Acaisoft

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I work at Platform9, a SaaS company that builds and runs cloud software for other firms. We work specifically in the Kubernetes space. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Acaisoft?

We wanted to enhance our UX design capabilities. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Acaisoft is developing a visually engaging and interactive UX from user-based research we'd conducted internally. Most of the design work is done in Figma, but they're also working within our design system. We store our high-fidelity designs in our system so we can use them for rapid prototyping. 

We provided the Acaisoft team with design briefs, mockups, and information on our product. Then, our internal head of UX/UI and I walked through our product with Acaisoft, highlighting our market competitors, current positioning, and goals moving forward. We also delved into how we gather user data from the Kubernetes platforms. Initially, we were doing a complete redesign of our navigation system and needed input from users, so Acaisoft also built an interactive prototype for beta users to test.

What is the team composition?

I work with one UX teammate and an engagement manager. 

How did you come to work with Acaisoft?

I'd worked with Acaisoft at my previous company. 

How much have you invested with them?

We invest around $9,000 a month with Acaisoft. 

What is the status of this engagement?

Our engagement with Acaisoft began in November 2021, and it's ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our team is impressed with the deliverables and the work velocity from Acaisoft. Our software is very complex, so it's been great that Acaisoft was able to come up to speed so quickly on it — part of that speed can be attributed to their background in Kubernetes. There have been very few times where we've needed Acaisoft to rework a design because our communication is excellent, and they provide thorough documentation. Overall, the project is going well and everything is being delivered ahead of schedule. 

How did Acaisoft perform from a project management standpoint?

Acaisoft uses Slack for regular communication, but our work backlog is in Jira, where we have specific design task types. Initially, we had daily meetings but have since scaled down to biweekly meetings to discuss the project and ensure we're meeting our timeline.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Acaisoft is responsive and quick to deliver resources, which is great because we're under significant time pressures to finish this project. Acaisoft's leadership is accessible; they've traveled to our region to have in-person meetings with us to build our relationship. It is great to see their initiative to travel to their customers to connect. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

We initially got stuck during the onboarding process because they wanted to use Figma for development and we wanted them to use Sketch. However, we worked around that issue because we wanted them to work in whichever platform they were well-versed in. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I'd advise customers to be clear about what they want from Acaisoft — it's essential to discuss the statement of work, fixed price, time and materials, and timelines. It's crucial to be open and honest about the project with Acaisoft throughout the partnership. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO and one of the co-founders of a data science platform. We provide workforce executives insights into labor and talent pool migration around the world, as well as real estate trends in different areas.

For example, we can determine the talent pool in Atlanta, Austin, or LA is, the granular attributes of those people, and what companies need to do to support them regarding office spaces. In summary, our platform ingests a lot of data about people and presents an interface to CFOs and workplace executives to make decisions on talent and the future of work.

We founded the company about a year and a half ago, and we’ve been building the product since the beginning.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Acaisoft?

Specifically for this project, we brought them in to accelerate our development.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We’ve been working with Acaisoft for about a year to accelerate our prototype into a production-caliber fast platform. They’ve helped us with all the execution elements from a development standpoint — from the backend infrastructure to DevOps architecture, frontend, and UI. We’ve defined the product, and they’ve been our development team.

We’ve collaborated on architecture and design and worked with them from day one to build the product. Initially, we scoped out the product and the skillsets we needed to execute. It was a full-stack development project, so they had to do backend, infrastructure, cloud, data science, and dev engineering work, as well as UX/UI.

We plan to continue our work with them as we scale the company.

What is the team composition?

We have a fully-functioning development team. Each month, we work with 8–10 people, ranging from full stack developers to frontend and UI people. Sometimes we take a few more people for testing or accelerating, but we usually stay within the same range.

Also, we have a product manager on their side and one on our side. We treat them as our employees, and the communication lines are great.

How did you come to work with Acaisoft?

We had a history of working with them over the past ten years. They worked at a company that I was part of, which Dell later acquired. Acaisoft stayed on post-acquisition and worked with that product team. They also worked with some of my colleagues on their multi-cloud management company.

They didn’t work directly with me, but they worked on the same bunch of opportunities and had an excellent reputation. Therefore, when we decided to move forward with this project, they were the obvious choice. Their developer’s skillsets were great, but they also had data science and mathematical backgrounds, which were relevant to the project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in November 2020, and our relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We started from scratch, and now we have a product that customers use every day. We’ve done a couple of major releases of the products, and those have been on time. They meet tour milestones every week, and we’ve been able to expand the team very quickly with different skill sets. Overall, we’ve been happy with their execution.

How did Acaisoft perform from a project management standpoint?

It’s a well-run organization. I know the founder and CEO, and we interact as needed. Also, our lead project manager is very attentive. The few times we’ve had to make an adjustment, they’ve had the right level of flexibility. Moreover, they add to the team and get different people up to speed, which I was relieved to see.

In the first six months, we had daily standups at 8:00 a.m. PST with the entire team, which were great to keep everybody aligned on where we were trying to go. Now, we operate in sprints and use Jira boards. We go 2–3 times a week on live standups and interact constantly on Slack throughout the day, so the communication lines are very efficient now that the right layers of management have been applied.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’ve assessed their talent consistently and accurately. The people that they bring into the project have delivered what they said they could deliver, and If the design isn’t exactly as we want, they make adjustments quickly. In summary, their access to talent and their ability to get people up to speed promptly have been excellent.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Not at this point; we’re very happy with Acaisoft.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be aware of where you are in your process and be very candid about how refined your product is at that point. For example, we had a product that had been in the hands of customers for 3–4 years and got sold to Dell, so it was very well architected. Coming to them with a clear picture of what had already been done, helped clarify what we needed to the team.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the VP of Product at Heimdall Data. We offer a software infrastructure product that improves database performance in the cloud or on-premise. Deployment does not require application changes.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Acaisoft?

We wanted to grow our development team and were looking for more cost-effective options.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Acaisoft is our development partner. They are an extension of our engineering team for code development and QA testing. We Agile methodology.

What is the team composition?

We have worked with over 15 Acaisoft team members on projects.

How did you come to work with Acaisoft?

Acaisoft provided development engineering sources to two solid startup companies in our domain space (i.e. databases). We were recommended to Acaisoft. After a few discussions with Adam Nowaczyk, CEO, we had a good feeling there was a technical, cultural, and business fit between our companies. We have not regretted this decision to partner with Acaisoft since then.

What is the status of this engagement?

We've worked together August 2019 to present.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We look at each project’s success based on deadlines and the quality of work. From a technical perspective, they’ve done a nearly perfect job.

How did Acaisoft perform from a project management standpoint?

Some may think that time zones are a challenge. However, it works well for Heimdall Data. The time overlap is just enough to communicate in real-time, while being able to have production most all day.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Acaisoft is a culture fit for Heimdall Data. They have a "customer-first" mentality. When issues arise, they accommodate and look for solutions to meet both party's needs. They Engineering director is the glue that drives this success.

Lastly, they do not compromise quality. All the candidates are screened and technically interviewed prior to us speaking with them. They make extra efforts to ensure we hire long-term candidates.

Are there any areas they could improve?

If you are looking for a long-term partnership, ensure that developers are 1) invested and 2) feel part of the Heimdall company. This is the job of both Acaisoft and Heimdall Data and requires clear communication of chains of command and proper incentives in order to achieve maximum output.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

They are highly recommended.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the product manager of Scoopr, a financial startup. We also sell insurance and mobile services.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Acaisoft?

We were looking for a reliable development team that we could use as our main product development team.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We started working with Acaisoft on a partial basis, and we ended up outsourcing our whole new development projects to them. They provide us with a full range of digital product development and UI/UX design services.

Additionally, they help us with infrastructure management, software architecture design, and software development. Within software development, they’re in charge of both front- and backend development projects.

When Acaisoft came to the project, there was a lot of work already done by previous employees. Thus, they initially had a chance to understand our concepts, and they eventually started helping us with new ideas, wireframes, iterations, and features. Sometimes, they even help us produce all the documentation; I just need to tell them where to go.

The products that they develop are both for our internal use and for our clients. Their developments include simple products like our website or more complex products, such as a consumer debt overview tool and a conversational-based refinancing application process. All of our products are web apps optimized for mobile devices.

What is the team composition?

We work with six people from Acaisoft on an ongoing basis, along with an account manager who comes into the picture occasionally. Their team includes a senior architect and developer, two backend developers, two frontend developers, and one UX designer.

How did you come to work with Acaisoft?

We acquired a company, and that company already had an agreement with Acaisoft. They were providing backend development services to this company. When we acquired them and were looking to expand our resources, it was very easy for us to go with Acaisoft.

How much have you invested with them?

We spend €45,000 (approximately $53,000 USD) per month.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in February 2020, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Since working with Acaisoft, our delivery velocity has increased at least 20 times. In the past six months, ever since I took over the team’s management, we’ve done more developments than what had been done in the last four years in our company.

We’ve also seen a huge improvement in the scalability of our platform. Additionally, the incident rate has gone down to around once a month, which is more than acceptable. This result speaks highly of the quality of their work.

How did Acaisoft perform from a project management standpoint?

Acaisoft’s project management is outstandingly good. We had a really complex sprint this year, but we completed it without any issues. They go above and beyond when there’s a commitment or a timeline to meet, and they make things happen. They use Jira and Notion to manage the project, and we use Slack for our day-to-day communication.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Acaisoft is really good at what they do, and their communication skills are really good as well. They’re very open and flexible, and they have command of the English language.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, there’s nothing I’d have them improve. I’m super happy with their work.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Trust Acaisoft — they’re smart. You can use them only as developers and tell them what to do, but you’ll get the most value when you let them come up with ideas and be part of the problem-solving process. They also have access to their own internal team to get support from other senior members in their organization, so leveraging that part is valuable.

If you’re thinking about doing something new and you need help, just ask them if they have someone on their staff who can help you. Their pool of knowledge is very useful, and they have more to offer than what their agreement says.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

RightPerson provides automated background checking for recruitment and personell security. Recruitment and personnel security is often expensive and resource demanding. Background checks in particular are slow, manual processes that can increase project time. Lack of time and facts can lead to an increase in security risks, accidents, and damage to brand reputation.

RightPerson takes these manual background checking processes, re-engineers and automates them using technology and integrations with available databases and registries. This gives faster background check turnaround time, structures unstructured processes, more more equal treatment of candidates, and protects people, assets and brand reputation. Established in 2020, founded by CEO Espen Einn and Bjarne Melbye, RightPerson is a fast-growing startup in the background checking industry. HQ in Norway, global reach.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Acaisoft, and what were your goals?

We hired Acaiasoft to build the first MVP version of our software, to be testing ted on pilot customers. Acaisoft provided CTO, architecture, backend, frontend, devop, project management as well as insight and ideas.

SOLUTION

How did you select Acaisoft and what were the deciding factors?

We know Acaiaift from provious companies and know that they deliver a unique combination of high quality people, skills, and a great work culture that is a good match with our own team.

Describe the scope of work in detail, including the project steps, key deliverables, and technologies used.

We provided low fidelity design prototypes and a basic specifications document. From there we worked together on figuring out the details. Acaisoft provided the entire development team, including Acaisoft's CEO Adam as our interim CTO.

How many people from the Acaisoft team worked with you, and what were their positions?

There were 5 people in the original team, including 2 engineers, project manager, delivery manager and a CTO role.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any measurable outcomes of the project or general feedback about the deliverables?

The software is now being tested in a pilot program with 10 pilot customers. Although the test is not finished an it is too early to report on the outcomes, it is clear that we have built a good quality application that manye of the customers love and want to purchase.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

We have a very good and informal tone. We meed for sprint demo & planning on a weekly basis and we have a good time with lots of laughs while keeping a very professional structure.

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

Acaisoft is something as unique as a Silicon Valley working culture in Poland. They had an impressive range of smart, dedicated, funny, and life-loving people. This is a perfect match for us.

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

There are always small things in any business relationship, but nothing worth bringing up here. The few times we have raised concerns, they have been taken seriously and dealt with in a timely fashion.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I was formerly the CTO of a major computer company’s data protection business. I’m now the CEO and co-founder of a tech startup.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Acaisoft?

We wanted to build a cloud-based management portal for our data protection and storage products.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

At the time, I had about 14 products under my supervision, each with its own management console interface. The new portal would act as a centralized framework for all these products. We wanted it to be cloud-based for ease of access and scalability reasons.

What is the team composition?

We worked with 15 to 20 people over the course of the engagement.

How did you come to work with Acaisoft?

At the time, we didn’t have much experience with building cloud-native applications. To fill this need, people within my network recommended them. I wasn’t necessarily looking to outsource the work at the time, but their team demonstrated expertise in that field as well as a capacity to complete the necessary work in a short period of time.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $300,000–$400,000 on the project when I was there. I assume this has grown since I left the company.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in 2015. I left the company in 2016, but the project continued after that. I imagine they’re still working together. I’ve worked with Acaisoft in different positions since then, including my current one.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They were a part of my overall product development organization, so the metrics I used to measure them were the same as what I used for the rest of my engineering team: code quality, length of code produced, and ability to meet deadlines. One of the striking characteristics of their team was that they always performed well against these metrics.

How did Acaisoft perform from a project management standpoint?

They were excellent. Despite being offshore and in a drastically different time zone, their availability to work with my team was great. They always met deadlines. Surprises will always pop up on a project of this magnitude, but they never let anything get to a point where it became a critical issue.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They brought a high-caliber team to the project. I’ve done a lot of hiring myself and I know it takes a lot of work to hire the right people. One of the joys of working with them was that they took on that burden. I never had to worry about whether or not the people on the team had the right skills for the job.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There’s always room for improvement when it comes to working across different time zones. It was never a huge problem for us. However, having on-site people offers a strong advantage in some situations, so I might have wanted to explore that avenue with them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I would strongly recommend them to anyone looking for a development partner. Given their hiring practices as well as their high expectations for their employees, one can completely trust them to be a great partner.