How an engagement runs
Five steps from the first call to the deliverable, so you know the whole shape of it before you book anything.
1
Intro call
Thirty minutes, no charge. I will have read your answers to the booking questions. You get my honest first read of the problem, one thing you can check tomorrow, and a straight answer on whether I am the right person for it, and if I am not, who is.
2
Proposal within 48 hours
Two to three pages with three options at different depths, for example advice only, design and oversight, or a standing fractional role. Each option lists deliverables, exclusions, start date, fee and what I need from you. We go through it together on a twenty-minute call rather than by email.
3
Agreement and deposit
A three-to-four-page short-form agreement for smaller projects, or my master agreement plus a statement of work for larger ones. If you have counsel, I will sign your paper. Fixed fees are 50% at signature and 50% on delivery; retainers are billed monthly in advance. Work starts within five business days of the deposit and the inputs arriving.
4
The work
A kickoff in the first two days to agree the outcome, the definition of done and a weekly thirty-minute check-in. Your first written output lands in the first week, usually a one-page memo on the biggest risks in the current plan. A one-page status follows every week until delivery.
5
Delivery and next step
A written deliverable and a live readout. It is accepted after ten business days unless you name specific issues. Deliverables are yours on payment; pre-existing tools I bring stay mine and are licensed to you to use. Every project ends with a one-page note on what, if anything, should come next.
Questions I will ask when we scope
- Who approves the budget?
- Do you have in-house or outside counsel? That decides whose agreement we use.
- Is there a vendor onboarding or purchase-order process? Starting it early saves weeks.
- For diligence only: does your NDA with the target allow disclosure to advisors, and does your firm trade public securities?
Where your data lives
Your data stays in your systems; I work in your tenant when you have one, on an encrypted machine when you don’t, and nothing you share is ever entered into a third-party AI service without your written consent.
Raw imaging and electrophysiology archives stay on your storage or on encrypted media you supply and I return. Working copies are deleted within thirty days of final payment, with written certification on request. The full set is on the terms and policies page, written for your counsel and your procurement lead rather than for me.
Book an intro call Four quick questions and your contact details, then pick a time. A first conversation about your data, no pitch.