How We Engage
Solutions for Every Budget
Tech Guard works on a project basis. Every engagement is scoped before we build — fixed price or capped T&M, with deliverables and milestones agreed up front. The ranges below are starting points; we'll write the actual quote against your goal.
Engagement Sizes
Scoped Against Your Goal
Most engagements fall into one of these four sizes. Use them as ballpark — your actual quote depends on what you actually need built.
Starter
Focused, single-scope work
Audits, small integrations, single-page tools, simple AI agents, or a tightly-scoped fix. Quick to scope, fast to deliver.
Example projects
- Custom integration between two systems
- Single AI agent or small workflow
- Marketing landing page with copy + design
- IT or security audit with remediation plan
- SEO or compliance gap assessment
Build
Most engagements live here
Custom applications, complex integrations, AI workflows, custom websites, and platform migrations. Scoped, planned, built, and shipped.
Example projects
- Custom internal tool or client portal
- Multi-system integrations with custom logic
- AI virtual receptionist or LLM workflow build
- Custom marketing site or e-commerce build
- Cloud or SaaS platform migration
- Compliance program (HIPAA, PCI-DSS, SOC 2)
Scale
Multi-phase or multi-system work
Full platform builds, comprehensive migrations, multiple integrated AI workflows, or programs that combine engineering with security and compliance.
Example projects
- Full custom platform or web application
- Enterprise migration with data + cutover
- Multiple AI/LLM agents wired into core workflows
- Combined build + secure-by-design + compliance
- Custom software with ongoing support window
Enterprise
Multi-quarter programs
Multi-phase technology programs, organization-wide migrations, dedicated team engagements. Scoped against business outcomes, not deliverables.
Example projects
- Multi-quarter custom software program
- Org-wide platform replacement and migration
- Embedded engineering or AI team engagement
- Combined IT modernization + new build
Smaller scope? Tighter budget? Tell us anyway. We'll either scope a focused engagement or point you to the right resource — even if it's not us.
The Process
From Idea to Live System
Same four steps for a $3k integration as a $300k platform — just scaled to fit.
Discovery Call
Free 30-minute conversation. Tell us the goal, the constraints, and what success looks like. No pitch deck.
Scope & Estimate
We write the engagement scope: deliverables, milestones, timeline, fixed price (or T&M cap). You see it before you commit.
Design & Plan
Architecture, security model, integrations mapped, UX where relevant. Agreed before we cut code.
Build & Validate
Engineering with regular check-ins. Secure-by-design, tested as we go, validated against the original goal.
Pricing Principles
What You're Paying For
Every Tech Guard engagement is scoped, priced, and documented up front. No surprise invoices, no padded hours, no upsells buried in change orders.
Fixed price or capped T&M — your choice, agreed before work starts
Secure-by-design engineering — security is part of the build, not an upsell
Documented architecture, code, and runbooks — you own everything we ship
Clean handoff to your team or ongoing support — your call
Direct access to the engineers, not a sales gateway
Free discovery call
No charge to talk. We'll listen, ask hard questions, and tell you what we think — even if the answer is “don't build that.”
Book a callNot sure of the size?
Most clients don't. That's the point of the scoping conversation — by the end, you'll have a clear number to decide on.
Get scopedTell Us What You're Trying to Build
We'll listen first, scope the work, and propose an engagement that fits. Whether it's a $3k integration or a multi-quarter program, the conversation starts the same way.
Schedule a Discovery Call