Independent software consultancy
Software that actually ships.
I help founders and teams build, fix, and de-risk software — from first MVP to production scale. Product engineering, technical strategy, and AI, delivered by someone who's shipped it before.
Full-stack
Idea to production, front to back
AI-native
LLM and automation built in, not bolted on
Edge-first
Fast, cheap-to-run Cloudflare deployments
Remote
Working with founders and teams worldwide
Services
What I help you with
Four ways I work with founders and teams. Most engagements are a mix — start with a conversation and we'll figure out what you actually need.
Product Engineering
Idea to production
Full-stack builds, MVPs, and the unglamorous reliability work that keeps them alive. I ship features, not slide decks.
- MVPs and greenfield products built to last
- Web apps, APIs, and edge/serverless backends
- TypeScript, Astro, Node, and modern frameworks
- Taking a prototype to a production-grade release
Technical Strategy & Architecture
De-risk the expensive decisions
Fractional CTO work, architecture reviews, and second opinions on the calls that are costly to get wrong.
- Architecture and system design reviews
- Fractional CTO / technical advisor for founders
- Codebase audits and technical due diligence
- Hiring, roadmap, and build-vs-buy guidance
AI & Automation
Remove real cost from the business
LLM-powered features, agentic workflows, and automation that does actual work — not demos that never leave the lab.
- LLM features wired into real products
- Agentic workflows and tool orchestration
- Data pipelines and internal automation
- Pragmatic model selection and cost control
Cloud & Delivery
Ship it properly
Serverless infrastructure, CI/CD, and edge deployment done right — fast, cheap to run, and boring to operate.
- Cloudflare Workers, Pages, D1, and R2
- CI/CD pipelines and release automation
- Performance, security headers, and SEO baked in
- Infrastructure you can actually afford to run
Ventures
I don't just advise — I build and run my own
The best way to know someone can ship is to see what they ship for themselves. These are products and businesses I run under Wernich Consulting.
Kakmaklik
LiveWebsites for South African small businesses
Fast, mobile-first websites for tradespeople and local businesses — website rescues, a self-serve CMS, WhatsApp lead capture, and local SEO. Built, hosted, and supported end to end.
More on the way
New products are in the works. Got an idea you want built and run the same way?
Let's talkHow I work
A process built around shipping
No 40-page proposals or endless discovery. Just enough process to move fast without breaking the things that matter.
Discovery
We start with the problem, not the tech. Constraints, budget, timeline, and what 'done' actually looks like for you.
Plan & de-risk
A clear scope, architecture, and milestones — with the risky and expensive decisions surfaced early, not after you've paid for them.
Build & ship
Iterative delivery you can see. Working software in small increments, production-ready from the first release rather than a big-bang launch.
Support & scale
Once it's live, I stay in the loop — monitoring, iteration, and scaling as the product earns its growth. No hand-off into a void.
FAQ
Questions, answered
What kind of work do you take on?
Software consulting across the whole lifecycle — building products from scratch, advising on architecture and technical strategy, adding AI and automation to existing products, and getting things deployed properly on modern cloud infrastructure. If it's software and it needs to ship, it's in scope.
Do you work solo or with a team?
Both. I take on focused engagements solo, and I can plug into an existing team as an extra senior pair of hands or a technical advisor. For larger builds I bring in trusted people I've worked with before.
How do you charge?
Depending on the engagement: fixed scope for well-defined projects, a monthly retainer for ongoing product or fractional-CTO work, and a day rate for advisory and reviews. We agree on the model up front — no surprises on the invoice.
Do you work with international clients?
Yes. Everything is remote-first and I've worked across time zones. Location doesn't matter — clear communication and reliable delivery do.
Can you take over an existing codebase?
Yes. A lot of my work starts with inheriting something half-built or neglected. I'll audit it, tell you honestly what's worth keeping, and get it back to a state where it can move forward.
What's Kakmaklik?
Kakmaklik is one of the ventures I run under Wernich Consulting — a productised web service for South African small businesses. It's a good example of how I work: build the product, host it, automate the operations, and support the customer end to end.
Got something that needs to get built?
Tell me what you're working on. First call is free — we'll figure out whether I'm the right person for it, and what shipping it would actually take.