How we scope, price and run engagements
Most consultancies keep this behind a sales process. We would rather you knew before the first call whether the way we work suits you.
The shape
Three engagement types, and what each one is for
There is no fourth. If a request does not fit one of these, we will tell you which one it is closest to and what we would change to make it fit.
- Assessment. Fixed scope, fixed fee, two to four weeks. Produces a findings document and a costed roadmap. You keep both regardless of what happens next.
- Project. Defined outcome, defined date. Priced on scope once an assessment or an equivalent brief exists. Documentation and handover are line items, not goodwill.
- Managed. Named engineers, agreed response times, monthly reporting, quarterly review. Priced per month with a defined scope of estate.
Pricing
What actually moves the number
We will give you a fee before you give us a budget. These are the variables behind it, so you can see where a quote comes from and argue with it.
How much discovery is real
An estate that is documented prices differently from one where the first three weeks are archaeology. If you do not know which you are, the assessment is the cheap way to find out.
How many parties must agree
One decision-maker and one system is a different engagement from four business units, a regulator and an incumbent vendor. This is usually the largest driver and the least discussed.
Your control environment
Change windows, access approval times, and whether we can reach a test environment without a fortnight's notice. Not a criticism — just an input we would rather price honestly than discover.
Data condition
Whether entities can be joined deterministically, and whether history exists at the resolution the use case needs. See our writing on why pilots stall.
Who operates it after
Building something your team will run is different work from building something we will run. Both are fine. They are not the same price and should not be quoted as though they were.
How firm the outcome is
Fixed-price requires a fixed scope. Where the scope is genuinely unknown, we would rather sell a fixed-price assessment first than pretend an unknown is a known.
Commitments
What we will do, in writing
You keep everything
Code, configuration, prompts, pipelines, infrastructure definitions and documentation are yours from day one. We build nothing that depends on us remaining engaged.
Handover is a deliverable
Runbooks, architecture decision records and a working session with the team who will own it. Contracted, dated, and signed off like any other item.
No vendor commissions
We hold no reseller agreements and take no referral fees. When we recommend a platform, the recommendation is the entire product you are buying.
We report failures
If a proof-of-value does not clear the criteria we agreed before starting, the report says so. We will not quietly rescope to manufacture a success.
Next step
Ask us for a number.
Describe the situation and we will tell you what it would take, or that we are not the right firm for it.