In this PDW, we will introduce the concept of the unreliable narrator—known from film and literature studies—as an alternative analytical lens as well as a rich source of inspiration for critical management studies and education; deciphering dark, misleading, manipulative or just inconsiderate practices in organizations. Following an introduction and exemplification of the concept with its theoretical underpinnings and several aspects of relevance for constituencies of scholars and practitioners, we offer an interactive workshop. In a roundtable or similar discussion format, participants are encouraged to discuss how the concept of the unreliable narrator can provide promising research approaches and/or valuable inspiration for their individual teaching, or the creation of teaching materials such as dark cases. Ideas that could be considered or outlined include for instance: how to leverage analysis of dark cases through the lens of unreliable narration; conceptualizing/writing dark cases using an unreliable narrator as stylistic device; integration of unreliable narrator-based pieces of literature/movie into teaching. We trust that this workshop will provide valuable insights and inspiration, and we hope that it encourages the community further to foster critical thinking skills that are so urgently needed in a diffuse and partly frightening world of management disorders and organizational wrongdoing.
