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Scenario 3: The Custom Enterprise System (Next.js / React / Headless)

This project is a Corporate Web System where the client needs a "Build" that isn't just a website, but a functional tool.

  • The Persona: "Elena," Chief Operating Officer (COO) for a regional logistics or medical staffing company in the NY/NJ area.
  • The Goal: Elena’s company is currently using a messy combination of Excel sheets, a legacy WordPress site, and third-party SaaS tools that don't talk to each other. She needs a Centralized Operations Dashboard where staff can manage internal data and clients can log in to see reports.
  • Budget Anchor: Elena has a capital expenditure budget of $50k–$100k. She’s looking for a firm that understands "Architecture" and "Security," not just "Web Design."

The Outreach Script (Email / Contact Form)​

Subject: Inquiry: Custom Operations Dashboard & Headless CMS Build for [Company Name] "Hi, I’m the COO at [Company Name]. We’ve outgrown our current systems and need to build a custom internal platform to manage our operations. Our goal is to move away from our legacy WordPress setup and build a more secure, high-performance web system using modern tech like React or Next.js. We need a secure client portal, an internal dashboard for our 50+ employees, and a way to manage our public-facing content through a headless CMS. Performance and security are our top priorities. Do you have experience building custom full-stack web applications of this scale? I’d like to understand your technical discovery process and how you handle data security during development. Thanks, Elena."

The "Deep-Dive" Secret Shopper Questions (For the Phone/Zoom Call)​

  1. The "Architecture" Test (Senior Engineering):
  • Question: "We’ve heard that Next.js is great for SEO but can be tricky with complex state management in a dashboard. How do you decide between Server-Side Rendering (SSR) and Client-Side Rendering (CSR) for a project like ours?"
  • What to look for: Do they mention the Next.js App Router, Server Components, or state management libraries like Zustand/Redux? If they sound confused, they aren't senior devs.
  1. The "Security & Compliance" Test (PhD Terminology / HIPAA / SOC2):
  • Question: "Since we handle sensitive client data, what’s your approach to Authentication and Authorization? Are you using third-party providers like Clerk/Auth0, or do you build custom JWT-based systems?"
  • What to look for: Listen for mentions of RBAC (Role-Based Access Control), End-to-End Encryption, and how they handle Environment Variables. (Given your PhD terminology preference, this is where you can see if they can speak at a high level about Data Integrity and Encryption Protocols).
  1. The "Performance" Test (Front-End Expertise):
  • Question: "If our dashboard starts handling thousands of data rows, how do you prevent the UI from becoming laggy? Do you use things like Virtualization or specialized data-fetching strategies?"
  • What to look for: Do they mention TanStack Query (React Query), Windowing (react-window), or Optimistic Updates?
  1. The "Agile Roadmap" Test (Biz Dev/Strategy):
  • Question: "This is a big project. How do you ensure we aren't waiting 6 months to see a working version? Can we ship a 'v1' for our internal team first?"
  • What to look for: They should suggest a Phased Approach or an MVP (Minimum Viable Product). If they want to do a "Big Bang" launch at the end, they don't understand Agile.
  1. The "Headless CMS" Test (Modern Stack):
  • Question: "We want to use a Headless CMS like Sanity or Contentful so our marketing team can't accidentally break the dashboard code. How do you integrate that with a custom React front-end?"
  • What to look for: They should explain APIs/Webhooks and how they separate the Presentation Layer from the Data Layer.

How to Grade Them (Your Internal Research)​

MetricRed Flag (Legacy/Junior)Green Flag (Senior/Agile)
Tech Stack"We'll just use a WP Portal plugin."Recommends a modern stack (Next.js/Supabase/Tailwind).
Security"WordPress is safe enough."Discusses SSO, RBAC, and Secure API endpoints.
Discovery"We can give you a quote today.""We need a 2-week paid technical discovery phase first."
UX AestheticFocuses on pretty icons.Focuses on Information Architecture and dashboard usability.

Does this "Elena" persona hit the high-end engineering marks you're looking for? If so, we can move to Scenario 4: The Mobile App MVP (Android + iOS). This will test their knowledge of React Native vs. Flutter vs. Native. Ready?

For a deeper dive into how professional firms structure these projects, this React Next.js Project Planning Guide shows a developer's perspective on building structured, scalable timelines for custom builds.