Engagements
Your first metasystem, live in two weeks for $6K flat: one proven system from the LionsHead library, ported to your practice. Above it, the custom builds for firms ready for net-new architecture. Below, the retainer that keeps the engine compounding. Pick the tier that matches your moment.
Fitted to your practice
Config-deployed to your world, not generic software.
Hours back in week one
The team's manual work disappears immediately.
Already ran in production
Battle-tested infrastructure, redeployed to your practice.
Yours to keep
Documented, transferable, no vendor lock.
One proven system from the LionsHead library (Cadence, Voicemail Priority Pipeline, or EnrollmentTraQ), config-deployed to your vertical. Bought directly off a 30-minute scoping call. No Blueprint required.
01 · The Gatekeeper
The gatekeeper for custom builds. A fixed-fee architectural audit; the deliverable is yours regardless of whether you continue with us. If you proceed to a Build within 60 days, the Blueprint fee credits forward against the engagement.
Bronze
Duration
1 week
Investment
From $7.5K
50% on signing · 50% on delivery
Focused diagnostic on a single operational domain, usually the one bleeding the most hours. We map the entropy points and deliver a scoped architecture brief.
Includes
Silver
Duration
2 weeks
Investment
From $15K
50% on signing · 50% on delivery
The standard engagement entry point for custom builds. Whole-firm topology, full Digital Twin, and a phased implementation roadmap.
Includes
Gold
Duration
3 weeks
Investment
From $28K
40% on signing · 60% on delivery
For complex multi-entity firms. Adds executable architecture spec, vendor-comparison analysis, and a signed implementation plan ready to put in front of the board.
Includes
02 · The Heart
Implementation of the metasystem layer, the connective tissue that synchronizes a firm. Engagement scope follows directly from the Blueprint.
Bronze
Duration
4–6 weeks
Investment
From $48K
50% on signing · 50% on delivery
One critical integration done properly, typically the highest-volume manual handoff. Event-driven, instrumented, with documentation.
Includes
Silver
Duration
10–14 weeks
Investment
From $115K
30% on signing · Remainder paid monthly across engagement
The standard metasystem build. Three-to-five core integrations, full canonical entity model, and the workflow contracts that make the firm coherent.
Includes
Gold
Duration
16–20 weeks
Investment
Quoted on architecture
20% on signing · Remainder paid monthly across engagement + 12-month embedded governance
Whole-firm metasystem. Every load-bearing handoff, the agent-ready substrate, and the governance layer required to keep it compounding.
Includes
03 · The Wealth Layer
Securities-grade signal infrastructure for funds, family offices, and quantitative operations. Available by arrangement for engagements that require it.
By Arrangement
Duration
Scoped to engagement
Investment
By arrangement
Securities-grade signal infrastructure: market and alternative data ingestion, algorithmic sentiment, backtesting harness, position dashboards. Scoped to the firm, never to a template.
Includes
04 · The Retainer
The Architect kept on retainer. Engagement is monthly or quarterly; pick the cadence that matches the rate at which your business is evolving.
Bronze
Duration
Per quarter
Investment
From $9K / qtr
Billed quarterly in advance
Quarterly architectural review and tuning. Async support between reviews. Right-sized for stable systems on a slow-evolving operation.
Includes
Silver
Duration
Per month
Investment
From $7.5K / mo
Billed monthly in advance
Monthly cadence. On-call advisory for net-new builds, drift monitoring, and continuous integrity review of the data substrate.
Includes
Gold
Duration
Per month
Investment
From $22K / mo
Billed monthly in advance
Principal-level engagement. The Architect operates inside your firm with full ownership of metasystem integrity and compounding improvement.
Includes
At a Glance
| Practice | Tier | Duration | Investment |
|---|---|---|---|
First System | Focused Deployment First System | ~2 weeks | $6,000 flat+ $750/mo to run and maintain |
Discovery & Architecture Blueprint | Single-Domain Audit Bronze | 1 week | From $7.5K |
Discovery & Architecture Blueprint | Full Blueprint Silver | 2 weeks | From $15K |
Discovery & Architecture Blueprint | Strategic Blueprint Gold | 3 weeks | From $28K |
Autonomous Operational Metasystems | Single-Channel Integration Bronze | 4–6 weeks | From $48K |
Autonomous Operational Metasystems | Cross-System Backbone Silver | 10–14 weeks | From $115K |
Autonomous Operational Metasystems | Full Metasystem Gold | 16–20 weeks | Quoted on architecture |
Quantitative Investment Infrastructure | Quantitative Engagement By Arrangement | Scoped to engagement | By arrangement |
Managed Systems Governance | Quarterly Review Bronze | Per quarter | From $9K / qtr |
Managed Systems Governance | Active Governance Silver | Per month | From $7.5K / mo |
Managed Systems Governance | Embedded Architect Gold | Per month | From $22K / mo |
Investment floors are directional. Real engagements are scoped post-Blueprint and tied to outcome value, typically 15 to 25% of first-year cost-savings or realized alpha.
FAQ
Not for First System deployments. Those skip the Blueprint because the architecture is already shipped and sound; the engagement is the port, not the design. You can buy one directly off a 30-minute scoping call. Custom builds (Metasystems, Quantitative Infrastructure) do require a Blueprint first. The Blueprint is the gatekeeper for net-new architecture, not for proven systems being redeployed.
Because design errors compound. We have seen too many firms commit capital to a build phase before the architecture was sound, and pay for it for years. The Blueprint is the gatekeeper. The deliverable is yours regardless of whether you continue with us. If you proceed to a Build within 60 days, the audit fee credits forward against the engagement, so it never feels like a toll.
First System is flat-priced: $6K plus $750/mo to run and maintain. Custom build tiers have fixed-fee floors ("From $X"); real engagements are scoped post-Blueprint and tied to outcome value, typically 15 to 25% of first-year cost-savings or realized alpha. The Quantitative practice is arranged engagement by engagement. We never bill hourly; an Architect doesn't sell labor.
First System is 50/50 (half on signing, half on delivery), with the run-and-maintain retainer billed monthly thereafter. Blueprint engagements are billed 50/50 (40/60 for the Gold Strategic Blueprint). Build engagements scale to fit. Smaller builds run 50/50; larger builds (Silver, Gold) take 30% on signing with the remainder paid monthly across the engagement. Gold builds include a 12-month embedded governance retainer in the contract, so the Architect stays through year one. Standalone retainers are billed in advance on the chosen cadence. Invoices are issued via Stripe; ACH and card both work.
Huey Louis, Principal Systems Architect, leads every engagement personally. Specialist contractors join for component-specific builds (data engineering, devops, quantitative validation) when scope warrants. The Architect of record never changes.
Most don't, exactly. Pick the closest fit and tell us where you diverge during the scoping call (or the Blueprint, for custom work). The tiers are productized starting points, not boxes; every engagement is re-scoped against your actual context.
Yes. The financial-data substrate is one center of the practice, but the same metasystem rigor applies to any breakout-founder operation where data integrity isn't optional. Medical, legal, advisory, dental, agencies handling regulated workflows, and capital-intensive media are all live target verticals.
Engage
Most aren't, exactly, and that's fine. The Blueprint is the qualifying engagement. Book a 30-minute working session to scope which tier of which practice maps to your situation. The Architect reads every inquiry personally.
