

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