Gareth StrettonCustom software & AI for SMBs
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Custom software & AI for small & mid-sized businesses

You bring the problem. I build the solution.

I'm a software engineer with an MBA and 16 years experience implementing and delivering commercial software. I work out what's actually worth building, then I build it, so the manual work and disconnected tools slowing your business down finally run themselves, instead of running you. Where AI is the right tool for the job, I use it, and I build it into your solution.

Sound familiar?

The tools that got you this far are now the thing slowing you down. Left alone, it doesn't settle down, it builds: the lost hours add up, mistakes surface at the worst moment, and the whole operation stays wired to one person's memory. Here is what that looks like, and what I turn it into.

Before

  • Orders arrive by text, email, and phone, with nowhere central to track them.
  • The same information gets typed into three systems by hand.
  • Two tools that should talk to each other don't.
  • A critical spreadsheet only one person really understands.
  • A weekly job a computer could do in seconds.
  • If you vanished for a week, would anyone know how it runs?

After

  • Every order and request lands in one place the whole team can see.
  • Information gets entered once and shows up everywhere it is needed.
  • Your tools talk to each other, so nobody plays middleman.
  • What one person knows lives in the system, for everyone.
  • The weekly busywork just happens, untouched.
  • You can step away for a week and the business keeps running.

How it works

1

We talk it through

You tell me what's slow, manual, or expensive. I ask questions until we get past the symptom to what's actually causing it. No jargon, no assumptions.

2

I find the real fix

Sometimes that's custom software. Sometimes it's a tool you can buy, a step worth automating, or a job an AI model can genuinely do. You get a straight answer on build, buy, or automate, even when the answer earns me nothing.

3

I build it around how you work

Then I build it, shaped to your actual process instead of a product you bend to fit. You end up with something that ships, works, and quietly does the job.

Why work with me

Gareth Stretton

Hi, I'm Gareth. I was born in New Zealand and I'm now a naturalized US citizen, living on the New Hampshire Seacoast with my wife and daughter. I've spent 16 years building software inside large companies and start-ups, and I know what it's like to watch good people lose hours to work a computer should be doing. You shouldn't have to be the glue holding your business together. That's the part I fix.

I help small to medium businesses stuck with manual, disconnected tools get custom software that runs itself, without hiring an I.T. department.

Most software gets built by people who understand the code but not the business, or the business but not the code. Either way, you end up as the translator in the middle, and things get lost there. I do both, so that step disappears.

My experience spans companies like Oracle Health, Charter, and Centura Health, and it's paired with an MBA in strategy, product, and finance. The same engineering that holds up in a hospital or a bank works just as well for a five-person team. I don't guess at problems, either. Across healthcare, telecom, banking, and government, my job has often been to sit down with people, figure out what they actually need, and then build it. I build with AI models directly, so I know where they hold up and where they fall over.

You work directly with me from the first call to the final handover, and I'm still here when you have questions later.

Where I've built production software

Oracle Health Charter Communications CenturyLink Centura Health

A few things I've built

Real work, real outcomes

  • Public health systems, under deadline

    During COVID I built the systems a hospital network used to register the public for vaccines and screen staff for exposure. Built fast, when it mattered most, and relied on by thousands of people.

  • Live hospital dashboards

    Replaced the manual whiteboards on hospital walls with live screens showing what's happening across the floor, minute to minute.

  • Document systems for banks and government

    Systems that let banks, a national tax agency, and energy companies store and find huge volumes of records in seconds instead of hours.

  • BidWrangler, built solo from problem to prototype

    A working prototype that takes the email-and-spreadsheet scramble of requesting, comparing, and approving vendor bids and puts it in one place. I found the problem by talking to people about their work, then designed and built the whole thing myself, front to back.

In their words

What people I've worked with say

  • "He is a very rare combination of skill, speed, and thoroughness. It is comforting to know that when Gareth gets something done, it works, it's tested, it's completely documented, and it's clearly thought out. He is probably the easiest person with whom I have ever worked."
    Mike BassTechnology Leader · Centura Health
  • "Throughout three different client engagements, he earned a consistent reputation in the highest regard... It has been an absolute pleasure getting to work with Gareth, and see the positive impact he makes."
    Kyle BurnsSr. Strategic Sales Executive · Apex Systems
  • "Gareth is good at solving tricky technical problems without losing sight of the overall goals. He thinks things through and explains his ideas clearly to the team."
    Neil BelangerSenior Software Engineer · Oracle
  • "His documentation has helped everyone on our team be more productive... He would be an integral part of any team and will provide value on day one."
    Valli KumarPrincipal Solutions Architect · Centura Health
  • "I was impressed with Gareth's adaptability and efficiency. He effortlessly jumped between different technologies and delivered results quickly."
    Russell UzalSenior QA Engineer · Centura Health
  • "During my career, he is the only software engineer I have met who documented the design and test requirements to the code he wrote. He has made many engineers' life easier."
    Yu Ming ChangSenior Test Automation Engineer · Charter Communications

Before you reach out

A few questions you might have

Is my business too small to benefit?
Probably not. Small teams often get the biggest gains, because there's no IT department to lean on. A tool that gives you back your time is worth building.
What will it cost?
Every project gets a clear, fixed scope before any work starts, so you'll know the number up front and won't get a surprise invoice. It's built to be a fraction of the value it delivers, so it pays for itself.
I'm not technical. Is that a problem?
Not at all. Most of the people I work with aren't. My job is to handle the technical side and explain the rest in plain language.
Everyone is selling AI. Do I need it?
Only where it solves a problem you actually have. I use AI in how I build, which is part of why one engineer can take on work that used to need a team. Whether AI belongs inside your business is a separate question, and sometimes the answer is no. When the answer is yes, reading messy paperwork, drafting replies, sorting requests as they arrive, I'll build it in and tell you plainly where it needs a human looking over its shoulder.
What if you decide you can't help?
I'll say so up front. I would rather point you elsewhere than sell you something that won't fix the problem.
Where are you based, and do you work remotely?
Newmarket, New Hampshire. I work with clients wherever they are, and I'm happy to meet in person around the Seacoast.

Let's talk

Start with a short conversation

The best place to start is a short call about where things feel slow, manual, or expensive. Thirty minutes, no pitch. We'll talk it through and figure out whether I can help. If I can't, I'll point you to who can.

Prefer to write it down first? Email me the details and we'll take it from there.