Fw: Contractors _ARE_ good people

["Glanbrok, Conqueror of Bluntskulls" <conehead -at- OVERTHE -dot- NET>]

Steve Shewchuk said:

> I find it interesting that, thus far in this limited discussion, the view
> seems to be that internal people are less productive than contractors.
> Being somewhat new to the business myself, I wonder if you good people
> could tell me:  is this the common view?


In my experience, generalizations about comparative productivity aren't
valid.

I've only worked in the software biz around Washington DC, and some
peculiarities can be found here. Some of us locals attribute a certain
bureaucratic viewpoint among many managers to the prevalence of former
government contractors in our area. Writing documentation for the
government has, until recently, had little resemblance to writing manuals
or help for commercial software.

So around here, to get back to the point, some companies have high
standards, and expect both staff and contractors to meet them. Others have
low (or nonexistent) standards, and make few demands of any workers. The
tone seems to be set by senior management.

One discernible distinction between staff and contractors is the length of
the work week. Staffers around here average at least 50 hours per week;
contractors seldom work more than 45.

Glanbrok
conehead -at- overthe -dot- net

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