A factory has a major problem that closed their manufacturing line. A
consultant is brought in. The Consultant wanders around the factory
floor, listening, poking. Finally, he takes out a small hammer and taps
gently a few times on one particular piece of machinery. The factory line
roars back to life, production once again in progress. The factory
managers are ecstatic.
A week later, the factory recieves the invoice from The Consultant. The
price was $900 for less than one hour of work. The factory's business
people fumed and asked The Consultant for an explanation. The Consultant
offered to send in an itemized invoice. The business people said, "yes,
please do."
A second invoice arrived. It had two line items. Item 1 was, "Rectifying
Problem with Hammer Hit....$1" Item 2 was, "Knowing Where to Hit the
Hammer....$899"
