Answer
Is the Spec fee credited against the Build?
No. The 15,000 dollar Workflow Spec stands on its own and is not credited against a Production Build. It is priced to be worth its fee even when the answer is not to build.
Why the Spec is not a down payment
A credit would turn the Spec into a deposit on the Build, and that would change what the Spec is for. A deposit only pays off if you build. A Spec that stands on its own pays off by telling you the truth about the workflow, including when the truth is that you should not build.
So the Spec is sold as a deliverable in its own right. For 15,000 dollars, fixed, you get ten business days of work on the problem you have: observation, up to 12 interviews, baseline measurement, a workflow map, the business case, an adoption design, the build specification, a fixed Build proposal and an approval brief your sponsor can forward. You keep all of it.
What that means in practice
Because the fee is not riding on a Build, a no-go or a recommendation against building is a successful result, not a lost sale. A no-go that saves a company from building the wrong thing is worth the fee.
If the answer is go, the Build is priced separately, from 60,000 dollars and fixed in the proposal the Spec produces. The full ladder and prices are on how we work.
Questions people ask
Do we have to build with you after the Spec?
No. You keep the Spec deliverables whether or not you build with us.
Can a Spec recommend against building?
Yes. Go, no-go and recommend-against are all valid outcomes.
What does the Build cost?
From 60,000 dollars, fixed after the Spec.