How a project runs
Four steps, in this order, every time. The names come from the drafting table because that is how we think about software: measure the site, draw the plan, build to the drawing, hand over the keys.
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Measure
A conversation about the job, the people doing it, and what a good outcome looks like. We ask to see the real thing: the spreadsheet with the fragile formulas, the form that gets retyped, the report that takes a day. We ask what happens when it goes wrong today.
You receive
- A written summary of what we heard, in your words not ours
- The questions we still have, so nothing is assumed
- A first opinion on whether this is a build, a purchase, or a wait
Usually one or two conversations. No charge for the first.
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Draw
A plan you can read without a technical background: what the tool will do, what it deliberately will not do, how long it takes, and what it costs. If there are choices to make, we lay them out with the trade-offs and recommend one. Nothing is built until you have signed.
You receive
- A quote with line items and estimated hours for each
- A scope you can hold us to, including what is out of scope
- Payment terms and a validity date, in writing
Usually a few days after the measure step.
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Build
Working software early and often, so you react to the real thing instead of a picture of it. We put a running copy somewhere you can open it, and we send a short plain-language note each week: what changed, what is next, and anything we need from you. If we learn something that changes the plan, you hear it the same day.
You receive
- A link to the current build, updated as work lands
- A weekly note you can forward to your manager as is
- A separate quote for any scope change, before it is built
Usually days for a small tool, weeks for an application.
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Hand over
Deployment into your own accounts, under your own name. Documentation written for the next person, not for us. The source code, the test files, and a recorded walkthrough. We stay reachable afterward on an hourly basis, but you never need us to keep the lights on.
You receive
- The live tool in your hosting account, with your domain if you have one
- Source code in a repository you own
- A user guide, an operator guide, and a walkthrough
- Test files and expected outputs for independent verification
Usually the final week of the build.
Measure twice, ship once.
What we ask of you
Good software needs a few things from the client side. None of them take long, and all of them make the result better.
One person who can decide
Someone who can answer a question in a day and say yes or no to a change. A committee can advise, but one person signs.
Access to the people who do the work
An hour with the analyst, the clerk, or the technician who will use the tool is worth more than any specification document.
Real sample data
Anonymized if it must be, but real in shape. The odd cases in a real file are where the interesting requirements hide.
Accounts in your name
Hosting, domain, and code repositories are created under your organization from the start. We are added as a collaborator and removed when you like.
Ready for the measure step?
The first conversation is free and carries no obligation. Tell us what the job is.