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Engagement models

How the work is scoped, contracted and billed

Four ways to work with us. The right one depends on how settled your requirements are and whether you have a team of your own. Each model below says what it is good for and where it is the wrong choice — picking the wrong one is the most expensive decision on this page.

01

Fixed-scope project

A defined build, a fixed price, a clear finish line.

Best for

A first version, a rebuild or a well-understood system where you need the number before you commit.

How it runs

We run a technical discovery first and write the scope down: features, integrations, assumptions and what is explicitly out. The price and the timeline come from that document, not from a guess on a call. Delivery then runs in two-week sprints with a working increment at the end of each one, so you are testing the thing rather than reading a status report about it.

How it is billed

A fixed price agreed after discovery, invoiced against milestones. Changes to the scope are quoted separately and approved by you before any work starts on them.

What is included

  • Written technical scope and architecture
  • Fixed price and delivery schedule
  • Two-week sprints with a demo at the end of each
  • QA, deployment and handover documentation
  • A post-launch warranty window for defects

Where this is the wrong choice: Fixed scope means the scope is fixed. If the requirements are still moving, a dedicated team is the cheaper answer — change requests against a fixed contract cost more than they should.

02

Dedicated team

An engineering team on your product, month to month.

Best for

Ongoing product work where the roadmap is real but the details a quarter out are not, and you want the same people to stay with it.

How it runs

You get a named team — engineers, QA and a lead — working only on your product, in your tools and your ceremonies if you have them. Priorities are yours to set each sprint. We keep the same people on it, because the value of this model is entirely in the context they build up.

How it is billed

A monthly fee per person, with a minimum initial term and an agreed notice period. Scale the team up or down between terms as the roadmap changes.

What is included

  • A named, consistent team
  • Sprint planning, demo and retrospective
  • Your backlog, your priorities
  • Direct access to the engineers, not through an account manager
  • Documentation kept current as part of the work

Where this is the wrong choice: This model needs someone on your side who can make product decisions. Without that, a dedicated team spends its capacity waiting on answers.

03

Staff augmentation

Specific skills into your existing team.

Best for

You have a team and a process that work, and a gap — a mobile engineer, a cloud specialist, a QA lead — that hiring will not fill fast enough.

How it runs

Our engineers join your standups, your board and your code review. They work to your standards and your definition of done. We are not running the project; you are. Where we differ from a body shop is that we will tell you when we think the approach is wrong, and we expect to leave the codebase better documented than we found it.

How it is billed

A monthly rate per engineer, full-time or part-time, with an agreed notice period.

What is included

  • Engineers vetted for the specific stack
  • Your process, tooling and code standards
  • Direct communication with your leads
  • A structured handover whenever the engagement ends

Where this is the wrong choice: Onboarding is not instant. Budget a couple of weeks before a new engineer is at full output on an unfamiliar codebase — anyone who promises otherwise is selling.

04

Support & maintenance

Keeping a live system healthy after launch.

Best for

A system in production — whether we built it or not — that needs monitoring, patching and a steady trickle of improvements.

How it runs

Monitoring and alerting on the things that matter, security and dependency patching on a schedule, backups tested rather than assumed, and a monthly allocation of engineering hours for fixes and small features. Where we did not build the system, we start with an audit so nobody is guessing at what is in there.

How it is billed

A monthly retainer covering monitoring and patching, plus an agreed block of engineering hours. Unused hours and the escalation route are set out in the agreement.

What is included

  • Uptime and error monitoring
  • Security patching and dependency updates
  • Tested backups and a restore plan
  • A monthly hours allocation for fixes and improvements
  • A written escalation path for incidents

Where this is the wrong choice: We agree response windows in the contract rather than publishing a number here. A support promise on a marketing page that nobody has signed is worth exactly nothing.

Which model fits

Model Pick it when Who leads the work Commitment Billing
Fixed-scope project The requirements are settled and you need the number up front Us Until the scope is delivered Fixed price, invoiced on milestones
Dedicated team The roadmap is real but the details a quarter out are not Us, to your priorities Monthly, with a minimum term Monthly, per person
Staff augmentation Your team and process work; a specific skill is missing You Monthly, with notice Monthly, per engineer
Support & maintenance The system is live and has to stay healthy Us, on an agreed backlog Rolling, with notice Monthly retainer plus an hours allocation

What happens before you commit to any of them

  • 01

    A call with an engineer

    Thirty minutes, free, no obligation. Someone who will be on the build, not a salesperson. We go through what you are trying to do and what already exists.

  • 02

    Technical discovery

    We dig into the requirements, the integrations and the constraints. For anything sizeable this is a proper piece of work, and we tell you up front whether it is chargeable.

  • 03

    A written scope

    Architecture, features, assumptions, what is explicitly out of scope, a schedule and a price. It is your document either way — useful even if you take it elsewhere.

  • 04

    You choose the model

    With the scope in front of you, the right engagement model is usually obvious. If it is not, we will tell you which one we think fits and why.

Not sure which one you need?

Most people are not, and it is not a decision you should have to make before talking to anyone. Describe the situation on a call and we will recommend a model — including "none of these yet" if the thing you need first is a scope rather than a team.

FAQs

Frequently asked questions

The questions that come up in almost every first call — scope, cost, timelines, who owns the code. If yours is not here, ask it directly.

We offer a comprehensive range of software development services, including custom web and mobile app development, ERP and CRM systems, e-commerce solutions, cloud-based applications, and enterprise software development.
Yes. Launch day is the beginning rather than the end. Our post-launch packages cover active monitoring, security patching, feature work and infrastructure scaling, so the product stays reliable as your user base grows.
We specialize in a wide range of technologies, including PHP, Laravel, Node.js, React, React Native, Flutter, Python, MySQL, PostgreSQL, and cloud platforms like AWS and Azure.
Yes, we work with businesses of all sizes, from startups to large enterprises. Whether you need a simple web application or a complex enterprise-level system, our team has the expertise to deliver high-quality solutions tailored to your specific needs.
We work to an agile process built around transparency. It opens with a technical discovery phase that settles the scope and a fixed cost, then runs in two-week sprints, each ending in a tested increment you can actually use, through to launch and handover.
Security is part of the architecture from day one, not an audit bolted on at the end. We use secure coding standards, automated dependency and vulnerability scanning, role-based access controls, and encryption in transit and at rest. Any compliance requirements specific to your sector are agreed during scoping.
We handle project timelines and deliverables through careful planning, regular communication, and milestone-based delivery. Our project managers work closely with clients to establish realistic timelines and ensure that deliverables are met on schedule.
You do. On final payment, 100% of the source code, repositories, infrastructure access and intellectual property rights transfer to you. We do not lock clients into proprietary ecosystems or licences you cannot leave.

Still have a question? Read the full Help Center — pricing, timelines, process, security and code ownership.