When organizational leaders reflect on who has most impacted their lives, their careers, and their sense of purpose, chances are significant that they will name a humanistic consultant. The humanistic approach to working with individuals and organizations spans leadership development, executive coaching, organization development practice, organizational behavior teaching, and efforts to transform and revitalize entire organizational systems. Its tools and techniques are borrowed from clinical psychology, counselling, therapeutic approaches, and business change strategies.

The historical roots of humanistic consulting practice, its cross-functional applications, and its powerful potential have, for too long, gone unexamined. No other book traces the influence of therapeutic models, existential philosophy and humanistic values on organizational consultation, coaching, and leadership development. Uniquely, it moves beyond a historical narrative and offers perspective, insights, and ideas for practitioners, managers, researchers and students.