I worked for a company that had product managers that were very talented at turning requests for custom features into solutions that we enabled (and our core wa

I worked for a company that had product managers that were very talented at turning requests for custom features into solutions that we enabled (and our core was required to implement) but using a third party to implement. Consulting was used to find new core features and keep a finger on the pulse but not as a significant revenue generator. It enabled us to grow a product company to big revenue per headcount metrics, which is hard to do as a service company. The situation described by GP is primarily a expectation and people management problem, not a technical issue.