A significant investment needs a technical direction
A new product or business system is planned. Before budget is committed, the organization needs an architecture, a delivery approach and a realistic view of risk.
Technology Consulting
Technical direction for an investment, an existing system or an important engineering decision.
We connect business priorities with architecture, risk and a practical plan for delivery. The aim is a decision your organization can act on, with the evidence behind it written down.
When organizations bring us in
An existing system needs an independent view
A platform has become harder to change, slower or less reliable. Leadership needs to know what is wrong, what matters most and what it would take to address it.
An engineering decision is unresolved
A framework, a cloud provider, a build or buy choice or a migration path is in question, and the decision needs evidence rather than preference.
Approved work needs a plan people can follow
The direction is agreed but the sequence, dependencies and responsibilities are not. Delivery needs a plan the business and the engineering team both understand.
What the work covers
Each engagement is scoped around the questions that need answers. These are the areas the work usually draws on.
Relate technology choices to the business objective, the operating context and the investment available. Establish what to build, what to buy and what to leave as it is.
Review an existing system's architecture, implementation, operation and risks. Record findings with their impact and the order in which they should be addressed.
Define components, interfaces, data and operating arrangements for a new or changing system, with the material trade-offs made explicit.
Use prototypes, benchmarks and representative workloads where a choice depends on how options behave in practice rather than how they are described.
Sequence the work into phases with dependencies, risks, responsibilities and acceptance evidence, so progress can be planned and checked.
Where to start
Most engagements start with a Technology Action Plan
A fixed-price, three to four week diagnosis of one initiative. You receive a decision brief, an assessment of where things stand, the architecture direction, a phased roadmap and an estimate for the first phase. It ends with a decision you can act on, with us or with another provider.
- Fixed price, agreed before work starts
- Three to four weeks
- One initiative
- About 8 to 12 hours of your team's time
Project brief
You tell us the outcome, the timing and the budget range.
Fit call
Thirty minutes to confirm fit, scope and who decides.
Kickoff
Price and scope are agreed, then a workshop with your team.
Discovery
Interviews, a review of your systems and documents, and tests of options where needed.
Plan presentation
Two hours with the decision owner on the findings and the recommended plan.
Your decision
Go ahead with us, with another provider, or not at all.
What you receive
- A decision brief: the question, constraints, options, recommendation and trade-offs
- An assessment of the current state, with the evidence behind it
- Architecture direction, with diagrams and records of significant decisions
- A phased roadmap with dependencies and what each phase delivers
- A cost and timing estimate for the first phase, and an order of magnitude for the rest
- A register of risks, assumptions and the questions still open
If you continue with us within 60 days, the Action Plan fee is credited against the first build phase.
How the work is arranged
The engagement mode defines how responsibility is shared. We agree the mode and scope around the work your organization needs. For Technology Consulting, the highlighted mode is the most common.
Advisory
We provide technical direction and review. Your team owns implementation and operation.
Common for this serviceEmbedded
We work within your team with an agreed technical leadership or engineering remit. Responsibilities and decision authority are defined together.
Managed
We take delivery responsibility for an agreed scope, with explicit milestones, acceptance criteria, and operating boundaries.
Capabilities behind this service
Further reading
Common questions
What is the difference between consulting and engineering delivery?
Consulting establishes the direction and the decisions. Your team, or another provider, can carry out the work. If you would like CharCentric to deliver it, the work continues under Engineering Lifecycle Services with the same technical leadership.
Can you assess a system another company built?
Yes. An assessment looks at the system as it is, whoever built it. We review its architecture, implementation and operation and record what we find with the evidence for it.
How does a consulting engagement start?
Usually with a Technology Action Plan. After your project brief and a short call, we agree a fixed price and the questions to answer, then deliver the plan in three to four weeks. Smaller questions, such as a review of one decision, can be scoped on their own.
Do you only work with organizations in the UAE?
No. CharCentric is based in Abu Dhabi and works with organizations in the UAE and internationally.
Discuss your initiative
Share the initiative, what it needs to achieve, and the constraints you already know. We can discuss the engineering work involved and whether CharCentric is the right partner.