Engagement models
A standing team for the long haul, named specialists who join yours, or a fixed build with a price and a date. Here's the short version of each, and a plain way to pick the one that fits.
The short version
Most teams come to us in one of three situations. You want a squad to build and keep growing a product. You have a team and need to add a skill or some capacity. Or you have a clear project with a date and a budget. There's a model for each, and we'll tell you straight which one fits your case.
The three models
A standing cross-functional squad that works only on your product, over the long term, in your cadence.
Named specialists who join your existing team and your process to fill a skill gap or add capacity fast.
A defined build with agreed scope, milestones, a timeline and a price, delivered to spec.
Side by side
Same eight questions for each model. Hover or focus a column to follow it down the table. On a small screen, scroll the table sideways; the attribute column stays put.
| Attribute | 01Dedicated team | 02Staff augmentation | 03Fixed-scope project |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best for | Ongoing product work and a living roadmap | Filling a skill gap or adding capacity fast | A clear, well-defined build with a deadline |
| Who manages day to day | We do, against your priorities | You do, inside your own process | We do, against the agreed spec |
| How you pay | Monthly, per team | Monthly, per person | Fixed price, per milestone |
| Flexibility to change scope | High. Reprioritise every sprint | High. The work is whatever your team needs | Lower. Changes run through a change request |
| Ramp-up time | Short to medium. The team learns the domain once | Short. People plug into your existing setup | Medium. We scope and plan before the build starts |
| Team composition | Cross-functional: product, design, engineering, QA | The specific roles you ask for | Sized to the scope of the build |
| Knowledge retention | Stays with a team that keeps working on your product | Shared with your team as they work alongside ours | Handed over with documentation at the end |
| Typical commitment | Rolling monthly, long term | Flexible, per person | The length of the project |
“How you pay” shows the shape of pricing, not a quote. We share real numbers once we understand the work.
How to choose
Pick a dedicated team when you have an evolving product and a roadmap that won't fit in one fixed build. You want a squad that keeps the context and ships continuously.
Pick staff augmentation when your team and plan are solid but you're short a skill or a few people. You keep control of the work and just need the capacity.
Pick a fixed-scope project when the requirements are clear, the deadline matters, and you want a known price for a known deliverable rather than an open-ended engagement.
Still not sure? Plenty of work starts as a fixed-scope build and rolls into a dedicated team once the product proves out. Tell us the situation and we'll suggest the honest fit, not the biggest one.
Straight answers
Choose a dedicated team for ongoing product work and a roadmap, staff augmentation when you have a team and a plan but need more capacity or a specific skill, and a fixed-scope project when the requirements are clear and there's a firm deadline. If you're between options, we'll talk through your situation and recommend the honest fit.
Yes, and many clients do. A common path is a fixed-scope build to prove the idea, then a rolling dedicated team to keep developing it. Staff augmentation can also grow into a dedicated team as the work becomes its own product. We set the contract up so changing the shape of the engagement is straightforward.
You do. On every model the code, designs and accounts are yours. We assign IP to you in the contract, work in your repositories and cloud accounts where you prefer, and hand over everything with documentation so you're never locked to us. Owning your own software is one of our standing commitments.
Staff augmentation is usually quickest because people slot into your existing setup. A dedicated team takes a little longer to assemble and learn the domain. A fixed-scope project starts with a short scoping and planning phase before the build. We'll give you a realistic start date when we understand the role and the work.
A dedicated team is billed monthly for the squad, staff augmentation is billed monthly per person, and a fixed-scope project is a set price tied to milestones. We share the shape up front and put it in the contract. We don't quote a firm fixed price until the scope is clear enough to stand behind.
On a dedicated team you simply reprioritise the next sprint, since the model is built for change. On a fixed-scope project, a change to the agreed scope goes through a written change request so the timeline and price stay honest. Either way you see the impact of a change before we act on it.
Tell us about the product and where your team is today. We'll point you to the model that fits and reply to every serious enquiry within one business day.