Management consultants and their clients are rarely out of the media spotlight of controversy. Today, it is McKinsey & Co and the US opioids addiction scandal or the UK government’s use of consultants to help address the Covid crisis. But there are also recurring themes of wasted money or a lack of accountability – a ‘consultocracy’? What are the issues at stake? Are they valid or sour grapes? How effective are current approaches to governance such as the market, professional purchasing or ethical codes of conduct? What can be done that is different, especially with new organisational forms and technologies? Should governance be left to market forces – ‘ratemyconsultancy.com’? In this recording of a live online lecture Andrew Sturdy, Professor of Management at the University of Bristol, addresses these concerns from the perspective of an outsider to external consultancy, drawing on a wide range of academic research.