The answer of course is a resounding yes. If we can calculate something we don't have to rely on hand waving, references to populist articles that do their own hand waving, or at least references to dead people who did the hand waving before.
The very notion that a stranger is going to spend good hard earned money to make changes to something that actually belongs to someone else - possible share holders - in the absence of some sort of verification that that hard earned money is going to get returned some time in the future - is well - out of their freck'in mind.
This approach to social systems is based on the belief there are enough people out there who don't have the accountability to the share holders, a contract officer, a government procurement officer, or someone themselves accountable to look after the money, is common. It's common because those getting really excited about changing the world aren't always the ones accountable to those pesky shareholders and contract officers.
That's not to say the world doesn't need changing, because it does. The world needs people who expect it to change from their own ideas. The world needs people who come up with completely new ways to make things happen. But the world is also a cruel task master when it comes to funding these ideas. Ideas that a cheap when they don't involve spending money.
Like getting together at Starbucks to scheme on how to do things better. Like let's fix our status meeting process. That doesn't take much money, just effort. Or let's restructure our organization and not focus on earnings per share instead focus on having harmony among the product development teams first so we can improve EPS sometime in the future. Ah, you'd better have the CFO, CEO and Chairman of the Board, and the Investor Relations VP at Starbucks before you jump off that cliff.
Without some notion of the credibility of the idea of how to change anything, it simply doesn't happen. This of course doesn't stop people from trying, never has, never will. But being cranky and disappointed should not come as a surprise - change is hard.
There is a critical difference between something being possible and something being possible. It may be possible to change to world but is it probable in the domain and context you work. If not probable, it's best to look for work somewhere else.
