6.3Professional associations and codes of conduct

Professional associations

In a number of countries management consultants have established voluntary professional associations to represent their common interests (for names and addresses see Appendix 2). These associations have played a leading role in promoting professional standards of consulting and in gaining the confidence of management circles and a good reputation in society.

By and large, associations of management consultants contribute to the strengthening of the industry by:

●developing a common body of knowledge;

●defining minimum qualification criteria for new entrants to the field (education, type and length of experience, references, examinations);

●certifying (accrediting) management consultants;

●developing and promoting a code of professional conduct and practice for their members;

●investigating complaints of violations of the code of conduct and taking disciplinary action;

●examining various aspects of management consulting, organizing an exchange of experience and making recommendations to members on improvements in consulting methods, management of firms, training of consultants and other questions important to the development of the profession;

●organizing training events for consultants;

●providing information on services available from members and helping to identify suitable consultants at the request of potential clients;

●defending their members’ common interests in dealing with governments, organizations representing clients and other stakeholders interested in the development of consulting and the use of consulting services.

Membership of a professional association is voluntary, but is governed by several conditions defining the member’s profile and commitment to a collectively endorsed moral obligation. Not all consultants are members. There have been cases of large consulting firms that do not subscribe to all conditions of membership, or whose management has taken an elitist approach, feeling that a well-established and strong professional firm can define its own standards and does not need guidance or supervision by a professional association. There are individual consultants, too, who are not members because they do not meet some admission criterion, or do not feel that membership offers them any benefits.