Strategic Advantage Consulting

Savory USA supplies equipment and builds turnkey dairy and food processing plants internationally. We had a customer who wanted to build a specialty milk plant in the State of Florida. To do so, it was necessary for the customer to present a solid business plan to potential investors with the goal of raising $7,000,000. In the past, I had business dealings with Philip Cohen and knew of his abilities in regard to strategic planning and developing business plans. I asked him to help. After looking at some projected processing and sales volumes based on our original concept, he suggested and we agreed that we would have to expand the product mix to be successful. We collectively came up with a strategy for moving forward and Philip began creating the business plan for us. The written plan was very logical in its approach and each component of the business (production, finance, marketing, distribution) were all explored and presented in great detail with justification for each factor that was proposed. He insisted that we secure, in writing, commitments from potential customers to further substantiate the reality of the sales projections. We were able to accomplish this. There was a tremendous amount of research required for this project. Philip worked up detailed costing, selling prices, and gross margins on every product we would process, The 3 year pro forma financial statements had accompanying explanations and precise justifications, to the extent that we felt very comfortable proceeding with the project. On January 18, 2016, we had the basis of our plant layout and a solid business plan to present to a group of motivated investors, which we did. Philip played an important role in helping us achieve our goal.

We operated a very successful clothing manufacturing business “Fortega Fashion Industries” in Dalian, China for many years. We exported all of our production to Europe. In 2008-2010 the economic climate changed and along with tightening government regulations in China and higher costs we thought it best to move to another country and open a new business in a new land. In 2012, we decided that we would move to Canada, and we needed a consultant who could assess the business climate and research the probability for success for our new venture. Through a friend, we were introduced to Philip Cohen of Cohen Consultancy. We listed many of the criteria that were important to us and information that we required in order to make the best decision. Philip spent a lot of time asking us questions and clarifying what we were looking for, to be sure he understood our concerns and needs. He kept us informed as the research was being done and soon provided us with an extremely complete 50 page report . The report included a summary of the economic climate in Canada, extensive government regulations relating to our business interests, a recommendation to locate near the GTA, as well as a full comparison of all businesses that would be both direct and indirect competitors. The market potential and market share analysis was particularly impressive. It gave us confidence to learn more. The report also included information on property values, cost to lease or purchase commercial space along with a preliminary 12 month sales projection and profit and loss statement. It was so professional and could not have been more complete. We had some other concerns about immigrating to Canada which included FDI and corporate tax issues. In December of 2012 we visited Toronto and Philip took us to see many business locations and we got a good feeling of who our competition would be and different ways we might set up our business. He also made arrangements and introduced us to both an excellent immigration lawyer as well as a foreign tax specialist. In the spring of 2013 we moved to Barrie, Ontario where we established our growing business. We have become friends with Philip. We highly recommend him as a consultant. He does what he says he will do.

UI is a full service management consulting firm with a scope of business to market and coordinate education, training and related market research services with offices in Beijing, Shanghai and Dalian. UI was looking to expand its reach in recruiting expatriates within the PRC on behalf of RUTGERS, the State University of New Jersey and its Executive MBA programs in China. The need became apparent, that to be truly successful, the 40 employees involved in this effort required overall sales training which included a greater in-depth understanding of the cultural differences among the prospects of this executive development program. UI contracted Philip Cohen for this assignment. Philip delivered 3 consecutive days of training in each of the UI facilities. The positive results, especially in an increased capacity to address diversity were immediately recognized. The employees felt more confident in asking questions, their interaction with EMBA candidates fostered greater understanding of the applicants motivations for enrolling in this top B-school program, and the goal for confirmed participants was clearly easier to accomplish. The capacity to better service the participants in the program on an ongoing basis was also accomplished.

Debriefing after the sessions to assess the performance level of each team member and the team itself showcased the power of the Action Learning process.

It was astounding to witness how a group of strangers could become so cohesive in such a short period of time to help solve a problem presented by one of the team members.

The practice sessions gave me insight into the complexities of an easy process and power of how problem solutions can be reached.

Learning to use open ended questions helped me to define the problem. This will help me become a better leader.

The targeted feedback of personal performance and team progress was extremely valuable

This was a highly organized and successful presentation. Every hour went by quickly and the learning was invaluable.

All aspects of the Foundations Training program provided new capacities for contribution to effective functioning of problem tasked teams. The part of the training I found most useful was the experience in applying the structured techniques to the level of not having to be preoccupied with them, while using them as a matter of developed operating style.

Being able to play at each role of team member – coach – problem presenter was a quick learning tool. The AL practice sessions made me a better listener; a more compassionate team member; and a focused team member to achieve the goals we set out to meet. The actual action learning sessions were very helpful and insightful. I truly enjoyed participating as a team member.