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[01] / Audit

A two-week,
fixed-fee answer to:
should we replace this?

Most SaaS-replacement decisions stall because nobody has the time to scope the answer properly. The audit is that scope work, fixed-fee, with a deliverable artifact at the end. If the audit concludes you should renew, we say so — and you walk away with a useful map of your stack either way.

price$3k – $8k
duration1–2 weeks
deliverablePDF + readout
credit100% toward build

Per-product audit fees: NetSuite & ERP $8k · 2 weeks · WordPress $3k · 1 week · Salesforce & CRM $5k · 1 week · BI & Dashboards $4k · 1 week

[02]
§ Deliverable

What you walk away with — even if you don't proceed.

The audit is a real artifact, not a sales pitch wrapped in a meeting. Five sections, one PDF, one readout call.

  1. [01]

    SaaS spend map

    Every line item on every contract — license fees, customization tax, integration tax, implementation-partner retainers — broken out by module. We show you what you're paying for vs what you actually use.

  2. [02]

    Workflow inventory

    Sit-with-the-ops-team interviews. We map every workflow that runs through the SaaS — quoting, inventory, vendor PO routing, accounting handoffs, reporting — and grade them on replacement difficulty + impact.

  3. [03]

    Replicate-vs-stay verdict

    Per module: replicate now, replicate later, or stay on the SaaS. We tell you when the math doesn't work — and yes, sometimes the answer is "renew the contract."

  4. [04]

    Scoped replacement plan

    For replaceable modules: target architecture, technology stack, build phases, parallel-run plan, cutover strategy, and a fixed-bid quote with confidence range. Not a "let's find out together" estimate.

  5. [05]

    Risk + continuity review

    Data migration risk, audit-trail preservation, accountant sign-off path, vendor-of-record obligations, code escrow recommendation, and the 5 ways the project could fail (with mitigation for each).

[03]
§ Schedule

Two weeks, day-by-day.

Compressed where it can be, paced where it can't. We don't run audits longer than 14 calendar days — discipline is the deliverable.

  1. Day 1

    Kick-off

    Mutual NDA executed. Audit fee invoiced. Calendar locked. Principal + engineer assigned to your audit.

  2. Days 2–4

    Read-in

    Provisioned access to your SaaS (read-only or admin), contract documentation, recent invoices, and architecture diagrams.

  3. Days 5–7

    Workflow interviews

    Three to five 60-minute calls with module owners. Recorded with consent. Workflow diagrams produced live; reviewed back the next day.

  4. Days 8–10

    Cost + replacement modeling

    We model the replacement build, identify hot spots, validate assumptions on how much AI-assisted dev can compress the timeline, and price each phase.

  5. Days 11–14

    Deliverable + readout

    PDF + Notion handoff with everything above. 90-minute readout call with your team. Q&A in writing for 30 days after.

[04]
§ Fit check

When the audit is the right move.

→ probably yes

  • You're paying $50k+/year on a single SaaS that no longer fits your workflow
  • NetSuite, Acumatica, SAP B1, Microsoft Dynamics — feeling the implementation-partner tax
  • WordPress site running 20+ plugins with monthly emergency patches
  • Tableau / Looker / PowerBI seats where most users only check 2 dashboards
  • You've had at least one "let's build this ourselves" conversation internally that stalled
  • Your CFO is asking the renewal team for a three-year cost projection

× probably no

  • The SaaS contract just renewed and you're locked in for 18+ months
  • You don't have anyone internally who would maintain the result
  • You're looking for someone to "just build something" without strategy work
  • The annual SaaS spend is under $25k — math doesn't work
  • You need a SOC 2-audited platform vendor (we're a senior consulting team, not a platform — see /trust)
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