Consultocracy in the public sector: Welcome consultants, “goodbye” employees!

Abstract

The rise and proliferation of external consulting in the public sector in Western countries, accompanying the New Public Management movement, is giving rise to a phenomenon of “consultocracy.” While existing literature mainly focused on the external effects of consultocracy, such as those on democracy, public decision‐making processes, and public policies, our viewpoint article explores the internal effects on management and organizational dynamics. This enables us to discuss the “dark side” of external consulting in the public sector as well as to uncover some additional effects on the internal management of public administrations. We examine the consequences of this phenomenon from a general viewpoint, but using the case of Italy as an example. By exploring the internal effects, we show how consultocracy affects work‐life dynamics in public organizations. Particularly, we discuss public servants’ perceived lack of trust and recognition from their administration, de‐responsibility, demotivation, and deprivation of knowledge, competencies, as well as professional and economic opportunities. In doing so, we raise awareness about the proliferation of consultocracy and offer a different perspective on the consequences of this increasingly widespread phenomenon in the contemporary public sector across Western countries.