The Vietnam Project

By: Phillip Broyles
Date: Sunday, January 24, 2010

Project Background

The TEM Lab in Nha Trang, Vietnam, pairs a team of Thunderbird MBA Consultants with K-Biz, a local consulting practice squarely focused on small and medium sized enterprises primarily in the tourism industry.  The consulting engagement will last one module (six weeks).  For this period, K-Biz has tasked the Thunderbird Consulting Team with the following objectives:

1)  Diagnose the local business environment.  Discover the unique qualities of the business processes, customs, and cultures among local SME’s in Nha Trang and the Khanh Hoa Province.

2)  Identify the main weaknesses in business planning and implementation among K-Biz’s clients.  Analyze possible causes behind the ineffectiveness and inefficiencies of K-Biz’s customers’ business plans, the implementation of those plans and sources of failure in plan implementation.

3)  Develop advanced techniques and consulting tools customized for K-Biz and the local clientele.  Ensure these tools are SME friendly.  Draw upon international expertise to build world-class, systematic consulting approaches for K-Biz to assist local SME’s in securing success.

4)  Assist K-Biz in transferring best practices to the local business community to aid in local economic development and job creation.

5)  Diagnose other areas of potential improvement in K-Biz’s business practices.

The Thunderbird Consulting Team is comprised of Nikhil Agarwal, Ben Balden, Phillip Broyles, and Nithin Vinyak.  (See our bios for more information on any team member).  We are extremely excited to kick-off this engagement with K-Biz, and to pioneer this pilot program for Thunderbird.