Kestrel is a one-person IT consultancy for small and growing businesses — web development, network and systems setup, and the ongoing support that keeps it all online. One point of contact, plain-English explanations, work you can actually maintain after I leave.
Most small businesses don't need a full internal IT department — they need someone who can build it, wire it up, and be reachable when something breaks.
Business sites, booking and ordering flows, internal tools and dashboards — built to load fast, work on a phone, and be easy to update without calling me every time.
Office and remote setups, secure Wi‑Fi, VPN access for remote staff, and file and print sharing that doesn't fall over the moment someone's laptop updates.
Firewall and access configuration, password and device policy that people will actually follow, and backups that are tested — not just scheduled.
Migrating email, storage and line-of-business apps off aging on-site hardware and onto hosting that's monitored, backed up, and sized to what you actually use.
Connecting the tools you already use — forms to spreadsheets, spreadsheets to invoicing, invoicing to your inbox — so fewer things get copied by hand.
A monthly retainer or pay-as-you-go help desk for the stuff that comes up: a new hire's laptop, a printer that won't cooperate, a site that needs a summer refresh.
Four stages, in order, every time — so you know what's happening and when you'll hear from me next.
A working session on what you have, what's breaking, and what "done" looks like — no jargon, no upsell.
A written scope and fixed quote or hourly estimate, so there are no surprises once work starts.
Build, test, and roll out in stages where possible, so the business keeps running while the work happens.
Handoff docs and, if you want it, an ongoing support plan — so it stays working after launch day.
Starting points below — every quote is confirmed in writing before work begins. Larger builds are scoped individually.
For one-off work: a new site, a network setup, a migration. Fixed-price quotes available once the scope is clear.
Ongoing coverage for a small business running on a handful of systems.
For businesses that can't afford downtime — more hours, faster response, closer monitoring.
Rates shown are current starting rates and may vary by scope — actual site under active development, so treat these as illustrative until confirmed on a call.
No exotic stacks that only I can maintain — everything here is documented, common, and easy to hand off.
Kestrel IT Consulting is a one-person practice, which means the person who scopes your project is the same person who builds it and answers the phone when something's wrong. No account managers, no ticket getting passed between three departments — just direct, hands-on work from someone who reads the logs before guessing.
The name comes from the bird: kestrels hover in place, scanning a wide field for the one thing that's moved. That's the job — watching the whole system so you don't have to.
Yes — most support and web development work happens remotely. On-site visits are available by arrangement for network and hardware work that needs hands in the building.
A pool of support hours each month (remote or on-site), a set response time, and a monthly check of backups and security settings. Anything beyond the included hours is billed at a discounted rate rather than turned away.
Yes, this is common for web development or a specific project (a network redesign, a migration) that a generalist doesn't have time for. I'll work alongside whoever already manages your systems.
Yes — a mutual NDA and a written scope of work are standard before any project starts, at no extra cost.
Retainer clients can flag anything as urgent by email or the contact form; response times outside business hours vary by plan and are confirmed when you sign up.
No pitch, no pressure — just a walkthrough of what you're dealing with and whether it's a fit.
A couple of sentences is plenty to start — project type, rough timeline, and whether it's a one-off build or ongoing support.