Reference pages that sit outside the post list: the glossary, the migration hub, Power Platform pricing in NZ, Dataverse pricing, Power Pages pricing for a client-facing site, what moving an Access database to Power Apps costs, end-of-support dates, the migration checklist, the trades software price index, the NZ small business software census, and the sector pages built on the census: electricians, building firms, engineering consultancies, law firms, manufacturers, wholesalers and rostered trades. Already got a quote from someone else? Get a free second opinion on it.
Is Copilot safe for confidential information? What it can see in your files
Is Copilot safe for confidential information? It only sees what the person asking can already open, so the risk is old oversharing. How it compares with ChatGPT, and a tidy-up.
Why did my Power Automate flow just stop running?
Nine causes of a flow that quietly stopped, where to look for each in Power Automate, and what happens to the backlog when you switch it back on.
Do I need Power Pages licences for clients logging into my system, or does Power Apps cover it?
What covers your staff, what covers clients, the NZD cost at 10, 100 and 500 client logins, and when sharing the app as guests is cheaper.
Visual FoxPro is dead, what do you do with the data still running your business?
Support ended over eleven years ago. What to export today, the four places the data can go, and what each costs for a firm under 20 staff.
Should I build on fake data first, then bring the real records across?
Three data stages, what each one catches, how to make fake data that fights back, and the checks that prove the real load matches the old system.
Can I move my old desktop database into Power Apps without changing how we work?
Copy first, improve second: what stays identical, what cannot, and how to prove the new app matches the old one before anyone switches.
Environment Maker, System Admin or Power Platform Admin: what do you actually give a contractor?
Which Power Platform role a contractor needs to build, what each role can and cannot do, and which admin roles to keep in your own firm.
How long does moving a small business off an old database actually take?
Two to eight weeks for a firm under 20 staff: the weeks by source and destination, where they go, and what stretches them.
What happens to your business software when the person who built it leaves?
What breaks when the person who built your software leaves, who should own it, and a nine-point handover pack for a firm under 20 staff.
The flow that broke the day the person who built it left
Why flows built on one person's login break when they leave, and the ownership, connection and licence checklist that prevents it.
The message that turns your flow off automatically, and what triggers it
The 14-day and 90-day rules that switch flows off, who gets the email (not your admin), and how to stop it happening.
The Power Apps premium licence trap that catches almost every small firm
What forces Power Apps Premium at NZ$32.40 per user, the cost for 5, 10 and 20 users, and when pay-as-you-go is cheaper.
Is Dataverse free? What costs nothing and what does not
Dataverse for Teams is free, full Dataverse is not: NZ$32.40 per user, 10 GB included, and where the free tier stops.
Deputy alternatives in NZ: rostering and time, priced
Employment Hero, PayHero, Smartly and Teams Shifts priced against Deputy, plus building the roster on Microsoft 365.
Unleashed alternatives for NZ manufacturers: prices
Cin7 Core, Katana and MYOB AccountRight priced against Unleashed, plus building the stock register on Microsoft 365.
Actionstep alternatives for small NZ law firms
LEAP, Smokeball and the wider law practice market priced against Actionstep, plus building the register on Microsoft 365.
WorkflowMax alternatives for NZ firms: prices compared
Xero Projects, Projectworks, Abtrac and Total Synergy priced against WorkflowMax, plus building the register on Microsoft 365.
Tradify alternatives for NZ trades: prices compared
Fergus, ServiceM8, simPRO and NextMinute priced against Tradify, plus building the job tracker on Microsoft 365 instead.
Fergus alternatives for NZ trades: prices compared
Tradify, ServiceM8, simPRO and NextMinute priced against Fergus, plus building the job tracker on Microsoft 365 instead.
Copilot Studio channels: Teams, M365, web and more
Copilot Studio publishes to Teams, M365 Copilot, SharePoint, a custom website and more, each with its own licence rules, as at 23 September 2026.
Copilot Studio data residency: where NZ tenants sit
Copilot Studio has no New Zealand region; an NZ tenant's data defaults to the United States unless another geography is chosen, as at 23 September 2026.
Copilot Studio authentication: no auth, Microsoft, manual
Copilot Studio has three authentication modes: no authentication, Authenticate with Microsoft, and Authenticate manually, as at 23 September 2026.
Copilot Studio knowledge sources: the limits per agent
Copilot Studio caps knowledge sources at 500 per agent, uploaded files at 512 MB, and SharePoint at 25 site URLs, as at 23 September 2026.
Upgrading Dataverse for Teams to Dataverse: what changes
Dataverse for Teams caps out at 2 GB and about 1 million rows. What upgrading to full Dataverse changes, and why it cannot be undone, as at 22 September 2026.
Canvas app limits: controls, screens and data sources
Power Apps publishes hard numbers for canvas media and rows, but not controls per screen. What is and is not documented, as at 22 September 2026.
Power BI Free vs Pro: the limits that matter
Power BI Pro caps a semantic model at 1 GB and 8 refreshes a day; Free cannot share at all. The limits that matter under 20 staff, as at 22 September 2026.
Microsoft Forms limits: 5 million responses, 200 questions
Microsoft Forms caps a form at 200 questions and, on a Microsoft 365 plan, 5 million responses. The tiers and file upload limits, as at 22 September 2026.
Power Pages capacity: authenticated vs anonymous users
Power Pages is licensed by monthly authenticated and anonymous user capacity packs, not per site. What one unit costs and what it includes, as at 22 September 2026.
Copilot Studio capacity: what 25,000 messages buys
A Copilot Studio tenant capacity pack buys 25,000 messages a month for USD 200, or pay as you go per message, as at 22 September 2026.
Power Platform environments: how many you get
Production needs 1 GB free capacity, developer environments are free and capped at three, trials expire in 30 days. What a small tenant can run.
Dataverse file, image and attachment limits
File columns default to 32 MB and go up to 10 GB. Image columns cap at 30 MB. Notes attachments default to 5 MB. Where each setting lives.
Power Automate limits: runs, actions, throttling
500 actions per flow, concurrency control capped at 100 runs, and the per-licence daily request allocation. Where each ceiling actually sits.
Dataverse API request limits, per licence
Every licence has a 24-hour Power Platform request allocation, plus a service protection limit of 6,000 requests per 5 minutes. What each means.
Dataverse storage: what 10 GB actually holds
A base Dataverse licence carries 10 GB of relational database, 20 GB of file storage and 2 GB of log. What that holds and what the NZD add-on costs.
Power Apps delegation limit: 500 default, 2,000 max
The non-delegable query cap defaults to 500 records and can be raised to 2,000 in app settings. What that means for a firm under 20 staff.
PayHero vs Smartly vs Employment Hero payroll in NZ
PayHero, Smartly and Employment Hero all price payroll differently in NZ. Which one fits a firm under 20 staff, and where Deputy fits in.
Unleashed vs Cin7 Core vs Katana for NZ manufacturers
Unleashed prices in NZD; Cin7 Core and Katana both bill in USD. What each tier includes and which fits a manufacturer under 20 staff.
Actionstep vs LEAP vs Smokeball for small NZ law firms
Actionstep, LEAP and Smokeball all hide their price from New Zealand. What each one actually publishes, and what it means for a small NZ firm.
WorkflowMax vs Xero Projects vs Projectworks for NZ firms
WorkflowMax prices in NZD, Xero Projects rides on Xero Ultimate, Projectworks bills in USD with a 10-user floor. Which fits a firm under 20 staff.
Employment Hero pricing in NZ, plan by plan
Employment Hero prices in NZD, HR Essentials from $9 to HR Engage at $13 a month per user; Elite and payroll are quote-only. Who it suits under 20 staff.
Smartly pricing in NZ, plan by plan
Smartly prices in dollars with no currency code shown, DIY payroll from $2.60 to managed payroll at $6.20 a pay, per employee. Who it suits under 20 staff.
PayHero pricing in NZ, plan by plan
PayHero prices in NZD, Origin from $4 to Universe at $7 a month per employee, plus a base fee. What each tier includes and who it suits under 20 staff.
Deputy pricing in NZ, plan by plan
Deputy has no NZD price list, New Zealand bills in AUD: Lite from $6.75 to Pro at $13 a month per user. What each tier includes and who it suits under 20 staff.
MYOB pricing in NZ, plan by plan
MYOB Business plans in NZD, Lite from $35 to AccountRight Premier at $120 a month. Where inventory lives and what Acumatica is.
Katana Cloud Inventory pricing in NZ, explained
Katana Cloud Inventory prices in USD, free up to 30 SKUs, Core from $299 a month. What it includes and who it suits under 20 staff.
Cin7 Core pricing in NZ, plan by plan
Cin7 Core prices in USD only, Standard $349 to Advanced $1,199 a month. What each tier includes and who it suits under 20 staff.
Unleashed pricing in NZ, plan by plan
Unleashed Software prices in NZD, Core from $449 to Pro at $819 a month. What each tier includes and who it suits under 20 staff.
What law practice management software costs a small NZ firm
What Actionstep, LEAP, Smokeball and other NZ options publish on price for a small law firm, compared with building the register on Microsoft 365.
Smokeball pricing in NZ, plan by plan
Smokeball has no New Zealand site or NZD price list. Its published Australian tiers run AUD 59 to AUD 249 a user a month, what that means here.
LEAP pricing in NZ, plan by plan
LEAP's New Zealand site carries no pricing page at all, only a demo booking. What that means for a small firm working out the real cost.
Actionstep pricing in NZ, plan by plan
Actionstep shows no price on its own NZ pricing page or anywhere else. What is public about the plans, and what a small NZ firm can expect to pay.
Total Synergy pricing in NZ, plan by plan
Total Synergy publishes no prices, just Business and Enterprise tiers behind a demo booking.
Abtrac pricing in NZ, plan by plan
Abtrac starts at $47 a month, tapering to $3.25 a user. What the unlabelled currency means for your quote.
Projectworks pricing in NZ, plan by plan
Projectworks prices in USD, $17 to $41 a user a month, minimum 10 seats.
Xero Projects pricing in NZ, plan by plan
Xero Projects rides on Xero Ultimate, NZ$135 a month for 10 users. What it covers and the cheaper paths.
WorkflowMax pricing in NZ, plan by plan
WorkflowMax by BlueRock runs NZ$13.89 to NZ$45 a user a month. What each tier includes and who it suits.
What's the best way to send job status updates automatically?
One flow updates the customer the moment the job's status changes, so the phone stops ringing.
How do I stop chasing clients for the same document twice?
One flow chases the outstanding document and stops the moment it lands, so you never ask twice.
How to ask customers for a Google review after a job (email and text wording)
Wording you can copy, Google's rule on who to ask, and a drafted request you check before it goes.
How can I automatically rebook regular clients like pest control or lawn care?
One flow watches the last service date and rebooks the client before they think to call.
How do I get customers to send photos and details with their quote request?
One form with a photo upload and an address field ends the back-and-forth before you call them.
How do I make sure website enquiries get answered the same day?
One flow catches the form the second it lands and replies before the customer rings to chase it.
How do I know if my business website is outdated?
Six signs it's time, and what a rebuild costs against the maintenance bill you're already paying.
How do I manage client applications and paperwork without losing track?
One table tracks every application by stage and tells the client where it's at, automatically.
How do I stop leads going cold after the first enquiry?
One flow answers fast and checks back on a schedule, so the enquiry never just sits there.
How do I stop taking booking calls all day?
A Bookings page and one flow can take the call for you, inside the Microsoft 365 you already pay for.
Connecting Xero to Power BI: there is no native connector, and the three real routes
Power BI has no built-in Xero connector. The three ways a small NZ firm gets Xero data into a report, what each costs, and which to pick.
Power Platform for a small NZ law firm: matters, documents and the register nobody keeps
What a 5 to 20 person NZ law firm builds on Microsoft 365 (matter intake, the conflicts and compliance register, client document collection with an audit trail), what practice software already does, and the licence line.
Power Platform for a small NZ accounting practice: what to build, and what Xero already does
The three builds that pay for a 5 to 20 person practice (client onboarding, document chasing, the compliance calendar), the licence line, and what Xero already does.
Power Platform for a small NZ engineering consultancy: the three things worth building
The three systems worth building on the Microsoft 365 an engineering consultancy under 20 staff already pays for, what each costs, and what to leave in Excel.
Power BI on Dataverse for a 10-person firm: NZ$22.60 a user, and the three reports that matter
Power BI Pro is NZ$22.60 per user per month. Who actually needs it, how it reads Dataverse and SharePoint, and the three reports to build first.
Dataverse or Azure SQL for a small NZ business: when you genuinely need a database
Azure SQL is the alternative when the logic lives in T-SQL. What each costs a 5 to 20 staff NZ firm, and the one row that decides it.
Windows Server 2016 loses free updates on 12 January 2027: the paid years, and the cheaper exit
Free updates end 12 January 2027; three paid years announced, no price yet. What a 5 to 20 staff NZ firm does with the box, and when to skip the ESU.
SQL Server Express limits: 10 GB, or 50 GB on 2025
SQL Server 2025 Express allows 50 GB per database on Windows; older Express and Linux stop writing at 10 GB. What breaks, and the four ways out.
Access 2016 and 2019 are out of support: keep the database, move the application
Support ended 14 October 2025. The .accdb file is fine; the program opening it is not. Three ways forward for a small NZ firm, priced.
Power Apps pay-as-you-go in NZ: USD 10 per active user, and when it beats the licence
USD 10 per person per app per month, only in months they open it, billed through Azure. The maths against NZ$32.40 Premium, and the break-even.
Business Central, or a Power App on top of Xero?
NZ$129.40 per user per month plus an implementation. Most firms under 20 staff asking about it need a job system on Xero, not new accounting. How to tell.
Microsoft Lists, a Power App, or a Form: which one the office manager actually needs
When a Microsoft List is enough, when a Form and a flow beat both, and when a Power App earns its build cost. All on the licence you already pay for.
Power Apps vs Airtable, Notion and monday.com for a 10-person NZ team
If you already pay for Microsoft 365, Power Apps on SharePoint costs nothing extra. When the others still win, and the yearly cost for 10 people.
What Power Pages costs a small NZ business, and when a client portal is overkill
NZ$323.60 a month per site for 100 logged-in users, NZ$121.30 for 500 anonymous. What that buys, the cheaper alternatives, and when to build one.
Site photos to invoice: the job-photo workflow
How a photo taken on site becomes the proof on the invoice without anyone renaming files: the tools that do it, and the one habit that makes it work.
Excel too slow or crashing? When it runs the business
Excel slow or keeps crashing? Why a big file struggles, what to tidy first, and the signs it has become your system of record and what to move out first.
The 90-day payback test: the method behind the ROI calculator
The arithmetic inside the Kove ROI calculator, why 90 days is the bar, and how to run the test on your own numbers before you build.
Fixed price vs hourly for custom software in NZ
How each pricing model shifts risk between you and the builder, what fixed scope actually means, and why I price the way I do.
Questions to ask before hiring an automation consultant in NZ
Twelve questions that separate a builder from a reseller, what a good answer sounds like, and the ones I would want to be asked.
ChatGPT for tradies: five real uses, three traps
Five things ChatGPT genuinely does well for a NZ trade business, three ways it goes wrong, and the one rule that keeps client data out of it.
AI phone agents and receptionists in NZ: what is real in 2026
What an AI phone answerer can and cannot do for a NZ trade business in 2026, what it costs, and the missed-call maths behind the decision.
What an AI agent actually costs to run, in tokens and NZD
Plain-English arithmetic for a small NZ business: what a token is, what a real agent burns in a day, and the monthly bill in NZD.
The Xero features nobody switches on
Bank rules, repeating invoices and invoice reminders are already in your Xero plan. What each one does, how to set it up, and the hours it hands back.
Receipt capture: Hubdoc vs Dext vs typing it in
What Hubdoc and Dext actually do with a supplier invoice, what each costs a NZ business, and when typing it in is still the right answer.
Best Xero add-ons for NZ trades in 2026
The Xero add-ons worth paying for in a NZ trade business, only tools already checked on this site: job management, receipt capture, and what you already have.
Xero Projects as the WorkflowMax replacement: a fit assessment
Xero Projects is the obvious landing spot after WorkflowMax. Where it fits a NZ services firm, where it falls short, and what to do about the gap.
Job management software for NZ builders
LBP records, consent inspections, variations and progress claims: what NZ builders need from job software.
Job management software for NZ plumbers and gasfitters
Gas certificates, PGDB licensing and backflow records: what plumbers and gasfitters need from job software.
Job management software for NZ electricians
CoCs, ESCs and call-out volume: what NZ electricians should judge job software on.
How I run a squad of coding agents
Four coding agents, one person, and the rules that stop them making a mess.
MCP explained without the protocol talk
A standard plug socket between an AI assistant and your systems. What it is, and what it is not.
Your process, written down where an agent can read it
Store your process in Dataverse so an agent follows it instead of guessing.
Microsoft shipped Dataverse skills for coding agents. What each one does.
Eight task skills for a coding agent, from schema changes to bulk data loads. What each one covers.
I pointed Claude at my Dataverse. Here is what it can reach.
How to switch on the Dataverse MCP server, what an agent can reach, and who pays for the calls.
Two makers can now edit the same canvas app. What that turns off.
Up to 10 makers in one canvas app at once. What it gives you, and the ten things it turns off.
Kitchen joinery quoting: where the hours actually go
A kitchen quote is six jobs pretending to be one. Where the time goes for a small NZ joinery shop, and which steps automate cleanly.
Tradify to Xero: what syncs natively and what you still do by hand
What the Tradify and Xero integration moves in each direction, what it never touches, and where a small automation fills the gaps.
Several people in one Excel workbook? What to use instead, with NZ costs
Too many people in one Excel workbook? When a SharePoint list, a Power App or Dataverse replaces it for a small NZ firm, with NZD costs and the decision tree.
Why the big Microsoft consultancies will not take your small migration, and what to expect at each size of provider
A 7-person firm does not need an enterprise agreement to move a database into Microsoft 365. What the large partners are built for, and the alternative.
What Power Automate actually costs a small NZ business, premium connectors included
Free with Microsoft 365 until it is not. The NZD prices, the connectors that trigger them, and worked totals for 5, 10 and 20 people.
SQL Server 2016 is now unsupported: what to do if it still runs your business
Support ended 14 July 2026. What that means for a small NZ business, what paid updates cost, and the three realistic ways off it.
What to use instead of an Access database in Microsoft 365, and how to move it
Not sure what replaces Access? SharePoint lists or Dataverse with a Power App, how to choose, how to migrate the data, and what a small NZ firm pays.
Windows Server 2012 R2 lost its last security updates on 13 October 2026: what a small NZ business does next
The last security updates ended 13 October 2026. The four options for a 5 to 20 staff NZ firm still running one, and what each costs.
Moving a SQL Server database into Microsoft 365: what transfers, what breaks, what it costs
Which parts of a SQL Server system move to SharePoint or Dataverse, what has to be rebuilt, and what it costs a 5 to 20 person NZ firm.
What is actually new in Dataverse in 2026
MCP server GA, a Python SDK, agent identities in Entra, and business data inside M365 Copilot. The 2026 Dataverse changes that matter, minus the launch-video gloss.
Power BI vs Excel for job profitability
Excel answers what happened to one job. Power BI answers which jobs keep making you money. The crossover, and the licensing that catches firms out.
Teams Approvals or a Power Automate flow?
The Approvals app covers one-step sign-offs without building anything. The moment you need stages, conditions or audit depth, you need a flow. The line between.
Dataverse for Teams vs the real thing: the limits that bite
Dataverse for Teams is free with M365 and capped hard: 2GB a team, about a million rows, no API. Where those walls sit and when to upgrade.
GeoOp is winding down. Here is where NZ crews land
GeoOp and GeoNext stopped taking new users after the Access Group takeover. What that means for NZ crews still on it, and how to pick a landing spot.
SimPRO or Tradify: the complexity crossover
Tradify is priced and built for jobs. SimPRO is quoted and built for projects. The crossover is the shape of your work, not just the size of your crew.
SimPRO pricing in NZ: there is no sticker price
SimPRO does not publish prices. What a quote is actually built from, what NZ reviewers report paying, and the questions to ask before you accept a quote.
NextMinute pricing in NZ: the crew-band maths
NextMinute bills by crew band: $199 a month covers three to nine people. Why band pricing beats per-user for a growing crew, and where the band jumps land.
Fergus pricing in NZ, plan by plan
Fergus starts around $53 a month, Professional from $75, timesheet-only seats from $26. How the plans split, and when the base plan is genuinely enough.
Tradify pricing in NZ: what $48 a user actually buys
Tradify runs NZ$48, $52 or $62 a user a month across three tiers. What each tier adds, the add-on costs, and where per-user billing stops making sense.
Copilot Business price in NZ, and Business vs Enterprise: is it worth it?
Copilot Business is NZ$34.00 a user a month against NZ$48.50 for the Enterprise add-on: what differs, and the seat-by-seat test for a small NZ firm.
Copilot and a Copilot Studio agent are not the same thing
M365 Copilot is a per-seat assistant over Office. A Copilot Studio agent is a purpose-built bot for one job, priced by usage. Mixing them up means buying the wrong one.
Copilot Studio pricing for NZ firms, 2026
Copilot Studio is priced by consumption, not seats. A worked NZ cost estimate, what counts as a billed credit, and when a Power Automate flow is cheaper.
When a Power Automate flow beats a Copilot Studio agent
Not every automation needs a chat window. Three jobs that look like Copilot Studio agent work but run cheaper and more reliably as a Power Automate flow.
Grounding an agent on SharePoint without leaking half the intranet
How Copilot Studio checks permissions when an agent is grounded on SharePoint, where oversharing sneaks in, how to scope it, and how to test it safely.
Why my agent kept giving confident wrong answers
Why a Copilot Studio agent gave confident wrong answers, and how I fixed retrieval by restructuring the source content instead of rewriting the prompt.
The Copilot Studio message meter, and how to avoid a surprise bill
How Copilot Studio message billing works: what counts as a message, where capacity disappears fastest, and how to cap and monitor cost before it surprises you.
SharePoint or Dataverse. Ask this one question first
Most firms under 20 staff default to Dataverse because it sounds more proper, then pay for capability they never use. One question actually decides it.
Canvas, model-driven, or a code app. Pick by the shape of your data.
Canvas, model-driven and code apps solve the same problem three ways. Pick on the shape of your data rather than on which one demos best.
Power Apps code apps: when React beats a canvas app
Power Apps code apps ship a real React front end with Dataverse and connectors behind it, GA since Feb 2026. What you keep, what you take on, and when canvas still wins.
What a custom Power App actually costs in New Zealand
Power Apps quotes for the same brief vary wildly in NZ, because the build is rarely the biggest line. Licensing, connectors and Dataverse usually are.
Premium connectors: the Power Platform bill nobody budgets for
A flow that works fine in testing can suddenly need a paid licence for everyone who touches it. What's premium in Power Automate, and how to check first.
Power Automate vs Zapier vs Make vs n8n. Pick based on what you already pay for.
Power Automate, Zapier and Make all move data between apps. For most businesses the right pick comes down to what you already pay for, not which tool wins.
When Power Platform is the wrong answer
Power Platform is built for internal workflow, not high transaction volume, public apps for anonymous users, or jobs an off-the-shelf tool already does.
Microsoft 365 Business Basic vs Standard vs Premium (NZ), and where Copilot fits
Which Microsoft 365 plan a small NZ firm needs: Business Basic, Standard or Premium in NZ dollars, and where Copilot Business fits on top.
Your tenant has 200 flows and nobody owns them
Every Power Platform tenant accumulates flows no one remembers building. What breaks when the owner leaves, and how to inventory a tenant for free.
SharePoint lists are not a database, until they are
The 5,000-item list view threshold isn't the real limit; an index fixes that. Lookups, concurrency, delegation and reporting are what actually stop a list.
Dataverse security roles, explained with a real example
Dataverse security roles explained through one real scenario: a consultant, a team lead and a practice manager who each need to see something different.
Power Platform ALM when the team is one person
Power Platform ALM explained at solo-builder scale: which environments you need, managed vs unmanaged solutions, and Pipelines instead of manual exports.
Xero job costing and job tracking for trades
Xero job costing and job tracking for NZ trades: what Xero, Tradify, Fergus and ServiceM8 give you, and the timing gap that breaks it on staged jobs.
Nobody automates the quote. Everybody automates the invoice
Trade tools nail invoice sync to Xero. Almost none automate the quote itself, the slowest, most margin-critical step in winning the job. The few exceptions, and what they cover.
What ServiceM8 actually costs once your crew grows
ServiceM8 charges by job volume, not per seat. Here's exactly where that crosses over per-user pricing like Tradify, worked in real numbers. NZD, July 2026.
NextMinute or Tradify. Depends what you are building.
NextMinute suits staged residential builds with progress claims. Tradify suits fast turnaround jobs. How to tell which one fits you, plus 2026 NZ pricing.
Ascora or NextMinute. Same job, different bones.
Ascora and NextMinute both handle staged building projects with variations and progress claims. How they differ, real NZ pricing, and the support gap on one of them.
What a Workflow Review actually gets you
A Workflow Review is a paid, two-week engagement that ends in a written plan: what to automate first, what it saves, what it costs. What the two weeks look like.
ServiceM8 bills by the job. Tradify bills by the person.
Quoting, scheduling, timesheets, Xero sync and pricing at 5 to 20 staff, worked out with real numbers. A straight read from someone who sells neither.
Fergus vs Tradify vs ServiceM8 vs simPRO for NZ tradies, plus a fifth nobody sells you
Fergus, Tradify, ServiceM8 and simPRO side by side for NZ tradies: price per user, who each suits, Xero sync and where each one falls short.
Tradify or Fergus. I get asked this constantly, and it comes down to one number.
Ease of use against job-costing depth, pricing, Xero sync, and where ServiceM8 fits instead. I don't resell either one.
Quit retyping invoices into Xero every night
The measure, quote, PDF, retype loop that eats your evenings. What off-the-shelf tools fix for free, and where a custom bridge earns its keep.
What custom automation actually costs a Canterbury trades business
The maths: weighing a build against subscriptions, why the cheapest 48-hour app rarely is, and when the numbers work.
I'm a Christchurch automation builder. Trade businesses call when their software stops fitting.
A local builder who takes the admin off Canterbury trade businesses by fixing the gaps your existing tools leave, not selling you another subscription.
A Copilot Studio agent that cut bug-fixing time by about 80%
A self-updating Copilot Studio agent on a large internal Power App. The pattern, the 85% time saving, and the part most people get wrong: keeping an agent's knowledge live.
What repetitive work could a Copilot Studio agent actually take off your team?
Two real, anonymised Copilot Studio use cases: turning a one-person spreadsheet into a shared knowledge agent, and automating the monthly policy-change check. Plus where an agent doesn't make sense.
WorkflowMax is gone. Your next tool doesn't have to be another subscription.
Two years after Xero retired WorkflowMax, plenty of NZ firms are unhappy where they landed. Your three real options, the data problem nobody mentions, and when a custom tool beats another monthly invoice.
Cut lead research from a full day to zero
An overnight pipeline across 14 NZ directories. 290 unit tests, ~$8 in API credits.
Stop typing. Tell your machine what to do
A local voice layer: dictate into any app in under half a second, and hear anything read back in a clone of your own voice.
Got a workflow worth writing about?
Book a free 30-minute call. I'll say what I'd automate first, or whether to leave it alone.
