A Reflexive Action Inquiry into the Experience of Working Together as Consultants

The nature of relations between consultants, the dynamics that may arise as they work together, and the possible consequences for the effectiveness of the consultancy itself, are not often discussed in a literature that is concerned mostly with the phases and processes involved in the consultant-client relationship. This article reports on a reflexive action inquiry into inter-consultant relations that was carried out by two consultants (one female, one male) working together with a client organization over a sustained period of time. We explore what ‘working together’ means in the context of a consultancy assignment and argue that consultants may find it helpful to develop a reflexive capacity for inquiry into their actions and emotions as they work together with a client group. The article gives the background to the case and sets out a methodology for our exploration by focusing on the theory and practice of reflexivity, reverie, parallel process, transference and action inquiry. We explore the degree to which our inter-consultant process was consciously and unconsciously intended to provide emotional preparedness for our task as we travelled to and from the client organization and to work with the anxieties that are inherent in the task. An important question is raised about whether our processes facilitated or inhibited the client group's learning. We conclude that they enabled the development of self-awareness in relation to the other and others in the moments of interaction within the client organization, what we came to call ‘The Power of Two’. Finally, we suggest some implications for the practice of organizational consultancy.