Andersen Inc.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the digital marketing director, web developer, and product manager for an e-commerce publication at a commercial printing company. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Andersen?

We hired Andersen to develop our website. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Andersen is developing our new site from a legacy site that's existed for over 10 years. The site is built in ASP.NET MVC in a SQL Server, and the frontend is in Razor. Andersen is also using some Javascript for the development. They've added some bells and whistles, including single sign-on, and refactored our old application. Andersen is also performing some bug fixes and maintenance where it's needed. 

What is the team composition?

We're working with three teammates from Andersen, and the project manager is our main point of contact. 

How did you come to work with Andersen?

I did a quick Google search and reached out to them because they seemed the most professional. Their team got back to me quickly, so we hired them. 

How much have you invested with them?

We've invested around $75,000 with Andersen thus far. 

What is the status of this engagement?

This project with Andersen began in August 2021, and it's ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The site is still in development, but Andersen is performing very well for the price, given that they're remote developers. I am 90% satisfied with Andersen's work thus far — they've exceeded my expectations. 

How did Andersen perform from a project management standpoint?

Andersen's project manager isn't very involved with our project because we're not paying them for that service. Their developers generally meet deadlines and stay on budget, but there have been some minor delivery issues. We constantly communicate via Microsoft Teams and have biweekly 30-minute phone calls with the Andersen team. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Andersen's technical ability is excellent — they provide excellent developers for a reasonable price.  

Are there any areas they could improve?

Andersen requires that I have a hands-on role in architecting technical solutions. That is a general issue of having remote developers who don't take ownership of an application, but I would prefer if they took more initiative to architect solutions. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I'd advise customers to be very hands-on with the system architecture and be prepared to provide Andersen's developers with the architectural solutions and marching orders for the development. Customers shouldn't expect a lot of feedback regarding architectural solutions either. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the co-founder of an HR SaaS company. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Andersen?

We wanted to have a scalable development team to help us build our product’s version one from scratch.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Anderson has built our software that allows our clients to sign-up, upload information, and manage their employees. They developed our MVP, which is a web portal. Their team is using React.js for frontend development and Python Django for backend development. 

Our app is an employee management software. It contains a database that stores employee information, and it supports onboarding, recruitment, and time tracking. 

In addition, our tool can conduct performance reviews — users can set milestones and log employee metrics. We intend to make it a workflow machine. If a user triggers a task, another user can approve it. 

Andersen also helped us design the app’s UI/UX — they created high-fidelity wireframes and mockups using Figma. 

Our in-house product owners are working with Andersen to communicate requirements and review designs. Our team provides feedback and suggestions to their work. The whole process is collaborative, and their development is ongoing. 

What is the team composition?

We work with five developers, one Scrum master, one designer, and three QA specialists. The Scrum master is our point of contact, but we also have an account manager. 

How did you come to work with Andersen?

I searched on Google for offshore software developers from Eastern Europe, and Andersen was one of the firms that came up. I looked at their website and found it to be very professional. 

On our initial discussions, I found that they were a relatively large company with a few hundred employees, increasing my confidence. I also looked at their reviews, including on Clutch, and the feedback I saw was quite positive. With that, I decided to work with them. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $100,000–$200,000. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together around February 2021, and it’s ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Andersen cares about our product, and they always come up with ideas on how we can improve the code. The quality of their work is also excellent — they meet our expectations.

They propose refactoring work to make our app more scalable. They also suggest tools that we should use to improve our operations. I’m very optimistic about their work, and I’m happy with the engineers we have. 

How did Andersen perform from a project management standpoint?

Andersen’s team is very professional. We do sprint planning, and they review our documentation and create a project timeline. Most of the time, they meet their deadlines. We use Slack for communication, and we have a daily sprint call with their team. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their team is open to discussion and feedback. As a result, our sprint planning runs smoothly, and we can easily communicate what we need. Everything is very transparent, so I’m confident that they’ll deliver based on our requirements. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

Overall, I’m delighted working with Andersen. I can’t think of anything that they can improve. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Documentation is very important. Make sure that you’re aligned with Andersen's team and figure out a communication system that works. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

VERSES is creating the protocols for the next generation of the web, connecting people, places, and things. Our Spatial Web Protocols are universal and open standards for the next generation of the web that connects people, places, things, and currencies into a single, digital network - The Spatial Web.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We hired Andersen for redesigning the user portal for one of our Spatial Web Apps in the logistics sector.

SOLUTION

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

We researched dev shops online and shortlisted a few. After speaking with the team at Andersen, we selected this vendor based on their previous designs, which looked outstanding.

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

Deliverables: new wireframes & designs, build re-usable components, add charts and metrics tables.

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

We hired one Project Manager, 2 Frontend Developers, 1 Solutions Architect, 1 Business Architect, and 1 Designer.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Better user experience (we received great feedback from our clients), some of the portal components were re-used in other projects, increase efficiency and resilience.

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

Weekly dev review and management meetings; in constant communication on Slack; multiple tracking and release notes regularly provided to us.

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

The team is very professional, everything is clearly documented (business requirements, vision, scope, deliverables, progress), and the quality of the work produced is outstanding.

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

The process for approving user stories can be improved upon and made simpler.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Co-Project lead and Head of Digital Marketing Department

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We wanted to relaunch our website and therefore moved to a headless architecture with React. In order to support our internal dev's we needed external manpower.

SOLUTION

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

I was contacted by Andersen before the relaunch via linkedin and therefore was already in contact with them.

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

We used scrum for the development. The developer of Andersen were fully integrated in our processes like internal dev's. The development was done with React.

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

2 full stack web developers

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

It took some time for the dev's to get used to our rules and coding principeles but it went smooth and the knowledge of them was on a very high level.

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

We communicated with Slack and Github during the whole project.

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

They are professionals and very well organized and friendly!

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

No, everything went smooth.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Chief of Staff - as part of this role I am responsible for all technology (website, internal systems and future platform).

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Andersen?

We had two problems-

1. We had a still very immature technology function, with high staff turnover in recent years that meant we needed to re-baseline and install the agile team structure and cadence necessary to drive a number of pivotal product releases.
2. We are designing and building out our future platform and need a business analyst to help us pull together requirements and prototypes for the first initial releases.

SOLUTION

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

We evaluated a number of vendors, however Andersen came recommended to the CEO, on meeting their account manager, reviewing their terms/rates and past work, it was decided that they fit the bill.

Describe the project in detail and walk through their service package.

We hired 2 resources:

1. Project Manager (Leonid) - his role was to take over interim day to day project management of technology sprints, upskill and train the team on the agile/scrum process.
2. Business Analyst (Eugene) - his role was to scope out our future platform, gather and document requirements, built prototype designs and break these down into targeted releases. This also involved documenting alot of what happens in the business today.

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

1. Project Manager - Leonid
2. Business Analyst - Eugene

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

1. Scrum/Agile is now fully embedded and the team work to steady cadence, with a much better interface into the business.
2. We have 2 fully scoped out releases for our future platform, with clear documentation and prototypes to support in development.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Good - they were always available, communicated well and and were well liked by the team and wider business.

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

The ability of the team to quickly absorb and digest a large amount of information and start delivering value. They were highly motivated and the work output was always excellent.

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

No complaints - though it was a short scale project.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CTO of a young startup based in Vienna, Austria, founded around one and a half years ago. We offer business planning services and a software solution for sales forecasting.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Andersen?

We’re a young company, and we don’t have a lot of resources. Thus, our initial challenge was scaling up our team. We were a four-person founding team, so we couldn’t cover all the positions required to develop the first version of our product. We had some technical experts in our team who had created our product’s backend, but we went to Andersen for the UI part.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Andersen has helped us conceptualize, design, and implement our product’s UI/UX. The project has been done in multiple phases. Initially, we provided them with general concepts, mockups, and detailed technical requirements. These requirements included that the platform should work on all modern browsers and mobile platforms.

After providing our requirements, Andersen designed the final mockups based on what we gave them, which were then given to a frontend developer in the later stages. From there, we’ve worked on additional functionalities.

Most of their work has been frontend development, for which they’ve used React and JavaScript. They’ve also used Figma as a design tool, and we’ve collaborated with them through that platform. I’m currently collaborating with Andersen on implementing some functionalities we need for getting a funding program.

What is the team composition?

Initially, we worked with three people from Andersen: a designer, a project manager, and a UI/UX developer. We added a business analyst and a tester in the second phase. We’re in the middle of the third phase now, and we’re mainly using one developer and one project manager.

How did you come to work with Andersen?

We researched Clutch and other platforms extensively, looking for development partners that could assist us in building our product by bringing the right people with the right skills. We had experience working with external companies, so we had criteria to meet based on that. Andersen covered all of our technical requirements, and their cost was within our budget.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around €70,000 (approximately $81,000 USD) so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Andersen in May 2020, and we plan to continue the partnership for a long time.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Andersen helped us find the right people for our project. They had a team already built, and they knew who among them would be the right people to support us, so we didn’t have to hire other specialists. Thanks to this great team, they helped us build a product that we can now show to our customers.

They’ve definitely helped us build a better product that our users like. For example, we collaborated on a big project with a large customer two months ago, and we got really positive feedback during the testing phase.

We’ve also been awarded an important funding program run by the Austrian government. This program has milestones that we’ve needed to meet, and Andersen has helped us reach those milestones. We’re now in talks with them to roll out our product throughout Europe and some other countries.

How did Andersen perform from a project management standpoint?

We’ve missed almost no deadline, nor we’ve deviated from our budget. Whenever there has been an issue or delay, there has always been honest communication, and we’ve found solutions together.

We mostly use email for communication. We’re also using Slack for our day-to-day communication, and we have daily meetings on Google Meet.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Honest communication is important for building a long-term partnership. Andersen works at a good pace and offers great communication.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Andersen proposed a more encompassing involvement than we’d planned at the beginning, which affected our budget. It felt like they just wanted to have a bigger team involved to make some additional money. In the end, it turned out that it wasn’t really useful.

 Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Come up with a clear concept and precise requirements. It’s always helpful to have a clear understanding of what needs to be achieved in the project.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the project manager for Armenotech, which represents services on technical support and information and technological interaction for collection, processing and transmission of information on payments and payment orders between partners that accept payments by Visa, MasterCard and MIR bank cards on websites and in mobile applications under the concluded agreements.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Andersen?

We needed a personal office that would be a universal tool for our internal work.

SOLUTION

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

Good references through acquaintances.

Describe the project in detail and walk through their service package.

We used a lot of different tools that we found on different resources. A needs analysis was conducted, the result of the UX audit was presented and was taken as a basis for further development. Assistance was provided in setting up managerial processes to interact with front-end development and testing specialists.Back end specialists were also involved from time to time.

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

React developer Baykov Fedor Tester Sinyuk Anastasia GO developer Tarusov Maxim GO developer Denis Tokarev Project Manager Alina Makarovets

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We can't share the result as the private office is intended only for the work of internal employees of the company.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Since development was our main working tool, we ourselves are an agile company that reacts quickly to all new business requirements, hence our development requirements and prioritization of tasks changed as well. Anderson's team has handled our conditions quickly and efficiently.

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

Each employee is responsible for his/her work and always offers the best solutions for the tasks set

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

We're fine.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the client relations manager at Shepel Homes, a design company that focuses on architectural engineering management for residential construction projects.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Andersen?

We needed a team to help us design the application that we’re developing.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Andersen mainly implements UX/UI design solutions to help us envision how we want our platform to appear. We started by providing them a detailed report of our project goals and all the information they needed to proceed with the design process. Upon going over our report, they’ll go ahead and deliver mockups and solutions, which are then sent over to our team for approval or feedback.

What is the team composition?

We mainly work with a project manager, a UX/UI designer, a lead designer, and a sales representative.

How did you come to work with Andersen?

I found their platform on Behance and thought it looked interesting, so I sent them a message. Andersen responded right away, and I saw their willingness to support our business through their approach, so I decided to work with them.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent about $6,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started in March 2021, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Andersen’s knowledge and expertise are well-reflected in the deliverables they provide. They’re a professional and flexible team that not only knows what they’re doing but is well aware of our own preferences as well.

How did Andersen perform from a project management standpoint?

Andersen is a very punctual team that consistently meets deadlines and attends our meetings with ample preparedness.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I like working with them, and I haven’t encountered any area that needs improvement.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be consistent in communicating with their team and providing valuable feedback. Andersen is a very open and collaborative team, so any well-established and communicative relationship will definitely lead to great results.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the tech/ team lead of price comparison portal. The team focuses on comparing private loans.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

He hired them as external developers to increase the head count of our dev team. They are part of a larger team.

SOLUTION

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

Especially in Germany it takes very long to onboard a new developer. It takes usually 3+ months from the date of the final interview until he boots up his PC for the first time. Andersen has a fast onboarding process and if the need for a new dev arises we can have him usually within 2 weeks.

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

We use a variety of technologies. We have a Angular and AngularJS frontend and we use C# microservices and PHP in the backend.

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

Over the last years we had 5 devs from Andersen within our team.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The developers are reliable and experts in their domain. The code is of high quality.

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

The developers of Andersen are part of our SCRUM team and are treated like internal developers. We communicate mainly through Microsoft teams.

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

I like their sense of urgency. There are fast when we need to find a new developer. The developers are hard-working and skilled.

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

I have no complaints.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the co-CEO at Praedicta, a fintech management company. We develop information systems for financial markets in Israel.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Andersen?

We needed specialists to develop the frontend systems for a local bank client.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They’re responsible for the entire frontend development of the platform. The frontend contains four types of interactive screens. There are a lot of graphic features that analyze portfolio performance and composition. It’s very complicated work because it interacts with data at various levels.

What is the team composition? 

We’re in contact with their manager. There are also two programmers and one QA person.

How did you come to work with Andersen?

They called me and were very professional in marketing. I gave them a chance. They made a smooth project for us and I was impressed. This is why we gave them this project.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent about €11,000 (approximately $13,400 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in January 2021, and the relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’re very pleased with their work and progress. Everything went smoothly and efficiently.

How did Andersen perform from a project management standpoint?

Project management is excellent, and their manager is an excellent professional. Everything is coordinated very well. No time is wasted and the requirements are clear. 

Communication is great. We discuss the plan on a weekly basis to check our progress against timelines. The project is moving faster than planned in the beginning.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re professional in every field they touch. The whole group is very impressive, and the programmers are particularly professional. I have experience in the field, and they are the best.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They’ve already improved. They underestimated a small project we gave them, and I wasn’t pleased. However, they improved drastically, providing a more accurate estimate. That gave me more security.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Know what you’re doing and be concrete about your desired deliverables. It should be graphically defined very well. On your side, you need to be as professional as they are.