Custom Software & Tools
When off-the-shelf doesn't fit, I build the software your business actually needs, like the system that runs a boutique inn and the scheduling app built around one detail shop. Real software, shaped to how you work.
Software · automation · technical partner
The systems your business is missing, built and run by one person.
I'm Henry. I build the custom software, internal tools, and automations a growing business needs, then I stay on as the technical partner who keeps them running and decides what's worth building next. Hire me ad-hoc, per project, or as your fractional CTO. You own all of it.
1
Person: strategy, build and run
Weeks
From idea to working system
100%
Yours: the code, tools and data
What I build
Whatever your business needs built, automated, or connected.
Some of it is the tools you already pay for, wired together. A lot of it I build from scratch. Either way it's shaped around how you actually work, not the other way around.
Workflow & Ops Automation
The repetitive steps between your tools, handled for you: bookings, invoices, scheduling, handoffs, reminders. Your team stops doing by hand what software should be doing.
Dashboards & Reporting
Your whole business on one screen: jobs, revenue, bookings, whatever you need to watch. Updated overnight so it's already current when you open it.
Customer & Lead Response
Every new lead answered in seconds, every missed call texted back, every happy customer asked for a review. Your front desk, automated, so nothing slips.
Connect Your Whole Stack
I make the tools you already pay for talk to each other, so your data lives in one place and stops getting re-typed. No rip-and-replace, no starting over.
Fractional CTO & Tech Decisions
A senior technical brain on call: what to build, what to buy, what to skip. Hire me ad-hoc, per project, or as your ongoing fractional CTO.
Who it's for
Owner-run businesses that have outgrown spreadsheets and the tools on the market.
Hospitality & lodging
Property management
Auto & detailing shops
Home services & trades
Clinics & med spas
Professional services
E-commerce & retail
Anyone past spreadsheets
Fractional CTO
A technical partner for the project, not a full-time hire.
Hire me ad-hoc by the hour, or for a full project, whatever the job needs. I plan it, build it, and own the tech decisions, so you get senior technical judgment without a salary on the books.
Most founders don't need a full-time CTO. They need one in the room for the decisions that are expensive to get wrong, then gone once the system is built and documented. That's the engagement.
What I can take off your plate
- Technical strategy and a roadmap you can actually follow
- System architecture, how the pieces fit and scale
- Hands-on building, not just slide decks
- Vendor and tool selection, with the reasoning written down
- Automation and operations audits
- Clean handoff plus documentation your team can run on
No retainers · you own it
Tell me what you need →
Two ways to work
Ad-hoc, by the hour
Bring me in for a one-off fix, a quick build, or a second opinion. No scoping marathon, just tell me what you need.
Per project
A defined build with a fixed scope and price, start to finish. You see it work, then it's yours.
Selected work
Custom builds for real businesses.
The Scioto Inn · Urbana, Ohio
The Scioto Inn runs six luxury suites with self-service, keyless check-in and no front desk. That only works if the booking, guest, and payment side runs like clockwork. The off-the-shelf hotel software was either bloated or didn't fit how they actually operate.
So I built them a custom property management system from the ground up: reservations and availability, keyless self-check-in, guest details, and payments, all in one place. Guests book and let themselves in. The owners run the whole inn from a single screen.
"They wanted to run a six-suite inn without a front desk. The system is what makes that possible, and nothing falls through."
Scope at a glance
0
Suites run from one system
0/7
Self check-in, keyless
0
Front-desk staff needed
0
Place to run the inn
Figures describe the build, not audited results.
Scope at a glance
1:1
Built to his shop's workflow
2-way
Client + staff notifications
0
Double-bookings or guesswork
0/7
Self-service booking
Figures describe the build, not audited results.
No Coast Detailing · Auto detailing
No Coast Detailing runs on a tight bay schedule, where a double-booked slot or a no-show costs half a day. The off-the-shelf booking apps didn't match how the shop actually works, so customers and staff were never quite on the same page.
So I built a scheduling system one-to-one with his shop. Customers book the exact services and times that fit his setup, and the moment they do, both the customer and the staff get notified, with reminders before the appointment so nobody forgets and the team always knows what's rolling in.
"He didn't need another calendar app. He needed booking that matched his shop exactly, and to stop chasing confirmations. So I built it around the shop."
Other builds
One-off systems I've built for growing businesses.
Hospitality & booking systems
Lead-response automations
Missed-call text-back
Review & reputation pipelines
Owner dashboards
Internal admin tools
Free audit
See exactly what's slowing your business down, free.
Give me 30 minutes and I'll walk your operation, find the three biggest time-drains, and show you what to automate first. You keep the plan whether we work together or not.
- A walkthrough of where your time and leads leak
- The three highest-impact things to automate first
- A simple, prioritized plan, yours to keep
Cost
$0, no obligation
Time
About 30 minutes
The catch
None. No pitch, no pressure.
What working together looks like
Three steps. Weeks, not quarters.
We find the work that drains your week, build the system that handles it, and hand it to you running. Then I'm out.
01
Map
This is the free audit. We walk your operation, spot the busywork, and pick the one system that buys back the most time first.
02
Build
I build it, wire it into the tools you already use, and test it on your real data instead of a demo. You see it work before it goes live.
03
Hand off
You get the working system, a plain-English walkthrough, and the docs. It runs without me on the payroll.
Why work with me
Why founders pick a builder over an agency.
No account managers, no roadmap theater. You work with the person writing the code, and you keep everything when it's done.
Founder-built
You work with the person who builds it. Nothing gets lost between a salesperson and an offshore team.
Ships fast
Launches in days, not months. You won't wait a quarter to see something working.
You own everything
The code, the accounts, the data. It all sits in your name from day one, nothing held hostage.
No retainers
Each project gets a fixed scope and a fixed price. When it's done, it's done. No monthly invoice for sitting still.
Real software
When no off-the-shelf tool fits, I write custom software built to last. I've built a full property management system from scratch.
Fits your stack
I connect the tools you already pay for instead of selling you new ones. No rip-and-replace.
0/7
Systems that keep running
0
Double-entry, one source of truth
0
Builder on your account, no middlemen
weeks
To your first system live
FAQ
Questions, answered straight.
01 Do I have to rip out the tools I already use?
No. Systems get built on top of the stack you already run. Your tools stay, they just start talking to each other and doing more of the work for you.
02 How fast until something is actually live?
Most first systems ship in one to three weeks. You see something working early instead of waiting months for a big reveal that never quite lands.
03 What does a fractional CTO actually do here?
Senior technical leadership, scoped to your project. Architecture, build decisions, and automation strategy from someone who has shipped the work, without the cost of a full-time hire.
04 Do I have to commit to a whole project?
No. You can hire me ad-hoc by the hour for a one-off job or a second opinion, or for a full project with a fixed scope and price. No retainers, no long contracts, and you own everything when it's done: the code, the systems, the keys.
05 Can you build real custom software, or just connect apps?
Both. When the right tools exist, I wire them together. When they don't, I build from scratch. I've built a full property management system end to end when nothing off the shelf fit.
06 What does it cost?
It's scoped per project, so the number depends on what you're building. Book a short call, tell me what you need, and you'll get a real figure instead of a runaround.
Start here
Tell me what you're trying to fix or build.
A sentence or two is plenty. I read every one myself, and you'll hear back from me, not a sales team. The first call is the free audit, so there's nothing to lose.
- Free to start, no pitch and no pressure
- Ad-hoc, per project, or ongoing, your call
- You own everything I build
Send a message
I'll get back to you within a day.
Got it, thank you.
Your message is on its way to Henry. You'll hear back within a day, usually sooner.