Foundation and Build Partnership, October 2026BrandedAI

A foundation built properly. Then Lapwing builds on it.

The skill to pick up is not typing code. It is writing the requirement and its acceptance checks, briefing the AI tools, judging what comes back and releasing it safely. That is what Bruce shadows, then does.Scott Markham, BrandedAI

Lapwing's Azure, data, sign-in Built once, owned by Lapwing Audit tools, register, rules Built by us, Bruce shadowing What Bruce builds next From February, with us alongside

In short

As approved, LAP-2026-03
What you get, and what we promiseThe audit map by 30 November; the training register, evidence store, equipment bridge and audit pack in before the Achilles audit date; the EPR scheme chosen and registration submitted; a nightly copy of NetSuite in Lapwing's own Azure with a tested restore; Lapwing's GitHub, hosting pattern and Claude set-up; one change released by Bruce. The audit result rests with Lapwing and the auditor; what the audit needs is dated to the audit.
What it costsFoundation £15,000 plus VAT, fixed, to 30 January 2027. Build Partnership £3,500 plus VAT a month from February, first term to 30 April, then quarter by quarter. Running costs paid to Microsoft approx. £110 to £230 a month, plus approx. £45 to £50 a month for each of two cloud PCs during the Foundation. Claude seats continue as now.
Bruce's timeApprox. half a day a week during the Foundation, including the weekly review of up to 90 minutes and his own reading and practice. At least one day a week from February, with the duties that move off his desk confirmed by Dwayne. Exhibition weeks agreed up front; the session moves rather than skips.
Who owns what, and leavingLapwing owns the code built for it, the data, the Azure subscription, the GitHub organisation, the documentation and every credential. BrandedAI's reusable components are licensed to Lapwing and its group companies for good, whether or not we keep working together. From any quarter, with one month's notice, Lapwing can step down to Platform Care at £1,000 a month or stop; documentation and access are handed over either way.

Today, and the shape it becomes

Drawing 1 of 8
Today Each person holds a piece. Nobody holds the map. Pete Word registers Filing cabinets Citation Atlas Kelly HiBob People and some training; the rest on paper Reuben Spreadsheets EPR data, H1 due Everyone NetSuite Claude, 12 to 15 seats Exports by hand when asked. Seats bought one at a time, no shared rules. Achilles audit: no single mapof what is owed, by whom, with what evidence.Atlas reminders and Citation cover stay; the layer above them is missing. After the Foundation One platform in Lapwing's name. Everything on a register. Bruce builds on it. Lapwing platform, Lapwing's Azure, Microsoft sign-in Audit mapOwner, date, proof Training registerAlongside HiBob Evidence storeVersioned, locked Equipment bridgeAtlas and Pete's list EPRScheme chosen Data foundationNetSuite, nightly Lapwing Claude workspace12 to 15 seats, guidance, Bruce's own project Tools registerOwner, stage, data Audit pack by standard, on demandAny person's full training record on one screen HiBob stays the people system. Atlas keeps its reminders. Citation is unchanged. Nothing entered twice: HiBob, Atlas and the register each own their part, agreed first. Built so a new depot or acquired company can be added later.
Held by one person todayLapwing owned, built in the FoundationWhat Pete, Kelly and the auditor see

The architecture: where everything lives

Drawing 2 of 8

Everything inside the dashed line is owned by Lapwing: the Azure subscription, the code, the data, the Claude workspace and the credentials. BrandedAI works inside it and keeps nothing of Lapwing's outside it.

Lapwing owned Sources NetSuite productionRead only, nightly NetSuite sandboxAnything that writes HiBobPeople, Kelly's modules Citation AtlasExport, unchanged Pete's registersPlus Reuben's EPR data Copy Read Import Lapwing Azure subscription One subscription, two areas, built so a depot or company can be added later Development area Where everything is built and tried Nightly copy job, database Evidence files, web app Bruce: builds here from week one Production area What Pete and Kelly use Same shape, released copies only Backups, restore tested Bruce: read until acceptance Key VaultLocked store for passwordsand keys, not on laptops Microsoft sign-inThe normal Lapwing login,access by job role MonitoringDid the copy run, does itmatch NetSuite, sign-ins Lapwing Claude workspace Lapwing owned: seats, permissions and usage guidance for 12 to 15 users, in place before the audit Projects: Bruce's own from week one, then compliance. One page of rules. Connections read only. Tools register One row per tool, seat and connection: owner, stage, data it reads, where it runs People PeteCompliance, registers KellyHiBob, training BruceBuilds, shadows, releases DwayneOwner, approves Achilles auditorReceives the pack only Scott and DaleLapwing accounts only Same login How codemoves Bruce's laptopOr a Lapwing cloud PC Lapwing GitHubProposed, visible to all DevelopmentAutomatic checks ApprovalA named person ProductionReleased BrandedAI alongside Weekly review, up to 90 minutesWhat was built and why; Bruce's next brief Release checkBefore any approval to production Monthly from FebruaryOutcomes review, scorecard, platform care

Click any block for a plain-words note.

FlowLapwing owned, production or source of truthSet up in the FoundationThe register and the release gate

How a piece gets built, and what Bruce sees

Drawing 3 of 8

We do not hand-type code. Every piece of the Foundation goes through the same six steps. Bruce sees each step from the inside, then from December writes the first three himself.

Before the build The build After the build 1 Requirement What it must do,for whom, by when. One page, plainwords, Pete's. 2 Acceptance checks How we will knowit is right: the acceptance tests,written first. 3 Brief What we tell theAI tools: rules, files, limits, thechecks to pass. 4 Build Claude Code andCodex sessions, run in parallel, insideLapwing's set-up. 5 Review Run the checks.Read the change. Send it back orapprove it. 6 Release Development first,then production after a named approval.Logged on the register. What Bruce gets(Click a step above to see which) The requirement, the checks and the brief, before anything is built He reads them and asks what is unclear. This is the skill: saying exactly what you want and how you will know you got it. A recording Where it is worthwatching, failures too. A walkthrough at the weekly review What was built, why that way, what the checks showed, what was sent back. Then his next brief. Bruce's turn From December: steps 1 to 3 are hisHe writes the next piece; Scott reviews before step 4 runs. Before acceptance: one change, all six stepsBy Bruce, checked by us. Fallback: first week of February. From February: the same loop, Bruce buildingWeekly session, our reviews and release checks continue.
The AI tools do this partPeople do these partsBruce's commitments, as proposed

From an idea to a tool staff rely on: the route

Drawing 4 of 8
Set up once Lapwing leads (us for the audit tools) Joint We lead, Bruce with us Shared Foundation Azure, sign-in, GitHub, workspace, rules, register. Lapwing owns the code, data, accounts. 1 Discover Problem, users, owner, intended benefit. One row on the register. 2 Experiment In the Lapwing workspace, own project, approved data only. Development area. 3 Prove Build it. Test it on a case with a known answer. Does it do what the row says? 4 Assess Can staff rely on it? Right data, right people, nothing beyond its scope. Two routes. 5 Make it live Owner, how-to guide, restore tested, released to production. 6 Run it Monitoring, fixes, changes through the same gate. The Build Partnership. Gate 1 On the register Gate 2 It works Gate 3 Approved for production Gate 4 Release check Workedexamples Audit map (we build) Bruce's first change Drag either one along the line, or use the arrow keys. The stage and the panel it belongs to light up. Gate 1: the register One row per idea: who, which tool, which data, where it runs. The row is the permission to try it, the record of what was tried and the decision, in one place. Bruce's experiments, our Foundation pieces and the Claude seats go on it as they are set up. Part of the Foundation. Gate 3: two routes, by risk Light route: five checks 1 Inputs named, with source 2 Rules in a table, not a chat 3 Tested where the answer is known 4 Named owner, one-page how-to 5 Release check; outputs saved Internal, read only, no personal data. Example: the audit map. Full route The five checks plus access by role, retention, a data protection question, a tested restore. Personal data or writes to a system of record. Example: the training register. Stage 6: the Build Partnership Weekly session with Bruce, up to 90 minutes. Help between sessions, reply within a working day, approx. four hours a month hands-on. Up to two reviews a month, a release check before anything reaches staff. Platform care. Monthly outcomes review, scorecard, one 60-minute staff clinic. From February. Bruce: a day a week.
Audit map: on the register, kick-off week. Bruce's change: on the register, kick-off week.

The same route for everything: what we build in the Foundation, what Bruce builds from February, and the quote intake pilot after that. The two routes at Gate 3 are our working method and are written into the agreement. The positions are illustrative. Both examples start in the kick-off week; Bruce's change is released before acceptance.

First outcome: the Achilles audit pack

Drawing 5 of 8
Agreed first, with Kelly and Pete, in the kick-off week What HiBob covers, what Atlas covers, the gaps the register fills. Nothing entered twice. In Achilles checklist Kelly's HiBob modules Atlas export, Pete's lists Audit map, by 30 November Every checklist item: owner, due date, type of evidence Where the evidence lives Training registerStatutory, job, certificates, talks Evidence storeDocument control, versioned Equipment bridgeOne asset list, Atlas reminders kept Out Audit packBy standard, on demand One screen per personFull training record Reuben's packaging dataA separate line, with Pete EPR: scheme chosen, registration submitted The outstanding H1 report given an owner and a date EPR submittedH1 owned and dated Dated to the audit: the audit map by 30 November, the register, evidence store and pack before the audit date. The data foundation and Bruce's time run to 30 January.

Accepted when every checklist item has an owner, due date and evidence type; any person's training record shows on one screen; an audit pack by standard is produced on demand; the EPR scheme is chosen, registration submitted and the H1 report owned and dated. The audit result rests with Lapwing and the auditor.

What safe means here

Drawing 6 of 8

Five layers, from the outside in. Click a ring to see its line.

Outputs Data scope Connections Workspace Identity IdentityLapwing's Microsoft sign-in, access by job role, removed users checked Workspace, keys, codeLapwing owned: subscription, GitHub, Claude workspace; production keys in the vault ConnectionsNetSuite production read only; writes only to the sandbox; the rest off unless approved Data scopeWritten list of what each tool may read, enforced by roles and permissions, told to staff OutputsA person approves every release; the register says what exists; checks when a source changes Owned by Dwayne and Bruce, checked by BrandedAITested with your people, approved by you; a named contact if it goes wrong
Every session on Lapwing's own kitBruce works and shares from his own laptop, signed in as Bruce, recorded in Lapwing's Teams. Scott and Dale work from cloud PCs inside Lapwing's tenant. Nothing of Lapwing's sits on a BrandedAI machine.
Production is behind a gateBruce can change the development area from week one and read production until acceptance. Every release is a proposed change with a named approval. Production credentials live in the Key Vault, not on laptops.
NetSuite production is read onlyThe nightly copy reads production and reconciles to it. Anything that writes uses the sandbox. The copy has backups and a restore that is demonstrated, not assumed, as part of acceptance.

The plan: November to January, then February

Drawing 7 of 8
November December January From February 22 Dec to 2 Jan Access and set-upDwayne, Bruce, Lapwing IT SAA, Azure, GitHub, cloud PCs 14 Nov long-stop Kick-off, half day Audit mapPete, Kelly; we build Checklist against HiBob, owners, dates 30 Nov Training, evidence, equipmentBefore the audit date Register, evidence store, equipment bridge, audit pack Audit EPRReuben, Pete Scheme chosen, registration submitted, H1 report owned Data foundationNightly NetSuite copy Copy job, checked, sign-in by role Matches nightly, restore shown Claude for the company12 to 15 seats Seats, permissions, usage guidance Monthly staff clinic BruceApprox. half a day a week Weekly review, every active week Own briefs from December His change released 30 Jan Weekly, Bruce builds Build Partnership First term to 30 April Bruce at least a day a week

Dates for the audit items follow the audit date Lapwing confirms. If any access lands after 14 November, dates move day for day and the audit pack runs on exports. Acceptance on 30 January 2027 on site at Worcester: the deliverables shown, the restore demonstrated, Bruce's change released. If Bruce's diary prevents his change before then, it is done in the first week of February without holding up acceptance. Prices, payment and running costs are as in the proposal and the covering email, unchanged.

What Bruce, Pete and Dwayne will be able to see

Drawing 8 of 8
Audit pack on demand Pick the standard,every item with itsowner, date andevidence attached Ready before the auditor asks One screen per person Statutory training Job-specific, certificates Toolbox talks, policies What is due next, and when HiBob stays the people record;this reads alongside it A copy that matches, nightly Checked against NetSuite nightly:customers, products, suppliers,staff; restore demonstrated Bruce's change, live 1 His requirement and checks 2 His brief, the build 3 Our review of his change 4 Released, on the register The proof the shadowing worked
Lapwing UK

Built once, properly, in Lapwing's name. Then built on by Lapwing, with us alongside.

Foundation and Build Partnership, LAP-2026-03. BrandedAI, October 2026.