Do Management Consultants Influence Public Policy? Insights from India’s Smart Cities Mission

This paper contributes to the growing research on the role of private sector management consultants in the public sector. It considers whether and to what extent management consultants influence public policy—and what the implications of this are. Using India’s 100 Smart Cities Mission as an empirical case, the paper argues that while consultants wield influence, this does not occur evenly and increases from the federal level to the local level. Providing insights into the design of the Mission that has helped embed management consultants in the policy process, we argue that the state may not only facilitate a growing consultocracy but may also use consultants to concentrate and centralise power. The paper points to the need for a regulatory framework in India, especially one that would help strengthen local capacity.