ITT Company Consultancy Project: the CCP value from three different perspectives

In ESCP Business School’s stimulating international environment, students are constantly challenged to develop new skills and critical thinking, improving their ability to reinvent and imagine new methods of business.

A pivotal element of the MBA in International Management is the Company Consultancy Project (CCP), a powerful teaching method that challenges students to deal with real business cases.
The CCP provides students with an unforgettable experience and opportunity to perform in-depth analysis, provide insights and present innovative proposals to the partner company that entrusted ESCP students with the project. 

In October 2021, the transportation manufacturing company ITT Motion Technologies, part of ITT Inc, assigned the «KONI Car AM Strategy» consulting assignment to a team of six MBA candidates of three nationalities and different backgrounds. The team was mentored by the company tutor Samuele Baronchelli, Strategy & Business Development Director for KONI, and ESCP tutor, Marketing Professor Francesca Pucciarelli, Turin Campus Academic Director of the MBA in International Management.

Academic Perspective

“The Company Consultancy Project is a capstone experience. It is a team project in which our MBA students turn into a team of consultants and work for a real company on a real business issue the client company is coping with. In the case of KONI the team had the opportunity to work side by side with company management in crafting the commercial strategy to be. As a result, on top of the hands-on consultancy experience, our MBA candidates had the opportunity to fine-tune their own team-work and client management style, and even find their next employer”, said Francesca Pucciarelli.

KONI, part of ITT since 1972, is the premier manufacturer of performance and adjustable shocks globally. The Company Consultancy Project was successfully carried out by Miguel Ulises Castro Espinosa, Antonio Covato, Gabriele Ferlito, Biao Li, Davide Pellegrino and Valentina Trabacchi.

The company’s expectations were high for this consulting assignment, and the team worked hard on the CCP for several months.
Guided by their tutors, during the CCP, students can fully immerse themselves in a specific field and industry and boost their international work experience. The CCPs are an excellent way for MBA students to discover new job opportunities in the market and have first-hand experience working with companies and professionals within specific industries.

The Company’s Perspective 

The CCP oral defence marks the high point of the project. Students elaborated their recommendations and delivered them in front of ITT Motion Technologies President, Carlo Ghirardo, and an international committee, made up of Guido Beyss, VP & General Manager of KONI-Axtone, Jeroen Den Haan, Executive Director Road & Defense,  Samuele Baronchelli, Strategy & Business Development Director, Frank Biesheuvel, Strategic Account Manager, Timothy DeGraaf, Marketing Communications Manager, and Miranda De Korver, VP & GM Executive Assistant, for Koni; Chiara Collarà, Talent Management Specialist, Eleonora Gasca, Talent Acquisition Manager, and Viola Careggio, Talent Acquisition Specialist, for ITT Motion Technologies.

“At ITT, we are always interested in getting in touch with international talents. This is aligned with our #highperformingculture and with our multi-national orientation.
I truly believe that this project was an opportunity both for the students and for ITT. For the ESCP Business School students, it was a chance to practise the skills and knowledge acquired during the MBA programme on a very real case; If I look at it from an ITT perspective, we took advantage of a motivated and talented international team committed to reaching concrete goals. The output was an interesting, fresh-eyed analysis which offered an innovative approach to our market. As an ESCP Business School Alumnus and as an ITT executive I am proud of our collaboration”, said Carlo Ghirardo.

“During the Consulting Project, the ESCP students proved to be goal-oriented, dedicated to analysing the market landscape and identifying the best strategy to accomplish ITT goals. They showed great initiative and collaboration skills which led to outstanding results, outperforming our expectations. They managed their activities autonomously in a complex environment and on a tight schedule” remarked Samuele Baronchelli.

The Students’ Perspective

Managing projects of this size in such a short time is a big challenge and a unique opportunity for growth.
"Participating in a CCP can help you achieve personal and professional growth. From our recent experience, a CCP means working days and sometimes weekends with classmates, managing stress and anxiety, and, of course, the most challenging part: delivering a project in a short time and collaborating efficiently with your group to reach the target for the client. For me, through a CCP, we improved our listening and communication skills, skyrocketed our decision-making and analytical skills, and enhanced our leadership and management abilities. All of these are what we need for the future as managers", declared Biao Li.

 "The business consulting project is often one of the key points in choosing the programme. Once the CCP starts, it is immediately clear that all the lessons play an important role in its success. You need to be able to connect teaching and practice without underestimating the importance of time management, team-work, problem-solving and leadership, fundamental elements that allow students to grow personally and professionally. My advice for future students is to be proactive, organise internally, be strategic and to not underestimate the power of brainstorming to keep the team's level of commitment high", concluded Valentina Trabacchi.

After the final presentation of their first Company Consulting Project with fantastic results, MBA participants moved from Turin to their other ESCP campuses for the second semester.
We look forward to seeing your results in your next CCP!