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Engineering Support

Ongoing, senior engineering without hiring. Retainer-based support for features, fixes, and scaling needs—when you need it.

You've launched. The MVP is out, users are coming in, and now you need to keep building. But hiring is slow, expensive, and risky. You don't need a full team—you need senior engineering capacity that's there when you need it.

That's what Engineering Support is. A retainer-based relationship where we become an extension of your team. No recruiting, no onboarding drama, no equity negotiations. Just experienced engineers ready to ship.

When this makes sense

When Engineering Support FitsPost-LaunchMVP shipped, momentumNeed ongoing featuresNot ready to hire full-timeTeam AugmentationHave developers butneed senior expertiseMentor + build togetherHiring BridgeRecruiting takes monthsNeed capacity nowKeep shipping while you hireSpecific ExpertiseNeed skills you don't haveInfra, performance, etc.Don't need them foreverThe ResultPredictable velocity • Senior expertise on tap • No hiring overhead • Scale up or downLike having a senior engineer on staff, without the commitment

What we actually do

The work varies based on what you need. Here's a typical month:

Typical Month of Engineering SupportWeek 1• Stripe subscription upgrades/downgrades• Fixed race condition in onboarding flow• Code review for junior dev's first PR• Updated deps, fixed 3 security vulns~24 hoursWeek 2• Built Slack integration webhook handler• Optimized dashboard query (2.3s → 180ms)• Pair programmed on admin features• Fixed memory leak in background jobs~22 hoursWeek 3• CSV export for enterprise customer• Set up staging environment with seed data• Improved error handling patterns• On-call: prod issue fixed in 15 min~20 hoursWeek 4• API endpoint for mobile app team• Migrated Sendgrid → Resend• Performance audit of checkout flow• Planning session for next month~18 hoursHours used: 84/100 — 16 hours roll over to next month

The kinds of work we take on

Feature Development

Example: Stripe Metered Billing IntegrationUser ActionAPI call, upload, etc.Record UsageTrack quantityFind SubscriptionMatch metric to planStripeWhat we deliverSubscription lookupUsage record creationError handling + retries

Bug Fixes & Debugging

Example: Fixing Race Condition in OrdersBefore: Race ConditionRead CartGap!Cart changesCreate OrderDuplicate orders, wrong itemsUsers clicking "Buy" twiceAfter: Atomic TransactionTransaction: Read → Verify → Create → DeleteAll or nothing, version checkedNo duplicates, correct dataConflicting requests fail safelyThe FixDatabase transactionOptimistic lockingConflict detection

Performance Optimization

Example: Dashboard Query OptimizationBefore: 2.3 secondsQuery 1: Get all projectsQuery 2: Get stats for project 1Query 3: Get members for project 1Query 4: Get stats for project 2......repeat for every project (N+1)20+ queries per requestAfter: 180msCheck CacheRedis lookupSingle QueryJOINs included1 query with eager loading5-minute Redis cacheFast every timeResult: 92% faster2.3s → 180msEager loading eliminates N+1Cache reduces DB load

We're not a body shop

We don't just write code to spec and disappear. We push back on bad ideas, suggest better approaches, and care about the long-term health of your codebase. If something doesn't make sense, we'll say so. That's what you're paying for.

How it works

Engineering Support ModelMonthly RetainerHours Bank40 or 80 hrs/monthUnused hours roll overPredictable monthly costCommunicationAsync + SyncSlack/Discord accessWeekly sync callsSame-day responsesWork StyleIntegratedAccess to your repoPRs with full contextPart of your workflowFlexibilityScale As NeededAdjust hours monthlyPause if neededNo long-term lock-in

Typical engagement

  1. Kickoff call — Understand your codebase, roadmap, and priorities
  2. Repo access — We get set up in your GitHub, Slack, and project management tool
  3. Weekly sync — 30-minute call to align on priorities and blockers
  4. Async work — We pick up tasks, submit PRs, respond to questions
  5. Monthly review — What got done, what's next, adjust hours if needed

What you get

  • Predictable capacity — Know exactly how many hours you have each month
  • Senior expertise — No juniors, no learning on your dime
  • Fast turnaround — Most tasks completed within 1-3 business days
  • Code ownership — Everything we write is yours, fully documented
  • Knowledge transfer — We explain what we build so your team can maintain it
  • Flexibility — Scale up for busy months, scale down when things are calm

Pricing

Simple monthly retainers. No hourly tracking headaches, no surprise invoices.

Most Popular

Growth

For startups that need consistent engineering capacity without full-time overhead.

$4,500/month
  • 40 hours of senior engineering
  • Slack/Discord access
  • Weekly sync calls
  • Code reviews & PR feedback
  • Unused hours roll over
  • 30-day notice to cancel
Get started

Scale

For teams that need more bandwidth and faster turnaround on features and fixes.

$8,500/month
  • 80 hours of senior engineering
  • Priority Slack/Discord access
  • Twice-weekly sync calls
  • Same-day response for urgent issues
  • Architecture & planning support
  • Unused hours roll over
Get started

When to choose something else

Engineering Support isn't always the right fit:

Engineering Support works best when you have a working product and need ongoing velocity.

Frequently asked questions

Usually within a week. We'll do a kickoff call to understand your codebase and priorities, get access to your repos and tools, and start picking up work. There's no lengthy onboarding process—we're used to ramping up fast.
That's built into the model. Unused hours roll over to the next month, and you can adjust your retainer up or down with 30 days notice. If you need a burst of capacity for a big launch, we can often accommodate that too.
Yes, and we prefer it. We'll do code reviews, pair programming, and knowledge transfer with your team. The goal is to make your whole team more effective, not to create a dependency on us.
We specialize in TypeScript, React, Next.js, Node.js, and modern cloud infrastructure (AWS, Vercel, etc.). We're also comfortable with Python, Go, and most common databases. If your stack is unusual, we'll let you know upfront if it's a good fit.
For clients on 100+ hour retainers, we offer same-day response for production issues. We're not a 24/7 on-call service, but we're generally available during business hours and can respond to emergencies outside of that when needed.
We ask for a 3-month initial commitment so we have time to understand your codebase and deliver real value. After that, it's month-to-month with 30 days notice. No long-term lock-in.