McKinsey started as a business that sold candid, dispassionate advice to corporate managers, but selling advice and building a brand around it also sets up a mechanism for diffusing responsibility. The managers can say they’re just following the best available advice, and the consultants can say they’re just trying to help their clients boost profits and efficiency. But if you work for anyone, and you serve their interests as best you can, and you define those interests in the narrowest and most mercenary terms, you’re going to end up with dirty hands.

How McKinsey helps companies avoid responsibility.