Four tiers. Pick the right entry point for where you are today.
Most clients with real operational complexity start with Embed — a 90-day configuration sprint that gets the whole stack into shape fast. Others start at Operate or Maintain and build momentum from there. Build projects sit alongside any tier for discrete work.
- Full discovery and inventory
- Stack configuration and tuning
- System integration and data layer
- BI dashboards built and live
- Custom tooling as needed
- Vendor consolidation
- Documentation and runbooks
- Handoff to steady-state tier
- Everything in Maintain, plus:
- Ongoing dashboard iteration
- Active vendor management
- New integrations as needed
- Monthly strategy review
- Custom builds included up to scope
- On-call software & hardware support
- Integration monitoring
- Minor iterations and fixes
- Monthly review and roadmap check-in
- Vendor liaison
- Larger work scoped as Build projects
Layered on any tier when you need a specific thing built — a new integration, a custom tool, a migration, a website rebuild. Fixed-fee scopes, not hourly. Most projects land in the $5k–$50k range depending on complexity.
Match the tier to where you are.
Embed is the right fit when you want everything configured, integrated, and live in 90 days — multi-entity holdings, multi-location operators, or trades companies that have outgrown the spreadsheet stage. Operate makes sense when you already have a working stack and want us actively building, integrating, and iterating alongside your team. Maintain is for businesses whose stack is stable and who mostly need a reliable on-call partner and a monthly check-in. Any tier can graduate up or down as needs change — no penalty, no renegotiation theater.
All engagements are covered by our standard Master Service Agreement. Pricing is firm — what keeps it that way is that it's genuinely fair for the work. The math is below.
The split-vendor comparison.
The easiest way to understand what Embed is worth is to price out what it costs to source the same work across the vendors you'd otherwise hire. Here's the current-market comparison for a client with real operational complexity — the kind of client who needs Embed.
| Function | Typical vendor | Monthly equivalent |
|---|---|---|
| HubSpot / CRM admin & RevOps | Certified partner agency | $8k–$15k1 |
| Custom BI dashboards & hosting | Dev shop or freelance team | $10k–$20k2 |
| Fractional CTO | Solo fractional | $10k–$15k3 |
| Fractional COO / ops strategist | Solo fractional | $8k–$12k4 |
| Managed IT / on-call support | Regional MSP | $3k–$6k5 |
| Web dev / integrations | Agency project fees, amortized | $5k–$10k6 |
| Vendor evaluation & procurement | Boutique consultant | $5k–$10k7 |
| Executive documentation & comms | Fractional chief of staff | $3k–$5k8 |
| Split-vendor total (midpoint) | ~$70k/mo | |
Embed at $40k/mo is roughly 40% below the midpoint of sourcing the same work across vendors — before counting the coordination tax (20–30% slippage across 6–8 vendors) and the project-management burden that currently falls on you. In steady state, Maintain at $5k/mo is the cheapest insurance policy you'll buy for your stack.
- AI where it matters. Configuration, documentation, and dashboard work is force-multiplied by modern tooling. Agency-grade output at two-person speed.
- Vertical pattern recognition. We've done this in construction and exteriors already. We're not learning your industry on your dime.
- Context compounds. After 90 days we know your business. A vendor you replaced starts from zero; we build on what's already there.
Where the comparison numbers come from.
The split-vendor comparison uses 2026 market-rate ranges drawn from published pricing guides, benchmark reports, and MSP/fractional-leadership research across North America. Ranges reflect what a mid-market operationally-complex client would pay to source each function from a qualified specialist. Source numbers match the superscripts in the comparison table.
- HubSpot / CRM admin & RevOps — $8k–$15k/mo
Certified HubSpot partner agency retainers for active portal administration, RevOps architecture, and workflow management. Range consistent with industry-standard implementation-plus-retainer pricing for mid-market HubSpot customers.
HubSpot Solutions Partner directory pricing benchmarks, 2026. Blended from certified partner public rate cards.
- Custom BI dashboards & hosting — $10k–$20k/mo
Ongoing dev-shop or freelance-team retainers for custom BI builds (Next.js, React, data pipeline, hosting). Reflects typical full-stack team rates for active dashboard iteration plus infrastructure management.
US dev agency retainer benchmarks, 2026; cross-referenced with Pertama Partners AI/BI implementation cost ranges.
- Fractional CTO — $10k–$15k/mo
Mid-to-upper range for ongoing fractional CTO retainers for growth-stage and mid-market companies, reflecting 2–3 days per week of senior technical leadership.
Fractional CTO Cost & Rates 2026 Complete Pricing Guide (fractionalctoexperts.com); Kompella Technologies 2026 pricing guide; Emizentech fractional CTO rates 2026.
- Fractional COO / ops strategist — $8k–$12k/mo
Typical ongoing retainer range for solo fractional COO/ops leadership at mid-market scale. Aligned with fractional-executive ranges across adjacent functions (CFO, CTO) in operations-heavy industries.
Cross-referenced from Madras Accountancy Fractional CFO Rates by Industry 2026 (construction vertical) and fractional-executive pricing guides.
- Managed IT / on-call support — $3k–$6k/mo
Regional MSP pricing for a ~20–30 user mid-market trades/construction client at $100–$200 per user per month for comprehensive managed services including monitoring, helpdesk, and security.
Datapath Managed IT Services Pricing Guide 2026; Solutionbuilders Ultimate 2026 Guide to Managed IT Services Pricing; Corsica Technologies 2026 pricing benchmarks.
- Web dev / integrations — $5k–$10k/mo
Amortized agency project fees for website rebuilds, integration builds, and ongoing web development work, spread over typical 6–12 month engagement cycles.
US digital agency project-fee benchmarks, 2026. Derived from public agency rate cards for mid-market clients.
- Vendor evaluation & procurement — $5k–$10k/mo
Boutique consulting fees for ongoing vendor evaluation, procurement support, and tool selection across software and hardware stacks typical in operationally-complex mid-market businesses.
Boutique consulting retainer benchmarks; cross-referenced from MSP value-based pricing examples in DeskDay 2026 MSP pricing guide.
- Executive documentation & comms — $3k–$5k/mo
Fractional chief of staff or executive-ghostwriter monthly retainer range for ongoing leadership documentation, briefings, and stakeholder communications at mid-market scale.
Fractional chief-of-staff market benchmarks, 2026.
Coordination tax estimate (20–30% additional cost across 6–8 vendors) reflects commonly-reported overhead from duplicated discovery, misaligned context, and client-side project management burden when sourcing across multiple specialized vendors. Client savings will vary by stack complexity, vendor count, and operational maturity.
Ready to talk through which tier fits?
Bring your stack, your team size, and what's frustrating you. We'll tell you honestly which tier makes sense — or if we're not the right fit at all.
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