Steve, basically consultants are hired for three reasons. First, they have expertise in an areas where you do not have in-house talent and not enough work for a FTE.. Secondly, you want verification from an independent source who will not be influenced by the good-old-boy network. The third reason is closely related to the second. You want someone to blame for the changes absolving the good-old-boy network of responsibility.

In all cases 3 X FTE is cheap. My rates generally run between 2 and 3 times FTE depending on the length of the contract. You can have it good, fast or cheap pick any two.

Mike