Identifying trust exchange dynamics and constituents of employee trust within management consulting

Abstract

Focusing on management consulting firms, this study scrutinizes a core group of knowledge workers revealing the complexity and diversity of meanings attached to their trust-related decisions, emotions and behaviours. Drawing on 50 interviews utilizing critical incident technique with management consultants working in leading UK and US consulting firms, the study offers insights into the complex nature of human interactions and their embeddedness in social contexts. The study provides context-specific insights into an environment that, despite its claims to nurture trust, is inherently riddled with tensions arising from internal competition. Three main constituents are highlighted: (1) trusting trustors and trustworthy trustees; (2) the cruciality of giving and receiving support; and (3) building relationships and developing networks. This study draws on social exchange theory and critically assesses its heuristic explanatory power in the context of the management consulting industry. Further implications for future theory and practice are discussed.