8allocate

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I worked for Skycoin as a consultant, managing their external development activities. They had several development centers and I was helping them with recruiting external developers.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with 8allocate.?

We had a problem finding experienced Golang developers within a short period. We needed to execute several development tasks, but couldn’t reach good developers, system architects, team leaders, and so on.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We had 2–3 urgent development tasks that required special capacity in technical domains, along with ones in management. We were unable to hire inland, so we approached 8allocate. and asked them to allocate several technology leaders from their core development team. The specific scope was for Golang and a few frameworks that weren’t too common at that time. We finished the scope of the project successfully and released the team.

What is the team composition?

They gave us a team that included their CTO, Yuriy, recruiters, and a project success, manager who helped us figure out what the timing and how we should onboard the team. He also referred people to us, and helped us figure to determine the salaries. During the project, he focused on identifying issues, hiring, and rehiring people. The CTO worked on the technical side, understanding our technical requirements and identifying what candidates could or couldn’t do.

I also received a lot of attention from their CEO, who was focused on the project’s success because we were approaching a very interesting vertical.

How did you come to work with 8allocate.?

I was the CEO of a company with an R&D team in Ukraine, and I met some of 8allocate’s managers in that process. I continued to work with them after that.

How much have you invested with them?

The cost was $20,000–$30,000 per month.

What is the status of this engagement?

I started working with 8allocate. in 2016. for some of my own projects. This project started last year, and the collaboration is ongoing for the crypto vertical, but not for Skycoin.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

They did tremendous work in finding the exact profiles we were looking for and preparing them for interviews. We had several technical and motivational interviews, and the candidates were well-prepared for them. Out of five people, we hired four within two weeks. All of them outdid themselves during the project.

I got to work with a professional team for every aspect of the project, starting from identifying the client’s needs, through to the hiring process and the people we brought in. They prepared the right financial offers for the resources, hired, and onboarded them. Everything was professional, focused, and very efficient.

We were able to complete the recruitment within a period of days. The interview/hire ratio was amazing, with over 80% hires. 8allocate. did all the backend work of rejecting unsuccessful candidates.

How did 8allocate. perform from a project management standpoint?

Things will go wrong with every project. We sometimes need to rehire for a position, and their ability to help us with that process is one of the key strengths of 8allocate. and their team.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I’ve worked with more than three companies that offer co-development teams. What differentiates 8allocate. is that they think of the long-term and they become partners. They’re honest and dedicated to our success, even for small projects, so we never felt like a small, negligible client. This made a lot of difference; we felt that we could start small and grow with them. We never had to make compromises because we had a smaller team.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There’s nothing I can think of. I know that they’ve already upgraded their offices.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Don’t be shy to ask about the focus you need. Also, work in an organized way and you’ll get a good delivery. If you’re very messy or things aren’t working well internally, the external developers will lose themselves in the project. Establish fair internal R&D platforms and project methodologies, and they will be able to deliver.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Our organization builds aviation software for electronic flight bags, which allows pilots to fly with digital operational documents. The pilot can upload data and be tracked by an administrator. I’m the VP of products and services.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with 8allocate?

We needed a professional team to help with our Windows and server development.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

8allocate helps with our ongoing software development by maintaining and updating our software on both on the server side and application side. While we have another developer for our iOS development, 8allocate’s team specializes their work on the client-side Windows platform, provides in-house support, and maintains our servers. In addition, they’re helping us conduct research on new 3D models and creating another app to house aircraft maintenance manuals.

What is the team composition?

I interface mostly with their developers. Periodically, I will speak with their managers.

How did you come to work with 8allocate?

Our previous vendor was moving towards a different direction, so we were having trouble filling some of our necessary positions. Our president found 8allocate and started a smaller-scale project with them. They were extremely successful, so we decided to hire them.

What is the status of this engagement?

We stared in July 2017, and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Their developers are relatively autonomous and listen carefully to our specs. They find weaknesses in our specifications that our previous developers have not found and will bring it to our attention. They provide the best possible code, and their QA is on point. I can rest easy when I hand a project over to them.

How did 8allocate perform from a project management standpoint?

I have no complaints about their project management. They’re extremely proactive and open to our feedback. We communicate with them via Skype and occasional calls. They integrate themselves into our coding standards and project management tool called Kanban.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their project managers are exceptional at finding talented developers to fill our positions. They conduct in-depth interviews and always offer five to six skilled developers. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be responsive to communication. If there’s something that needs to be addressed, stay on top of it. Be sure to understand what it is you want to accomplish.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

 I am the Co-Founder of an other industry company 

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

AI security risk management platform

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire 8allocate to accomplish?

• Build an MVP

SOLUTION

How did you find 8allocate?

Online Search

Why did you select 8allocate over others?

• Pricing fit our budget
• Good value for cost
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from 8allocate were assigned to this project?

6-10 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Build an end-to-end SaaS security risk management application levarging generative AI workflows. Deliverables including UI/UX design, microsoervices architecture, API connections, multi-modal generative AI, Databases, Azure hosting, and website development. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Successfully completed MVP and Release 2, fully tested and deployed in production with live clients

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Strong project management, structured, flexible, and very responsive to scope changes

What was your primary form of communication with 8allocate?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

We appreciated their great work ethic and eagerness to go the extra mile to meet deadlines and deliver a quality solution even when additional effort beyind the formal scope was required. 

Are there any areas for improvement or something 8allocate could have done differently?

Taking a little extra time to confirm user requirements for each feature and for internal QA testing prior to release. However, they were extremely responsive to all change requests and bug fixes 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am an executive for Innowise

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

We are a custom software development company

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire 8allocate to accomplish?

• Augment our in-house team with data analytics and AI expertise

SOLUTION

How did you find 8allocate?

Online Search

Why did you select 8allocate over others?

• High ratings
• Pricing fit our budget
• Good value for cost

How many teammates from 8allocate were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

As the head of technology for data-driven learning programs, I needed extra data and AI talent for this project. We turned to 8allocate to expand our team and make sure we had the expertise to build an analytics solution that could track and personalize student content effectively.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

The new system enhanced our ability to track learning progress, leading to a 35% increase in engagement.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

8allocate’s proactive management and use of Asana kept the project on track, and communication was clear and consistent.

What was your primary form of communication with 8allocate?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

What really stood out was how easily they fit into our team and brought in the exact expertise we needed for EdTech analytics.

Are there any areas for improvement or something 8allocate could have done differently?

I guess there's nothing to improve - the overall experience was positive.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Executive of Internet 2.0

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Internet 2.0 is a leading Australia and US cyber security company whose mission is to defend clients and partners from the most advanced threats. Internet 2.0’s core products include Cloaking Firewall, 5th Column and Malcore.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire 8allocate to accomplish?

• Build UI/UX front and back end for products.

SOLUTION

How did you find 8allocate?

Referral

Why did you select 8allocate over others?

• High ratings
• Good value for cost
• Referred to me
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from 8allocate were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

• Build customer Portals on Node.js
• Develop AI data pipelines
• Build AWS infrastructure

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Yes measured and successful. 

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Yes Great Management

What was your primary form of communication with 8allocate?

• In-Person Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

The company provided great services.

Are there any areas for improvement or something 8allocate could have done differently?

no.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am an executive at Wahtari GmbH

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

We develop and consult with custom cloud software with apps and backends for SME customers. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire 8allocate to accomplish?

• Front-end Development
• Recruiting and Training of New Hires

SOLUTION

How did you find 8allocate?

Referral

Why did you select 8allocate over others?

• Pricing fits our budget
• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Referred to me

How many teammates from 8allocate were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

The team from 8allocate has closely worked with our core team on the development of 3 different customer projects. They were quick to learn and very supportive in the whole process. They delivered custom solutions for modern web based front-ends. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Projects closed successfully and handed over to the final customer. Only ongoing maintenance work.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

The assigned project manager was on top of all HR and communication issues and kept the alignment between us and them smooth. We are very happy with their services. 

What was your primary form of communication with 8allocate?

Virtual Meeting

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

The ability to work in tough circumstances and still focus on the business objectives.

Are there any areas for improvement or something 8allocate could have done differently?

Tough to imagine how you could do something differently in circumstances like the Ukraine. I don't want to give outside advice here. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the former VP of engineering of a logistics startup.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with 8allocate?

Our company was building a cloud-native supply chain visibility tool that provided global third-party logistic companies full visibility of their operations.  

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

8allocate provided backend development resources to support our development project, which integrated with a bigger team of engineers. Because of the sensitive nature of the work, I wasn’t able to provide the team with any technical documentation or specific references that would give the candidates actual visibility into the work. 

I articulated the purpose of the software and what kind of developers and experience were needed to achieve the job successfully. We provided contextual documentation, but there was no documentation related to the work itself or the code base. 

What is the team composition?

I communicated with Andrew (CEO) most of the time, and an account manager was also my point of contact. 

How did you come to work with 8allocate?

I contacted 8allocate through a referral who had previously worked with them on a software development project. I met personally with Andrew and Volodymyr (Board Member), who presented me with developers' profiles that might fit my project. I interviewed some developers who were potentially available for hire and felt confident. I could observe and qualify the candidates who would be provided to us from a technical skill set point of view, but also from the communication and logistical part.
How much have you invested with them?

The range was over six figures, although I can't specify since I wasn't in charge of the invoices. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with 8allocate from June 2021–June 2022.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

The project succeeded in accomplishing the mission and building a specific module and APIs. I was also able to put more trust in 8allocate's organization. Thanks to 8allocate, I learned a lot about working with East European developers. 

The team's personal attention was what made us successful in completing our project's development and deployment. Additionally, the continuous relationship and my desire to reach out to 8allocate and refer them were the biggest takeaways for me. I still keep in touch with Andrew personally. The relationship between our teams was smooth since we met 8allocate, and it was an easy decision to hire them. 

How did 8allocate perform from a project management standpoint?

I controlled the project management budget, and 8allocate wasn't responsible for project management per se. However, escalation layers were provided to me and my company when there were hiccups. We didn't experience technical hiccups, but there were instances where a developer couldn't communicate well in English. By giving constant feedback to 8allocate, the team was flexible in coaching me and the candidate on improving their communication skills.

At times, I could swap resources without pain points. Working with agencies like 8allocate isn't always about the skill set; it's also about communication skills and cultural differences. There was another time when a developer didn't fit culturally with my other team members. At the time, I led a team of more than 70 developers across eight different countries, including India, Bulgaria, Vietnam, Taiwan, China, France, and Norway, and 8allocate was one of our source staffing channels.

The developers provided by 8allocate were part of a bigger team, and there was a lot of cultural mix, but everybody was focused on the work. When I gave 8allocate the feedback about the developer's cultural misfit, they were open to coaching the teammate and helping me understand that I would also be taken care of by other candidates if that was what I preferred. Communication with 8allocate was easy and honest, showcasing high integrity throughout the engagement.
Are there any employees from the service provider's team that you would like to give a shout-out to in this review?

Andrew deserved the biggest praise because he was very attentive and understood the details of my project. He cared about our mission and not just about providing a service. Andrew tried to understand the problem we were facing, and this skill set wasn't common in my experience. There are a lot of service providers on the market that provide software development resources. However, clients usually want to grow their business, and having a relationship with the agency is more important. 

This doesn't mean that a CEO needs to be involved necessarily, but in this case, Andrew was the person who probably had the deepest understanding of the mission I needed to solve and the challenges I was facing. Andrew dug deep into our company's core problem statement instead of providing me with a certain number of developers right off the bat. The number of developers an agency could provide didn't matter to me; what really mattered was their understanding of the issue I was trying to solve. 

I even shared some of the past challenges I had while working with other agencies, and Andrew was keen on understanding how not to repeat the same mistakes. The fact that I spoke with Andrew the most showcased that 8allocate cared for their customers and wanted to build a personal relationship. 

There is nothing wrong with an account manager being at the forefront, but based on my preference, having Andrew present in the majority of our communications served our project positively. I felt this was a partnership, not just a client-agency relationship.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I was mostly impressed by the skills of the developers I worked with. I worked with senior-level developers. However, people don't always agree upon what constitutes a senior developer because it's subjective. The categorization comes at different price points for a business model, but I almost felt like 8allocate was undercutting themselves after seeing their developers' level. 8allocate could've easily upcharge us, but their rate was fair, and the seniority was delivered with high integrity. 

In my experience, some service providers offer resources at a so-called seniority level, but they aren't actually senior when it comes to their technical skill set or critical thinking. I never experienced that with 8allocate. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

8allocate could source more diversified developers for the benefit of their business. If the team could source developers from different ethnic backgrounds and countries, that would be very helpful for clients who need developers from other countries besides Eastern Europe and Asia. I'd search for developers through 8allocate first because I trust them, and that was the only thing I could point out.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

I suggest being transparent and sharing as much as possible with 8allocate. We had a successful engagement with the team's developers, primarily because I was very transparent regarding the technical and cultural challenges I had. Thanks to this, 8allocate provided help pinpointed to my specific circumstance. If I hadn't been open with 8allocate, they'd have guessed which developers to provide. 

I encourage any new customer to be as transparent as possible because the more information you share with 8allocate, the better help you'll receive from the team. Andrew will take ownership to provide you with the right staff for your project. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.
I am the Chief Technology Officer of a online casino operator.
Describe what your company does in a single sentence.
Online Sportsbook and Casino Operator

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire 8allocate to accomplish?

• Team Augmentation
• Pace on Delivery
• Specific Skill Set

SOLUTION

How did you find 8allocate?
Referral
Why did you select 8allocate over others?

• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Referred to me

How many teammates from 8allocate were assigned to this project?
2-5 Employees
Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.
Ongoing team augmentation working on the company roadmap.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?
Individuals supplied meet our high coding standards and are able to deliver as part of a wider team or independently as well. Help the team to meet their internal OKR and KPIs
Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?
Delivery and project management is lead by our internal product teams but the individuals are held to their delivery timelines and quality of their delivery per project,
What was your primary form of communication with 8allocate?

• In-Person Meeting
• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?
Thei willingness to help and support. Their employees and infdividuals are important to them as well as a company. Their communication and review is very consistent. They are very helpful and resourceful as well.
Are there any areas for improvement or something 8allocate could have done differently?
Not at this time

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am an executive of Tradingnews.com

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Financial Data and news stock market ETF commodities and Forex

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire 8allocate to accomplish?

• Data project , Real Time stocks price
• Develop Chart

SOLUTION

How did you find 8allocate?

Friend

Why did you select 8allocate over others?

• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from 8allocate were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

• Developing Real Time chart
• Analysis of API in to product

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Always willing to help, gives the Client a secure feeling . Taking responsibility

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Always on time and if not on time give a notice. They take responsibility for finishing the scope of work.

What was your primary form of communication with 8allocate?

Virtual Meeting

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

Professional and a real partner for my project

Are there any areas for improvement or something 8allocate could have done differently?

None.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Chief Engineering Architect and our company is an educational technology company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire 8allocate?

A government project for New Zealand Business Government

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

We searched online. Their experience was the deciding factor.

Describe the project in detail and walk through the stages of the project.

Their team was responsible for executing automation engineering for the Quality Assurance team and ensuring the custom features and test cases had a large coverage from automation.

How many resources from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

3 automation testers.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Automated testing really gave us an accurate view of the test cases and it gave the client confidence on what was tested, especially the reporting component which gave valuable insights.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

It was via Slack and Teams.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

8allocate understands the complexity of Software Development. They had the right experience and people for the job.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

Not at the moment.