A developer or team let you down?From here, you decide every step.
You've paid for software that should be working by now. We take it over, show you exactly what was built, and get it live while your business keeps running. The code, the accounts and the data stay yours.
- 100+
- products shipped
- 3 in 100
- applicants make the team
- 3×
- voted SA’s best software development company (MyBroadband, 2024–2026)
- Lesaka
- Tiger Wheel & Tyre
- Romans Pizza
- City Lodge
- Absa
- Old Mutual
- DP World
- Peermont
- Hyundai
- Nestlé
Burned before, so you're going in cautiously
The money is spent, the go-live date keeps moving out, and someone is waiting for an answer: your board, your customers or your own client. Handing it to another team feels like a second bet.
“We've been burned by previous service providers, so we're going in cautiously.”
“The requirements weren't done properly, and the developers couldn't execute on them. So it's a rescue project, unfortunately.”
“If we change anything, we're going to pull on a string and break something.”
“Our client wants a recovery plan from us next week.”
Software doesn't always turn out the way you thought it would. That isn't on you, and it can be put right.
Three steps, and you decide after each one
You never commit to the whole rescue upfront. Each step gives you evidence, and you see what the next one involves before you say yes.
- 01
Rapid assessment. A light code audit of how maintainable, scalable and secure the code is, a check of what was built against what you were promised, and a realistic estimate to finish, including whether your date can still be met. You get a summary written to share with your board or your client, and a session with our technical lead to walk you through it. You decide: stop here, go deeper, or start fixing.
- 02
Full audit and plan, when you need it. A deeper review, the fixes in priority order, the requirements for what's still to build, and a firm estimate. You decide: go ahead, change the scope, or pause.
- 03
Fix and finish, while it stays live. The features your business is waiting for and the repairs underneath, in the same sprints. Where a date is tight, a smaller first release goes out first. You decide: what goes into each release, and when the rescue is done.
You'll know exactly how much of it was built
Before you spend anything more, you should know what you actually have. We check every requirement in your original scope against the code, and mark each one.
- 01
Built: works as agreed.
- 02
Partly built: work has started but isn't finished.
- 03
Built, but not to spec: it exists, but doesn't do what was agreed.
- 04
Not built: paid for or promised, and not there.
Can't get the code from your old developer? That's common, and it doesn't stop us. We start with what you have and help you get it back.
This time, the code is built to last
Rescues usually go wrong in the same few places. These are the things we put right on every one.
- 01
Coding standards, from the first sprint. One agreed standard, and every change reviewed against it, so the code stays easy to maintain and can grow with your business. Without standards, every other problem follows.
- 02
Security, closed and tested. Gaps are fixed at the source and independently tested before go-live.
- 03
Changes you can make safely. Automated tests and releases, so fixing one thing doesn't break another.
- 04
Your code, accounts and data. Everything moves onto accounts you own, and every line of code is yours.
- 05
One technical lead who owns the design, with business analysis, design, development, QA and DevOps behind them, and support after go-live with agreed response times.
Your own developers work alongside us, and everything is written down so they can carry it forward.
Rescues we've taken all the way to live
We didn't set out to rescue projects. Clients kept bringing them to us.
- 01
Tiger Wheel & Tyre. After their previous partner let them down, we took over their live member app. It launched three months later with no outage, and they've built two more products with us since.
Read the Tiger Wheel & Tyre story → - 02
Liquid Capital. They wanted roadside help that works like a modern app. We rebuilt it as three connected apps, put them through independent penetration testing and took them live for three motor brands.
Read the Liquid Capital story → - 03
Loadpad. An audit of an inherited freight platform led to a focused clean-up, then a partnership of more than three years.
Who is Codehesion?
Codehesion is a software development company of 65+ engineers, designers and analysts, founded in 2017 and based in Centurion, Gauteng. We build, rescue and modernise software for companies like Lesaka, Tiger Wheel & Tyre, Romans Pizza and City Lodge. MyBroadband readers have voted us South Africa's best software development company three years running.
Not quite your situation?
What people ask us first.
Can our project still be saved?
Usually, yes, though not always the way you'd expect. Some parts are worth keeping, some need cleaning up and some need rebuilding. The rapid assessment tells you which, part by part.
We need a recovery plan for our board, or our own client, quickly. Can you help?
Yes. That's what the rapid assessment is for. The summary is written to be shared, and the findings session prepares you to present it.
Do you need access to our systems?
Not to start. A download of the code and whatever documents you have is enough, plus 30 to 60 minutes with whoever knows the system best, from the business or from development. Everything is covered by an NDA.
Our developer won't hand over the code or the passwords. Can you still help?
Yes. We start with what you have (documents, test results, a demo), help you get back the code and access you own, and work out the rest once it's back. No documentation is fine too.
Do we have to commit to the whole rescue upfront?
No. You decide after each step, and you see what the next one involves before you agree to it. It's also how you find out whether we're the right team.
Can we still make our deadline?
The rapid assessment gives you an honest early answer and, if the full scope can't make it, a smaller first release that can. Firm dates come with the full plan.
Will our system stay live while you fix it?
Yes, if it's live today. We fix it in parts, alongside the features your business needs, so customers keep using it.
Who owns the code, the accounts and your reports?
You do. All code and IP belong to you, your services move onto accounts you control, and our reports are yours to use, whoever does the fixing.
Do you use AI on our code? Is it safe?
We lead with AI to map what's actually been built, far faster than reading every file by hand, and an experienced engineer checks every finding. Our AI tools run on commercial licences, and your code is never used to train AI models.
Can your findings be used in a dispute with our previous developer?
They give you clear technical evidence of what was and wasn't delivered. They aren't a legal opinion, and we don't act as expert witnesses.
What does a rescue cost?
It depends on what the assessment finds. You'll know what each step involves before you agree to it, and nothing beyond the rapid assessment is committed until you decide.
It's live, customers are using it, and releases go out on a steady rhythm. Your board has seen a plan it believes, the code and accounts are yours, and you're already planning what comes next.
Burned once is enough. From here, you decide.
Tell us where your project stands.