The services practice

Bespoke software, custom AI, end-to-end workflow automation.

If a real business problem doesn't have a clean off-the-shelf answer, we build the answer. Bespoke software, custom AI systems and end-to-end workflow automation — scoped and quoted upfront, delivered fixed-price by senior engineers in Cape Town. Every engagement starts with 1–2 weeks of scoping and ends with a deliverable list and a fixed price in writing before anything else is signed.

Three service lines

Scoped engagements, fixed price, real engineers.

We don't sell hours. Every engagement starts with 1–2 weeks of scoping, then a fixed price against a written deliverable list. Senior engineers, Cape Town delivery, no offshore hand-offs.

Custom Software

Bespoke software for the problem off-the-shelf doesn't solve

Management systems, internal tools, customer portals, line-of-business apps — built around the way your business actually runs, not how a generic SaaS template thinks it should. If a real business problem doesn't have a clean off-the-shelf answer, we build the answer.

Sample deliverables
  • Management software — bespoke admin systems, portals, dashboards built around your operating model
  • Internal tools — anything your team currently runs out of spreadsheets, email and WhatsApp
  • Customer or partner portals — self-service, role-based access, your branding, your data
3–8 weeks delivery · 1–2 week scoping up front
Custom AI

Custom AI systems — and AI bolted onto the systems you already run

We build custom AI systems from scratch, add AI capability into existing software you already use, and train custom models against your business's data when off-the-shelf models miss the nuance. AI that does one useful thing, measurably, in production — not a demo that breaks on real data.

Sample deliverables
  • Custom AI systems — document intelligence, agents, copilots, knowledge assistants built end-to-end
  • AI added to existing systems — drop intelligence into the software your team already lives in
  • Custom AI models — fine-tuned or domain-trained on your own data when generic models aren't enough
4–10 weeks delivery · prototype in week 2
Workflow Automation

Any workflow, automated end-to-end

If a process touches more than one tool, more than one person, or repeats more than a few times a week — we can automate it. Sales, finance, ops, HR, marketing, customer service — any workflow, any tools, any direction. Production-grade engines your team owns and can extend.

Sample deliverables
  • Cross-tool automation — connect anything to anything, in any direction, monitored and alerted
  • Approval and onboarding flows — sequential, parallel, conditional — for any kind of business process
  • Repetitive-work elimination — the manual copy-paste, the daily reports, the inbox-to-spreadsheet loops
2–6 weeks delivery · ownership transfer on handover
How we deliver

Every engagement, week by week — on the record before you sign.

Five phases, clear milestones, and a full list of what we do and what you do at each stage. Nothing hidden, no scope surprises, no invoice you didn't expect.

  1. Week 1

    Discovery & scope

    We do
    • Interview the people who'd use it — not just the budget holder
    • Map the current workflow, forms, spreadsheets, systems in play
    • Draft the deliverable list with measurable acceptance criteria
    You do
    • Line up 3–5 operator interviews (60 min each)
    • Share sample data, screenshots, the current-state pain
    • Confirm who signs off on scope and UAT
    MilestoneSigned scope doc · fixed price quoted · timeline committed
  2. Week 2

    Design & architecture

    We do
    • Wireframes for every screen · click-through prototype in Figma
    • Data model sketched — tables, fields, integration surfaces
    • Infra plan — hosting, auth, backup, secrets, observability
    You do
    • Sign off on the prototype · name any must-change screens
    • Introduce us to your IT / ERP owner if not already in the room
    • Confirm deployment target (your Azure, ours, or on-prem)
    MilestoneDesign frozen · infra approved · build can start
  3. Weeks 3 – N

    Build — weekly demos

    We do
    • Shipping code every week, demo every Friday · all work source-controlled in a repo you own
    • Continuous deploy to a staging environment you can log into any time
    • Blocking issues surfaced same-day, never saved for a surprise on Friday
    You do
    • 45 minutes a week on the demo call — feedback is the product
    • Keep one named decision-maker on the project, not a rotating cast
    MilestoneEvery sprint: demoable increment · staging link shared · burndown updated
  4. Penultimate week

    UAT & hardening

    We do
    • Run your team through a scripted UAT — what to click, what to expect
    • Performance + load pass · penetration review for public-facing tools
    • Documentation written — runbook, user guide, admin guide
    You do
    • Run UAT with your operators, not just the sponsor
    • Log issues in one shared tracker — we triage within 24 hours
    MilestoneUAT sign-off · go / no-go decision on production cutover
  5. Final week

    Cutover & handover

    We do
    • Production deploy with you on the call · rollback plan ready
    • Walk-through for your ops team · record-and-share training
    • 30-day warranty on every delivered feature — bugs fixed free
    You do
    • Identify the internal owner going forward
    • Book an optional 90-day check-in — free, no agenda, no upsell
    MilestoneGo-live · source in your repo · 30-day warranty active
Scope a project

Tell us the brief — you'll get a scoping call, not a sales pitch.

The form lands in Stephan's inbox. Reply within one working day with a straight read on whether we're the right fit — or who might be a better fit if we're not.

What happens next
  1. 1Stephan reads the brief the same day.
  2. 2Within one working day: a yes, a no, or 'let's jump on a scoping call.'
  3. 3If it's a fit — 1–2 week scoping engagement → fixed-price quote in writing.
POPIA-aligned · your details are used only to reply to you. We don't enrol you in newsletters or marketing sequences. Ever.
Prefer to skip the form? Go direct:
stephan@vsgtech.co.za+27 63 616 9780LinkedIn
5 weeks
Setup to first workflow live
12
Standard workflows in the library
4 ERPs
Syspro · SAP · Sage · NetSuite
POPIA
SA data protection aligned