While visiting Charleston, SC this past weekend, my family and I stopped by the Cathedral of St John the Baptist. It’s a beautiful Gothic cathedral which began construction in 1890 and is still a work in process. Currently, its Connecticut brownstone exterior is being renovated and a spire is being added.
What also caught my attention are the markings on each and every one of the brownstone bricks. Since there obviously were no electronic time keeping systems in the 19th century, the stone masons kept track of their time on an honor system. For each day of work they completed, they would imprint one star into a brick. The church elders were confident that none of the workers would cheat on their time because they were working on a church. Who would dare to pull a scam on God, right?
Unfortuntely technology projects are not churches. Time sheets and billing by the hour are fertile territory for cheating. Rarely are time sheets accurate which means that you rarely receive an accurate bill from a consultant who bills by the hour. In almost every situation, a consultant is compensated based on the number of billable hours she or he generates. Where does that put you if you are their customer? In a very unholy position!
How do you avoid being in this predicament? Insist on an up-front, fixed price for every project before you move forward. The consultant should be focused on your desired results and should not care how long it takes to accomplish those goals.
