The Managers versus the Consultants*
利用西班牙电力分销商数据，将管理者绩效与工程标准对比，发现顾问设计的网络运营成本更低，但管理者在收入上限监管下成本效率更高。
Abstract Since engineering information is rarely available, standard practice is to benchmark managerial performance against best observed practice. We exploit a rare opportunity to benchmark managerial performance against engineering standards. Our managerial performance describes the activities of Spanish electricity distributors, and our engineering standards are obtained from an engineering grid created by an international consultancy. We find the consultancy's network to be much less costly to operate. When we decompose the cost differential, we find that the superior network design, combined with lower input prices, accounts for more than all of the predicted cost savings. However we also find that the managers are more cost efficient than the consultancy, presumably because they exploit their incentive to be cost efficient under a revenue cap regulatory regime.