Understand the operation.
Working in operations taught me that the brake is rarely where it first appears, so I start with the e-mails, payments, channels and people, and only then decide what to build.
OutputA map of the real operation
Custom software for companies where manual operations stopped being enough.
From an operations problem
to a system
that works.
For owners and operations leads whose people still retype data, chase payments, bookings or deadlines, and bridge tools that do not talk to each other.
Web applications, native iOS apps and backends delivered from design through development to deployment – with no handover between an analyst, an agency and a developer.
Public examplesFreelax – Datové schránky iOSFreelax WebApartmány Míla Web
01 / Does this sound familiar?
Manual bookings, retyped data and the connection that is missing. If you recognise yourself, we have something to talk about.
Five moments where the current setup stops being enough.
No attack on any particular tool, just a description of the situation.
01Working website
You have a website, but everything behind it is still handled by hand.
Enquiries land in e-mail, orders get retyped, payments are watched on the side. The site only presents; it does no work for you.
02Booking · records
You lose orders or bookings because nobody reached them in time.
E-mail, Booking.com, phone, a calendar kept by hand. Something falls through, and you cannot say exactly where.
03Accounting · automation
You check payments, invoices or accounting data by hand.
Matching in a spreadsheet, retyping into the accounting system, chasing differences, surcharges and cancellations. Hours a week disappear into work a system should be watching.
04Custom system
Off-the-shelf software makes you work against your own operation.
Exports to spreadsheets, workarounds, the same records kept twice. The software was supposed to save time; every month it takes more.
05Mobile app
You need to know what is urgent even when you are away from the computer.
Official deadlines, dates and confirmations do not wait until you reach a laptop. On the road you work blind from your phone and hope nothing important slips.
02 / How I work
Custom software does not start with technology. It starts with what slows you down.
The same approach for a booking system, a tax SaaS and a native iOS app.
The technology changes, the way of working does not.
Decide what makes sense.
Sometimes custom software. Sometimes an integration. Sometimes a better off-the-shelf tool. The goal is not to build at any cost, it is a calm operation. When an existing tool is enough, I say so.
OutputA scope that makes sense
Deliver the result.
The result is not a document or a proposal. It is a working site, app or system that takes over a specific part of the work, is tested against real situations and can be operated afterwards.
OutputA system in production
03 / Projects
Not just good-looking sites. Booking systems and operational tools that do the work.
Three publicly available systems. For each one I separate what is publicly verifiable from impact that would need measurement and the client’s permission.
Own product in production
Freelax – Datové schránky
Open inApp StoreApp Store name: Freelax - Data Box Client
The data box as a work queue. Priorities, tasks and decisive data on the phone.
A native iOS client built from the ISDS layer through priorities and a local archive up to widgets and biometric unlocking.
Problem
The Czech data box has a statutory delivery regime. Signing in as an authorised person can trigger delivery, and without signing in delivery can occur by legal fiction, so the app must never present an indicative notification as the decisive state in ISDS.
What was built
The app separates the e-mail signal from a live ISDS fetch and gives the user a working overview of priorities, attachments and items to handle.
Verifiable result
An e-mail notification does not itself cause delivery. The decisive delivery data and deadlines stay in ISDS and in the original document; the app uses them as a basis for work, not as a replacement for the official source.
Why it is relevant
An example of a system where operational simplicity rests on correctly designed boundaries, privacy and handling of exceptions.
Swift 6SwiftUICore DataISDS SOAPKeychainWidgetKit
App Store · own product02
Freelax
Control over the tax year for freelancers and expats.
Problem
Czech freelancers often deal with income tax, insurance, the VAT threshold and annual statements only in hindsight. Expats add the language barrier and the Czech rules on top of that.
What was built
A year-round overview built from real income, supported by a documented method and a public knowledge base in Czech and English.
Verifiable result
The production SaaS at freelax.cz shows the running trajectory of the year and explains which rules and inputs it is based on.
Why it is relevant
An example of a long-running product that combines domain rules, payments, content and user accounts.
Next.js 16TypeScriptMongoDBStripePWA
freelax.cz · own product03
Apartmány Míla
A static website became an owned booking channel.
Problem
Bookings, availability, payments, confirmations and calendars were handled through e-mails, Booking.com and spreadsheets.
What was built
I designed and delivered the website, the booking flow and the operational administration, with Booking.com synchronisation, confirmations and protection against double booking enforced by the database.
Verifiable result
Today there is a publicly verifiable booking channel of their own and a production operating system. I do not publish a quantified business impact without measurement and the client’s permission.
Why it is relevant
The closest example of client work where one supplier connected the customer-facing site, payments, integrations and everyday administration.
Payments today
The payment flow through GoPay, including the refund on cancellation, is built and covered by unit tests: the dates are held briefly while payment runs and the payment is confirmed independently in three places, by the gateway notification, by the guest returning to the site and by a background check. The gateway is still waiting to be activated, so bookings are completed by phone or e-mail today.
ReactFastifyPostgreSQLGoPayBooking.com iCalBrevoSentry
Client project · public website04 / Who this fits
I take projects with a clear problem and an accountable owner.
For small changes with no operational impact I am probably not the best choice.
It is fairer to say so now than after two weeks of meetings.
Good fit
- You have a specific problem that already costs money, time or growth.
- The project has a clear owner who can decide.
- You want a partner who does the research and takes it into production.
- We agree the goal, the scope and the price up front – no surprises on the invoice.
- You want to work directly with the person who analyses the problem and also builds the solution.
Not a fit
- You are looking for a studio for a corporate marketing website.
- A template tweak or a WordPress plugin is enough for you.
- You need the whole direction worked out for free first.
- You want ongoing work billed by the hour.
- You are looking for free work in exchange for a reference or a portfolio piece.
05 / Working together
What does custom software cost? First we make the problem clear, then the price holds.
We start by e-mail. When the operation has to be untangled first, we continue with an operations diagnosis. Once the scope is agreed you know what you get, when it will be ready and what it costs. No creeping increases, no open-ended hourly meter.
I am not a VAT payer. The prices shown are final.
By your situation
Optional stepFor when it is not clear what is worth building. With a clear brief you skip it.
Operations diagnosis
35 000 Kčone-off · typically 3–5 business days
You feel a brake in the operation but do not know whether to buy a ready-made tool, connect the systems you already have, automate manual work, or have something custom built. We go through the operation together and you get a clear recommendation. Sometimes the outcome is a recommendation to use an existing tool, and that is where it ends.
Output
- Process map
- Recommended direction
- Risks and dependencies
- Investment estimate
- First step
If we continue with delivery within 30 days, I deduct 50 % of the diagnosis price from the first invoice.
Delivery
Start with one complete flow
You have one specific process or customer step that you want running in production without a large build.
from 80 000 Kčtypically 4–7 weeks · fixed scopefor the smallest production scope
- One clearly bounded process or data flow
- Production deployment and the controls it needs
- Testing of the main flow and the agreed error states against real situations
- Project handover
- 30 days from production launch to fix reproducible defects against the agreed scope
Outside defect fixing: New features, changes of brief, third-party service outages and long-term operational care are handled separately.
What drives the price
- Number and complexity of integrations
- Number of exceptions and error states
- How much administration or control is needed
Example of a possible scope: booking → payment → confirmation and access for one site; enquiry → check → handover; or one verified data flow between existing services.
I do not build brochure sites or template websites. Every delivery contains concrete operational logic or an integration.
A system that takes over a whole part of the operation
You need a complete system with several roles, states or integrations. It works with history, exceptions or data migration and is used by several people or parts of the company.
200 000 – 500 000 Kčtypically 6–12 weeks · payment by milestones
- A complete web application, internal tool, backend or native app
- Roles, permissions, administration and change history as needed
- Integrations, data migration and handling of error states within the agreed scope
- Deployment, training, documentation and handover
- 30 days from production launch to fix reproducible defects against the agreed scope
Outside defect fixing: New features, changes of brief, third-party service outages and long-term operational care are handled separately.
What drives the price
- Roles and permissions
- Number and complexity of integrations
- State, quality and migration of data
- Operational criticality and the depth of testing required
Larger brief
First we split it into separate phases
I do not start a larger brief with a nine-month commitment. First we pick the part that can work on its own and price it as a phase of its own.
- A first independently usable phase with its own scope, price and date
- The decision to continue, change direction or stop follows the result
Every phase ends in a deployed result that can be handed over.
The contract sets in advance which bespoke code, documentation, accounts, data and third-party licence boundaries are handed over.
If a project needs a parallel team, several specialisations or platforms, an enterprise regime or round-the-clock support, I say so immediately and recommend a team or an agency as the safer form of delivery.
Send your problem for reviewOperational care
After launch
You are using a system I delivered and you optionally want to agree operations, updates and problem solving in advance.
from 15 000 Kčmonthly · per the service agreement
Two options after handover
- Handover of the system, with individual work ordered as needed
- An optional service agreement for continuous supervision and care
- Supervision of availability and the agreed operational signals
- Checking that backups ran and applying technical or security updates per the service agreement
- Response times, responsibilities and the scope of intervention are set by the specific service agreement
- A monthly overview of the state and recommended steps
Condition: The entry minimum applies only to a system I delivered.
Operational care is not mandatory. The system can be handed over and individual work ordered as needed. New features, larger changes, hosting, domains, licences and paid APIs are outside the monthly fee. Taking over somebody else’s system is not part of the entry package.
The first e-mail is free and without obligation. I will say whether the problem is worth solving, what I still need to know and what the next step should be. The concrete scope and price are confirmed once I understand the situation well enough.
Send your problem for review06 / About
Jan Piskač. An operations person who builds systems.
I do not start with technology. I start with how the work actually runs: who retypes what, where the errors appear, what is checked by hand and where the time goes.
Experience with operations, logistics and customer service in London taught me to look at the real work first and at technology second.
Today I build my own products and client projects across web, iOS and backend. I sell the result, not technologies or hours; the scope of the handover of code, documentation, accounts and data is agreed in the contract in advance.
07 / Questions
Questions people ask before the first message.
If your question is not here, write to me. I answer directly in e-mail, or we set up a call about it.
Why do you not bill by the hour?
Because on projects like these you are buying a result, not time at a keyboard. First we bound the problem, the risks and the expected output. Then you get a price for a specific step, with no unpredictable hourly meter.
What if I do not know exactly what I need?
The first e-mail is free and without obligation. Describe in your own words what slows you down today. Within 48 hours I will tell you whether the problem fits, what information I am missing and what I recommend as the next step. A call comes once we both have something to talk about.
Do you build both web and Apple apps?
I build where it makes sense for your situation. The public portfolio covers production web systems and a native iOS app. I choose the technology after the problem, the operation and the people who will use the result.
I am not technical. Is that a problem?
No. Your job is to describe the operational problem in your own words. My job is to turn it into a scope you can follow, name the risks and propose something that can be run safely.
Do you work in English?
Yes. Written communication, documentation and calls work in English or Czech. The binding privacy notice and the contract framework are published in Czech on the Czech version of this site; the English wording here is there so the offer is clear before we start.
How long does it take?
It depends on the scope. One thing in production takes typically 4–7 weeks · fixed scope. A new custom system takes typically 6–12 weeks · payment by milestones. A larger brief is first split into an independently usable phase with its own price and date. The concrete scope and price are confirmed once I understand the situation well enough.
What happens after delivery? Who will operate it?
Delivery projects are followed by 30 days from production launch to fix reproducible defects against the agreed scope. New features, changes of brief, third-party service outages and long-term operational care are handled separately. After that I either hand the system over and you order further work as needed, or we optionally agree operational care. On larger briefs, every phase ends in a deployed result that can be handed over. The contract sets in advance which bespoke code, documentation, accounts, data and third-party licence boundaries are handed over.
What if it turns out that something different is needed?
If the brief changes, I say so immediately. I hold the agreed scope. When we hit a larger change, we stop, name the effect on price and date, and you decide whether to continue.
08 / Contact
Something slowing you down? Send it to me in your own words.
You do not need a technical brief. A short description is enough: what you handle manually today, where the errors appear and what it costs you in time or money. The first e-mail is free and without obligation. Within 48 hours I will tell you whether the problem fits, what information I am missing and what I recommend as the next step.
01
You describe the problem in your own words.The questions in the prepared e-mail are a guide, not a mandatory form.
02
Within 48 hours you get a first answer.I will say whether the problem fits, what I still need to know and what I recommend next.
03
If it fits, we add the context that is missing.Do not send sensitive documents in the first contact. We agree a safe route first.
04
The concrete scope and price are confirmed once I understand the situation well enough.If the project does not make economic sense, I say so directly.