The Gracchii Horse: A Study in Pre-Raphaelite Management

Abstract

IN RECENT YEARS, government agencies have made increasing use of private consultants and experts. This practice has been both loudly applauded and vigorously criticized by individuals in and out of government. Supporters say that consultants can operate with more speed, freedom, and efficiency than can government organizations. They also feel that the use of private experts brings fresh ideas and perspective to bear on public problems while keeping down the size of the permanent federal establishment. Opponents say that consultants are overpaid, overrated, and overeager to come up with findings which will lead to the renewal of their contract. In the past couple of years, both Congress and the Civil Service Commission have gotten into the act, in attempting to sort out fact from fiction in this controversy. Researchers have also looked back into history to determine the role of the consultant in past times. Their findings have shed some light on the matter, though whether this particular study sheds or makes light is perhaps open to question. The purchase of expert advice and consultation by the government is an extremely old practice. In fact, research indicates that modern-day management consultants may be practicing the world's second oldest profession, if not the oldest. The earliest examples of such dealings relate to the reimbursement of