The issue is I don't know what the capabilities of your current team are and what specifically the consultants would be fixing. I've generally found that outsi

The issue is I don't know what the capabilities of your current team are and what specifically the consultants would be fixing. I've generally found that outside programmers take a bit of time getting acclimated with the code and functionality. I was more referring to major structural changes/issues/optimization recommendations by an outside engineer. These are generally issues that have long throw implications for the product that may be worth an cash/equity compensation arrangement. As long as: 1) the quality of work of the consultant/s is known, 2) you have a good bug tracking process in place then and 3) they're familiar and okay with your repo/commit policy then it won't hurt for finding/troubleshooting small bug related issues--but it is not generally worth it for them nor you as an equity arrangement. On the upside, having the resources acclimated will also create a backup on hand for the future and a natural talent pool to recruit from.