Service 01 · Web apps
Custom web apps and internal systems
I replace spreadsheets, paperwork and e-mail chains with one app that fits how your company actually works. On a computer in the office and on a phone in the field.
- 8+ years of experience, since January 2018
- A reply within one working day
- Slovak, Czech and English
When it makes sense
- The company runs on spreadsheets that only one person knows how to fix.
- The same data is typed into several places, and mistakes only surface at payroll or invoicing.
- Off-the-shelf software covers most of the work, and the rest lives in Excel workarounds.
- You only see the numbers at the end of the month, when it is too late to act on them.
- Customers ask about their order by e-mail because there is nowhere for them to look.
What I build
Every app runs in the browser, so nobody has to install anything, and it works on a computer and a phone alike.
Internal systems
Attendance, costs, jobs or approvals. One system instead of five spreadsheets, with access for the office and for people in the field.
Customer portals
A place where customers see their orders, documents and the status of the work, without phone calls or e-mails.
Dashboards and reports
Costs, profit or team workload in real time, in clear charts, with exports to PDF or CSV.
Replacing Excel and Google Sheets
When a spreadsheet hits its limits, I move its logic into an app and keep your data. That is exactly how the Polákstav system started.
Quotes and documents
Quotes, timesheets or reports from your own price lists and templates, as a finished PDF in one click.
On the phone, no install
A web app behaves like a native app on the phone, without the App Store and without updates on every device.
Off-the-shelf or custom?
An off-the-shelf tool is often the right call. This is the honest comparison I also walk through on the intro call.
| Off-the-shelf software | Custom web app | |
|---|---|---|
| Start | Right after sign-up | After design and build, usually 2-8 weeks |
| Your process | You adapt to the tool | The app follows how your company actually works |
| Price | A subscription, often per user | A written proposal with price and date within 1-2 days of the intro call |
| Integrations | Whatever the vendor offers | With the tools you really use |
| New features | On the vendor's roadmap | On your needs, one module at a time |
| Best for | Routine admin every company does the same way | A process of your own that ready-made tools miss, or several tools that do not talk to each other |
From a Google Sheet to ten modules
How the system for the construction firm Polákstav grew. It is how I start with other companies too: from what already works.
An automated Google Sheet
The first version was a spreadsheet with automatic calculations: three contract types, daily attendance, wages and costs split by site. It replaced the paperwork and showed which data the firm really needed.
A web app with logins
I moved the spreadsheet's logic into a web app. The office works on a computer and the crew log hours on their phones right from the site, with nothing to install.
Ten modules
Attendance, worker portal, costs, profit per site, finance and charts, quotes, payroll and advances, holidays, change history and rates over time.
In daily use
Hours, costs and payroll live in one place, and the owner sees costs, profit and payroll as they happen, not at the end of the month.
A product for other firms
This system later grew into Evidenka, my own product, which now runs in companies in Slovakia and Czechia.
From real projects
Evidenka, a web app I designed, built and run (demo data)
A web app that replaced the spreadsheets: attendance, costs, profit per site, quotes and payroll. The company uses it every day.
Read the case studyMy own SaaS for attendance, costs and payroll. Every company gets its own instance within 48 hours, in its own colours and with its own logo.
Go to evidenka.sk (opens in a new tab)A document viewer, multi-step review workflows and real-time processing dashboards for large volumes of invoices and documents.
Full careerWho builds it
Lukáš Novák
Senior frontend and React Native developer, founder of Novak Design
Novak Design is a one-developer studio. You work with me directly: the intro call, the design, the code and the launch are all mine, with no sales layer and no lost-in-translation hand-offs. I have built apps since January 2018, first in teams working for J&T Banka, Škoda Auto, Groupon and the Czech sports federations, and since 2026 under my own studio.
- 8+ years of experience, since January 2018
- Experience from teams at J&T Banka, Škoda Auto and Groupon
- Web and mobile apps in React, Next.js and React Native
- My own product, Evidenka, live in Slovakia and Czechia
How I approach it
The process first, then the screens
On the intro call we go through who enters what, who approves it and what you want to see at the end. The app follows your work, not the other way round.
A small first step
We start with what hurts most and add the next modules once the first one has proved itself.
A fast interface
I build the interface in React and Next.js, the same way as in the large teams I worked in. It is fast on a desktop and on an older phone in the field.
Every change on record
Change history and role-based access, so it is always clear who changed what and who can see what.
How we work together
Four steps with clear timelines. You always know where the project stands.
0130-60 min
Intro call
We talk about your company, the problem and what success looks like. No technical jargon.
021-2 days
Proposal and scope
You get in writing what I will build, what it will cost and when it will be ready. No hidden fees, no vague estimates.
032-8 weeks
Design and build
I work in short cycles. You see progress every week and can give feedback at any time.
041-2 days
Launch and handover
We launch the system together and I show your team how to use it. I stay available after launch.
What a web app costs
I never guess a price blind. It depends on how many user types and screens the app has, what it connects to and whether it takes over existing data. After the intro call you get a written proposal within 1-2 days: what I will build, what it costs and when it will be ready, with no hidden fees.
What drives the price
- Number of roles and screens
- Connections to other systems
- Moving existing data
- Desktop, phone or both
Questions
What is the difference between a web app and a website?
A website informs visitors; a web app is for getting work done: logins, roles, data, calculations and outputs. It runs in the browser, so there is nothing to install.
Is custom software worth it compared to an off-the-shelf tool?
If an existing tool covers your work, I will recommend it. Custom software pays off when you have your own way of working that ready-made tools cannot handle, or when you pay for several tools that do not talk to each other.
How long does it take to build a web app?
Design and build usually take 2-8 weeks depending on the scope. You see progress every week and get the exact date in the written proposal.
Can you build on our Excel or Google Sheets files?
Yes. I move the spreadsheet's logic into the app and bring your existing data along. The Polákstav system started as an automated Google Sheet and is now a web app with ten modules.
Will the app work on phones?
Yes. I design it for the desktop in the office and the phone in the field. If you need an app in the App Store and Google Play, see mobile app development.
Other services
All servicesTell me what you need built.
I reply within one working day, in Slovak, Czech or English.