One engineer, on purpose
LanceTek is a company of one. That is a deliberate choice, not a stage on the way to an agency, and it shapes how every project runs.
I build software for small businesses: the kind with five to fifty people, where the owner still knows how every process works because they set most of them up. My background is in building and running production systems, and I started LanceTek because small firms kept getting offered one of two things: an off-the-shelf subscription that almost fits, or an agency quote sized for a company ten times larger.
There is a middle way. A single, experienced person can build a focused tool, automate one awkward process, or tidy up a tangle of servers, at a price that makes sense for a small business, and then stick around to look after it.
Being one person means you always know who is working on your project and who to call. It also means I take on a small number of clients at a time, and I will tell you plainly if your project is not a good fit or would be better served by something you can buy.
How I work
- Plain English firstScopes, updates and documentation are written for the person paying, not for other developers.
- You own everythingCode, domains, cloud accounts and passwords are in your name from day one.
- Boring technologyWell-known, widely supported tools, so you are never dependent on me to keep things running.
- A person stays in chargeAI automations ask before they act on anything that matters, and log what they did.
- Fixed prices where possibleAgreed in writing before work starts. Changes are priced before they are made.
The stack
The tools below are the defaults. Each one earned its place by being dependable, well documented and easy for someone else to take over. The Journal explains the choices in more detail.
Software
- Python and Django
- For most business applications. Mature, with a ready-made admin area.
- PostgreSQL
- The database for nearly everything. Dull, in the best way.
- HTMX and plain JavaScript
- Interactive screens without a heavy front-end framework to maintain.
Automation
- n8n, self-hosted
- Workflow engine for connecting systems, with a visual history of every run.
- Hosted and local language models
- Chosen per job, depending on the data involved and the cost of a mistake.
- Python workers
- For the parts a workflow tool should not do: parsing, validation, retries.
Infrastructure
- Linux, Docker and Proxmox
- Containers on virtual machines, on hardware or in the cloud.
- Tailscale
- Private access to servers without exposing them to the internet.
- Restic, Prometheus and Grafana
- Encrypted backups, metrics and alerts.
The homelab
Everything offered to clients runs here first. Migrations are rehearsed, backups are restored, and new tools get a few months of real use before they are recommended to anyone.
Want to talk it through?
A 30-minute call, no preparation needed. You will get an honest view on whether I can help.