Confidential files travel as attachments
Draft agreements, signed returns and stamped drawings go out by email, get forwarded and sit in inboxes for years. One autocompleted address sends a client's file to a stranger, and nobody can pull it back.
Technology for Edmonton professional services firms, built for confidentiality
Law, accounting, engineering and consulting firms run on confidential files, hard deadlines and billable time. We build technology for professional services firms in Edmonton: client portals, clean intake, document workflows and a Microsoft 365 setup that holds when someone clicks the wrong link.
Updated
Four places this work leaks time and money.
Intake depends on whoever answers the phone
A new matter or engagement starts with a call and a sticky note. The conflict check, ID, signed engagement letter and billing contact arrive late or not at all, and the gaps surface at the first invoice.
Payment instructions get forged
Someone gets into one mailbox, reads quietly for weeks, then emails a client new banking details that look exactly like yours. Firms that hold client money or settle large invoices are the targets fraudsters prefer.
AI is already in use, unofficially
A staff member is pasting a client letter into a free AI chat tool right now. Without an approved tool and a short policy, confidential and privileged material leaves the firm with no record of where it went.
What we build for this sector.
Secure client portal
Clients upload documents against a checklist, see what is still outstanding and sign engagement letters online. Staff stop chasing slips and drafts by email, and the firm can see who opened which file and when. We will host it in a Canadian region if you need that.
Software band: $18,000 – $50,000Matter and engagement intake
An intake form collects the client's details, runs a conflict search against your existing records, requests ID, drafts the engagement letter from your template and opens the file with your standard folders. Nothing is created until a person checks it.
Automation: from $2,500 per workflowDocument workflows in Microsoft 365
One folder structure per matter or project, naming rules people actually follow, version history on drafts, sharing links that expire, and a closing checklist that sets the retention date. Built inside the Microsoft 365 licence you already pay for.
Automation: from $2,500 per workflowIT support and Microsoft 365 hardening
Multi-factor sign-in on every account, an alert when a mailbox suddenly forwards mail outside the firm, limits on external sharing, encrypted laptops, a separate backup of mail and files that we test, and accounts closed the day someone leaves.
Ongoing care: from $300/monthCareful AI for reading and drafting
Summaries of long documents already on file, first drafts from your own precedents and key dates pulled from engagement letters. A professional reviews every output before it reaches a client, and we document what data each step can see.
AI automation: from $3,500 per workflowConfidentiality, privilege and privacy
Your firm answers to its professional body, such as the Law Society of Alberta for lawyers or CPA Alberta for accountants, and both expect client information to stay confidential. PIPA, Alberta's private-sector privacy law, governs the personal information you hold about clients and staff. We design access, logging, retention and AI use so the firm can show what it did and why. This is general information, not legal advice; your obligations are yours to confirm.
- PIPA covers client and staff personal information
- Law Society of Alberta and CPA Alberta set professional duties
- Access to client files limited by role and logged
- AI use written down: provider, region and data seen
In detail
What technology does a professional services firm in Edmonton actually need?
Four things, in this order: protect client confidentiality, bring new clients and matters in cleanly, keep documents where people can find them, and make billing follow the work. Most small firms already own pieces of each, spread across Microsoft 365, Excel, a practice management product and a great deal of email.
We do not replace a practice management, tax or accounting product that does its job. We fix the gaps around it: how clients send you things, how a file gets opened, where drafts live and who can see them. For firms without an IT person, that starts with IT support and Microsoft 365 administration, because a portal sitting on top of an unprotected mailbox solves nothing.
How does a secure client portal work for a law or accounting firm?
The client gets a sign-in and a checklist: the slips, statements or signed documents you need, with anything still missing shown plainly. Uploads land in the right matter or engagement folder, not in someone's inbox. The firm sees who opened what and when, and access ends when the file closes.
The details change by profession. For a law firm, intake runs a conflict search before anyone books a consultation, collects identification details and drafts the retainer from your template. For an accounting practice, the portal follows the season: engagement letters out early in the year, client documents in through the spring, signed forms back before filing. Engineering and consulting firms use the same structure for transmittals, drawing revisions and deliverable sign-off. Portals are built through our custom software development service.
Microsoft 365 hardening for firms that hold client money and secrets
Small-firm breaches usually start in email, not on a server. A hardened Microsoft 365 setup means multi-factor sign-in on every account, old sign-in methods switched off, an alert when a mailbox starts forwarding mail outside the firm, external sharing limited by default, and a separate backup that someone has actually restored from.
Payment redirection deserves its own written rule: banking details never change on the strength of an email, and clients hear at engagement that you will never send new instructions that way. A security review starts from $1,800 and takes one to two weeks. If a client, insurer or lender asks for formal security testing or an audit, we will say so and refer you to a specialist.
Is it safe for a law or accounting firm to use AI?
It can be, if the firm decides where AI is allowed before staff decide for it. Safe use means an approved tool, client-identifying details kept out of prompts where possible, provider settings that stop your data training public models where that control exists, and a professional who reviews every output before it leaves the firm.
AI models come from third-party providers, and some process requests outside Canada. We tell you which provider and region each step uses and write down what data it can see. Good first uses are internal: summarising a long document already on file, pulling key dates from engagement letters, sorting new enquiries. Privilege is easier to protect when a tool never sees more than the task needs. Our AI automation work starts from $3,500 per workflow.
What does it cost, and where should a firm start?
Most firms start with IT support and a hardened Microsoft 365 tenant, because everything else sits on top of it. Ongoing care starts from $300/month. After that, an intake or document workflow costs from $2,500, and a full client portal falls in the $18,000 – $50,000 band over eight to sixteen weeks.
| Starting point | Best for | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| IT support and Microsoft 365 hardening | Firms with no IT person, or one who is stretched | From $300/month, cancel anytime |
| Security review | Before an insurance renewal or after a near miss | From $1,800, 1–2 weeks |
| Intake or document workflow | One process that eats admin hours every week | From $2,500 per workflow, 2–4 weeks |
| AI reading or drafting workflow | Repetitive review and first drafts, checked by a professional | From $3,500 per workflow, 2–6 weeks |
| Secure client portal | Firms exchanging documents with many clients each season | $18,000 – $50,000, 8–16 weeks |
Every engagement gets a fixed quote first, and you own the code, data and accounts at handover. The full ranges are on our pricing page.
Asked before they write.
How much does a client portal for a law or accounting firm cost?
A secure client portal falls in our operational software band, $18,000 – $50,000, and takes eight to sixteen weeks. Where it lands depends on how many document types and checklists you need, whether it connects to your practice management product and whether clients sign documents inside it. You get a fixed quote before any work starts.
Do you replace our practice management or accounting software?
Usually not. If a practice management, tax or accounting product does its job, we keep it and fix what sits around it: intake, client document exchange, folder structure and reporting. Where it offers an export or an interface, we connect to it so details are entered once. We will tell you plainly if a replacement makes more sense.
Can staff at our firm use AI on client files?
Yes, with rules. We help you choose an approved tool, set provider controls so your data is not used to train public models where that control exists, keep client identifiers out of prompts where possible and require a professional's review before anything leaves the firm. Some providers process requests outside Canada, and we tell you which ones do.
Do you work with engineering and consulting firms as well as lawyers and accountants?
Yes. Engineering firms need control over drawing revisions, transmittals and large project archives, and consultants need proposals, timesheets and deliverables in one place. The underlying needs match a law office: confidential files, clean intake, sensible Microsoft 365 settings and backups you have tested. We scope each firm on its own work.
What is not included in your IT support for professional firms?
We cover user support, Microsoft 365 administration, device setup, backups, security settings, staff training and an incident-response plan. We do not run a security operations centre, perform formal security testing or provide audit certifications; we refer those to specialists. Licence fees for Microsoft 365 and other software are billed by the vendor, not by us.
Does PIPA apply to a small law or accounting office?
Yes. PIPA, Alberta's private-sector privacy law, applies to businesses that collect personal information, including small professional offices. It covers how you collect, use, store and disclose client and staff information, and your professional body adds its own confidentiality duties. We build systems that make those duties easier to meet; your adviser confirms what applies to your firm.
The services behind these systems.
IT support
From $300/monthmonthly, cancel anytime
Glasshead Tech provides IT support in Edmonton for teams of 3 to 40, covering Microsoft 365 administration, patching and monitoring, backups with tested restores, multi-factor authentication, onboarding and offboarding, and a help desk by email and phone. Ongoing care starts from $300 a month, cancel anytime, with the scope agreed in writing.
Custom software
$18,000 – $50,0008–16 weeks
Glasshead Tech does custom software development in Edmonton, building the systems Alberta companies run daily operations on: quoting, scheduling, job costing, safety documentation, field capture, client portals and booking. Builds cost $18,000 to $50,000 CAD and take 8 to 16 weeks, with a fixed quote before coding starts. You own the code, data and accounts at handover.
Cyber security
Review from $1,8001–2 weeks
Glasshead Tech provides baseline cyber security for Edmonton small businesses: a review of sign-in, Microsoft 365, backups, patching, email and access, then a written fix list in priority order. Reviews start from $1,800 and take 1–2 weeks. We do not run attack simulations or a monitoring centre; we refer those to specialists.
AI automation
From $3,5002–6 weeks per workflow
Glasshead Tech builds AI automation for Edmonton and Alberta businesses: a language model handles one narrow job, such as reading quote requests or supplier invoices, and a person approves the result before it reaches a customer or the books. Each workflow starts from $3,500, takes 2–6 weeks and is quoted at a fixed price first.
Website design
$4,500 – $12,0004–6 weeks
Glasshead Tech does website design in Edmonton for businesses that want to edit their own site: custom, planned around what buyers ask, on an editor your team learns at handover, with on-page SEO, forms and analytics included. Projects cost $4,500 to $12,000 CAD, take four to six weeks and are quoted at a fixed price first.
Near you.
Edmonton
Alberta's capital, where the studio is based
Glasshead Tech does web design for Edmonton businesses and publishes the range up front: $4,500 to $12,000, four to six weeks to launch. The same Edmonton studio builds custom software and AI automation and runs IT support. Discovery happens in person or by video, the quote is fixed first, and replies come within 24 hours.
St. Albert
adjacent to Edmonton's northwest edge
Glasshead Tech does web design for St. Albert owner-operators competing with Edmonton results in local search. A website costs $4,500 to $12,000 and takes four to six weeks. Local search, including your Google Business Profile, starts at $1,000 a month, and IT support at $300 a month. Quotes are fixed, with replies within 24 hours.
Sherwood Park
Strathcona County, east of Edmonton
Glasshead Tech does web design for Sherwood Park contractors and industrial service firms who want to win homeowner and plant work: $4,500 to $12,000, four to six weeks. We also build quoting, field capture and safety documentation software at $18,000 to $50,000, eight to sixteen weeks. Quotes are fixed and enquiries answered within 24 hours.
Calgary
about three hours south of Edmonton
Glasshead Tech does web design for Calgary companies and publishes its prices first: a website costs $4,500 – $12,000 over 4–6 weeks, and AI automation starts from $3,500 per workflow. We are based in Edmonton, about three hours north, and deliver Calgary projects remotely, with visits by arrangement and a fixed quote before work starts.
Tell us where client files get stuck.
Send a few lines about intake, documents or IT at your firm. We reply within 24 hours and, after a short call, quote a fixed price for the first step.