AgileEngine

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We provide data collection, reporting, and input software for the management of UXO [unexploded ordnance] and EOD [explosive ordnance disposal] projects. I’m the VP of Engineering.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with AgileEngine LLC?

A different company had written our software when I first came onboard, and it wasn’t architected to meet our client’s product requirements. I reached out to AgileEngine to build a software team because I knew they had the skills to do it properly, as well as the depth to understand where we wanted to go. I knew they could give us proper feedback on how to achieve our goals.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Many of our clients are government entities or civilian contractors working for the government, so I can’t talk about specific requirements in the same way as I would if we were a commercial entity. One of the initial things we did was work on designing mobile applications, including iOS and Android devices, for our industry.

We relied on AgileEngine to create those apps for us, provide feedback, and be involved in the design based on the functional specifications we provided. They helped us figure out the standard or more efficient way to do things, eventually contributing to the product’s design, testing, implementation, and support. We also relied on their expertise for the Apple app-store review process.

The high standards we have locally are applied to AgileEngine as well, and I expect them to write functional specifications. They’re currently developing a POC [proof of concept] with different technology stacks we want to consider, specifically for some custom requirements we have involving mapping technologies. I’m able to use AgileEngine for research into future directions that we can then evaluate. They’re key in the development of our main products.

In the case of our mobile apps, we’ve delegated all of the development to their team at the moment. I’m confident in the team we have there, and I’m comfortable with the GitFlow process that ensures code quality and technology transfer among the team.

What is the team composition?

I primarily work with startups, and have worked with AgileEngine for two different companies. In each case, the team size grew to meet our requirements. In my previous role, we had a team of eight people, including a team lead, two senior software engineers, and one mid-level software engineer. We had three QA engineers who could write automation code, and we also had a project manager/Scrum person for managing tasks.

For my current company, we’ve worked with four people from AgileEngine, including a very strong technical lead who is the foundation of our team there.

How did you come to work with AgileEngine?

I liked their hiring process because they allowed us to interview multiple candidates before selecting one that was a good fit. Now I’ve since become so confident in our Team Lead that I ask him to narrow down the options to two candidates for myself and the U.S. team to interview. Because he knows the culture and region, he can give me a better sense of the caliber of education/schools on the candidate resumes, and I trust his instincts on the “fit” of candidates with our team. This helps streamline the hiring process.

What is the status of this engagement?

With the current company, we started working with them in April 2017.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I can’t share exact metrics, but we’re continuing to use them because we’re satisfied.

Due to the stringent security requirements in my industry, their team is not always able to do everything they normally would in a commercial project. There are certain parts of the system they may not have access to, so they have to develop based on my description of how something works. They’re not allowed to see data, which poses some unique challenges. I’ve been working in engineering for a long time and haven’t found a team that could handle this limitation as well as AgileEngine.

We have tight deadlines and real-world situations of people waiting on things, so we have to get the work done right the first time and it has to meet our quality levels. I’ve had to take what AgileEngine does and integrate it with the parts they can’t access. I’ve found that, in terms of API integration—whether it’s React Native, React.js, C++, or JavaScript—that I’m consistently pleased with their clean design and code.

They have internal reviews before I even see the code, which is absolutely fine with me and has not affected meeting my aggressive deadlines. This approach increases the quality of their deliverables. AgileEngine has done a lot of learning as a team.

How did AgileEngine LLC perform from a project management standpoint?

Like many engineering organizations, we use GitFlow for creating branches, pull requests, and code reviews. We rely heavily on Skype and Slack for communication. My team and I hear from them every single day. My philosophy is that people should ask questions concerning what we’ve asked them to do if they have them. Our time zones spread all over the U.S., but both I and AgileEngine have adjusted our times to obtain more overlap.

Their strong technical leads are the primary reason I’ve gone to them. The caliber of the strongest lead and their ability to meet deadlines and do what needs done sets the tone of the project. I think of them as part of our company. They are my technical team who just so happens to be located elsewhere.

We encourage collaboration and have a Skype group channel for our U.S. team to interact with them. There is full transparency, and everyone is in the loop. We also use GoogleDocs. Their abilities to expressive technical concepts in writing is very good. The communication skills and English proficiency of our technical leads are excellent and more honed because they’ve been doing this for longer, but I have never had a communication issue with any member of the team.

We use Jira and Confluence, so things are well-specified. We also use prototyping tools like Zeplin, Sketch, proto.io, and Webflow in order to hone designs as much as possible to avoid having to rework things.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They are the only outsourced team I’ve ever worked with that can meet my expectations regarding requirements. AgileEngine performs as well as my team members who come from elite schools for computer software. I wouldn’t be using them otherwise.

They’re very creative, which is a unique characteristic in our relationship that has worked well for us. They have good ideas, and we’ve set up an environment that allows the ideas in our company to come from anywhere. It all goes to helping us improve our products. AgileEngine is definitely a part of that process. They’ve contributed greatly to improvements and ideas for what we’re doing, and they’ve helped us question some of the choices we’ve made.

Their developers’ strong mathematical foundation also makes them stand out. This area can sometimes be a challenge when working with companies from other parts of the world, but it’s never been an issue with AgileEngine. They always take performance into consideration. I’m grateful for this because the last thing I want is slow, inefficient code. This eliminates the need for me to have to spend time re-iterating or making significant architecture changes because they’re done correctly in the first place.

In terms of communication and collaboration, AgileEngine is genuinely a part of our team. They’re interested in making us successful. They’re not just a contractor clocking time, and if I’m pushing for a release to the app stores, they offer to be available whenever we need to push the release on time.

I’ve introduced AgileEngine to three different companies, and I’m confident that I’ll continue to use them in the future.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The only part I don’t like as much is the administrative side. They’ve recently hired someone for managing the SOW [statement of work] process, but I would like to have a company dashboard page on their side that shows my SOW and billing history. It would help me better plan my hiring budgets to see my current structure, but also salary ranges of types of individuals to aid in planning/budgeting.

Within that same construct, I would also want an automated way to provide bonuses. They’ve worked with me on this directly, but it would be nice to automate the process. This would also be nice for equipment purchases.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

My advice is to find a strong technical lead who you feel comfortable building your team around.  There needs to be one person whose advice we can rely on, who knows the landscape, and who can determine the qualifications and fit of a resource.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

AVITAS is an aviation consulting company that appraises commercial aircraft for banks, lenders, and lessors. Their online system provides aircraft and engine values, the values also appear in physical publications.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with AgileEngine.

We needed a new development team to upgrade the system and extend its features.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They improved the system’s coding, functionality, and UI design using Tomcat, Java, and JSP [Java ServerPages]. Building extra functionality was the most complex part of the project.

What is the team dynamic?

We worked with offsite-developers.

How did you come to work with AgileEngine?

The company we previously used – in affiliation with another developer – moved their focus to the public sector and introduced us AgileEngine.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project started in 2012 and is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Internal efficiencies resulting from the improvements, increase in our productivity and client positive feedback. Also, our subscriber base has increased.

There is minimal user feedback because our system is a very utilitarian tool in a niche industry. However, we view its repeated use in multi-million and billion-dollar deals to be indicative of its value. We are one of the leading appraisal companies in the industry due in-part to our system’s functionality and performance.

How did AgileEngine perform from a project management standpoint?

The developers were awesome. I had initial reservations about remote working, but their diligence produced results that exceeded my expectations. We used Skype, emails, and specification documents to coordinate workloads with minimal issues. They displayed impressive initiative and follow-through.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Alex, the CEO, is a fantastic guy who is always willing to meet and share his experience and advice. He’s a giving and selfless individual with an approachable demeanor that makes for a great colleague. Alex provided technological solutions and ideas for any challenge, even if he was not managing that project. He is one of the most proactive and knowledgeable developers I’ve met.

On the whole, the team could not have performed better. They always bent over backwards to help and always delivered. No complaints.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Alex and his colleagues’ expertise provide the best value. You will get the best solution from this team.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the global IT director for a market research company celebrating 30 years of business. Our services include a variety mystery shopping-based audits, price controls, and compliance checks.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with AgileEngine?

We were in need of an organization to take over maintenance and new feature development of an application developed by a prior vendor.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They oversee the system, which manages our business development process. We can generate leads, provide scope and pricing options to clients, and run our billing and financial reporting through it. It also interfaces with our front-of-house application, which collects associated data for our clients and contractors.

What is the team dynamic?

We work primarily with two Ukraine-based developers: a tech lead and a middle developer, both with a broad knowledge base. We didn't have any problems with language or time zones. They worked just a little earlier than our east coast hours. If anything needed extra time, they would stay on that day to complete the task

Communication for the project was mostly through Skype, and we used Jira for ticket tracking.

How did you come to work with AgileEngine?

After ending our contract with the original development company, we contracted with a new vendor that after a year did not meet our expectations for quality and efficiency. The lead developer of the original company moved onto AgileEngine, so we reconnected to maintain that continuity.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested somewhere in the $200,000–$300,000 range.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in March 2016. We’re in continual development of new features, as well as ongoing support and maintenance.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They’ve gotten us back on track. We’ve been able to move our business forward and ease some of our internal processes through automation. The improved information tracking system gives the management team a much better picture of our global role. It’s a convenient system for our users of all abilities—from our expert global finance manager to our local entry-level staff.

How did AgileEngine perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re outsource developers, but they really embed themselves in our company. They know our business processes, and really feel like a part of our team.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They make sure they do the best job possible, and are very dedicated to us and to our growth.

Advice for potential customers?

They’re based in Europe, but go meet with your developers if at all possible. It will help you learn their personalities and communicate better.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

OpenRise Advisory provides growth consultation to early-stage startups through different approaches, including strategic enablement for the CXO [chief experience officer] suite, and sales and marketing optimization focused on either organic or inorganic growth. The organic growth is done through business-process transformation, while the inorganic is done through mergers and acquisitions.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with AgileEngine?

I was a part of an early-stage software-as-a-service startup funded by a private equity company. AgileEngine was one of the preferred providers we used for experiencing hyper-growth. As I started advising other companies (especially in the technology sector), they’ve been a preferred provider of top-quality work.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

One of the projects AgileEngine was contracted for was for the support of a CFO and CRO [chief risk officer] with a reporting and analytics suite. The team took some of the highest-level math, including gradient-descent algorithms and multilinear equations, and figured out a way to codify the system’s output into a readable and accessible report package.

The complexities associated with this were managing the development shop with our current technology development work, then integrating communication paths and jargon associated with it through an iterative process of sprint development.

The project involved Python and JavaScript. I’m unsure if they used any JSON Graph or other technologies.

I’ve leveraged AgileEngine for design work on another project, where they helped facilitate a web page for a cybersecurity company I was working with. I’ve leveraged that same team for a cybersecurity application development project. Users would get a test-drive of the functionalities through the web page.

What is the team dynamic?

I prefer communicating with the lead developer who acts as project manager and helps facilitate the translation of technical progress into sprint milestone deliveries. I’ve typically had a senior developer, and they sometimes manage several seniors and many junior people. We communicate every day during active projects using video teleconference, email, and phone. I currently communicate with them around once a month. I have visited their office in Tysons Corner, Virginia 4 times.

How did you come to work with AgileEngine?

The first thing that drew me to them was that they were a younger company eager to deliver and do what it took to succeed. I found it great to have a founder/owner/operator position because it gave me white-glove service delivery, and, if I had any issues, I would be given quick access to the decisionmaker, who focused on having their business represented well. Constructive criticism is always welcomed from their founder, Alex.

In terms of choosing them from other options, the price point couldn’t be beaten. They leverage offshore offices in Ukraine, and I’ve read many news briefings on the country’s capabilities in the space. They have a great work ethic, and their developers are within the top 3% in the world.

AgileEngine also has a lower attrition rate and an ability to execute. I’ve not had a failure in a project yet, and I feel that their client base has not had any attrition either. This tells me that their clients are happy with what they’re getting, and if they aren’t, they can express their concerns.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with AgileEngine around 2010–2011.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The optimization of cost versus ROI comes from the fact that we’re using experienced developers coming from overseas. We get U.S.-quality work at an offshore price, and the ROI is typically 3 times of what we would typically get from a local development shop.

AgileEngine has worked with very large brands, but they can also focus at a small-to-medium-enterprise level.

How did AgileEngine perform from a project management standpoint?

They do a great job of managing expectations and availability for web-based conferencing. They’ve tried to set things up in the morning, which is usually when clients want to meet, in order to set up the goals of the day.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The coachability of the team is impressive. They’re eager to learn and can cross different industry verticals quickly, as well as demonstrate expertise as they learn the jargon or business problem at hand. Secondarily, their creative attributes allow them to provide subject-matter expertise on more elegant design paths at 1/3 of the normal price point.

They’ve retained talent in order to evolve from within and also to develop the culture they’re looking to position for. I’ve talked to some angel investors in San Francisco who have heard about AgileEngine. They asked us why we don’t hire internal developers, and I told them that the ROI makes it worth it.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I would want to have more U.S.-based marketing resources from their side to spar with an account manager. I’ve loved the price point and quality of delivery, but having someone closer to my background, whom I could relate to better, would facilitate additional sales for AgileEngine.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Communication is the number one factor. If something is not working for the client, or if they feel they’re not getting the level of service they anticipated or requested, they’re one phone call away from the CEO. Clients should feel free to voice their opinions and help address the challenge.

Sometimes when people contract with developers, it’s a matter of just assuming they’re doing what is expected of them. However, it’s good to remain engaged in order to not mismanage the communication of those expectations. AgileEngine did a great job of outlining the range from a cost, hourly, and timing perspective. If that didn’t work for us, we could pay more in order to scale up the number of resources. The scalability in what they provide is great, and they can bring multiple options if they are asked.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the CEO of XA Systems, a small technology integration firm providing professional services to both the commercial market and Federal Government. We provide speciality IT services such as consulting, process engineering, and technology alignment to businesses. We also provide support personnel who manage the IT operational environments for customers on a daily basis.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with AgileEngine LLC?

We’ve been in operation for just about 17 years. During this time, we’ve developed a couple other smaller tools and some in-house products that we needed to satisfy XA Systems business requirements. We previously worked with independent contract developers and small firms that could help us meet some of those requirements, because we didn’t have the skill internally at our company.

Over time, we learned a lot about both our customer problems and challenges. We came up with design specifications for an automation software product that would collect analytics from our customers in a wide range of different areas. At that time, we consistently saw a requirement was missing in the marketplace. We were lacking strong developmental expertise, and also some technology performance products that were current in the market. We hired AgileEngine to help build that tool successfully.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

AgileEngine went through a full review of our goals and objectives, including design specifications we’d built. They had a very clear understanding of what we wanted to produce, what the final software would look like, and how it would operate. We had several meetings to ensure that we all understood the end goal, and after that, they started coding and built prototypes of the software demonstrating functionality, UI, and navigation. The coding was in Java, and some of the architectural elements were based on Apache Tomcat. We then continued to push them into more complex phases of development in order to deliver the solution.

What is the team dynamic?

In the beginning, we were meeting remotely 2-3 times per week, but it has since narrowed down to maybe once per week. We mostly use Skype and a Google platform. We’ve had regular communication throughout the process, and we’ve established a relationship with the team supporting our efforts. We feel as if we know them personally even though we’ve never shaken hands, which is amazing.

How did you come to work with AgileEngine LLC?

I’ve been in touch with my personal contacts to find a reasonably priced, expert company to outsource this work to. One of my contacts from a large national company had hired AgileEngine to do some development work, and they were pleased with the overall experience. They made the recommendation to contact AgileEngine.

How much have you invested in them?

We have spent around $300,000-$400,000 over the past couple of years.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with AgileEngine around October-November 2015, and the relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We had expectations that were well documented early on in our technical design, and we’ve met those targets in the expected timeframes. We’ve had the opportunity to go back and tweak things because we have a product we can display to our final customer. Sometimes these changes were large, but they were still completed in a short amount of time. A lot of iterative development took place, and we were very satisfied with the results along the way.

How did AgileEngine LLC perform from a project management standpoint?

After having a mix of experiences in the past, AgileEngine has been our most consistent, productive, and results-driven relationship. We’ve definitely hit a homerun with them working with both their onshore and offshore offices. We’ve found consistency in their skill levels, which is hard to match in the marketplace. They blend in and have a variety of expertise that’s within our budget, and they never sacrifice the quality or end result we’re seeking. They’ve been able to accomplish this with both the European resources they’ve assigned to us and the US resources that are local to our business establishment.

We anticipated having a language barrier with AgileEngine, but we’ve had no challenges with speaking to them through any medium. They communicate as if they are native speakers.

What did you find most impressive about them?

AgileEngine joined our team as an outsourced company and integrated themselves to truly share the vision we had. There was never any conflict, and they worked with us in unison to get us the results we wanted. Their customer service was high throughout the process, and their team was satisfied when we were satisfied.

Are there any areas they could improve?

AgileEngine could benefit from having more UI experts up front. When it came to UI development, the cosmetic aspect of the frontend was not the strongest. They took instructions from us and gave us what we asked for, but we ended up going to an alternate firm to address the product’s UI. As far as coding and functionality go, AgileEngine can’t be beat. We’ve given them very complicated scenarios, and they’ve always delivered.

The only advice I would give to someone considering work with AgileEngine is to treat it as a project. They will give you options for the number of resources to apply, and they make good recommendations. We didn’t always accept every recommendation, but learned throughout the process that we should’ve trusted their judgement.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I was the director of consumer engineering for LivingSocial at the time of working with AgileEngine.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with AgileEngine?

The company was looking for a way of improving its A/B testing in order to allow for tests to be executed across consumer web and native mobile applications. We had some goals around response time and the ability to handle certain loads and concurrency. We hadn’t worked with any other companies for A/B testing in particular, but we did have some other engagements with outside consulting agencies, which didn’t result in a happy outcome, in general.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

AgileEngine worked with our internal team of developers to determine requirements. They performed most of the development work for a new A/B testing engine.

The interface was developed as a standard API endpoint and the backend was a Scala application. The technology was chosen in order to meet the requirements of response time and handle the concurrence of different loads. In retrospect, I think it was a solid choice but it did add some obstacles.

While we did have Scala in our stack, we were mostly a Ruby on Rails shop, so there was less familiarity with the code base on our end. This is something which could have been averted through stricter requirements, but AgileEngine was able to deliver a strong solution which met the specifications while overcoming some communication difficulties and meeting the terms dictated to them.

We also dictated some of the expectations around what the interface would look like. Throughout the process, we talked about those requirements and adjusted as necessary.

How did you come to work with AgileEngine?

Alex Kalinovsky, their CEO, reached out to our VP of engineering at the time, who was exploring the idea of potentially doing some work. I believe they had met previously and Alex followed up. At least a part of their team was based in the Washington DC area, so it made sense to use them. Most of the developers were based in Ukraine, but they were able to adjust their schedules.

How much have you invested with AgileEngine?

The cost of their work was in the mid-5-figure range.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with AgileEngine in the middle of 2014; I left the company in March 2015. We had an on-and-off engagement over the course of several months. The work was delayed in part by some communication issues and the shifting ownership of the project. Overall, we ended up satisfied with the results.

The engagement ended around April or May 2015 and I doubt that the product is still in use. The company has either integrated or shut down anything that didn’t meet their requirements.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

AgileEngine ended up delivering a solid solution. The process was somewhat marked by the changing of their contacts over the course of the engagement.

I left around the time that the engine was being implemented, so I didn’t really see the outcome in terms of its impact on our business or a measurable return on investment.

How did AgileEngine perform from a project management standpoint?

The communication dropped a couple of times but I don’t think it was AgileEngine’s fault. They persevered through that and were able to deliver a solid solution.

There were no real communication barriers and they did their best to minimize the time zone difference. They were able to adjust their schedule and worked relatively late at night on their time, so I had no issues on that front. The primary tools for communication on a day-to-day basis were JIRA and email. We also had stand-ups via Google Hangouts.

What did you find most impressive about AgileEngine?

One thing which separates them from the rest is Alex’s leadership, his willingness to go above and beyond, and his eagerness to deliver top-quality results to customers. He really stands out compared to other contractors I’ve worked with.

Are there any areas AgileEngine could improve?

They could have made it clearer that the shifting leadership on our side would be a problem and be more explicit on how that would impact the delivery of the project.

What tips or recommendations could you share that might increase the likelihood of success with AgileEngine?

Just as with any other contracting engagement, make sure that there’s a clearly designated owner of the project, a single point of contact, and regular check-ins to make sure everything’s on track. This is not particularly applicable to AgileEngine but to contracting engagements in general.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the director of software development for Needles Inc. We are a legal software management company providing lawyers and the legal community with elaborate software that allows them to manage daily arrangements such as cases, clients, and court dates.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with AgileEngine LLC?

The company was significantly understaffed when I arrived. The developers had little experience and the group suffered from lack of budget to hire new people, which led us to collaborate.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

I like to be in touch with what’s happening instead of treating them as a vendor. I’d give AgileEngine requirements, work with them as if they were a remote part of my team, engage in day-to-day activities, and then they’d deliver the product. We had a team of 15 people, including developers, several testers, team leads and a test lead.

AgileEngine has developed the core force behind the software process. They created our calendar along with customization features for workflows and screen layouts. We also built a custom web API and introduced the security module into the software.

We would give AgileEngine requirements, and they would voice any questions or clarifications, which led to a good feedback process.

We used NHibernate and RESTful APIs. AngularJS was used for building the web interface of the software. NUnit was used for unit testing, and JIRA for tracking purposes.    ​​​​​​​

How did you come to work with AgileEngine LLC?

Alex Kalinovsky [CEO, Agile Engine] was the first person I reached out to because he was a coworker of mine. We chose AgileEngine, despite initial vendor concerns, because they were very oriented towards showcasing expertise in their team and Alex was good at selling himself. He fulfilled every promise he made during the initial presentation.

Many companies we looked at had a black-box feel, and when we would hand them requirements, we wouldn’t find out until the end if our expectations were met.

With AgileEngine, it was like working with remote members of our own team because of excellent integration. The process was seamless as far as project management goes. There was an honest interest from their side in making our company’s product work, rather than simply getting our business and making money.

We also chose AgileEngine because they allowed us to choose our resources. Their recruiting team would present developers or testers to me, who I would then interview and decide if they were the right fit. They did a good job of supplying high-quality, talented developers who worked well within our management style and with our team. We found that almost everyone who passed AgileEngine’s prescreens were people we could hire.

How much have you invested with AgileEngine LLC?

We’ve spent around $2 million.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started the project in September 2013, and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

AgileEngine built off of the software already in place, but they greatly improved performance during the process. Their customizations and restructuring of the code made it work fast and reduced the number of defects. They built automation into the process, so our software was faster and more stable.

How did AgileEngine LLC perform from a project management standpoint?

We communicated through Skype and TeamViewer, and I also traveled to their office to meet all the people we were working with. We interacted multiple times during the day, as if we had a local team.

What did you find most impressive about AgileEngine LLC?

The recruitment process, interactivity, collaboration, project management, and organization impressed me. I never felt left out of the process.

This was our best experience working with contractors. Other groups mainly tried to sell us services to make money, but AgileEngine provided a balanced process and remained honest about meeting expectations. I felt like I was working with a partner who was genuinely interested in the project. From a long-term perspective, AgileEngine provided us service that allowed us to move forward, and have invested in us as much as we have in their services.

Are there any areas AgileEngine LLC could improve?

Of all the experiences I’ve had with other vendors, this was the most positive and least conflicting one. The process didn’t go very well when we were initially hiring developers for the team because of delays, but we were able to staff everyone we needed after we worked that out.

What tips or recommendations could you share that might increase the likelihood of success with AgileEngine LLC?

Be open. The company is interested in keeping your business. There is a lot of experience and knowledge in the management team, so, if there is a project or some problem to be solved, there will be people within AgileEngine who can suggest a better approach. I did a bit of listening and got different opinions, and I’m glad I did.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CTO of The Baltimore Banner, a trustworthy local news coverage company focused on stories that improve life in Baltimore and Maryland.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with AgileEngine?

We needed help building a data engineering competency, data lake, analytics platform, and AI-based classification to power decision-making at scale.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

AgileEngine has helped us build a data lake and analytics platform for our business. The team has also developed AI-based capabilities, including AI-based classification to power analytics and insights on content usage and impact on our business goals based on content classification. This system also powers content tagging.AgileEngine has been responsible for the architecture, development, integration, and ongoing support of our platform.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with 2–5 teammates from AgileEngine.

How did you come to work with AgileEngine?

We found them through a referral. We chose them over other options because they were a great culture fit and had aligned company values.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in November 2023, and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

AgileEngine's work has reduced our time to insight by 50%. We've also seen an increase in our analytics team's efficiency.

How did AgileEngine perform from a project management standpoint?

AgileEngine's project management is good. We communicate via in-person meetings, virtual meetings, and emails or messaging apps.

What did you find most impressive about them?

AgileEngine understands the customer and aligns with their needs.I don't think there's anything they can improve on.

UPDATED REVIEW

This review was published on July 10, 2026.

Nicole Orders
SVP, The Baltimore BannerMedia

Baltimore Highlands, Maryland

51-200

Jan 2026 - Ongoing

Project summary
AgileEngine has developed an app for a media company. They have added dedicated audio and video experiences, personalized content recommendations, customized alerts, and migrated existing users and preferences.

Feedback summary
AgileEngine has delivered the app from scratch in six months and managed a 50% increase in scope while launching on time. The app has improved maintainability and scalability and reduced reliance on a third-party platform. The team is dedicated, skilled, and hardworking.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the SVP of product for The Baltimore Banner, a media company that provides trustworthy local news coverage focused on stories that improve life in Baltimore and Maryland.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with AgileEngine?

We needed to replace a white-label app with a newly built app designed to improve UX and engagement.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

AgileEngine has developed a new app with dedicated audio and video experiences, personalized content recommendations, and customized alerts. The team has also migrated existing users and preferences, introduced A/B testing and automated QA, and made general improvements to make it easier for users to discover, consume, and engage with our content.

What is the team composition?

We work with 10 teammates from AgileEngine.

How did you come to work with AgileEngine?

Someone referred AgileEngine to me, and their pricing fit our budget.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in January 2026, and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

AgileEngine has delivered the app from scratch in six months and managed a 50% scope increase while launching on time. The app has improved maintainability and scalability and reduced our reliance on a third-party platform. We’ve also received great user feedback, and the app is stable, with users migrating seamlessly.

How did AgileEngine perform from a project management standpoint?

AgileEngine has delivered on time. We communicate via virtual meetings, emails, and messaging apps.

What did you find most impressive about them?

AgileEngine has a dedicated, skilled development team that works very hard to ensure we deliver the project on time.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t think there’s anything they can improve on.

STAR RATINGS
Overall rating: 5
The team at AgileEngine were professional, diligent, and great partners to us.

Quality: 5

Cost: 5

Schedule: 5

Willing to refer: 5

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a technology and operations leader at a high-growth, venture-backed healthcare technology company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with AgileEngine?

We needed help with software development, data engineering, AI/ML engineering, and product engineering.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

AgileEngine has supported the development of the infrastructure and various elements of our product build, including setting up complex ETL flows and designing scalable software products.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with 2–5 teammates from AgileEngine.

How did you come to work with AgileEngine?

Someone referred them to us. We chose them over other options because they had high ratings, their pricing fit our budget, they were a great culture fit, and they had strong talent.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in June 2024, and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

AgileEngine has hit our software development roadmap milestones. The team delivers quality code at a high speed. Overall, their work quality is very high.

How did AgileEngine perform from a project management standpoint?

AgileEngine’s team is very professional, easy to work with, and responsive. They deliver on time. We communicate via virtual meetings, emails, and messaging apps.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The quality of AgileEngine’s talent is impressive.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There’s nothing they need to improve.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the CEO of Quillt.io

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Quillt is a digital platform that allows users to curate a true understanding of the user's life including stories, opinions, thoughts and feelings, in order to leave their story behind for future generations.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire AgileEngine to accomplish?

• Migrate from Heroku to AWS
• Add AI functionality

SOLUTION

How did you find AgileEngine?

they reached out

Why did you select AgileEngine over others?

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

How many teammates from AgileEngine were assigned to this project?

1 Employee

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

1. Migrating from Heroku to AWS
2. Bug fixing

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The platform is fully functional on AWS now

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

Great communication throughout, always on time and flexible with our needs

What was your primary form of communication with AgileEngine?

Virtual Meeting

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

Very easy and professional to work with.  Never overselling and always considering best options for us.  Also their work itself was great.

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

none