ABSTRACT
This chapter argues that abstract labour lends itself to the construction and use of a specific kind of uncertainty, one that results in greater economic activity and is called ‘profitable uncertainty’. While economic observers from the world of insurance and finance have encountered different forms of profitable uncertainty before, it shows that it plays an important role in consulting as well, and probably in regimes of abstract labour more widely. The chapter explains that profitable uncertainty is created with respect to clients, and that it is also used with respect to consultants themselves. It also shows that the uncertainty is hard to control, as it comes with an excess that can lead to stasis in various ways. The government in question had publicly announced that it was looking for consultancy companies to write a plan on how to improve public sector revenue, in particular by increasing tax income.
