You're certainly right. But, the same goes for if they were developing the software in-house: you need to have the customer use the software. It is probably a

You're certainly right. But, the same goes for if they were developing the software in-house: you need to have the customer use the software. It is probably a bit more pronounced in consulting, I agree. This is extreme programming, at least part of it. It is called a lot of things (client tests, cards, whatever) but the goal is the same: to get frequent and critical client feedback. I've had the same experience as you. Asked to implement something, but you KNOW they are not using the software.