Mission Statement
PEC Consulting's two main developers, Paul and Alan, have worked many years in most areas of software development, including many large web projects, but it wasn't until Paul took a brief break from software to run a restaurant that he realized how many small businesses, in the food industry and otherwise, were lacking one of the fundamentals of any modern business - a good website. Not only that, but those who had well-functioning ecommerce websites had frequently paid several thousand Euro for them, prices which Paul and Alan knew from their own experience were almost certainly not a fair reflection of the work put into them.
Ireland, in particular, has not yet caught up with countries such as the UK in terms of businesses on the Web, despite our recent prosperity, and many small businesses are still caught in an "old-economy" mindset, running their own businesses very well but unaware that new markets are open to them for a relatively small investment. Paul and Alan decided that the time was ripe to expand into the area of providing web design services, specifically targeting small to medium-sized Irish businesses. The core business of PEC Consulting is still providing contracted IT services or all kinds to large businesses, but our web portfolio is expanding and this area is very exciting to us.
Our basic philosophy of web design is clean, functional design which focuses more on usability and information than flashy effects. We encourage a lot of customer participation in the look and feel of the website - we want to go back and forth with you until you're happy with the design before we develop most of the pages and functionality. To read more about our web design process, click here.
Open Source
One of the reasons for our ability to provide low-cost websites capable of handling ecommerce, complex content management and most unique customer requirements that can be thrown at us, is the growth of the Open Source movement. Open Source content management systems often require a certain amount of expert knowledge to customize and configure for the needs of an individual customer, but in general the cost of implementing an open source CMS will be a fraction of the cost of building an entirely unique customized website, and will provide the same functionality (in fact, in 95% of cases, the functionality will be better!). The Open Source philosophy is based on the idea that software, like all ideas, should be shared freely at no cost, and that this arrangement will benefit everyone. Therefore, our customers are paying us for our expertise and the time we spend building and customizing the site, and the value-added services we provide in terms of optimization, maintenance and analysis, among other things.
Business Solutions
We are always looking for the best solution both for us and for our customers. We don't just simply offer websites; we offer business solutions, of which a website is just one important aspect. Of course, if you just want a no-strings-attached website which we hand over to you have have done with it, we have no problem with that. However, what we really want to do is become involved with your business, give advice on how to maximize sales and profit, how to streamline paperwork - all of the run-of-the-mill aspects of managing a business that many small business owners don't have enough time to devote to. We have a deep background in business and accounting as well as IT, and a proven track record of helping businesses to enhance any and all aspects of what they do.
West Cork
We are particularly devoted to helping small businesses in the West Cork area of Ireland and many of our first clients have come from that region, which is one of the most diverse and creative in the country, full of craftspeople, artisans and small businesses run by entrepreneurs who love what they do. We enjoy working with people who love what they do, and we have found that these people are often very relieved to have the mundane business aspects of their work taken off their hands, because it leaves them with more time and energy to devote to what brought them success in the first place.