How we work
Four stages.
You’ll know what’s happening at every point, and what it costs before anything gets built. Nothing starts with an invoice.
Understand
We talk about how your business actually runs. Who does what, where things get stuck, what breaks when someone’s away, what you’ve already tried.
Most of this conversation isn’t technical. I’m looking for where time and money leak, and those are rarely where people expect.
Design
You get a document: what should be built, in what order, what each part costs, and what changes when it exists.
Written in plain language, not a technical specification. If you decide not to go ahead, the plan is yours — you can take it to someone else.
Build
Software gets built in stages, and you see each stage. Not a status update — the actual thing, running, that you can click.
This is deliberate. The gap between what someone describes and what they meant only shows up when they see it working.
Run
Systems need changing. Your business shifts, a supplier changes format, you want something added. I’m still here.
This is the stage most people skip, and it’s the reason a lot of custom software gets abandoned within a year.
The questions people actually ask
How long does it take?
A single automation is usually days. A focused web application is a few weeks. A full internal system covering several parts of a business runs into months — but you see working pieces along the way, not one delivery at the end. You’ll get a real timeline in the written plan at stage two, before you commit to anything.
What does it cost?
It depends on what gets built, which is why there’s no price list here — a published number would be wrong for almost everyone. What I can promise is that you get a costed plan before any work starts, broken into parts, so you can start with one piece rather than committing to everything at once.
Is my business too small for this?
Probably not. The useful test isn’t headcount — it’s whether something repetitive is eating real hours every week, or whether information keeps getting lost between people. If neither is true, you likely don’t need me yet, and I’ll say so.
You’re one person. What happens if you’re unavailable?
A fair question, and the honest answer matters more than a reassuring one. Everything I build is documented and handed over: you own the code, the accounts and the data, and nothing runs on infrastructure only I can reach. If I’m ever not around, another developer can pick it up — and you aren’t locked into a platform you can’t leave.
Do I need technical staff to use it?
No. If your team needs training to do their existing job, the system was designed badly. What I do need is one person on your side who knows how the work really happens and has time to answer questions during the build.
What if I already have software that half works?
That’s common, and replacing it isn’t always the answer. Often the fix is connecting what you have so it stops needing a person in the middle. If your existing tools are worth keeping, I’ll tell you that instead of selling you a rebuild.
Stage one costs nothing.
Tell me how your business runs. I’ll tell you what’s worth fixing first.
No cost, no pitch · I reply personally, within 24 hours