Q
- How does Dr. Locke determine the price of his
services?
A
- Dr. Locke prices each engagement or contract in such a way that the overall costs will be
predictable, and will result in an excellent value to the
client. For example, it is frequently possible to engage Dr.
Locke's services on a fixed price basis when the results can be
well-defined, so there will be no surprises. When an hourly
rate is used, it can be limited by a not-to-exceed value that can
be re-negotiated only with permission of the client. In
every case, Dr. Locke ensures that communication with the client
is sufficiently frequent that there will be no surprises about the
schedule or quality of his work.
Q
- Isn't Dr. Locke's time rather expensive?
A
- From extensive experience with consulting, his
clients have repeatedly found that his costs are much less than
the cost of using the client's own key personnel to do the same
work. This is true because of a number of factors:
-
The
client does not pay for Dr. Locke's overhead (e.g., time
responding to email, keeping up with current literature,
vacations, illness, etc).
-
Dr.
Locke's extensive experience means that he can usually perform
a complex task much faster and more efficiently than a
client's own personnel. This frees up the client's key
employees for other critical tasks. In many cases, Dr. Locke brings
expertise that is unavailable elsewhere at any cost!
-
The
client never pays any taxes (e.g., workman's compensation,
social security) for his work. Dr. Locke handles all tax
consequences of his work.
Q
- What about using a retainer to reserve some of Dr. Locke's time
for an open-ended requirement?
A
- Dr. Locke is open to discussions of whatever the client may
require. Please call or send email for more
information. He has used retainers for some engagements.
Q
- Does Dr. Locke charge for his time spent traveling?
A
- Dr. Locke charges for any travel expenses incurred (and approved
in advance by the client), but he does not charge for his time on
travel unless he is using some of his travel time directly
performing work for a client (such as reading or writing a
document for a client on an airplane or in a hotel room).
Q
- What if I want some kind of a unique engagement to meet a special
requirement?
A
- Dr. Locke is open to discussions of whatever the client may
require. Please call or send email for more information.