CIO / CFO / IT buyer · Compare SI time-and-materials/retainer with the Skalp credit model

SI time-and-materials/retainer vs Skalp AI credit model — who bears the risk?

In time-and-materials or retainer mode, you pay for time spent or availability — never for the delivered outcome.

TL;DR

SI time-and-materials and retainer vs Skalp AI credit model for D365 F&O: billing unit, risk, visibility, outcome-based payment. Factual comparison.

Join the waitlist

Microsoft D365 F&O expertise

10 ans

D365 F&O

1 credit / ticket

≈ €200, degressive in packsA ticket is resolved when SKALP AI successfully develops exactly what was defined during the needs analysis phase and tests pass — ticket handled + code or deliverable made available.

vs €800-1,200 at a typical SI

48 h

Average delivery time

Azure DevOps

Validated by your IT

The problem with your current vendor

SI models shift the risk onto the buyer

✗Time-and-materials bills days, with no result or deadline commitment.
✗The retainer dilutes the unit cost and bills peaks on top.
✗Budget hard to forecast and to challenge in governance.

How SKALP solves it

The credit: a transparent unit price, paid on outcome

✓1 credit (≈ €200, degressive in packs) per developed ticket, the same whatever the complexity.
✓No volume commitment or deposit; cost follows real consumption.
✓Outcome-based payment: unresolved = not billed. The risk is reversed.

How it works

Submit your ticket

Describe the business or technical need in a few lines. No 50-page spec required.

AI generates the extension

X++ code, unit tests and documentation produced in under 48 hours.

Validation on your Azure DevOps

Pull request submitted on your repository. Your IT lead reviews and validates before merge.

Delivered — 1 credit (≈ €200)

The credit is only consumed when the development is generated (smart contract). Once merged, it's delivered. No billing if the ticket isn't resolved.

The factual comparison

Criterion	SI time-and-materials / retainer	Skalp credit model
Billing unit	Person-day or monthly retainer	1 credit (≈ €200) per developed ticket
Overrun risk	High (uncapped time)	None (fixed price per ticket)
Unit-cost visibility	Diluted / variable	Transparent, same on every ticket
Volume commitment	Often imposed	None
Outcome-based payment	No (time or availability)	Yes (unresolved = not billed)

Frequently asked questions

Aren't the Pro and Max subscriptions a retainer?+

The Pro subscription (€1,000/mo/env.) funds the permanent connection to your context (MCP + Azure DevOps) and deployment, not the development itself, which stays per-credit and outcome-based. Basic has no subscription.

Is the credit really degressive?+

Yes: a credit is worth €200 maximum, and the unit price drops when buying in packs. You budget to the decimal (capacity × credit price).

To go deeper on the same topic, seen from other angles.

Comparisons

Submit your first ticket

1 credit (≈ €200) if resolved. Nothing if not. Chat and needs analysis free.