Licence costs that grow with headcount
Every new hire adds a line to several invoices. Per-seat pricing means the bill keeps rising as the team grows, whether or not the software does any more for you.
Custom software & ERP development for small business. Yours to own.
We build the business systems off-the-shelf software can't: custom ERPs, CRMs, client portals and AI tools shaped around how you work. You own the code, the data and the hosting, with no per-seat licence fees as your team grows.
Trusted by 350+ teams
When off-the-shelf stops working,
your team starts working around it.
Subscriptions are the right call until the business outgrows them. These are the signs it already has.
Your process, forced into someone else's software
Off-the-shelf tools are built for a generic business. When the way you work is what sets you apart, the software keeps pushing it into a generic shape.
Data split across tools
Customers in one app, jobs in another, invoices in a third. The same data gets entered three times, and spreadsheets fill the gaps only one person understands.
Paying for features you don't use
You pay for the whole product to get the handful of features you need, and still can't get the report you want without exporting and merging data by hand.
What we build: the system your business runs on.
Every build starts from your process, not a template, and connects to the accounting, email and documents you already use.
Custom ERPs and operating systems
One system for pipeline, projects, scheduling, equipment and financials, replacing the spreadsheets and subscriptions in between.
Example: WorkHoist →CRMOrders / #1042
Northside High Athletics
Spring awards night · due May 2
- Intake
- Artwork
- Engraving
- Ready
- Delivered
Line itemQty
Crystal award, 8"24
Engraved walnut plaque6
Cup trophy, 14"12
artwork-final.pdfwork-order.pdf
CRMs
Customer records, pipelines and order handling shaped around how you actually sell, connected to your accounting and email.
Example: Gleam & Glory →Client portalRiverside WarehouseLive
Riverside Warehouse · Phase 2
58%
- FoundationsComplete
- Steel erectionIn progress
- Roofing & claddingStarts Mar 14
- Fit-out & handoverStarts Apr 22
Next site visitTue 9:00
New documents3
Invoices1 due
Client portals
A secure, branded view where each client sees their own project, so they stop calling to ask where things are.
Example: WorkHoist →Knowledge assistantDocs synced from Google DriveOnline
What's our checklist before a slab pour?
From the Site Inspection SOP: confirm anchor bolt layout against the approved drawings, check forms and vapour barrier, then log photos before sign-off.
Site Inspection SOP · p.2Foundation Checklist
Ask about SOPs, specs or regulations…↑
AI agents and document automation
AI that drafts replies to inbound email for human approval, and answers questions from your own documents with cited sources.
Example: Steel Craft Builders →PricingOrder #1042QuickBooks synced
ItemSourceCostSellMargin
Crystal award, 8"Vendor$18.40$36.8050%
Walnut plaqueIn-house$9.10$22.7560%
Cup trophy, 14"Vendor$21.00$34.0038%
Custom price on Cup trophy, below standard markup
Order total$1,427.70
Margin48%
InvoiceCreated in QuickBooks
Finance and pricing tools
Pricing generated from vendor cost, invoicing and payments synced with QuickBooks.
Example: Gleam & Glory →Total Ownership vs SaaS.
Stop renting the software you run on.
With a subscription you rent access. With a custom build you own the system outright, and the bill doesn't grow with your headcount.
ComparedSaaS subscriptionTotal Ownership
Licence feesPer seat, every month, for as long as you use it$0 per-seat licence fees. Adding staff does not change the bill
How it is pricedPer-seat rate × users × months, for every tool in the stackA one-time build, priced on fixed scope after a strategy call
The codeThe vendor'sYours, in a repository you control
Your dataIn the vendor's system, on the vendor's termsIn a database in your name, exportable at any time in standard formats
HostingThe vendor's serversA hosting account in your name
FitBuilt for a generic businessBuilt around how your business actually runs
The trade-off: you're responsible for hosting and ongoing maintenance, so budget for both. For a small, stable team, per-seat software is often still the cheaper option, and we'll tell you if that's you.
Custom builds and AI systems. Real outcomes, not demos.
The custom and AI systems in our case studies, from client-owned CRMs to AI knowledge systems and our own products.
CUSTOM BUILD
Custom CRM with AI email & order agent
Gleam & Glory · Awards, trophies & engraving manufacturing
Client-owned sales platform unifying customers, orders, production and finances, with an AI agent that drafts a reply to every order email for human approval.
$0
per-seat licence fees: the client owns the code and data
Next.jsSupabaseAnthropicQuickBooksMicrosoft 365
Read case study →
OUR PRODUCT
Construction ERP with a client portal
WorkHoist · Construction operations software
Pipeline, projects, crew scheduling, equipment, financials and a client portal in one platform, so office, field and client all see the same current status.
1 system
for pipeline, projects, crew, equipment and financials
Next.jsSupabaseVercelStripeOpenAICapacitor
Read case study →
SHIPPED PRODUCT
CMMC compliance operating system
Garde1 · Defense contractor compliance
Purpose-built compliance operating system for U.S. defense contractors navigating CMMC Level 2 — secure infrastructure, automated evidence collection, and continuous monitoring on hardened government-grade cloud.
Live
securing the Defense Industrial Base
Next.jsSupabaseAI/LLMVercel
Read case study →
CUSTOM AI BUILD
Dual-interface AI knowledge system
Steel Craft Builders · Pre-engineered metal buildings
A website chatbot for customers and a Slack agent for staff, both answering only from the company's own documents, auto-synced from Google Drive.
120+
documents, re-indexed within 2 minutes of an update
Supabasen8nAnthropicOpenAIGoogle DriveSlackWordPress
Read case study →
CUSTOM AI BUILD
AI knowledge system for aviation operations
Luxaviation · Private aviation & aircraft services
A document-grounded AI knowledge system giving internal teams and clients instant access to verified aviation information across two dedicated interfaces.
24/7
knowledge access for clients and internal teams
Supabasen8nAnthropicOpenAIGoogle Drive
Read case study →
CUSTOM AI BUILD
Logbook trace intelligence platform
AircraftParts.net · Aviation parts distribution
Scanned logbooks turned into a searchable system that returns cited answers to trace questions, without manual logbook searching.
Cited
answers to trace questions, grounded in the source logbooks
Azuren8nOpenAIAnthropicSQL
Read case study →
AI AUTOMATION
Automated lead intelligence pipeline
FundEDU · Education & nonprofit outreach
Discovers businesses through Google Places, ingests state datasets, and builds an AI profile for every lead, replacing hours of manual research before each call.
60–120 min
saved per rep, per day
n8nSupabaseOpenAIGoogle Places
Read case study →Built with the tools behind these case studies
- Next.js
- Supabase
- Vercel
- Anthropic
- OpenAI
- n8n
- QuickBooks
- Microsoft 365
- Stripe
- Google Drive
- Slack
- WordPress
- Azure
- Capacitor
- Google Places
Our delivery methodology hasn't missed yet.
Four phases, no surprises.
Every engagement follows the same four-phase model — designed so you know exactly what's happening, when it ships, and what you're getting at the end.
01
Discovery
We audit your current tools, map your real workflows, and identify what’s broken — not what a salesperson told you to buy. Every engagement starts with understanding the operation.
Tool audit · Workflow mapping · Stakeholder interviews
02
System design
We architect the solution before touching a single board, automation, or line of code. You see exactly what we’re building, how it connects, and what it replaces — before we start.
Architecture blueprint · Data model · Integration map
03
Build & configure
We build the system in working phases, not a six-month black box. You see progress weekly, give feedback in real time, and never wonder what you’re paying for.
Phased delivery · Weekly demos · Feedback loops
04
Test, launch & handoff
Before anything goes live, your team tests it against real scenarios in user acceptance testing. We fix what they find, launch once it’s signed off, train your team on the system they’ll actually use, and stay available post-launch.
User acceptance testing · Team training · Documentation · 30-day support window
Don't take our word for it.
Hear it from our clients.
Short video stories from the teams we've built systems for.
Client storycoming soonYour story hereRecording soon
Custom software, answered in full.
What a custom build costs next to SaaS, what owning your software should mean, and when off-the-shelf is still the better call.
- How much does a custom ERP cost compared with SaaS subscriptions?
- Can I own my business software instead of renting it?
- How do I stop paying per-user licence fees as my team grows?
- When does a small business need a custom ERP instead of off-the-shelf software?
Built by operators who understand the problem.
You work directly with the people who build your system, not a sales team who disappears after the contract is signed.
FounderMichael Hayles
Founder · Implementation lead
Twenty-five years building companies, from running construction crews in London to leading platform delivery teams and consulting on systems implementation for organizations including NASA and Space Force. Michael founded TekConnected to give small businesses the same caliber of systems that enterprise teams take for granted.
25 yrsBuilding & scaling companies
Hands-onEvery strategy call & build
Enterprise → SMBNASA, Space Force, to local ops
Call Mike directly:+1 917 540 1739
Jordan Edwards
COO & Head of Engineering
Pritam Jadhav
AI Transformation
Jani Marais
Head of Professional Services
Ruben Hunter
Sales
Custom software questions, answered plainly.
If your question isn't here, ask it on the strategy call.
A custom build is a one-time cost plus hosting and upkeep, while SaaS is charged per user every month for as long as you use it. We price every build on fixed scope after a strategy call, so there is no single figure. The comparison that matters is total cost over several years at the headcount you expect to reach, counting every tool the system would replace.
Yes. The code sits in a repository you control, the database and hosting run in accounts in your name, and your data can be exported at any time in standard formats. There is no per-user licence fee, so adding staff does not change the bill.
Consider custom when off-the-shelf tools force your team to work around them: several subscriptions stitched together with spreadsheets, per-user fees rising with every hire, or a core process no product handles properly. If an existing product or a configurable platform such as monday.com fits most of how you work, configure that first. We build on platforms too, and will tell you which route fits.
Hosting and ongoing maintenance, so budget for both from the start. Those running costs do not rise with each new user, which is where owned software pulls ahead as a team grows.
Yes. For a small, stable team it is often the cheapest option. The problem appears when seats grow every quarter and every new hire adds a line to several invoices.
Yes. Integrations are part of the scope. Gleam & Glory's custom CRM, for example, syncs customers, invoicing and payments with QuickBooks Online and sends branded email through Microsoft 365.
Yes. We have built AI agents that draft a reply to every order email for human approval, and knowledge systems that answer staff and customer questions only from a company's own documents, with sources cited.
In four phases: discovery, system design, build in working phases with weekly demos, then user acceptance testing, launch, team training and a 30-day support window. You see progress every week rather than waiting on a six-month black box.
Walk away with a system map for your business.
30 minutes. No generic pitch. We look at how your operations actually run today and tell you exactly what a build would look like: platform, custom software, or both.
1
We audit your current toolsWhere data is stuck, where handoffs break, where hours leak.
2
You see a custom system mapA clear picture of what your connected system looks like.
3
Fixed scope & price after the callNo follow-up spam. No pressure. One proposal, take it or leave it.
350+teams systemized across construction, aviation, real estate, and professional services
Not ready to talk? See the work first →
Live calendar
CRM Strategy Call
30 min · Google Meet
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