Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-m6dg7 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-10T13:23:04.420Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Do consultants in corporate governance share a community? An empirical study on their practice

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 February 2015

Maria Elisa Peirano-Vejo  and
Ralph E Stablein
Maria Elisa Peirano-Vejo
Affiliation:
Department of Management, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
Ralph E Stablein
Affiliation:
Department of Management, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

We present an empirical study on the community of management consultants in the specialty of corporate governance. Although most studies on consulting are done on large multinational consulting firms, we suggest an alternative framework that encompasses the heterogeneity of the industry, considering also the smaller consulting firm and the independent consultant. We have qualitatively studied the practice of consultants specialized in corporate governance and looked for evidence of community belonging. Drawing on a Kuhnian theoretical framework and adapting his notion of knowledge creation to a governance consulting scenario, we explore community belonging, entry and exit mechanisms into the consulting community of governance, common culture and language, and regulation of the community. Findings confirm that consultants have mixed professional identities and an overlapping of memberships of various communities. Our results show that although no formal regulation or organization regulates corporate governance consulting, mechanisms such as reputation, career paths, experience and credibility work in strengthening the practice of the community.

Keywords

corporate governance consultantsconsulting practicecommunity of practiceknowledgeKuhnprofessional identitycritical management studies
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Management & Organization , Volume 16 , Issue 2 , May 2010 , pp. 299 - 313
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press and Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management 2010

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Abrahamson, E (1996) ‘Management fashion’ Academy of Management Review 21:254–286.Google Scholar
Abrahamson, E and Fairchild, G (1999) ‘Management fashion: Life-cycles, triggers, and collective learning processes’ Administrative Science Quarterly 44:708–741.Google Scholar
Abrahamson, E and Fairchild, G (2001) ‘Knowledge industries and idea entrepreneurs’ pp. 147–177 In The entrepreneurship dynamic, Eds Schoonhoven, CB and Romanelli, E. Stanford CA: Stanford University Press.Google Scholar
Alvarez, JL (1998) ‘The sociological tradition and the spread and institutionalization of knowledge for action’ ip. 13–57 In The diffusion and consumption of business knowledge, Ed Alvarez, JL. London: Macmillan.Google Scholar
Alvesson, M (1993) ‘Organizations as rhetoric: Knowledge-intensive firms and the struggle with ambiguity’ Journal of Management Studies 30: 997–1016.Google Scholar
Alvesson, M (2003) ‘Beyond neopositivists, romantics and localists: A reflexive approach to interviews in organizational research’ Academy of Management Review 28:13–33.Google Scholar
Alvesson, M (2004) Knowledge work and knowledge-intensive firms. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Armbrüster, , Thomas, , and Barchewitz, Christoph (2004) ‘Marketing instruments of management consulting firms: An empirical study’ pp. E1–E6 In Academy of Management Conference. New Orleans.Google Scholar
Armenakis, AA and Burdg, HB (1988) ‘Consultation research: Contributions to practice and directions for improvement’ Journal of Management 14:339–365.Google Scholar
Bobrow, EE (1999) ‘Consultants of the world unite!’ Journal of Management Consulting 10:61–65.Google Scholar
Brown, JS and Duguid, P (2001) ‘Knowledge and organization: A social-practice perspective’ Organization Science 12:198–213.Google Scholar
Clark, T and Fincham, R (2002) ‘Introduction: The emergence of critical perspective in consulting’ pp. 1–18 In Critical consulting: New perspectives on the management advice industry, Ed Clark, T and Fincham, R. Malden MA: Blackwell.Google Scholar
Clark, T and Greatbach, D (2002) ‘Collaborative relationships in the creation and fashioning of management ideas: Gurus, editors, and managers’ pp. 130–145 In Management consulting: Emergence and dynamics of a knowledge industry, Eds Kipping, M and Engwall, L. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Clarke, T (2005) ‘Accounting for Enron: shareholder value and stakeholder interests’ Corporate Governance-An International Review 13:598–612.Google Scholar
Creplet, F, Dupouet, O, Kern, F, Mehmanpazir, B and Munier, F (2001) ‘Consultants and experts in management consulting firms’ Research Policy 30: 1517–1535.Google Scholar
Crucini, C (2002) ‘Knowledge management at the country level: A large consulting firm in Italy’ pp. 109–128 In Management consulting: Emergence and dynamics of a knowledge industry, Eds Kipping, M and Engwall, L. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Czerniawska, F (1999) Management consultancy in the 21st century. Basingstoke: Macmillan.Google Scholar
Davis, JH, Schoorman, F David and Donaldson, L (1997) ‘Toward a stewardship theory of management’ Academy of Management Review 22:20–47.Google Scholar
Dean, J (1938) ‘The place of management counsel in business’ Harvard Business Review 16:451–465.Google Scholar
Deetz, S (1998) ‘(Re)Constructing the modern organization’ pp. 151–172 In Foucault, management and organization theory, Eds McKinlay, A and Starkey, K. London: Sage.Google Scholar
Engwall, L and Kipping, M (2002) ‘Introduction: Management consulting as a knowledge industry’ In Management consulting: Emergence and dynamics of a knowledge industry, Eds Kipping, M and Engwall, L. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Ernst, B and Kieser, A (2002) ‘In search of explanations for the consulting expansion’ pp. 47–73 In The expansion of management knowledge, Eds Sahlin-Andersson, K and Engwall, L. Stanford CA: Stanford University Press.Google Scholar
Forbes, DP and Milliken, FJ (1999) ‘Cognition and corporate governance: Understanding boards of directors as strategic decision-making groups’ Academy of Management Review 24:489–505.Google Scholar
Gibbons, M, Limoges, C, Nowotny, H, Schwartzman, S, Scott, P and Trow, M (1994) The new production of knowledge. London: Sage.Google Scholar
Glückler, J and Armbrüster, T (2003) ‘Bridging uncertainty in management consulting: The mechanisms of trust and networked reputation’ Organization Studies 24:269.Google Scholar
Gross, C (2000) ‘The dissemination of consultancy knowledge’ pp. 134–160 In The content of consultancy work: Knowledge generation, codification and dissemination, Eds Kipping, M and Armbrüster, T: CEMP Report No. 13.Google Scholar
Hansen, Morten T., Nohria, Nitin, and Tierney, Thomas (1999) ‘What's your strategy for managing knowledge?’ Harvard Business Review 77:106.Google Scholar
Heller, F (2002) ‘What next? More critique of consultants, gurus and managers’ pp. 260–270 In Critical consulting, Eds Clark, T and Fincham, R. Oxford: Blackwell.Google Scholar
Heusinkveld, S and Benders, J (2002) ‘Transient continuity: Tracing organizations concepts within consultancies’ pp. A1–A6 In Academy of Management Conference.Google Scholar
Kieser, A (2002a) ‘Managers as marionettes? Using fashion theories to explain the success of consultancies’ pp. 167–183 In Management consulting: Emergence and dynamics of a knowledge industry, Eds Kipping, M and Engwall, L. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Kieser, A (2002b) ‘On communication barriers between management science, consultancies and business organizations’ pp. 206–227 In Critical consulting, Eds Clark, T and Fincham, R. Oxford: Blackwell.Google Scholar
Kipping, M (2002) ‘Trapped in their wave: The evolution of management consultancies’ pp. 28–49 in Critical consulting, edited by Clark, Timothy and Fincham, Robin. Oxford: Blackwell.Google Scholar
Kipping, M and Armbrüster, T (2000) ‘The content of consultancy work: Knowledge generation, codification and dissemination’ CEMP Report No. 13.Google Scholar
Kipping, M and Armbruster, T (1999) ‘Management consultants and management knowledge: A literature review’ p. 59. The University of Reading.Google Scholar
Kipping, M and Engwall, L (Eds.) (2002) Management consulting: Emergence and dynamics of a knowledge industry. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Kubr, M (1986) Management consulting: A guide to the profession. Geneva; London: International Labour Office.Google Scholar
Kubr, M (2002) Management consulting: A guide to the profession. Geneva, London: International Labour Office.Google Scholar
Kuhn, TS (1996) The structure of scientific revolutions. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.Google Scholar
Lindkvist, L (2005) ‘Knowledge communities and knowledge collectivities: A typology of knowledge work in groups’ Journal of Management Studies 42:1189–1210.Google Scholar
Lundberg, CC and Raia, AP (1976) ‘Issues in the practice of organizational development consultancy’ Pp. 190–196 in Academy of Management Proceedings: Academy of Management.Google Scholar
Mazza, C and Alvarez, JL (2000) ‘Haute Couture and Pret-a-Porter: The popular press and the diffusion of management practices’ Organization Studies 21:567–589.Google Scholar
Merilainen, S, Tienari, J, Thomas, R and Davies, A (2004) ‘Management consultant Talk: A cross-cultural comparison of normalizing discourse and resistance’ Organization 11:539–564.Google Scholar
Nippa, MC and Petzold, K (2002) ‘Economic functions of management consulting firms – An integrative theoretical framework’ pp. B1–B6 in Academy of Management Proceedings.Google Scholar
Nohria, N and Eccles, RG (1998) ‘Where does management knowledge come from?’ pp. 278–304 in The diffusion and consumption of business knowledge, Ed. Alvarez, JL. London: Macmillan.Google Scholar
O'Shea, JE and Madigan, C (1997) Dangerous company: The consulting powerhouses and the businesses they save and ruin. New York: Times Business.Google Scholar
Ormerod, RJ (1996) ‘Combining management consultancy and research’ Omega 24:1–12.Google Scholar
Pemer, F and Werr, A (2006) ‘Between exploitation and control – Client's conceptions of the consultant-client relationship’ pp. 1–30 In Academy of Management Conference. Atlanta GA.Google Scholar
Pinault, L (2000) Consulting demons: Inside the unscrupulous world of global corporate consulting. New York: Harper Business.Google Scholar
Probst, G, Raub, S and Romhardt, K (1999) Managing knowledge: Building blocks for success. Chichester: Wiley.Google Scholar
Robertson, M, Scarbrough, H and Swan, J (2003) ‘Knowledge creation in professional service firms: Institutional effects’ Organization Studies 24:831–857.Google Scholar
Sahlin-Andersson, K and Engwall, L (2002) ‘The dynamics of management knowledge expansion’ Pp. 278–296 in The expansion of management knowledge, edited by Sahlin-Andersson, Kerstin and Engwall, Lars. Stanford CA: Stanford University Press.Google Scholar
Shapiro, , Eileen, C (1996) Fad surfing in the boardroom: Managing in the age of instant answers. Reading MA: Addison-Wesley.Google Scholar
Steele, F (1975) Consulting for organizational change. Amherst MA: University of Massachusetts Press.Google Scholar
Taylor, III, A (1998) ‘Consultants have a big people problem’ pp. 162–168 in Fortune: Time Inc.Google Scholar
Vieira, WE (1995) ‘Management consulting in the 21st century’ Consulting to Management 8:2–4.Google Scholar
Walsh, K (2001) ‘The role of relational expertise in professional service delivery’ pp. 23–42 In Current trends in management consulting, Ed. Buono, AF. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.Google Scholar
Wenger, E (2000) ‘Communities of practice and social learning systems’ Organization 7:225–246.Google Scholar
Wenger, E (2004) ‘Knowledge management as a doughnut: Shaping your knowledge strategy through communities of practice’ Ivey Business Journal: 1–8.Google Scholar
Wenger, E and Snyder, WM (2000) ‘Communities of practice: The organizational frontier’ Harvard Business Review (01-Feb): 139–145.Google Scholar
Werr, A (2002) ‘The internal creation of consulting knowledge: A question of structuring experience’ pp. 92–108 In Management consulting: Emergence and dynamics of a knowledge industry, Eds Kipping, M and Engwall, L. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Werr, A and Stjernberg, T (2003) ‘Exploring management consulting firms as knowledge systems’ Organization Studies 24:881–908.Google Scholar
Williams, R (2003) “Consultobabble' and the clientconsultant relationship’ Managerial Auditing Journal 18:134–139.Google Scholar
Wooldridge, , Adrian, (1997) ‘The advice business’ pp. 3–6 in The Economist.Google Scholar