Listen
We start with a conversation under NDA. Operational reality, constraints, sensitivities, what is non-negotiable, what would constitute a failure. No demos, no slide decks. We listen.
Discovery, Weeks 1-2 The Method Four phases.
Four phases.
Each signed off in writing.
The cadence is deliberate. Discovery is paid. Architecture is paid. Build follows architecture, never precedes it. Stewardship is optional but recommended.
Model
We translate your operating environment into a reference architecture. Diagrams, data flow, decision points, audit boundaries. This is the document the rest of the engagement defends.
Architecture, Weeks 3-5Build
Implementation in your environment, under your access controls. Iterative, with checkpoints at each phase. You watch every component come together and you keep every artifact at the end.
Implementation, Months 2-4Steward
Once the system is live, we steward it. Tuning, posture adjustment, advisory on integrations, and on-call counsel for the leadership that owns it. Ongoing engagement, optional retainer.
Stewardship, OngoingPhase 01
Listen,
under NDA from the first call.
The first phase is conversation. We sign mutual NDA before any substantive material is exchanged. Then we listen. Operating environment, decision points, constraints that cannot move, sensitivities that cannot leak. No demo, no slide deck, no proposal until we understand the operation we are being asked to serve.
Most discovery work happens across two to four conversations over a week or two. We document, we ask clarifying questions, we propose nothing yet.
Phase 02
Model,
on paper before code.
The architecture document is the artifact that defends the engagement. Diagrams of data flow, decision points, audit boundaries, integration surfaces, and failure modes. We propose specific components, named vendors where applicable, and we explain every choice.
You read it. You push back. We revise. When you sign the architecture document, it becomes the contract for everything downstream.
Phase 03
Build,
in your environment, under your access.
Implementation runs inside your infrastructure, using credentials and access controls you grant and you can revoke. Iterative checkpoints at each major component. Logs, retrieval indices, model weights, and runbooks all belong to you from the moment they are produced.
Most builds take eight to sixteen weeks depending on architectural complexity and the number of integration surfaces. We do not parallelize across multiple junior engineers; the same principal who signed the architecture document directs the implementation.
Phase 04
Steward,
if the client wants stewardship.
After delivery, you can operate the system independently. Most clients elect continued stewardship under a quarterly retainer: capability reviews, posture adjustments, integration advisory, and on-call counsel for leadership decisions.
Stewardship is structured to dissolve cleanly. Clients can terminate the relationship at the end of any quarter and retain every artifact, every model, and every runbook produced during the engagement.