The Consultant-Client Relationship: A Systems-Theoretical Perspective

The aim of this paper is to explain consulting failure from a systems-theoretical perspective and to provide a new framework for analysing consultant–client relationships. By drawing on Luhmann’s systems theory, clients and consultants are conceptualised as two autopoietic communication systems that operate according to idiosyncratic logics. They are structurally coupled through a third system, the so-called “contact system”, which constitutes a separate discourse. Due to their different logics no transfer of meaning between the three discourses is possible. This contradicts the traditional notion of consulting as a means of providing solutions to the client’s problems: neither is the consultant able to understand the client’s problems nor is it possible to transfer any solutions into the client system. Instead, consulting interventions only cause perturbations in the client system. Consequently, the traditional functions of consulting are called into question. The paper discusses the implications of this analysis with relation to the traditional approach to consulting, and presents a tentative framework for a systemic concept of consulting

The Consultant-Client Relationship: A Systems-Theoretical Perspective

The aim of this paper is to explain consulting failure from a systems-theoretical perspective and to provide a new framework for analysing consultant–client relationships. By drawing on Luhmann’s systems theory, clients and consultants are conceptualised as two autopoietic communication systems that operate according to idiosyncratic logics. They are structurally coupled through a third system, the so-called “contact system”, which constitutes a separate discourse. Due to their different logics no transfer of meaning between the three discourses is possible. This contradicts the traditional notion of consulting as a means of providing solutions to the client’s problems: neither is the consultant able to understand the client’s problems nor is it possible to transfer any solutions into the client system. Instead, consulting interventions only cause perturbations in the client system. Consequently, the traditional functions of consulting are called into question. The paper discusses the implications of this analysis with relation to the traditional approach to consulting, and presents a tentative framework for a systemic concept of consulting.Consulting; Consultant-Client Relation; Consulting Failure; Systems Theory

Meta-Beratung

Die Meta-Beratung verfolgt das Ziel, Klienten bei ihrem professionellen Umgang mit Beratung zu unterstützen. Der folgende Beitrag beleuchtet diese noch recht unbekannte Form der neuen Wissensproduktion im Beratungsmarkt. Mit Rückgriff auf konzeptionelle Überlegungen und empirische Beispiele wird aufgezeigt, welche besonderen Rollen und Funktionen die Meta-Beratung übernehmen kann und in welchen Feldern ihre Idee in Schiefl agen geraten kann.Meta-consulting aims to support clients deal professionally with consulting. The following article will give insight into this still rather unknown form of new knowledge production in the consulting market. Conceptual reflection and empirical findings will show the particular roles and functions that meta-consulting can assume and in which realms its ideas can go awry

Theorizing the client-consultant relationship from the perspective of social-systems theory

Over the last few years research on management consulting has established itself as an important area in management studies. While, traditionally, consulting research has been predominantly a-theoretical, lately researchers have been calling for an exploration of different theoretical approaches. This article has been written in response to these calls. It explores a new perspective for theorizing the client–consultant relationship based on the theory of social systems by Niklas Luhmann. According to this approach, clients and consultants can be conceptualized as two autopoietic communication systems that operate according to idiosyncratic logics. They are structurally coupled through a third system, the so-called ‘contact system’. Due to the different logics of these systems, the transfer of meaning between them is not possible. This theoretical position has interesting implications for the way we conceptualize consulting, challenging many traditional assumptions. Instead of supporting the client in finding solutions to their problems, this perspective emphasizes that consulting firms can only cause ‘perturbations’ in the client’s communication processes, inducing the client system to construct its own meaning from it

Müssen Klienten ihre Berater verstehen? Ein Plädoyer für eine multi-perspektivische Betrachtung

Der Beitrag geht der Frage nach, wie Übersetzungsleistungen konstruiert werden können, damit Berater und Beratene zu einer effektiven Verständigung gelangen. Klar ist, dass Berater und Klienten in unterschiedlichen Sprachsphären agieren, weshalb ihre Aussagen keineswegs a priori füreinander verständlich sind und häufig 'quälende Übersetzungen' erforderlich sind. Die Ausführungen illustrieren, dass Klienten für eine effektive Kommunikation einerseits aktive Übersetzungsleistungen konstruieren, andererseits aber auch eine Art Grenzmanagement etablieren müssen, um sich der Irritationspotenziale, die Beratung zu bieten hat, nicht selbst zu berauben. Dies schließt weiter die Auseinandersetzung der Klienten mit sich selbst und ihrem eigenen Umgang mit Beratung ein. Indem Klienten beginnen, sich aktiv gegenüber der Beratung zu professionalisieren, werden neue Erwartungen an die Beraterseite adressiert, die ebenfalls neue Strategien für die zukünftige Zusammenarbeit mit den Klienten entwickeln muss. Zusammenfassend wird festgehalten, dass sich Verstehensprozesse nicht auf einen einzelnen Akteur oder auf die Interaktionsebene zwischen Berater und Klient verkürzen lassen, sondern wechselseitige angelegte Prozesse der (Selbst-)Beobachtung und des (Sich-selbst-)Verstehens einschließen. (ICA2

The cultural embeddedness of professional service purchasing-A comparative study of German and Swedish companies

Research on professional service purchasing generally takes a culturally universalistic approach, implicitly assuming the generalizability of research findings and normative models to different cultural contexts. However, research in related disciplines points to the influence of national culture on managers' decisions, thereby questioning the culturally universalistic approach. The purpose of this paper is to explore differences in professional service purchasing in different cultural contexts. Based on a survey of large organizations, we analyze how the purchasing process for a specific type of professional services - management consulting services - is organized in two cultural contexts (i.e. Germany and Sweden). The results indicate that organizations in Germany and Sweden differ in the way they approach key aspects of the purchasing process. These differences are discussed in relation to two central cultural dimensions - uncertainty avoidance and masculinity-femininity - in which Germany and Sweden take very different positions. It is proposed that uncertainty avoidance mainly influences the first steps in the purchasing process (specify, select and contract) whereas masculinity-femininity mainly influences the remaining steps (order, expedite and evaluate). The paper contributes to the purchasing and supply management literature by empirically illustrating differences in purchasing practices in different cultural contexts and developing theory-driven propositions for the influence of national culture on the professional service purchasing process

Professional knowledge is (also) knowledge about errors

The eminent role of knowledge for successful professional performance is beyond dispute. Many modern professions, however, include a multitude of complex activities, so that even highly skilled professionals meet ambiguous demands and are prone to errors. This is particularly true for rapidly developing professions in which interaction with other people plays a central role, like in company consultation. On one side, ambiguity and errors pose challenges for the validity of one’s domain of knowledge, because this knowledge has to be conditionalised according to professional constraints, and on the other ambiguity and errors define a new area of knowledge, that is, knowledge of errors, that has to be considered as relevant part of expertise. In professional practice, too little attention has been paid to knowledge about errors as part of professional knowledge. In this chapter, the underlying theoretical approaches are discussed, from which educational conclusions as well as guidelines for organisational error management are drawn

Behind clients' doors: What hinders client firms from "professionally" dealing with consultancy?

Summary Prior research has located the issue of "professional" conduct with consultancy predominantly within the relationship between the manager and the consultant. However, recent studies provide indications that dealing professionally with consultancy may fail because of goal divergences between the individual managers and the organization. The first aim of this article is to re-examine this assumption theoretically, by drawing on agency theory, and empirically, by focusing on a single case study. Through this approach certain attitudes exhibited by managers are identified, which hinder dealing with consultancy in a professional manner across the entire organization. This observation motivates the second aim of the article: since the managers' attitudes deviate from the company's goals in dealings with consultancy, the adequacy of governance measures needs to be analyzed. Several researchers have observed that companies primarily use control-based measures, like central procurement rules or policies, to govern managers dealing with consultancy. However, these measures are not readily accepted by managers. In view of the above, this study investigates alternative measures, which are summarized as incentive-based measures.Agency theory Case study Client professionalization Management consulting Managerial attitudes