Critical management in knowledge organizations

The purpose of this paper is to invite educational managers and management educators to reflect critically on practice.

Using the point of Socrates' death, the paper suggests ways of reflecting on actions using ethically‐critical, socially‐critical, environmentally‐critical, politically‐critical and globally‐critical perspectives.

Ways and means are found of reflecting on actions with special reference to the concept of value and the unique nature of knowledge organizations.

The paper is of value in recommending a blend of Rawlsian egalitarian liberalism and Deweyan democratic and educative pragmatism to support ways of being critical in management education, research and in practice.