Comments on: Story time 13: creativity on the far margin of capitalism http://cultureby.com/2005/10/story_time_13_c.html This Blog Sits At the Intersection of Anthropology and Economics Wed, 08 Feb 2012 08:43:22 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Matt http://cultureby.com/2005/10/story_time_13_c.html/comment-page-1#comment-5641 Matt Tue, 18 Oct 2005 03:16:36 +0000 http://localhost/wp_culture/?p=850#comment-5641 "And this raises the question: why should three such unlikely characters have anything to offer the consulting, especially when so far off their native patch?" If all your consultant can do is whistle the tunes you already know, it's not consulting, but graft. If you want someone to reinforce your existing prejudices, talk to your FTEs...they're cheaper, and at any given moment most of them are going to be goofing off anyway, so the marginal cost of collecting _their_ opinions is actually zero. If you're going to get worthless advice, it might as well be free. On the other hand, the purpose of consultants is to provide what it sounds like your trio provided quite well. “And this raises the question: why should three such unlikely characters have anything to offer the consulting, especially when so far off their native patch?”

If all your consultant can do is whistle the tunes you already know, it’s not consulting, but graft. If you want someone to reinforce your existing prejudices, talk to your FTEs…they’re cheaper, and at any given moment most of them are going to be goofing off anyway, so the marginal cost of collecting _their_ opinions is actually zero. If you’re going to get worthless advice, it might as well be free.

On the other hand, the purpose of consultants is to provide what it sounds like your trio provided quite well.

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