Business Consulting vs. Channeling: What is the Difference?

Abstract

This article focuses on the intriguing question how channeling, essentially a religious activity, is practised and constructed within the modern Western business culture. Two major aspects emerged from the analysis of observations and interviews with clients and channels: the essence of client–channel relationships and the nature of the exchange between them. These aspects are compared to one-to-one management consultancy situations. The results show that the fundamental principles that help define client–channel and client–consultant relationships, i.e. perceiving the client as an independent and autonomous individual and cultivating equality between client and channel/consultant, are similar. Furthermore, both channels and consultants are expected to follow similar professional codes of behavior and communication. These findings lead to the conclusion that channeling, in spite of its focus on accepting guidance from ‘external’ entities, enters the business domain by embracing existing relationships and linguistic structures.

Notes

1. A report on Israeli businesspeople that use channels was recently broadcast on one of the major Israeli TV networks (Channel 2, 31 March 2013). Similar reports have appeared in mainstream Israeli newspapers: Weiss Arik, “The Whisperer to Arkadi”, Maariv, 10 June 2010 (in Hebrew) and Noreen Sadik, “Israelis are Paying up to NIS 1,000 per Session for Channels to Connect them with the Spirit World”, The Jerusalem Post, 7 March 2008).

2. See Marci McDonald, “Psst! Want a Hot Tip? Try a Crystal Ball.” U.S. News & World Report, 1 August 2001, Vol. 130 Issue 1: 34, and Celia Dodd, “Is Anybody Out There? Psyche”, The Times (London), 9 April 2005): 14. Available at: http://www.thetimes.co.uk, access date: 3 June 2012.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Nurit Zaidman

Nurit Zaidman is a professor and the Area Head of Strategy and International Management in the Department of Business Administration at the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel. Her current research focuses on New Age and workplace spirituality, knowledge transfer in multi-nationals and global teams. Her research has been published in, for example, Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication, and Journal of Organizational Behavior. CORRESPONDENCE: Department of Business Administration, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, P.O. Box 653, Beer-Sheva, 84105, Israel.