James,
Your observation is spot on and is an example of a wider principle learned the hard way by people running a business or practice. That is this: The best decisions are made as close as possible to the coal face.

i.e the person handling the matter is in the best position to decide what to do in a particular set of circumstances--- even if the decision is to seek guidance from the older person further up the chain of command.

e.g Directions from "on high" as to when to send out a bill are common in large legal firms. The manager of the practice wants the monthly figure to look good.

I used to have a white board on which I drew a steep mountain. I listed the client's comments on it. It started at the bottom of the ascent with " Can you take this on. If I lose this I am a gonner."

Further up the mountain was: "Do you have to go into all this detail, do you have to be this thorough?"

UP near the top:" I don't know how you can take the pressure litigation must put you under all the time"

At the top: "We won. If you had not made that effort the whole true story would never have come out. I owe it all to you"

A little down the slope from the top: "Gee I was a good witness"

Further down the slope: "If I had made the effort I could have handled it myself."

Further down the slope, after the bill is sent out: "Bloody shylock. That's the last time I'll use a lawyer"

The idea was to set the frame work up for the person to make the right decision at the right time rather than have a decision made by a person not familiar with the circumstances.

Same principle, different professions.
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James.

Good. Perhaps you should re-consider your uncritical devotion to the State, and its one-size-fits-all approach backed up by force and threats, which you don't seem to even recognise or understand.

For example, who is the "we" you are referring to as presumptively having an interest in the continuance of government's compulsory and centrally-planned indoctrination of the entire population during their formative years?

Well, as long as you believe you were right and the congratulations limited to self congratulations?

That said, there has to be a role for critical thinking in all conjecture?

And a willingness to seek the mighty irrefutable truth! Even where that effectively destroys an antiquated and essentially irrelevant belief system!?
Alan B.

Thanks for comments, especially from "Old Man". And, yes, I think the principle does extend to other professions.