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An Appreciation of Metaphors in Management Consulting from the Conceptual Lens of Holistic Flexibility
Author(s) -
Chowdhury Rajneesh
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
systems research and behavioral science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.371
H-Index - 45
eISSN - 1099-1743
pISSN - 1092-7026
DOI - 10.1002/sres.2670
Subject(s) - flexibility (engineering) , narrative , process (computing) , metaphor , sociology , systems thinking , reflection (computer programming) , psychology , knowledge management , conceptual framework , through the lens metering , perspective (graphical) , computer science , engineering ethics , lens (geology) , epistemology , management , engineering , artificial intelligence , social science , linguistics , philosophy , petroleum engineering , economics , programming language , operating system
Metaphors are popular in human interaction as a means to make relevant associations, convey complex ideas, and even dramatize reality or introduce humour in conversations. Metaphors, if leveraged effectively, can be a powerful tool for management consultants in their client engagement process. Chosen with a sensitive and empathetic rationale, metaphors can not only help fathom highly complex problem situations, they can also bring in an element of light‐heartedness in consulting conversations that may otherwise be stale and unexciting. Metaphorical associations can enable informality, trust, and long‐term engagement between consultants and their clients. This paper presents a first person narrative of how the author has used metaphors as a tool for creative consulting. A reflection is provided on how the experiences narrated in this paper align with the conceptual lens of holistic flexibility introduced by Rajneesh Chowdhury in his latest book on systems thinking for management consultants in 2019.