Aristotle and the Management Consultants: Shooting for Ethical Practice

Abstract

The academic literature on management consulting raises many questions about the ethics of management consulting. The uncertain, emergent, and often socially constructed nature of management consultancy knowledge limits the scope both for regulating the industry in the manner of the established professions, and for evaluating management consultants' work objectively. The character of management consultants is therefore a central issue in how far clients and other stakeholders can trust them. This paper considers three questions, using Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics as a guide. These are, first, 'What is the function of a management consultant?', second, 'How should a management consultant act in order to be a good management consultant?', and third, 'Where does the boundary lie between the ethical responsibilities of the management consultant and those of the client and other stakeholders?' Aristotelian virtue ethics are valuable in answering these questions. Their focus on character is well suited to the distinct ethical problems of management consulting. Aristotle's overarching concern with human flourishing, and an ethically balanced approach towards benefiting from the good things to which a virtuous person may aspire, has more promise as an influence on consultants' behaviour than the lists of prohibitions that typify codes of ethical practice in the industry. Aristotle's call for leaders to habituate their people to ethical behaviour should be heard by the leaders of management consultancy firms. In accordance with Aristotle's philosophy, this paper proposes a positive target at which management consultants can aim in shooting for ethical practice.

“Doing the Right Thing” and “Making a Difference”: The Role of Personal Ethical Values in Diversity and Inclusion Consulting

“…Such an uneasy position vis-à-vis organizations/management might explain why some diversity practitioners choose to work as external consultants because although the central purpose as per the wider consulting industry is to improve client organizations' performance, outsider status alters the relational dynamic (Sturdy & Wright, 2008). Being an external consultant affords opportunities to change the system from another vantage point where it may be possible to transcend organizational inertia and challenge existing norms (Wright et al, 2012;Shaw, 2020) while avoiding formal organizational responsibility and accountability for outcomes (Sturdy, 2011). However, these advantages of external positioning may not be available to external D&I consultants to the same degree as other management consultants because diversity work is always at risk of being sidelined or sabotaged by those who perceive it as a distraction from 'real' business/organizational concerns.…”

Perspectives on Quality and Quality Assurance in the Management Consulting Sector

“…A widening of what consultancy means, low barriers to entry and global connectivity has led to growing numbers of independent portfolio workers and small consultancy firms with specialised skills. Management consultants are often identified as 'professionals' (Shaw, 2020), yet, essentially, anybody can market their 'consultancy' services regardless of competence (Glückler and Armbrüster, 2003;Kitay and Wright, 2007). Sohbe stated, "In today's information age, intelligence is what drives success, and that holds true for businesses of any size" (Consulting.us, 2021).…”

“…A client's willingness to share information is dependent on how much they trust the consultant (Stumpf and lonman, 2000). Consultants must approach projects with clear intentions to do good for their clients, placing their clients' interests, above their own throughout their consultancy projects (Shaw, 2020). Mike Cope's TRUST mnemonic as highlighted by Hodges (2017, p.241) guides consultants and clients to be 'Truthful', no matter how 'painful' the truth is, encouraging 'Responsive(ness)' to engage from the client's perspective with 'Uniform(ity)' outlining consistency of ideas and attitude.…”

Jokes That Illustrate Unethical Business Behaviour

“…Virtues can be modesty, honesty, courage, etc., and according to Aristoteles (1985), they require moderation: too much courage becomes recklessness, and too much honesty can be perceived as tactless. Shaw (2020) has argued that virtue ethics is the most relevant perspective for consultants, as it is a professional service that very much depends on professional character. We might thus conclude that all three perspectives are relevant and helpful in practice.…”