Find out first.
Then spend the money.
Most money lost on technology is lost before anything gets built — on software nobody uses, a licence renewed by accident, two systems that were never going to talk to each other, or data moved with no way to undo it. This team exists to stop that. We look at what you use today, tell you plainly what to do, and then do it if you want us to.
Six things people ask this team for
You can ask for just one. Most jobs are two or three together — usually a check-up, then choosing the software, then setting it up.
Check what you have
A full list of every system, licence and subscription you pay for: who uses it, what it costs, when it renews, and whether anybody still supports it. For most businesses, this is the first time all of it exists on one page.
Buy or build?
Whether you should buy ready-made software or get something built, which one, and where it should be hosted. We also write down the options we rejected and why, so you can argue with us.
Choose between vendors
We write down what you actually need, make every vendor answer the same questions, and compare their prices side by side. No more choosing based on who gave the nicest demo.
Set up your server and cloud
Accounts opened in your name, backups running and tested, clear rules on who can log in to what, and alerts if something breaks. Plus a written guide so the next person can run it without calling us.
Move your data safely
We test the move on a copy first, show you the counts so you can confirm nothing is missing, then do the real move — with a written way to go back if it goes wrong. Nothing moves without an undo.
Connect it and train your staff
Systems talking to each other, and your team trained on how the work now flows — not just which buttons to press. You get the logins, the diagrams, and a list of anything we deliberately left for later.
Two stages, priced separately
Kept separate on purpose. You are never forced to give us the work in order to get the advice.
Stage A — the check-up
- We get access. View-only logins to the systems in question, and a chat with the people who use them daily.
- We list everything. Every system, licence, subscription and place your data sits, with cost, owner and renewal date.
- We tell you what we found. What works, what is risky, what you are paying for twice, and what will stop working soon.
- We give you options. Two or three ways forward, each with cost, time, risk, and what it stops you doing later.
- We recommend one. Written in enough detail that we, your own team, or any other company could price it.
The full list, the findings, the options and the recommendation — in a file you can edit. Take it to three other companies for quotes if you like. There is no clause forcing you to use us for the work.
Stage B — doing the work
- Fixed price. The Stage A document becomes part of the agreement, and the price is fixed against it.
- Named people. One person answerable on our side, one who decides on yours. Both names in the agreement.
- Paid in parts. You pay as each part is finished and approved — not simply because a month has passed.
- Extra work. Anything not in the document is quoted and approved by you before we touch it.
- Approval. We agree how we will test it before building. If you do not reply within the agreed review days, we treat it as approved, so a job does not sit half-finished forever.
- Handover. Logins, diagrams, a written how-to-run guide, and training — all in your name.
If you go ahead with Stage B with us inside the time stated in the proposal, the Stage A fee is deducted from the project price. You do not pay twice for the thinking.
The documents you keep
Advice is only worth paying for if it leaves something behind. These are the actual files, not a pretty slide.
| Document | What is in it | Stage |
|---|---|---|
| System list | Every system, licence and subscription with cost, owner, renewal date, and whether it is still supported. | A |
| Problem list | Risks, things you pay for twice, and anything that will hurt the business if it fails — with how serious each one is. | A |
| Options | Two or three ways forward, priced and compared, including what each one stops you doing later. | A |
| Requirement document | What the software or system must do, written so any decent company could quote against it. | A |
| Work plan | The order of work, what depends on what, when you go live, and how to go back if the switch fails. | B |
| Test list | The checks that decide whether a stage is finished — agreed before the work, not argued after it. | B |
| Handover file | Logins, diagrams, how-to-run guide, the decisions we took and why, training notes, and what is still pending. | B |
When this team helps — and when it will say no
Better to know on the first callCall us when
- You are about to sign for software and want somebody to check it first.
- Your systems grew year by year and nobody knows the full picture any more.
- You have postponed moving your data twice because it feels risky.
- Two vendors are telling you opposite things and you want a neutral opinion.
- You want a proper requirement document so you can get real quotes.
We will say no when
- You already know the answer you want and just need us to write it down.
- We would be checking work we quietly hope to win ourselves, without telling you.
- We cannot get even view-only access to the systems being checked.
- The job needs a licence or certificate that we do not hold.
- What you really want is our signature on somebody else's business case.
Before you ask for a check-up
Straight answers to what clients ask on the first call.
How much does the check-up cost?
Are you honest if you also want the work?
Do you take commission from software companies?
How long does it take?
Can you work with my existing IT person or vendor?
Tell us your problem.
We will tell you which team can fix it.
Write a few lines: what your business does, what is not working, and by when you need it sorted. One person from our side will reply, tell you honestly if we are the right people for it, and send you a price in writing before any work starts.
Four promises we make
on every job.
The same four apply to all five services. They are why our quotations are longer than most — and why our bills have no surprises in them.
We write it down first
No job starts from a phone call. Before we begin you get it on paper: what we will do, what we will not do, who is responsible, and by when.
The price does not move
That written list fixes the price. Want something extra later? We tell you the cost first and start only after you say yes. No charges appearing on the bill by themselves.
Everything is in your name
Your code, your website, your Google and Facebook accounts, your files, your data. If you ever stop working with us, we hand it all over. Nothing is locked to us.
No magic promises
We promise the work, the dates and the quality. We will never promise you a number-one Google rank or a sales figure. Anybody who promises that is guessing with your money.