Technical Debt Mitigator · Architect as a Service
A mid-size company usually doesn't need an architect 5 days a week — it needs one at the moment a decision is made that can't be undone two years later, or a debt-loaded system that keeps accumulating risk with nobody accountable for it. As your Technical Debt Mitigator, I give you ongoing access to a senior mind on a monthly retainer, instead of a full-time hire or hunting for an architect for every single question.
Not sure a retainer is right for you? Try the fixed-price development audit first →
Problem
Most companies can't afford a senior architect full-time — and wouldn't keep them busy anyway. The result: key decisions (a new module, a technology choice, an integration design, assessing a proposal) get made by whoever happens to be available, not whoever has the most relevant experience. Sometimes it works out. Sometimes the outcome only shows up two years later, when it turns out the decision was optimized for this week, not the next five years.
Hiring a senior architect full-time is expensive and often unnecessary — their work makes sense in bursts, not eight hours a day. "Ask someone we know" isn't the answer either, because it isn't a reliable, repeatable process with accountability. Architect as a Service is a third path: fixed monthly access to senior capacity that you use exactly when you need it.
A common mix-up
The two services can be combined: Architect as a Service for the company's strategic decisions, IT oversight for a specific project with an external vendor.
What's included
Technology choices, designing the architecture of a new system, "build vs. buy" assessments, a plan for gradually modernizing a legacy system.
Regular code review and architectural consultation with the in-house team — the knowledge stays with the company, not just with an outside contractor.
An independent assessment of a vendor proposal, design, or deliverable — with no need to arrange a one-off audit every single time.
A quick question between review sessions doesn't wait for next month — email and chat consultation is included as a matter of course under the retainer.
Why it makes sense
A full-time senior architect costs a company hundreds of thousands of crowns a month, even when they're idle most of the time. On-call access costs a fraction and is there exactly when a decision is being made — not before, not after.
A wrong technology or architecture choice often only shows up a year or two later — and fixing it costs multiples of what ongoing oversight that could have prevented it would have cost.
A new consultant for every question loses the first hours getting up to speed on context. An architect who knows the company long-term gets straight to the point — and their recommendations rest on real system knowledge, not a quick guess.
Who it's for
If you don't have an architect, you can get the same senior capacity on subscription for less than a full-time hire would cost — with no need to search for who to hire.
If you already have an architect, you get a regular outside second opinion — a review of decisions and an independent perspective that one person inside the company can't give themselves.
Indicative pricing
The prices below are a floor, not a ceiling — a specific proposal depends on company size and the number of concurrent projects. The retainer can be adjusted at any time to match actual need.
The simplest way to turn this into a regular cost, not a one-off invoice. Instead of a single project invoice, the company continuously draws on a prepaid capacity — which smooths out cash flow and avoids a year-end scramble to sort out the mandatory disability-employment levy at the last minute.
Basic
1 consulting day a month + email availability. For companies who want a second opinion within reach.
Standard
Up to 2 consulting days a month included · code review · oversight of semantic contracts · a second opinion on technology decisions · mentoring senior developers. The most common choice.
Intensive
Up to 5 hdays a month included · a weekly cadence · well suited to running several projects at once or periods of larger technology change.
When it makes sense
Bonus for companies with 25+ employees
I am a registered provider of alternative performance under § 81 of Act No. 435/2004 Coll. The same money you'd otherwise pay the state with nothing in return can fund senior architectural capacity for your company.
How alternative performance works →Next step
The intro call is free and non-binding, and takes place online: we'll discuss how much capacity the company really needs, and whether Architect as a Service is the right form of collaboration.
Book an intro call →Jakub Lebeda · Company ID (IČO) 19074671 · +420 607 720 317