How engagements work

What happens after you get in touch.Down the rabbit hole. One clear step at a time.

A plain walk through a typical engagement, from the first conversation to handover. No jargon, no obligation, and no surprises about how the work runs or what it costs.

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The engagement, step by step

Five stages, only as many as the work needs.

Most engagements move through these stages in order. Simpler work skips the ones it does not need, and nothing is added just to look thorough.

First conversation

A direct talk about what you actually need

It starts with a call or an email exchange, not a sales script. The goal is to understand what you are trying to achieve, what is uncertain, and whether senior engineering help is the right fit. If it is not, you will be told.

The outcome or decision the work needs to support.
What is already known and what is still genuinely uncertain.
Rough shape, timing, and budget so you can decide whether to continue.

When uncertainty is high

A short discovery or proof before anyone commits

Where the answer is genuinely unclear, the work starts small. A short, paid discovery or proof of concept tests the riskiest assumptions first, so a larger build is a decision made on evidence rather than hope. When the scope is already clear, this step is skipped.

The riskiest questions identified and tackled first.
A working proof, spike, or written findings rather than a slide deck.
A plain recommendation to continue, adjust, or stop.

Delivery rhythm

Remote-first work in short, inspectable steps

Delivery is remote-first by default and organised around visible progress rather than hours logged or status theatre. Work lands in small pieces you can review as they arrive, and trade-offs are surfaced while they are still cheap to change.

Small increments you can see and check as they land.
Trade-offs raised early, not buried until the end.
Direct access to the person doing the thinking and the building.

Written updates and decision capture

Progress you can read, decisions you can check

You get regular written updates and a clear record of the decisions behind the work. Focused calls happen when talking is faster than writing, but anything that matters is written down where it can be reviewed later, by technical and non-technical people alike.

Plain-English progress updates on a predictable cadence.
Decisions and their reasoning captured, not left in someone's head.
Stakeholders kept aligned without needing to decode jargon.

Review, handover, and next steps

The work left in a state you can actually use

Each engagement ends with the work handed over properly. Code, documentation, and evidence go to you, and we agree an honest view of what — if anything — is worth doing next. There is no pressure to keep the engagement running for its own sake.

Working software, tests, and documentation where they matter.
A plain summary of what was done and why.
An honest view of sensible next steps, with no obligation to continue.

How this stays honest

Proportionate by design.

The process is a default, not a script to be followed for its own sake. It bends to the size and risk of the work.

Not every engagement uses every stage.

A clear, well-scoped build may skip discovery entirely. A review may never reach a delivery rhythm. The process flexes to the work in front of it.

Process serves the work, not the other way round.

There is enough structure to reduce risk and keep everyone aligned, and no ceremony added simply to look busy or bill hours.

You are dealing with one senior engineer.

No account managers, no handoffs to a junior team. The person you speak to is the person doing the thinking and the building.

Commercial model

Clear terms, agreed up front.

The commercial side is kept as plain as the work itself, so there is nothing to decode when it comes to how an engagement is priced and structured.

Pricing

Scope and pricing agreed before work starts.

Engagement basis

Outside IR35 engagements available.

Fixed scope

Fixed-scope estimates where the brief is clear enough to price with confidence.

High uncertainty

A short discovery or proof phase where the risky questions need answering first.

Ready when you are

Tell PickTech what you are trying to achieve.

Bring the goal, whatever is uncertain, and where you need senior engineering judgement. The first conversation costs nothing and commits you to nothing.