Process
How a project works, from first message to handover
Every step, timeline, payment and promise in writing - so you can get approval internally without a sales call..
- process
- proposal
- nda
- payment
- scope
- 1
Send a short brief
5 minutes · You
Goal, Excel version, data sources, deadline and a rough budget band - on WhatsApp, email or the contact form. No file needed yet.
- 2
Mutual NDA (if you want one)
Same day · Both
I send a short mutual NDA, or sign yours. Only then do you share the workbook.
- 3
Quote or Scoping Sprint
1-2 working days · Me
Simple jobs get a written quote within one working day. For bigger or unclear jobs, the paid Scoping Sprint ($99 / ₹4,999) delivers a diagnosis, proposal and Definition of Done; the fee is credited to the build.
- 4
Approve the proposal
Your pace · You
Scope, fixed price, timeline and Definition of Done in one document you can forward for sign-off. Approval by email or WhatsApp is enough. First payment: 50% to start.
- 5
Working draft
Within 5 working days · Me
You see a working version on your own data early. If there is no draft within five working days, the first payment is refunded.
- 6
Review rounds
Days, not weeks · Both
Quick fix 1, Standard 2, Complex 3 rounds. Each round is one consolidated list of feedback. Anything missing the Definition of Done is fixed free.
- 7
Handover and final payment
Final week · Both
Recorded walkthrough, written notes and the full workbook once the balance is paid. You own everything outright.
- 8
Warranty, then optional Care Plan
30 days + · Me
30 days of free fixes against the Definition of Done. After that, the optional Care Plan ($99/month) covers up to 3 small changes a month; cancel any time. If you introduce another business afterwards, you get 10% of its build fee.
Step 1
What to put in your brief
- What the workbook should do, and who reads it (e.g. CFO pack every Monday)
- Excel version (365, 2021, 2019, Mac) and where it lives (desktop, OneDrive, SharePoint)
- Data sources: which systems or files, how many, how often they change
- Deadline, and whether it is fixed (board meeting, audit, month-end)
- Budget band: Quick, Standard or Complex (see pricing) - a range is fine
- Whether you need an NDA before sharing the file
Step 4
What every proposal contains
- Scope: exactly what will be built, and what will not
- Definition of Done: the checklist that decides when it is finished
- Fixed price in your currency, and the payment schedule
- Timeline with the working-draft date and review rounds
- Handover: walkthrough, notes, warranty and ownership
- Change rule: anything outside scope is quoted before it is done
Straight answers
Price, budget and changes
- Can you lower the price?
- The price follows the scope, so the way to a lower price is a smaller first phase. I will suggest one that still solves the main problem, and quote the rest separately.
- Our budget is fixed. Can you work to it?
- Yes - tell me the number up front. I will tell you honestly what fits inside it, or that it does not fit.
- We need it faster.
- If the calendar allows, a fixed deadline is written into the proposal. If it does not, I will say so before you pay anything.
- Can we pay by the hour instead?
- No. Fixed prices keep the risk of overruns with me, not you.
- We want to add something mid-build.
- You get a short written quote for the change. Nothing extra is built or billed until you approve it.
- How do we pay?
- Bank transfer (international wire outside India) or UPI. 50% to start, 50% on handover. Invoices in your currency (for example from $75, from £60, from ₹6K).
Full prices are on the pricing page, and a worked example of the Sprint documents is on the sample Sprint page; the binding version of these rules is in the terms.
Ready? Send the five-line brief - no file needed yet.
Calls scheduled in your timezone (UK, EU, US, UAE, APAC) · How a project works