The commodification of expertise: The case of systems development consulting

Management and Organization Studies as Science?

This paper addresses the status of knowledge in the field of management and organization studies. It commends Habermas's theory of knowledge-constitutive interests as a way of enhancing the self-understanding of this field. Challenging the idea of science as the generator of value-free knowledge, Habermas associates the production of scientific knowledge with three types of cognitive interest: in prediction and control, in mutual understanding, and in emancipation. Habermas's theory of cognitive interests is critically reviewed before demonstrating its relevance for management and organization studies in general. The argument is also illustrated by more detailed reference to the subfield of operational research. It is argued that Habermas's understanding of knowledge production has considerable value in problematizing the claims, and appreciating the emancipatory potential, of sciences guided by each of the three cognitive interests. There remains, however, the question of how the insights of critical scientific analysis can be translated into emancipatory praxis. The discussion of critical social science incorporates some reflections on this issue.

Culture, Control and Competition; Towards a Conceptual Framework for the Study of Information Technology in Organizations

This paper examines the significance of information communication technology (I.C.T.) for the theory and practice of organizations. There is voluminous literature in this field, but I.C.T. tends to be perceived as just another example of new technology. In fact, the information dimension of I.C.T. gives it a distinctive character in contrast to other technologies which remains under-theorized. The paper argues that information is intimately linked with power-knowledge rela tions and the forms of subjectivity that reside therein. In theorizing the exercise of power and the constitution of subjectivity, we suggest that three concepts — culture, control and competition — provide additional insights for the study of the development and application of I.C.T.s in organizations. The paper seeks to illustrate these arguments by reference to case study examples from financial service companies and the National Health Service.

Towards a Critical Pedagogy of International Business: The Application of Phronēsis

In this article, we contribute to debate on the possibilities and role of critical pedagogy in management education, with particular reference to the field of international business (IB). We engage with what we see as a focus on reproducing extant models of IB practice in the canon of IB textbooks. In these texts, we identify a concentration upon multinational enterprises (MNEs) and MNE managers as the key actors in IB, with a prioritization of their interests and marginalization of those of other involved and affected parties. In seeking to critically engage with these texts in the classroom context, we propose the need for a constructive critical pedagogy and posit the possibilities for this through application of contemporary interpretation of the concept of phronēsis .