First conversation and scope
Half an hour that costs nothing and ends with a binding scope: estimated person-days and the rate that goes with them, before you decide.
It starts with half an hour of conversation. It costs nothing, it commits you to nothing, and it ends with a number rather than a feeling.
What happens in that half hour
Three questions carry it: what should be different afterwards? Who uses this, and under what conditions? What is already there that can be reused?
The third one saves the most. Very often something is already in place that holds: a body of data, a system, groundwork by someone who has since left the organisation.
What stands at the end
A binding scope: an estimate of how many person-days your project needs, and the day rate that goes with it. Where the scope can be drawn clearly I bill a fixed price instead and tell you which of the two comes out cheaper.
You get both before you decide. An offer that only becomes concrete after you have said yes is not an offer.
What you should bring
Someone who is allowed to decide. A first conversation with a group that then has to settle internally whether the subject is on the table at all is a second first conversation.
You do not need documents. If there are any, I read them beforehand.
What does not happen in this phase
No concept on spec, no pitch, no draft for inspection. Whoever demands drafts before commissioning gets work for free, and you get a result produced without knowledge of your situation.
And no yes at any price. The codex says which projects I am the right partner for and which not. If it does not fit, I say so in the conversation and name someone it might fit, where I can.
Frequent questions
Does the first conversation cost anything?
No. Half an hour, no invoice and no obligation.
What if the scope does not fit the budget?
Then we cut the project smaller or you drop it. Both are better outcomes than a project that stalls halfway.