Management consultancy: Issues, perspectives, and agendas [Preface]
Abstract
This issue of International Studies of Management and Organizationbrings together five articles that reflect the rich array of contemporaryresearch that is being conducted into the activities of the managementconsultancy industry. Management consultancy, in various forms, has existed foras long as complex organizations. However, its increasing economicsignificance, associated with the rapid expansion in the number ofconsultancies and the rise of large multinational consultancy firms, as well asthe influence and impact of the fashionable management knowledge and techniqueson which much of their work is based, are more recent phenomena. To date,detailed conceptual and empirical research into the work of consultants hasbeen slight (for a summary, see Clark and Fincham 2002; Kipping and Engwall2002). Much, therefore, remains to be done if we are to develop a morepenetrating and nuanced understanding of this activity. This special issue beginsto rectify this situation by bringing together in one volume original andinnovative contributions from leading academics in this emerging field.