Advisory Retainer for Platform & SRE Teams
Some of the most expensive infrastructure decisions are not the big set-piece reviews — they are the steady stream of medium-sized calls that happen every week: whether to split this state file, how to draw a support boundary, whether an AI-agent integration is safe to ship, how to sequence a migration. A retainer gives your team a senior outside voice for exactly those decisions, without the cost and overhead of hiring a full-time staff or principal engineer to get it.
The retainer is built around ongoing access — async between sessions for the fast-moving questions, plus scheduled working sessions for the decisions that deserve real time. It is intentionally not staff augmentation: the point is to help your team reason better and own their own decisions, not to become a permanent dependency. It usually follows a strategy or risk review once there is trust and a shared picture, but it is available from day one when the problem is already clear.
What this engagement includes
Fixed-scope advisory with a written deliverable — structured so your team gets clarity without open-ended dependency.
What’s included
- Ongoing async access for architecture, platform, reliability, and AI-risk questions
- Scheduled working sessions for the decisions that deserve real time
- Outside review of design docs, RFCs, and proposals before they ship
- A consistent senior voice in the rooms where hard-to-unwind decisions get made
- Continuity across migrations, redesigns, and scaling phases
- Honest, vendor-neutral guidance with no incentive to expand scope
How it works
- Kickoff to align scope, cadence, and the decisions in play
- Async access between sessions for fast-moving architecture and risk questions
- Scheduled working sessions for design docs, RFCs, and hard tradeoffs
- Written notes on major recommendations so decisions stay durable across the team
Who it’s for
Engineering leaders and platform/SRE teams that want recurring senior judgment on architecture, reliability, and AI-era operational risk without hiring a full-time staff/principal engineer. Fits teams in a sustained migration, scaling, or platform-build phase.
How teams usually engage
Most offerings follow the same bounded shape — timing flexes with scope, but you always get a clear deliverable.
Fixed-Scope Review
Bounded engagement with a clear start, end, and written deliverable — not open-ended staff aug.
Working Session
Live time with your leads to pressure-test assumptions and align on tradeoffs.
Written Findings Memo
Prioritized risks, tradeoffs, and recommendations your team can sequence and own.
Optional Readout
Leadership or stakeholder session to align on the path forward after the review.
This engagement is a fit if…
- Medium-sized infrastructure decisions happen weekly and need senior judgment fast
- You want an outside voice without hiring a full-time staff or principal engineer
- Design docs and RFCs would benefit from review before they become hard to change
- A strategy or risk review went well and you want continuity through the next phase
Start with Advisory Retainer.
Most engagements start with a quick intake call to confirm fit, scope, and timing — no long sales cycle. Tell us about your team, your systems, and the decisions you’re weighing.
Discuss a Retainer → ← All advisory servicesWant a feel for how Brian thinks first? Browse the SRE episodes on Ship It Weekly.