Back in the '80's, I knew a few folks in the math dept. of one of the larger midwestern research universities. That dept. was doing very well indeed with grant

Back in the '80's, I knew a few folks in the math dept. of one of the larger midwestern research universities. That dept. was doing very well indeed with grants; their secret was a departmental secretary with extensive knowledge and exceptional talent in that area. Scuttlebutt was that a number of social, departmental, and university rules were being bent or broken in setting her ample compensation. But no one cared - because everyone who might complain was a beneficiary of the money that she seemed near-essential to bringing in.