What Consulting Can Learn From Asset-Based Community Development
Asset-based community development (ABCD) is a methodology for the sustainable development of communities based on their strengths and potentials. It is a bottom-up way of working with communities that focuses on community assets rather than on deficits and problems. ABCD involves assessing the resources, skills, and experience available in a community, organizing the community around issues that move its members into action, and then determining and taking appropriate action. It is contrasted with the more traditional needs-based community development that emphasizes local issues and looks to outside agencies for resources. The idea stems from the fundamental belief there are assets in all communities and individuals, however these assets may need to be framed or combined in the appropriate unique way to be a positive force for change. There are several guiding principles of ABCD that can be extended to business and aid consultants to apply and develop more holistic and sustainable solutions.
The first is in leveraging existing resources. In the same way needs-based community development focuses on external solutions, many consultants tend to do the same. The value that any consultancy provides is primarily in providing an external perspective, as it is very difficult for organizations to realize or understand the bigger picture from the inside. However, an external perspective does not have to equate to an external solution. Leveraging what is already there, for example looking for more creative ways in which businesses can make use of talent while providing extra connections in the network, is a very effective way to create value. Long-term sustainable solutions are at the core of ABCD, and while communities who follow the needs-based approach are sometimes better off in the short-term, it is only temporary. Funding can only go on so long, while network and talent is non-exhaustive, and so a more sustainable approach. A quick fix may seem tempting, but if the same issue reemerges down the line, nothing has been achieved.
At the core of ABCD is the importance of valuing and understanding communities’ local knowledge, culture, resources, skills and processes. This is based on the idea that you can only truly give useful advice by helping communities to help themselves. Because change is community driven, rather than being the objects of community development, community members become the drivers of change. This principal is highly applicable to consulting because once the consultants are gone, the strategies and ideas in place can be better implemented and executed in the long-term if the recommendations were made with the values and assets of the business at the forefront, and as integral pieces of their decision making. A key way this is achieved in ABCD is through extensive dialogue and conversation with all members of a community. While these methods are being increasingly used in the consulting world with the popularisation of design thinking, there is still much to be gained with a stronger emphasis on truly understanding the situation of all stakeholders. It is important for ideas to be informed by the people that are affected the most.
In ABCD, solutions are geared towards unique local contexts that people can relate to, therefore commitment to action can be more visible and personally relevant. If you make solutions more relatable and focus on specific and circumstantial needs, it allows both individuals and the community as a whole to genuinely buy-in. The same idea can be applied to consulting, as if a business feels a solution is tailored to their specific needs it will resonate much stronger, and feel less like the idea is being imposed on them. Additionally, future buy-in from a business’ employees regarding a solution is key when proposing a solution to upper management. ABCD has an emphasis on local leadership, in which the community leads its own development and community leaders are themselves capable of opening doors to the wider citizenry. In the business context, this applies to making sure the leadership of the organization is aware of how to implement and run everything that is being recommended from the consultants. Finally, the principles of transparency and accountability must be at the forefront of consulting as they are in ABCD. The recent scandals of major consulting firms has increased the public’s distrust of the industry, especially in countries like South Africa. It is essential that consultants are accountable in their recommendations and strongly consider all other groups and stakeholders in the broader environment and society.
As traditional consulting faces disruption, there is an increasing trend of productizing consulting where tools and products (e.g. KPMG’s new cloud-based software approach to finance and accounting) are seen as the primary asset, not people. While this may increase efficiency in the future, there is concern that these methods would omit key understanding of a business’ existing internal resources, which as seen from ABCD is essential to unlocking an organization’s true potential.