A written recommendation
Not a call you have to remember afterwards. A document with the options, the reasoning, and what each one costs you in time and in money.
Services
Technical consulting and architecture review
A second opinion before you commit money to a build, an architecture review before your product takes more load than it was designed for, or a delivery plan you can hand to whoever ends up doing the work. The output is a written document you own — including when it recommends someone other than us.
Who this is for
- A non-technical founder about to sign an agency contract, who wants it read by an engineer first.
- A business that has been quoted wildly different prices for the same brief and cannot tell which one is wrong.
- A product about to take more users, more data or more load than it was built for.
- A company deciding between building in-house, hiring, or commissioning the work outside.
What you get
A quote read line by line
If you have a proposal in hand, you get it read properly: what is missing, what is padded, what is priced as an extra that should not be, and which questions to put back to them.
An architecture someone can build from
The system described clearly enough that a competent team — any competent team — could pick it up and start.
A straight answer on build-or-buy
Sometimes the right answer is an existing product and a week of configuration, and custom software would be a waste of your money. You will be told that.
The conflict, named
We also quote for builds. That is a conflict of interest and it is worth saying out loud rather than hoping you do not notice.
The way it is handled is that the document has to stand on its own. It names the options that do not involve us, it explains the reasoning rather than asserting a conclusion, and it is written so you can hand it to another team and have it still be useful. If a recommendation only makes sense when we are the ones building, it is not advice.
There is no obligation to build with us afterwards, and no discount for doing so.
How it runs
- A free scope call first, to agree what question you actually want answered.
- A fixed price in USD for the consulting work itself, in writing, before it starts.
- Two to five days, depending on how much there is to read.
- A written document at the end, and a call to walk through it if you want one.
Related work
Common questions
Is the consulting free?
The scope call is free — that is where we work out what you need. The consulting work itself is a paid, fixed piece of work, priced in writing before it starts. You are buying an engineer's time to read, think and write something down.
Do we have to build with you afterwards?
No, and the document is written on the assumption that you might not. You own it and you can take it anywhere. If the honest recommendation is a team other than us, that is what it will say.
What do you need from us to start?
Whatever exists. A proposal you have been sent, access to a repository, a login to the current system, or nothing but a description of the problem. We will tell you on the free call which of those is actually needed.
Can you review a quote from another company?
Yes, and it is one of the most common reasons people get in touch. You get a plain-language reading of what has been proposed, what is missing from it, and what the numbers suggest about how the work is planned.
Will you sign an NDA?
Yes, before the scope call if you would prefer. We do not need your data or your accounts to advise you — a description of the problem is usually enough to start.
Get a second opinion in writing
Tell us the decision you are facing. You get a written recommendation you own — and an honest answer even when it is not the one that pays us.