Easy to read, easier to write: the politics of AI in consultancy trade research
AI systems have been rapidly implemented in all sectors, of all sizes and in every country. In this article, we conduct a bibliometric review of references in recent consultancy reports on AI use in business, policymaking, and strategic management. The uptake of these reports is high. We find three...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Taylor & Francis Group
2025-12-01
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| Series: | Cogent Social Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/23311886.2025.2470368 |
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| author | Tammy Mackenzie Branislav Radeljić Olivia Heslinga |
| author_facet | Tammy Mackenzie Branislav Radeljić Olivia Heslinga |
| author_sort | Tammy Mackenzie |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | AI systems have been rapidly implemented in all sectors, of all sizes and in every country. In this article, we conduct a bibliometric review of references in recent consultancy reports on AI use in business, policymaking, and strategic management. The uptake of these reports is high. We find three positive factors: focus on client-facing solutions, speed of production, and ease of access. We find that the evidentiary quality of reports is often unsatisfactory because of references-clubbing with other consultancy reports, references to surveys without transparency, or poor or missing references. To optimize the utility of consultancy reports for decision-makers and their pertinence for policy, we present recommendations for the quality assessment of consultancy reporting on AI’s use in organizations. We discuss how to improve general knowledge of AI use in business and policymaking, through effective collaborations between consultants and management scientists. In addition to being of interest to managers and consultants, this work may also be of interest to media, political scientists, and business-school communities. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-89ba0e6c05fb489682da4be21eef0e59 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2331-1886 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-12-01 |
| publisher | Taylor & Francis Group |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Cogent Social Sciences |
| spelling | doaj-art-89ba0e6c05fb489682da4be21eef0e592025-08-20T01:56:46ZengTaylor & Francis GroupCogent Social Sciences2331-18862025-12-0111110.1080/23311886.2025.2470368Easy to read, easier to write: the politics of AI in consultancy trade researchTammy Mackenzie0Branislav Radeljić1Olivia Heslinga2The Aula Fellowship for AI Science, Tech, and Policy, Montreal, CanadaSchool of Law and International Relations, Nebrija University, Madrid, SpainAI for Good, Copenhagen, DenmarkAI systems have been rapidly implemented in all sectors, of all sizes and in every country. In this article, we conduct a bibliometric review of references in recent consultancy reports on AI use in business, policymaking, and strategic management. The uptake of these reports is high. We find three positive factors: focus on client-facing solutions, speed of production, and ease of access. We find that the evidentiary quality of reports is often unsatisfactory because of references-clubbing with other consultancy reports, references to surveys without transparency, or poor or missing references. To optimize the utility of consultancy reports for decision-makers and their pertinence for policy, we present recommendations for the quality assessment of consultancy reporting on AI’s use in organizations. We discuss how to improve general knowledge of AI use in business and policymaking, through effective collaborations between consultants and management scientists. In addition to being of interest to managers and consultants, this work may also be of interest to media, political scientists, and business-school communities.https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/23311886.2025.2470368AIdecision-makingconsultancy reportingstrategic managementpolicy recommendationsGovernance |
| spellingShingle | Tammy Mackenzie Branislav Radeljić Olivia Heslinga Easy to read, easier to write: the politics of AI in consultancy trade research Cogent Social Sciences AI decision-making consultancy reporting strategic management policy recommendations Governance |
| title | Easy to read, easier to write: the politics of AI in consultancy trade research |
| title_full | Easy to read, easier to write: the politics of AI in consultancy trade research |
| title_fullStr | Easy to read, easier to write: the politics of AI in consultancy trade research |
| title_full_unstemmed | Easy to read, easier to write: the politics of AI in consultancy trade research |
| title_short | Easy to read, easier to write: the politics of AI in consultancy trade research |
| title_sort | easy to read easier to write the politics of ai in consultancy trade research |
| topic | AI decision-making consultancy reporting strategic management policy recommendations Governance |
| url | https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/23311886.2025.2470368 |
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