The Structural Evolution of Consulting and the Attenuation of Individual Ethical Judgement

James McManus

doi:10.2478/mcj-2026-0011

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The Structural Evolution of Consulting and the Attenuation of Individual Ethical Judgement

Management Consulting Journal

Volume 9 (2026): Issue 2 (June 2026)

By: James McManus

Open Access

|Aug 2026

Abstract

This article explores the lived ethical dilemmas faced by a consultant across different organisational contexts, and ascending levels of seniority. This focus is used to investigate whether the evolution of consulting firms structurally, has progressively constrained the efficacy of individual ethical judgement. Using the most up-to -date IC Code of Professional Conduct alongside the participant’s lived experience, the article examines how these structural developments interact with professional ethical expectations and the practical realities of consulting work. Finally, the article offers suggestions for owners, the only consistent agents with substantive ethical oversight, on how, alongside commercial prudence, they might ensure that their organisational design remains conducive to unobstructed ethical judgement. This is by no means a prescriptive remedy but rather a stimulus for deeper consideration.

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