| I am that "external consultant". I have recommended buying a huge piece of tin to run SQL Server on as a valid, cost-effective solution to a performance problem. Currently, EPYC CPUs are great value for money, programmers are expensive, and some workloads are too time-consuming to tune. The customer implemented the change, and it worked. I have also recommend a reduction in size of a too big SQL Server coupled with some judicious optimisation to reduce the load dramatically. Even expensive programmers can spend a few days of their precious time fixing glaring query issues. The customer implemented this change also, and it also delivered the promised benefits. I have the before-and-after metrics to prove that there was a huge benefit in both cases. In both cases the issues were ongoing, had caused drastic outages, and the internal staff were not capable of resolving the issues on their own. To be honest, 99% of my job is just to be the outsider that's not playing politics and not stuck in a narrow job description. I'm told to "fix it", so that's what I do. The internal staff have "roles and responsibilities", and they fight with other teams more than they cooperate. Some people actively hate each other. I come in as the neutral party and for a brief shining moment I can get everybody to row in the same direction. |
That is the single reason driving external consultant hire in many enterprises.