Apzumi

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am a medical doctor and researcher into drug development.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We had released a fitness app onto the App Store but the app code was out of date and needed reworking.

SOLUTION

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

Apzumi was recommended to us through a work contact and we decided to go with them due to their punctual and quick response and also their willingness to solve our coding issues.

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

They examined the code and came up with a workable plan very efficiently with a good budget also.

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

I mainly worked with one developer and one of the company directors. I was always able to contact them and they replied to any concerns in the same working day. They also scheduled regular update calls that kept the momentum of the project going.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They delivered the product on time and within budget.

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

Excellent all round. They’re approachable, friendly and great problem solvers. They allow room for you the client to carry on with other work tasks and understand that you also have other priorities.

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

They were friendly, understood our issues, and were willing to adapt to our circumstances and needs rather than expecting us to work around them.

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

Nope - not at all actually. We intend to commission further projects with them.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm a MD, CEO of Helfi. It is a digital healthcare company developing a complex system connecting patients with their doctors through technology.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Apzumi?

We hired Apzumi for complete product development from scratch. Including but not limited to web app design and development, mobile app design and development, backend and frontend level.

What were your goals for this project?

Our goal was to develop a multi-platform system, with responsive design and adhering to many legal requirements dealing with sensitive data. We wanted our solution to be modular and scalable with ease of integration with various platforms and solutions.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We found Apzumi through extensive web search, out of many companies out there it was the only company that had extensive experience in working in the digital healthcare area with many different vendors developing solutions for patient registration, EHRs, insurance companies. They had deep understanding of various coding systems like ICD or ICF and legal constraints and requirements handling sensitive data.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

We worked with Apzumi from the begining - we came to them with ideas and a extensive wireframe of the whole project and they handled it perfectly - starting from the assistance in design, project deployment schedule, front end development, web design, mobile design, backend and even marketing,legal and business assistance. As IT is not my field of expertise Apzumi handled all technical aspects, I only discussed ideas, problems and functionalities - they proposed solutions.

What was the team composition?

The basic team consisted of project manager, frontend developer, backend developer. In addition to that marketing manager, business developer, sales consultant were involved at various points of development.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any information that demonstrates the impact that this project has had on your business?

The way that Apzumi works and the experience they have impacts greatly the cost of development and shortens the design process. We had a tight budget and schedule and due to EU funding restrictions. Thanks to them we made it perfectly on time and on budget without any issues.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

We worked with Joanna and she is the perfect project manager for healthcare projects. With her research background (PhD) and great flexibility she's perfect in communication. We used different tools like Jira, Trello, Hangouts so I was always informed what was happening in the project (even though I don't fully understand all of it).

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The best thing in working with them is that we had an idea - they had a solution ready. You want a EHR - here you go, you want a online consultation platform - here you go, ICF ? - no problem. There's no "impossible" in their dictionary.

Are there any areas for improvement?

None that I can think of. In general greatly recommended.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of SkillPower, and we are a digital health company developing mobile apps to support digital health and behavior change.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Apzumi?

Our goal in hiring Apzumi was to develop our initial product launch. We were part of a digital health accelerator program, so the launch was timed with a demo day in front of about 200 investors.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Their team worked with us from the beginning, and we developed some of the wireframes to kind of kick off the work and hand it over to them, but then they ran with the project from there. We considered them to be real collaborators as opposed to just telling them what to do.

They did most of the design and the development themselves on Ionic for both iOS and Android, and then they handled the process of submissions to the app store and everything like that, as well as providing feedback on things like our privacy policy and some aspects of the user experience.

One of the main features is an advanced chatbot that functions as a digital coach, which works in tandem with an aging algorithm that helps people envision themselves 20 years in the future to help motivate the desired behavioral change. They also built different health modules that the users could participate in through that chat function.

What is the team composition?

There were about 6 members of their team involved in our project. They had a project manager, but we were interacting with both of them and the developers directly.

How did you come to work with Apzumi?

We found them through the accelerator program that we were participating in.

How much have you invested with them?

The project cost about $15,000 in total.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from November–December 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Through the accelerator program, we were able to get a decent amount of feedback during our development stage, and they did a great job of handling all of those requests and making the changes that we wanted to implement on the fly.

How did Apzumi perform from a project management standpoint?

They did a really great job managing the scope and timeline of the whole project. Some of the requests that we made they incorporated without any trouble, and when they did have concerns their team was incredibly transparent about vocalizing those to us.

Everyone at Apzumi was always available and communicated really clearly at all times. We were operating on a fixed price structure, and in the final 10 days, they were definitely working overtime to get everything done. We were really impressed with how committed they were to getting everything done.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We felt like a development partner more than they ever felt like a vendor, which was incredibly beneficial to us and the project. They sent us good luck notes on the day of our presentation and asked how it went afterward, which demonstrated their mindset with regard to the whole engagement.

Their team was always thinking critically about the process and would request to change requirements a number of times when they thought something could be done better or differently from how we had initially envisioned it. And sometimes we decided to keep our plans, but other times they really added to the quality of our final product.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I really can’t complain about anything regarding their price or their process. We had a goal, and the goal was achieved completely to our satisfaction.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Communicate as much as possible up front. That will help you in any project, but they are a great partner and you will be able to hit the ground running if you present them with exactly what you want to do from the beginning.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Apps Product Manager of the Pregnancy, Birth and Baby app. We are the UKs largest parenting club reaching 95% of all pregnant women in the UK.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Apzumi?

iOS and Android development and support for app maintenance and developing new features and QA testing of the app.

What were your goals for this project?

To improve the usability of the app, create new features and increase number of active users and downloads by scaling up our app development team.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

A former employee had experience of working with Apzumi in the past and reviewed them, along with other companies, as the best fit for the business and project with their excellent skills and experience.

Describe the project in detail.

The team have worked on many important app features including creating a hospital appointment schedule and a voucher section which has proved popular with our users.

What was the team composition?

The current team comprises of an Android developer and an iOS developer and a QA tester.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The app continues to grow and its new features are welcomed by its users and the business. Last year, we have managed to minimise the amount of bugs that are found in the test phase and at release.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

We hold daily stand ups and all priorities and issues are discussed as a team. The Apzumi team feel very much like one of our company and hold the same values and aspirations as we do. We communicate frequently via tools such as Slack and Skype and use project management tools to work agily. Workflow is very effective and I feel aware all the time of project progress.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The team is very experienced in what they do. They offer valuable advice and give their opinions when scoping new projects and are very highly regarded when it comes to this. Their grasp of the english language is excellent and they can articulate challenging technical topics easily.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Not really. Keep doing what you're doing!

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of NappyMe, a hairstylist booking app that connects hairstylists to customers.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Apzumi?

I needed someone to build my iOS and Android app.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They developed my iOS and Android app, also building out the backend. The final product is a marketplace where customers can select a hairstylist in their area, book an appointment over the platform, and get their hair done. The apps were built natively in Swift and Java.

I came up with the wireframes and specifications, working closely with the developers. Then, I provided the design for the interface and database. They worked on development, customer support, customer service.

When we launched, they deployed the app on the backend of AWS. We’ve been working on the migration for a year now. They continue to improve the app.

What is the team composition?

There are two people on the backend, one Android developer, one iOS developer, one tester, and one project manager. I mainly worked closely with the project manager. However, I'm able to talk directly with the rest of the team if needed.

How did you come to work with Apzumi?

I worked with Apzumi on a previous project with another company. After that, I started my company. Since we had a good relationship and they deliver fast, I got in touch with them.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent about $100,000 on the project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in March 2016, and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I’m very satisfied with working with them. They always find a solution to the problems we face.

How did Apzumi perform from a project management standpoint?

They are doing great. We use GitHub, Confluence, Skype, and Slack to communicate.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The quality of the code, especially the frontend, is impressive. The UI specification I sent was made picture-perfect for the mobile app. They’re really flexible with payment.

Are there any areas they could improve?

It can be difficult to reach them when needed after their normal working hours, but that can be expected. However, it would be nice to have 24/7 support for our servers. I understand that isn't in my contract, though.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

You can trust them completely. If you have a technical background, it will be way easier to communicate with the team.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the owner of Leaderclips, a company that organizes video clips about leadership into learning channels.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Apzumi?

I created a mobile app with a different firm that combined training channels and videos with a way for team leaders to communicate with the rest of their teams. The app also had built-in leader lessons. However, that firm ended up not working out and I needed a new partner to help me maintain and enhance the app.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Apzumi evaluated the Android and iOS apps created for me by the other firm and provided estimates for enhancements I was looking to do. I had a long backlog of ideas to improve the platform. They also looked at my website and database, which was built in MongoDB.

Their team ended up evaluating the code written by the other firm and came across some deficiencies in the way it was built that would prevent me from making some of the changes I wanted to. While they were able to make some minor changes, the major enhancements wouldn’t be possible. They believed it would make more sense to rewrite the app and provided me with a proposal for that.

What is the team composition?

I worked with a team of four from Apzumi. Three members of the team were responsible for looking at the code and our project manager.

How did you come to work with Apzumi?

A mutual friend connected me with the team at Apzumi. I evaluated them alongside several other firms but ended up deciding to work with them. 

How much have you invested with them?

I invested about $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our engagement ran from September 2017–January 2018.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Apzumi did me a favor. They provided me with valuable insight that was hard to hear but was truthful. I ended up decommissioning the app in 2019 and taking my business in a different direction. They knew that they could try and change the platforms I had in place, but that it wouldn’t serve me in the long run. 

I love the Apzumi team. Their honesty in a difficult situation is incredibly valuable. The whole team is easy to work with and friendly. They clearly know their business.

How did Apzumi perform from a project management standpoint?

Apzumi is very responsive to my needs and questions. Their insights were incredibly helpful, even though it was difficult to deliver. They handled the whole thing very professionally. 

They use intake forms for questions. Apzumi clearly has a process and methodology for how they do their work, which I appreciated. They are extremely organized with good leadership. Our teams communicated using Skype.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Apzumi continues to stay in touch with me, even though it was a small engagement. I get follow up calls from the owner and our project manager every so often. Their team is very friendly and proactive in their customer management.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, they handled everything professionally. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

If I had gone forward with a larger project with Apzumi, I would have gone to see them on site. They invited me many times to come to their facility in Poland. I think it would be very beneficial to improve communication and rapport.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Rewire is a startup looking to machine-learn from real-time physiological data correlated to subjective pain reporting in order to detect the onset of migraine. I serve as CTO.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Apzumi?

We hired Apzumi to build an app that would collect the subjective data during a migraine attack and help navigate the episode (using relaxation techniques, guided meditation, etc.).

What were your goals for this project?

Our goals were to develop a first PoC based on the Apzumi app that would prove that migraine sufferers would be able to use and benefit during an attack.

Furthermore, we wanted to prove that the benefits would drive usage and ultimately allow us to collect subjective data throughout the duration of the episode.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We were referred to them. We then interviewed Apzumi and engaged with them for a first sprint of development.

Describe the project in detail.

The project was for full stack development including design of the architecture, design of the UI, and implementation both on the Android front-end and Microsoft Azure backend. Apzumi also did extensive QA. We worked in sprints of a month or so each, incrementally implementing features.

What was the team composition?

Apzumi brought in the required expertise at the different stages. This was very helpful, as we had a dynamic team focused on the parts that were necessary. The overall project was managed by a project manager on their side, and myself along with the CEO on our side.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We received a number of versions of the mobile app, each one professionally delivered, and fully tested. The deliveries were on time and without substantial bugs and allowed us to test the premises against our users in order to get feedback and cycle on to the next sprint.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Workflow was excellent. Apzumi communicated effectively and comprehensively.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

There were no miscommunications between us. What we ordered and expected was delivered on time and working. I would absolutely work with Apzumi again for any development project and will recommend them with the highest regard.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Not really. Each project has its challenges and I'm sure that working with Apzumi is an excellent cost-effective way of getting high-quality designers and developers along with first rate project management.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the CEO of SWIL Systems, an online video conferencing service for healthcare professionals, mainly doctors, psychotherapists, and psychologists.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Apzumi?

After I got rid of my old programming team, I needed to develop our entire platform. I was looking for a company with more experience in digital health software.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Apzumi developed our web-based platform from scratch. The team included key functionality and features, including an end to end encrypted video conferencing, online calendar and booking systems, and online payment options.

What is the team composition?

We worked with six members of the Apzumi team. Our project manager was our main point of contact.

How did you come to work with Apzumi?

I met the CEO of Apzumi at a conference in Berlin while I was looking for programmers. We got to talking and I went to their headquarters in Poland twice. After seeing what they were doing, I decided to give them a contract.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our ongoing engagement with Apzumi began in June 2017.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

So far, our platform has received positive feedback, particularly on its usability and UI. We’ve had a few bugs, but nothing particularly complicated.

How did Apzumi perform from a project management standpoint?

They have great project management skills. Apzumi has a good setup and understood what I wanted. I had a prototype that they improved upon greatly. 

Our teams communicated online for translations or questions on the original feature. We frequently emailed and had a few Skype calls to discuss some details if anything was clear or uncertain.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They don’t just develop what you tell them, they also give feedback and improve the project. That really makes them stand out. Unlike a lot of programmers, they don’t just go down their list of development steps, they make an effort to actually understand your project and prevent you from implementing things that aren’t needed.

Apzumi added new features I hadn’t even thought of. A lot of things just aren’t on your mind when you’re developing a platform. For example, they added password resetting and security at no extra price.

Are there any areas they could improve?

At this point in time, no. Currently, all of the things I’ve needed have been done.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Go by their office and see for yourself how they work, at least that’s what I did.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and CEO of Tectonic. We build MVPs for clients in different places around the world.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Apzumi?

We needed outsourced development help as we were developing a product for our client.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We worked together from the inception of the products. The MVP was entirely web-based—it’s a procurement-based platform. A company could put out an RFP for a particular service. Our team built the wireframes and the designs; Apzumi focused on the development. They used Java, JavaScript, MySQL, PHP, and HTML5 in the process.

Users submit a form in a standardized according to industry requirements. After this, an RFP is generated. Then other companies who all had profiles within the platform could then respond to those proposals. The company that created the RFPs would then select a company, which would then create an automatic contract that both parties would sign. That would create a project where they have payment milestones.

Once an order was provisioned, completed, or sent over to the company, a payment notification would be triggered. Following this, the payment would be made. There was also an arbitration service. If there were any issues between the companies, they could find an arbitrator and embark on an arbitration process within the platform.

What is the team composition?

We had five different people that we interacted with, a tech lead, two QA leads, and two developers. I believe there were also a few extra developers in the background that were doing some work. We had a project manager and designers on our side. We worked with a project manager from Apzumi as well.

How did you come to work with Apzumi?

I found them through LinkedIn. We were looking for a development company abroad, potentially in Eastern Europe, so they contacted me at a good time.

How much have you invested with them?

We invested $80,000-$100,000 in the project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in May 2017 through May 2018.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Feedback on the project has been entirely positive. The client was particularly demanding from a timeframe perspective. However, Apzumi was really great at finding technical solutions that would allow the client to achieve what they wanted from a product perspective. In terms of functionality, the product did everything that they wanted and even exceeded expectations.

How did Apzumi perform from a project management standpoint?

The project management was really good. They were on top of everything; we fell short much more than they did. It was excellent. They also interfaced directly with the client. We had a flat structure when working together. We had video calls and used Slack and email. We used Trello and they’d share project reports and updates.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their process and creative solutions to technical problems are impressive.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I believe they handled themselves really well. They made the effort to engage with us and get to know us on a personal level. In particular, they were really good at disagreeing in a productive way. For example, they would tell us if we shouldn’t do something and give us the reasons why. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

You should trust their technical ability and give them the business context. They’ll make sure the product works in line with the business goals.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We’re a young company in the healthcare space. One of our products is a patient-facing application that provides remote cardiac rehab for off-site patients. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Apzumi?

We hired Apzumi to build out our patient-facing mobile applications, as well as our dashboard for hospital staff. There was a backend component in addition to those interfaces. We had an initial prototype when we started working with them, but we asked their designer to redo the entire UI.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Their designer made significant updates to the prototype—it was essentially a complete revamp. They started from there and then brought on their developers to implement the designs. The mobile application is built in Ionic and is deployed for both iOS and Android. The dashboard is written in Angular, and the backend is in Spring Boot and MongoDB.

The dashboard is a web app for medical staff, and the mobile application is for patients. In terms of features, they were exactly what you would expect.

What is the team composition?

We’ve been working with them for maybe two years at this point, on and off, and the most we’ve ever had at one time is four. A majority of the time, though, the team has been just two people.

We started with a project manager from their side and a product owner from our side. We eventually hired another project manager.

How did you come to work with Apzumi?

I met an individual who worked for Apzumi when he lived in Poland. He was from my area, and he was the one who referred. We reached out and started the engagement after vetting them.

How much have you invested with them?

It’s somewhere between $50,000–$200,000. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started with them in July 2017, and the project is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Apzumi did an excellent job on the frontend components. I do code reviews, and when we engage with their QA team, they’re always able to address issues and gaps. 

We didn’t do a fixed bid upfront, and we’re always counting materials, but sprint planning helps us set expectations. We don’t have a burndown report or anything like that, because we didn’t do an initial estimate, but they’ve been delivering.

How did Apzumi perform from a project management standpoint?

The requirements were laid out cleanly ahead of time, which set us up well to use their project manager. They always reached out with questions ahead of time to avoid barriers or address dependencies that we needed to fix. That was incredibly helpful. We used Slack, Confluence, and Jira, as well as daily standups, to stay in constant contact. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re very accommodating and flexible, especially for an outsourced team.

Are there any areas they could improve?

This isn’t unique to us, but vetting their staff prior to engaging with a client would help them match people appropriately. That wasn’t a big issue, just one suggestion that comes to mind.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Make sure that Apzumi is the right fit for your technology stack. They only focus on a select number of technologies, but for those types of products, their services are excellent. Also, set aside time at the beginning to find the right developers within their organization.