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ON THIS PAGE: What Do We Do? | Who Are We? | Associates | Profesional Bodies Partnered | Client List
Consultant Training Australia is the descriptive name of the business run by Ian Benjamin and his associates.
We serve consulting firms, internal consulting units, professional fee based firms, associations of consultants (and other professions) and independent consultants.
We train, we facilitate and we coach and consult.
The training falls into three main areas:
Consulting Skills
Helps consultants do their work in a way that:
- Gets the job done so that it stays done.
- Promotes client ownership of the consulting project so that they get the benefit of the consultancy - the consultants have been seen to 'add real value'.
- Resistance to the consultant's work, the changes, the new system or whatever is acknowledged, managed and treated by the consultants - again enhancing the prospects of success for the engagement.
Relationship Skills
Focuses on how to develop an authentic relationship between the consultants and their clients - at all levels. It is set in the Australian and New Zealand context.
Consulting Business Skills
About running the consulting business so that it is viable. It includes strategy, marketing, pricing, and as many other matters as clients wish to discuss - subject to our limitations of course!
Combined, these attributes of the training offered leads to better service delivery and to a continuation of the communication between client and consultant. At its best, it helps consultants move to that privileged state of being the client's 'Trusted Advisor'. This is said to occur where the consultant is involved by the client on a continuous basis and at the inception of a client's project.
Facilitation
Facilitation of meetings - planning, problem solving, report and others. More information »
In case you missed it above, I am Ian Benjamin - Principal Consultant and Executive Director of CTA since 1987.
In the late 1980's I joined a group of seven independent consultants and newly established businesses in service industries once a month for lunch. The group had an agenda whereby each person either 'brought a problem or brought a solution' to the meeting. This combined with my background in commerce and education led to taking an interest in and advising consultants on how to develop their businesses.
My business was originally working with clients from my merchant banking days. Then I contracted to the Australian Merchant Bankers' Association and in 1991 ran my first 'How to be a Successful Consultant course'.
My career background is characterised by not staying too long at any one place, but all of them good places to be. In essence, it involves 6 years in marketing, 6 years in education (lecturing, teaching, administration and leadership) and 6 years of banking and finance. Some of these were composite roles.
In training consultants, these three elements were integrated. The connection with banking and finance is that I was continually assessing the viability of other people's business plans. Some of the principles in assessing viability from a banker's point of view are equally valid in considering how successful a consultancy might become: plausibility of business idea; functionality of business model; awareness of cash flow; commerciality of the applicant, character - amongst others.
Two main types of associates:
- Partners for whom we deliver services - most of whom are professional associations - a list appears below.
- Other specialist consultants engaged by CTA. These include specialists in tendering training, psychology and learning and development.
To whom we have delivered services either directly or to their members:
- AAAC - Australian Association of Agricultural Consultants (1994 - 2009)
- CPA Australia - Certified Practising Accountants (1994 - 2010 - every year EY)
- CAVAL - Co-operative Action by Victorian Academic Libraries (2004 - 2009 EY)
- PMI - Project Management Institute of Australia (2004 - 2009)
- AIM - Australian Institute of Management (1995 - 2010)
- Chartered Secretaries Ltd (2009)
- Australian Merchant Bankers' Association (1988- 1989)
- The Securities Institute of Australia (1992-1999 EY)
- APADA - Australian Petroleum Distributors' Association (1992-1995)
- NZ Association of Consulting Engineers
Government entities
- ADF - Australian Defence Force - as a presenter in their 'Resettlement Programs' in the ACT, Vic, Qld and NSW.
- Leadership Wimmera - presentation skills training in their Leadership Courses
- La Trobe University - lecturing in Marketing subjects for their off-shore under graduate degree courses.
Consulting firms (as a partner)
- Adaptive Frameworks
- Hunter Consultants
- Kelloway Lonsdale
- KPMG
Some of our clients prior to 2007
Names of more recent clients available to prospective clients upon request
Alliance Consulting Group (Q, ACT)
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AMP Services (N)
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Association of Consulting Engineers of New Zealand
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Association of Professional Engineers, Scientists & Managers of Aust. (V, N, Q)
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Australian Association of Agricultural Consultants (V, Q, N, T, SA, WA)
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Association of Australian Careers Consultants
Australian Institute of Management (AIM) – V, Q
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| Ampol Ltd (N, V, SA, Q) |
Australia Post (V) |
Australian Catholic University (N)
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ATEL Employment Services, Wodonga
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Apis Consulting Group (ACT, Q)
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Ball Solutions Group, 5 states
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Business Education Centre (V)
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BHP Steel (N)
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BHP Research (V)
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Business Objects (N, V)
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CSIRO (N)
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CPA Australia (All states & the ACT)
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Context P/L (V)
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Chamber of Women in Business (ACT)
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CAVAL: Co-op Action by Vic Academic Libraries (NZ, Q, V, N, SA, WA)
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Department of Defence: Education Training & Development (N)
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Commerce Queensland
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Department of Defence (ACT, V, Q)
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Commonwealth Rehabilitation Services (Q)
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Ericsson Communications (V)
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Clayton Utz (V, N, Q)
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Enersonics Pty Ltd (V)
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Department of Urban Services (ACT)
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Insurance Australia Group (V)
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| Dept' of Education & Early Childhd Devlpt (V) |
Ernst & Young (Q) |
Energex Shared Services (Q)
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Emergency Services (Q)
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| Frontier Software Pty Ltd (Aust) |
Kimberly-Clark Asia Pacific (N) |
Hassall & Associates (N)
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Mobil Engineering (Aust, NZ, South Pacific)
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| La Trobe University (HK, Singapore) |
Mobil Limited (V, N, Q, SA) |
Mayne Group (V)
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Mindshop International (Aust’n Conf)
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Macromedia P/L (Aust-NZ Conference)
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Ndvr Pty Ltd
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Mercer Consulting (V, N)
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NMIT Corporate Services (V)
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Mercer Wealth Creation P/L (V, N, Aust)
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Noetic Solutions Pty Ltd (ACT)
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National Institute of Accountants
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Novare P/L (Q)
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New England Information Tech. (N)
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NSW Young Lawyers |
Orica Engineering Shared Services (V, N)
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Optus (Shared Services) (N)
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Project Management Institute N, V, Q, ACT
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Power Business Systems (WA)
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| Perpetual Trustees Private Clients (Aust) |
Pacific Micromarketing (N, V)
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Queensland Fire & Rescue
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Suncorp CI (N, V) |
Synermedica Pty Ltd (V, N)
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Sydney Institute of General Practice, Educn & Trng
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Urban Initiatives P/L (V)
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Tectura P/L (N – Aust)
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University of SA
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The IQ Business Group (N, V)
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University of Melbourne
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Toshiba (Shared Services) Australia (N)
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University of the Sunshine Coast (Q)
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Westpac Banking Corp (N)
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