Technical consulting and advisory
A straight answer, before the budget is committed.
Architecture reviews, vendor assessments, and second opinions from people who are not trying to sell you the next stage of work.
We reply within one business day.
In this service
Most businesses do not have a technology problem. They have a decision problem.
A vendor is proposing a rebuild. An internal team wants to switch platforms. A board member has read that the company should be “on the cloud” without anyone agreeing what that means. Someone has to make the call, and the people making it are not always the people who understand the trade-offs.
We are not selling the next stage of the work we review, which is unusual in this business and is exactly the point. A recommendation to do nothing, or to hire someone else, is a legitimate outcome of an engagement with us.
How we help
Four things change once we take this on. None of them are exotic; all of them are the difference between a system that runs and one that is merely up.
An outside, technical read
A second opinion from people who understand the engineering, not just the sales pitch behind it.
Independent of the vendor being reviewed
We are not paid by, or affiliated with, the platforms and contractors we assess.
Written, not just spoken
A findings document you can circulate to a board or a budget-holder, not a verbal impression.
Willing to say stop
If the honest answer is not to proceed, or to proceed differently, that is the answer we give.
Capabilities
For the technical reader comparing coverage. We would rather list this plainly than claim everything.
Architecture
Vendor and procurement
Planning
Security and operations
Where a requirement sits outside this list, we will say so and help you find someone who does it properly rather than learning on your system.
Two ways to engage
Most organisations start with the first and move to the second once the setup is stable.
Project
A single defined review (an architecture assessment, a vendor proposal, a go/no-go decision) delivered as a written report.
Monthly retainer
Ongoing access to a technical advisor for a board, founder, or operations lead who needs one on call.
Figures depend on the size and shape of the estate. We quote after the first conversation, in writing, before any commitment.
How delivery runs
The question this answers: what happens between the enquiry and the point where this is off my desk?
Frame the question
We agree in writing exactly what decision this review needs to inform, so the output is useful rather than general.
Review
Documents, systems, and conversations with the relevant people, done independently of the parties being assessed.
Write the findings
A plain-language report with a clear recommendation, not a hedge designed to avoid a position.
Walk it through
A session to present the findings and answer questions, including from a non-technical audience.
Who this usually suits
A good fit
A board or leadership team facing a major technology decision
A company evaluating a rebuild, replatform, or vendor proposal
An organisation that has had an incident and needs an independent post-mortem
A founder without a technical co-founder who needs a trusted second opinion
Probably not us
A team that wants us to design and build what we review: we keep advisory and delivery work separate to stay independent
A rubber-stamp review intended to justify a decision already made
A need better served by a specialist auditor for formal certification
Questions we are asked
Will you just recommend hiring Edgecloud for the build?
Not as a rule. Advisory engagements are scoped and billed separately from delivery work precisely so the recommendation is not shaped by an incentive to sell the next stage.
Can you review a vendor proposal before we sign it?
Yes, and it is one of the more common reasons people come to us. We can usually turn around a written assessment within a few business days.
Do you sign NDAs?
Yes, as standard practice for advisory work involving vendor proposals, financials, or unreleased systems.
What does the final deliverable look like?
A written report in plain language, with a clear recommendation, suitable for circulating to a board or budget-holder who was not in the room.
Can this lead to an ongoing arrangement?
Some clients move to a monthly retainer once the immediate decision is resolved. There is no obligation to do so.
Related services
Cloud and managed technology
We host, monitor, patch, and maintain the systems your business depends on, as a one-off migration, or as an ongoing arrangement where the running of it is our responsibility rather than yours.
Learn moreCustom software development
We design and build the applications, portals, and internal tools that off-the-shelf software cannot fit, scoped against a real process, delivered in stages you can see.
Learn moreDescribe the decision. We will tell you what an independent review would look like.
A first conversation costs nothing and does not commit you to anything. If you do not need us, we will say so.
Replies within one business day, Monday to Friday, 08:00–18:00 EAT.