Critical Management Studies (CMS) comprises a range of alternatives to mainstream management theory with a view to radically transforming management practice. At its core is a deep scepticism regarding the moral defensibility and the social and ecological sustainability of prevailing conceptions and forms of management and organization. Why is the interest in Critical Management Studies growing and what does CMS refer to? What kinds of critiques does CMS develop and how are these legitimized within business and management schools? These are some questions, among others, this first contribution embraces, whilst also presenting the specificities of CMS and its relevance for management research and researchers and a wider audience.