Thank you, this time for your continued interest down to this depth of detail. We hope that it meets your expectations.

We continue with our question-answer format.
______________

How much does RCG cost?
In general, an RCG consulting-hour costs about the same as that of other private professional practitioners, but our hourly rate decreases with increasing hours retained, up to a limit. RCG also has monthly, half-yearly, and yearly rates which are lower per hour than our hourly rates. You would incur our highest hourly rate if you retained RCG for only one hour, our minimum period. You would incur our lowest hourly rate if you retained RCG for one year. For searching, our fee for a nonproductive search is one-half that of a productive search.

Any other fees besides the time related rate?
None originated by RCG, however: All governmental taxes and fees, if any, imposed on transactions between RCG* and its clients are additional. Any unusual costs incurred by RCG* to comply with such governmental requirements are additional. Costs of supplies, parts, equipment, and their shipments, incident to the work to be done, other than routine clerical supplies, are also additional. If you have something in mind that we haven't covered here, please ask us. We dislike surprise costs, too.
* or its consultants

What if RCG doesn't have the expertise I need?
If you desire, we will search for it for free, for up to five person-hours, or for a fee. The fee is charged for additional search time or if you want the found consultants exclusively for yourself, i.e., to have no affiliation with RCG. On the free search, we would like your request for it to be in good faith. That is, we expect that you will retain the consultants we find if they meet your specified search criteria.

Does RCG warrant or guarantee the work of its consultants?
As with the work of lawyers and physicians, RCG warrants or guarantees nothing. This sounds harsh but, in professions where no certain path exists to an outcome, such assurances are unrealistic. However, please be assured that, as an organization of professionals, RCG has every intention of executing its work to the best of its abilities and to honor its commitments. Should an individual consultant offer a warranty or guarantee, then he or she is the sole source of such recourse.

Why only Ph.D.s as consultants?
Speaking only with regard to science and technology, this policy avoids unresolvable arguments about expertise. The Ph.D. is the highest academic degree in the U.S., and is about as close to a standard as research doctorates get. Its rigor is unsurpassed. Clients get only these, the certifiably research capable. We accept no less.

Couldn't I get Ph.D. consultants by myself?
Certainly. But through their membership with RCG, our consultants have already indicated their willingness and reasonable availability to take on your tasks. This eliminates your having to "start from scratch," scouring the countryside, looking for your needed expertise then negotiating with each find individually. Additionally: RCG independently verifies its members' Ph.D.s; provides its consultants with the appropriate completed U.S. federal income tax form; provides reasonable client/consultant mediation should that be needed; and provides centralized billing, handy if more than one consultant is involved (you pay RCG only).

What if an RCG consultant fails to accomplish his or her tasks?
If applicable and if you desire, RCG will reasonably try to find a replacement to carry on. Otherwise, no matter what the reason, RCG returns to the client any retained, uncommitted monies and any other residues it holds. The involved consultant is expected to also return any uncommitted holdings. If the client was given a rate that now includes unused hours, that rate remains honored even though the fewer hours actually used would have merited a higher rate. No other compensations are offered.

What if I have to cut short my retained RCG hours?
No matter what the reason, RCG will adjust higher the cost to the client to reflect the higher rate of fewer retained hours. A reasonable early-termination administrative charge may also apply.

I have a timewise short task, but it requires diverse expertise.
We will try to apply as many as three consultants per hour. For example, if your task would last only one hour but needs the expertise of three different consultants, we'll try to make that happen. Your cost: for one hour (at our maximum rate).

An RCG consultant is working on a task for me, and I like his work. When he's done, I'd like to hire him on my own. Problem?
Depends. If he's under an agreement he signed when he joined with RCG, then he's agreed not to work for compensation for any entity not introduced to him by RCG. If his agreement has expired, no problem.

An RCG consultant is working on a task for me. I'd like to hire him on my own to consult on some other science and technology task that is not related to his current work. Problem?
Yes. You may remember that when you agreed to having an RCG consultant that you also agreed not to solicit consulting, separately from RCG, from people currently registered with RCG.

Congratulations, you've survived to the end of our presentation! Should you have unanswered questions, or if you have a task for us, here is our contact information again: