Lighthouse
Choose the right system
Pick the right system first time, with someone on your side who is not selling anything.
Choosing a new CRM, booking, stock, finance or job management system is one of the most expensive decisions a small business makes, and every supplier demo looks perfect. Lighthouse steers you past the rocks: working out what you really need, putting suppliers through a fair comparison, and helping you negotiate the contract before you sign.
Is this you?
- Businesses outgrowing spreadsheets or an old system
- Anyone replacing a system that is not working
- Owners who have had three demos and are more confused than before
- Businesses wanting to bring several tools into one
What happens, and when
Week 1, needs
Workshops with the people who will use it: what it must do, what would be nice, and what cannot change.
Week 2, shortlist
Research the market and shortlist three to five suppliers that fit your size, sector and budget.
Week 3, compare
Scripted demos where suppliers show your real processes, not their sales deck, plus calls with their existing customers and scoring against your needs.
Week 4, decide and negotiate
A clear recommendation with the full cost over three years, then help negotiating price, terms and the implementation plan.
What you keep at the end
- A requirements document you own, and can reuse
- A scored comparison of the shortlisted suppliers
- The total cost of each option over three years, including the costs suppliers do not mention up front
- A recommendation, and the reasons for it
- Contract and price negotiation support
- An outline implementation plan, ready to hand to a Slipway if you want help getting it in
Independent, always
I take no commission, referral fee or reseller margin from any supplier. The only person paying for the advice is you.
Price
£4,000
plus VAT and expenses
Ten days of work over four weeks, invoiced half at the start and half on the recommendation.
Limits and flexibility
Covers one system, up to five suppliers shortlisted and three demos. More complex choices, such as several systems at once, are quoted after the scoping call. Extra days are £400 each, agreed in advance.
Fixed price, without locking either of us in
A free scoping call first
Every package starts with a free 30-minute call. If the work is bigger than the package, you will hear that before you buy. If it is smaller, I will quote less.
A midpoint check
Halfway through, we review progress together. If more time is needed, extra weeks are £2,000, or £400 a day for a few days, agreed there and then. No surprises in the final week.
Your part
I will need people, access and information within two working days of asking. Delays on your side extend the time at the day rate.
Tailored when it needs to be
Any package can be adjusted to fit, and a part-time tech lead arrangement can carry the work on afterwards.
Not quite the right fit?
Shipshape
The tech MOT
A full check of your systems, security, spend and suppliers, ending in a costed 12-month plan.
£2,000Slipway
Kickstart a project, programme or launch
Full-time leadership to get an important project, programme or product launch off the slipway and delivering.
From £4,000Refloat
Rescue a stuck project
Two weeks full time to find out why a project has stalled, agree a reset and get it moving again.
£4,000