As I recall, they made the existing software architecture more scalable, maintainable, and available. This was no mean feat, either. Our clients were pretty hug

As I recall, they made the existing software architecture more scalable, maintainable, and available. This was no mean feat, either. Our clients were pretty huge, well-known companies. There was quite a bit of language & framework discussion to go along with all that. But I think their experience levels also just allowed them to accomplish more in less time. To us, they looked like superheroes. We'd get mental blocks trying to think through situations that they had long ago met and conquered. In a similar vein, I think if most of us here at HN went back to our first job, we'd be well ahead of the curve and probably considered "wolves" in a very short time.