Process

No account managers, no hand-off between four departments. You talk to the person writing the code.

1

We work out what the thing actually has to do, and what it definitely does not. Honest estimate up front, including the parts that will hurt. I dig for the real need behind the request, so what you end up with is often not exactly what you came asking for. The thing a client asks for and the thing that actually solves their problem are rarely the same thing, and I would rather tell you that at the start than bill you for the wrong one.

2

Data model, services, deployment target. Decisions get made early so they do not become expensive later. Solving the problem in a way that still holds up in a few years is worth far more than ticking a task off a list to collect the paycheck.

3

Iterative delivery with something runnable at the end of each stage. You see progress.

4

Linux servers, certificates, backups and monitoring. Handover documentation, or ongoing maintenance if you prefer.