EDITOR’S NOTE: This event is only open to Goodman student enrolled in the MSCM 5N02 course.

Associate Professor Ian P. McCarthy from Simon Fraser University’s (SFU) Beedie School of Business has been researching frustrating misrepresentations in the workplace for quite some time.

He says workers and managers can usually tell when information or its dissemination falls under the unfavourable category, but they often lack the means to understand why it’s occurring and how to prevent it.

On Friday, March 13, McCarthy will present “Confronting indifference toward truth: Dealing with workplace bullshit” as part of the Goodman School of Business’ Luncheon Speaker Series.

Ian McCarthy, Associate Professor of Innovations and Operations Management from the Beedie School of Business.

McCarthy has researched this form of misrepresentation, formulated a framework to address it and has written a paper that has received attention from news agencies and social media.

He argues that “corporate bullshit” is the correct term, both technically and conceptually, as it is distinctive from lying and is both the action of communicating and misleading information itself. McCarthy and co-authors David Hannah, Leyland F. Pitt and Jane M. McCarthy note that this occurs without regard for what is true, whereas lying requires the knowledge and subsequent manipulation of the truth.

After analyzing different types of misrepresentations, McCarthy et al proceed to propose the C.R.A.P. framework for understanding and addressing it in action: comprehend, recognize, act and prevent.

Recently, McCarthy also contributed to the paper “Deepfakes: Trick or treat?, which was presented by co-author Jan Kietzmann through the Goodman Speaker Series on Jan. 31.

Before his time at SFU, McCarthy was reader and head of the Organizational Systems Strategy Unit at the University of Warwick, England, and worked for several years as a manufacturing engineer. McCarthy’s work has been published in top journals, such as the Academy of Management Review, Journal of Product Innovation Management, Journal of Engineering and Technology Management and OMEGA, among others.

The Goodman Speaker Series provides an informal opportunity to listen and discuss recent advances in research, teaching and practices with international business colleagues.

His talk will run from 12:30 to 2 p.m. in Charles A. Sankey Chamber. Goodman faculty, staff and students are invited to attend. Brock community members interested in attending are encouraged to email Jennifer Brisson at jbrisson@brocku.ca to reserve a seat.