Re: Why people dislike consultants

Ken,

I think you are talking mechanics, rather than visible function for the client. It does not matter what arrangement the consultant is on from a payment/benefits standpoint for this discussion. What matters is that I am specifically referring to very short term 'consultants', as opposed to 'contractors' or 'long-term consultants'. Discussion on how long it takes to find one's feet in a new company do not really apply to long- term engagements. However, 1 hour compared to 2 hours in an 8 hour consultancy engagement WOULD make a big difference (+12%).

Another question (for USERS of consultancy services!): Do you hesitate before hiring a consultant because of the risk of getting a bad one? I'm thinking specifically of, say, Oracle Consulting, where you may be assigned virtually any individual off the bench.

James

In article <3832B4BC.662B5921_at_Unforgettable.com>,   BlueSax_at_Unforgettable.com wrote:
> morlej_at_my-deja.com wrote:
> >
> > I think that there is some ambiguity in terminology going on here.
When
> > I refer to a consultant, I specifically mean somebody who is
contracted
> > for maybe only one day (or less), probably working for a firm of
> > consultants (such as Oracle Consulting). This same kind of person
can
> > also be contracted for longer periods, and then the distinction
becomes
> > fuzzier between a consultant and an independent contractor.
> > In this posting, I am specifically referring to short-term
consultants,
> > on missions of about 1-2 weeks or less.
> >
> > Does that change anything, or do all the comments stand?
> > Cheers
> >
>
> No. That really doesn't clear things up.
>
> In the computer world there are at least three different types of
> contracts.
>
> There are W-2 contractors who receive their pay check from a
consulting
> company. The consulting company takes care of income tax, social
security
> and other deductions of that type. On a legal basis, the individual
has an
> at-will relationship with the consulting company and if the contact
that
> they were fulfilling is terminated or ends, the consulting company
has no
> obligation to find new work for the individual. The individual must
pay for
> their own benefits and basically the consulting company merely
provides
> payroll services. In some cases benefits are available at group rates
with
> guaranteed acceptance into the plans
>
> There are also full-time staff employees of consulting companies
which are
> used to fill needs for assignments to companies that contract to the
> consulting company for specific numbers of people for a specific
length of
> time. If the contract ends for any reason, the individul remains an
> employee with the consulting company and continues to draw a salary.
The
> consulting company then assigns the individual to another position or
lets
> him sit "on the bench" until something new comes along. For all
intents and
> purposes the individual is an actual employee of the consulting
company and
> receives benefits just like all other employees of that company.
>
> Then there are 1099 contractors. These are truely independent
contractors.
> They market themselves and negotiate rates, etc. directly with the
company
> for whom they will be providing services. These individuals must do
all of
> their own tax work (although many hire CPAs to do this for them) and
must
> provide their own benefits and that often means that they can be
rejected
> for medical insurance based on pre-existing conditions.
>
> I'm sure there are more categories than this, but these are the only
types
> that I've really run into.
>

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Before you buy. Received on Thu Nov 18 1999 - 03:19:25 CST