Services / Design · CAP.005
Know what to build before you pay to build it.
A short, fixed-price engagement that turns 'we need software' into a scoped, costed, sequenced plan, one you can execute with us or take anywhere else.
01 · When you need this
If any of these sound familiar, you’re in the right place.
- You know something's broken but can't articulate exactly what to build.
- Two vendors quoted you numbers 4× apart and you can't tell why.
- The board wants a plan and a budget, not enthusiasm.
- You inherited a system and nobody can tell you what it would cost to replace.
- You want a second opinion on a plan you already have.
02 · What we deliver
Exactly what you walk away with.
No vague 'solutions'. These are the concrete deliverables: each one is a line in the proposal and a checkbox at handover.
DEL.01
Process map
How work actually flows through your business today, including the workarounds nobody wrote down.
DEL.02
Scoped solution
What to build, what to buy, what to leave alone, with reasons.
DEL.03
Cost & timeline bands
Real numbers with stated assumptions, not a teaser rate.
DEL.04
Sequenced roadmap
What to do first and why, sized so each step pays for the next.
DEL.05
Risk register
What could go wrong, how likely, what we'd do about it.
DEL.06
A document you own
Take it to any builder, including not us. It's written to survive that.
03 · How it runs
Phase by phase, with nothing hidden.
Every phase states what happens and what you see in your project portal while it does.
Immersion
2-4 days
We watch the real work happen and interview the people who do it.
In your portal: Interview notes and early observations.
Analysis & options
3-5 days
Two or three genuinely different approaches, costed, with our recommendation and its reasoning.
In your portal: The options document, shared for reaction before it's final.
The plan
2-4 days
The chosen direction turned into scope, sequence, budget, and risks.
In your portal: Final report and a walkthrough call.
04 · Standards
Non-negotiables, in writing.
Vendor-neutral by contract
The report is written to be executable by anyone. Recommending us is not its job.
We'll say 'don't build'
Some problems are process problems, or a €50/month tool. Hearing that costs you a discovery fee, not a build budget.
Assumptions in writing
Every number carries its assumptions, so you can check our work.
Credited if you build with us
The discovery fee comes off the build price. No double-charging for the thinking.
05 · Stack
Tools chosen for your handover, not our comfort.
Discovery is deliberately technology-agnostic: the recommendation includes a stack only when the choice genuinely matters to cost or hiring, and then with reasons.
06 · Questions
Asked often, answered straight.
Other agencies scope for free. Why is this paid?
What if we disagree with the recommendation?
We're pre-idea. Is this too early?
07 · Related
Often paired with this work.
Ready to talk about strategy & discovery?
Describe where you are. We’ll respond within one business day with honest next steps, even if the honest next step isn’t us.
Start the conversation