Political Dilemmas at Work: How to Maintain Your Integrity and Further Your Career

The Ambiguity of Consultants

External consultants are now more prevalent in our organizations than ever before. This talented bunch of high IQs and even sharper suits rent their brilliant thinking on a temporary basis, and they are another factor responsible for changing the rules. Not only are they often well connected, they are usually working on important, high-visibility, high-stakes projects. They are less invested than the permanent workforce, and as a result, they create a new layer of political complexity that we need to understand. But while they are close by, we can learn from them, adapt the best of what they do, and incorporate that into our own style.

 

• Know who hired the consultant and why.

• Understand the official agenda that they are working toward.

• Stay alert to other agendas.

• View consultants as experts, but be realistic about relationships and trust.

• They may have the power of being an expert, but where else does their power come from?

• Remember that whoever hired the consultant can take the glory when the plan succeeds, but also has to suffer the pain, should it go wrong.

• Be mindful of how the ratio between consultants and employees affects the political balance.

 

Our charter needs a commitment to recognizing and understanding the political impact that consultants bring to organizations.