Consulting in Catastrophe

“Consulting in Catastrophe” is the third book in the “Tsunami Chronicles” series. Set in Indonesia’s western province, Aceh, it explains the hidden contribution of technical advisors to emergency response, recovery and reconstruction following the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami. The author was senior advisor to the Indonesian Government for tsunami recovery. This is his personal story. Required to deliver excellence in technical leadership, he was derided as an easy target by ignorant critics and self-serving interests who did not appreciate the critical contribution of consultants as the hidden backbone of disaster recovery. This extraordinary story of leadership under fire reveals what it is like to be a management consultant trapped in a hothouse of duplicity and resentment while helping a devastated community rebuild from an immense human tragedy. It shows how aid agencies can abuse their own consultants and even undermine host governments. It also offers a detailed critique of the ideological journalism that distorts and derails serious humanitarian contributions. The story will hold special appeal to professional managers and management consultants alike. It is likewise relevant for those in the UN, World Bank, Red Cross and other humanitarian organisations and international development agencies who engage consultants and depend on their technical advice in disaster risk management and international development, especially as global warming and climate change threaten more and even greater natural disasters.