[OFFTOPIC] Medical practitioners and building trade people vs. software developers (was: Re: Goodbye, Lingnu)

[sammy ominsky]

On 15/11/2011, at 09:52, Oleg Goldshmidt wrote:


>  In addition, one wants a consultant for stuff
> that is outside one's core competency, so it looks like outsourcing,
> which _must_ be cheaper than paying permanent staff, right?

No, it's almost always more expensive, but should only be used when not intended to be permanent.  You can hire top talent for projects, then let them go do the next one elsewhere, on someone else's budget.

> [1] My attempts to say, "No, we cannot afford to do it _wrong_!"
> usually fail to embed the message into the consciousness of my
> interlocutors. Repeat after me: costs are easy to quantify, savings
> are not.

Time and materials is my favorite type of contract.  I will happily work hours on your project indefinitely until you tell me to stop.  Especially if you don't want to pay for a proper project plan.


> Shachar, sorry about your venture, and best of luck at LiveU.

Ditto.

sambo