Monthly GIS Retainer A senior GIS engineer on call, without another hire.
Eight hours of practical geospatial support each month for the updates, analysis and troubleshooting that do not justify a full project or a full-time role. Requests are agreed before work starts and time is recorded against a clear priority list.
BEST FOR
Businesses needing regular spatial work without hiring full-time.
Small GIS jobs, handled by someone senior
Many teams need GIS capability regularly but not continuously: a map layer changes, a spreadsheet needs spatial joins, a publishing workflow stops behaving, or a stakeholder needs a one-off analysis. These jobs are easy to postpone when they each require a new supplier and procurement cycle.
The retainer creates a standing route for that work. We agree the queue, I confirm what can be achieved with the available hours, and you receive the resulting data, maps or fixes together with a concise account of how the allocation was used.
Keep maps and data current
Routine updates and small improvements happen through an established workflow rather than waiting for a new project.
Unblock your internal team
Get targeted help with spatial data, ArcGIS, QGIS, PostGIS and publishing problems when specialist knowledge would save hours.
See where the time goes
Work is agreed against priorities and summarised with the time used, so there is no opaque bucket of consulting hours.
What's included
Up to eight hours of agreed GIS work each month, drawn from the practical support areas below.
Map and layer updates
Update existing web-map data, symbology, labels, popups and configurations, or add small agreed enhancements to an established map.
Spatial data processing
Convert, clean, join, clip, reproject and validate datasets using appropriate GIS and scripting tools.
One-off spatial analysis
Answer bounded questions using buffers, overlays, proximity, spatial joins, summaries and other established analytical methods.
Technical troubleshooting
Investigate issues in existing ArcGIS, QGIS, PostGIS, FME, web-mapping or spatial data workflows and recommend or implement a bounded fix.
Advice and review
Use the allocation for a second opinion on an approach, a review of supplier outputs or practical guidance for your internal team.
Priority and time reporting
Maintain a visible request queue, confirm expectations before starting each item and provide a monthly summary of completed work and hours used.
The complete handover
You know what arrives at the end, what is needed at the start and which requests sit outside the published scope.
DELIVERABLES
A6 · Ongoing- 01
Up to eight support hours
A monthly allocation applied to the requests and priorities agreed with your nominated contact.
- 02
Agreed work outputs
The updated map, processed dataset, analysis result, configuration fix or written advice appropriate to each completed request.
- 03
Monthly work and time log
A concise record of requests completed, time applied, relevant handover notes and any items still waiting in the queue.
- 04
Next-priority recommendation
A clear view of what can sensibly be handled next month and what would be better treated as a separately scoped project.
What I need from you
- One nominated contact to approve requests, set priorities and avoid competing stakeholder queues.
- The relevant data, examples and read or edit access appropriate to each agreed task.
- Enough context to define a useful result, including who will use it and any deadline that matters.
- Timely review of completed items so questions do not consume the support allocation unnecessarily.
- Agreement before any request proceeds when it is likely to exceed the remaining monthly allocation.
FIXED PRICE · CLEAR LIMITS
Scope boundaries
- The retainer provides up to eight hours per month; larger new builds, major migrations and fixed deliverables are better handled as a separate fixed-price project.
- It does not include 24/7 monitoring, guaranteed emergency response or an uptime service-level agreement unless those terms are separately agreed in writing.
- Third-party licences, imagery, hosting and data purchases are not included in the monthly price.
- Unused-hour carry-over is not automatic; any variation or additional hours are agreed in writing before the work proceeds.
A simple monthly support rhythm
There is no artificial project theatre: requests are assessed, scheduled and recorded against the eight-hour monthly allocation.
Set the queue
Confirm the current priorities, access and expected outputs, then identify which requests fit the available allocation.
Submit and assess requests
Send work through your nominated contact. I clarify the result, estimate the effort and agree when it will be handled.
Deliver and record
Complete the agreed work, provide the output and any essential notes, and record time against the relevant request.
Review and reprioritise
Receive the work and time summary, confirm remaining priorities and identify anything that needs a separate project quote.
Questions before you book
Practical answers about this package. Anything else can be covered in the free call.
Q1 What can realistically fit into eight hours?
Examples include cleaning and converting a dataset, updating an existing map, performing a bounded spatial analysis, troubleshooting a publishing problem or reviewing a technical approach. I estimate each request first and split larger work into agreed milestones or a separate project.
Q2 Can the retainer be used to build a new map?
It can cover small enhancements or an initial investigation, but a complete new map is usually more predictable under the Interactive Web Map or Tourism Map Package. I will tell you when a fixed project is the better fit.
Q3 How do you track the hours?
Time is recorded against approved requests, including the investigation, implementation and handover needed to complete them. The monthly summary shows what was delivered and how the allocation was used.
Q4 Do unused hours roll over?
Carry-over is not automatic because the retainer reserves a monthly support allocation. If your workload is seasonal or you need a different arrangement, we can agree a specific variation in writing rather than leaving it ambiguous.
Q5 What if a request will take more than the remaining hours?
I will explain the estimate and options before proceeding: reduce the request, schedule it against a future agreed allocation, approve additional hours in writing or move it into a fixed-price project. There is no silent overage.
Continue through the schedule
Two related options, or compare all six packages.
Need regular GIS help without a full-time hire?
Bring the recurring tasks and technical bottlenecks currently waiting for attention. The free call will establish the first request queue and whether eight hours a month is the right allocation.