Bespoke business software and ad-hoc tools
ML2 Consulting builds bespoke software for businesses that have outgrown spreadsheets, paper and email chains: from a full system built around how you work to a small tool that fixes one job this week. Everything is tested, documented and handed over, so you're never locked in to us.
What we build
Two kinds of work, from the same team, to the same standard.
Bespoke systems
Software built around how your business works, for the long term.
- Web apps for one job done well: holiday requests, incident reports, job sheets, stock counts.
- Phone-first apps for people on the floor, in the yard or on the road, with big buttons and photos.
- Apps inside Microsoft 365 and SharePoint, where your staff already sign in.
- Connections between your systems, so data moves without retyping.
Ad-hoc tools
Small, quick pieces of software for a job that's costing time now.
- An import that turns a customer's file into the format your system wants.
- A clean-up of years of messy data before a migration.
- A report that used to take a morning to build by hand.
- A simple form that replaces a paper sheet or an email chain.
How it's different
- Handed over. Source, documentation and admin guides are handed over, so another developer can pick it up. You are never locked in to us.
- Tested. Automated tests and accessibility checks are part of the build, not an extra.
- Standard names for your data. Every field is named from one dictionary, so a later report or integration doesn't start with a translation job.
- Built to move. Hosting and supplier-specific code are kept small and separate, so a move later is a change of settings, not a rewrite.
- Built for the people using it. Plain labels, phone-friendly screens and nothing more than the job needs.
How a build goes
Agree the job
Who uses it, what they do today, and what better looks like.
Show it early
A working first version in front of real users quickly, not a long specification.
Build small
Short steps, each one tested and shown, so nothing surprises you at the end.
Hand over
Documented, trained and handed over, with support if you want it.
Questions
Should we buy a product instead?
Often, yes. If an off-the-shelf product fits, including one of ours on Thing.team, we'll say so before anyone writes code.
Is a job too small?
Rarely. Ad-hoc work is often where the biggest time savings are. If it really is too small to be worth paying for, we'll tell you how to do it yourself.
Do you only build on Microsoft?
No. We build web apps and work inside Microsoft 365 and SharePoint, and we connect to most business software with an API, a database or a file export.
Related
- Systems and integration: connecting what we build to what you already run.
- Process improvement: finding the job worth building for first.
- The Thing idea: the standards our own apps are built on.
- IT and software for warehousing: scanner and phone tools for operatives.
Tell us what's slowing your team down.
Email info@ml2consulting.com or call 07920 050366.