Clavax

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

I work for Sam Media, a lead generation service.

What is your position?

I am the director of the email division. We send about 22 million emails throughout the world every month. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Clavax Technologies?

The business goal is to have a central point where we can receive all the leads different parties send to us. We want to be able to control that flow, both coming in and out. Within that framework, we also want to have some features like validations and reporting. So far, Clavax has helped us with all of that. 

The next challenge is that we are growing, and the amount of data that's going in and out is becoming rather big, so the original set up on MySQL is starting to reach its limitation. We are now, together with Clavax, looking for a solution that will help us grow to the next level.

SOLUTION

Please describe the specific service that they provided for you.

Clavax has created the database for us to store the incoming leads, including features on how to validate the incoming leads that we're purchasing and how to redistribute them.

The first service Clavax provided was data migration because data was originally on a small database on our servers. That data needed to be migrated. If I recall correctly, in time, we came to the conclusion that we needed to scale up on the servers. The data from the old server needed to move to the new server. Clavax was very helpful in taking care of the whole back-end part of migration. From that perspective, they are a full-service company.

How did you come to work with Clavax Technologies?

We've been working with Clavax for, I think, almost two years now but, if I'm not mistaken, we posted the job on Elance, and we got a response from Clavax. They asked us to elaborate on our request so that they could come up with a suitable solution.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

We have spent more than $50,000 working with Clavax.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics, metrics, or other feedback from your work with Clavax?

We are continuously improving our operation. We now have a number of APIs [application programming interfaces] running. There are 10 active import APIs and two export APIs that are doing more than a million transactions monthly. We are currently upgrading the platform to handle even bigger volumes. Those are our key metrics.

How did Clavax Technologies perform from a project management standpoint?

When you have been working together for two years, there are, of course, ups and downs. But, from a personal perspective, Deepak is a very knowledgeable, sensible project manager. The difficulty is that he is used on many projects. He has been trying to delegate the work to a senior programmer who was, let's say, less qualified for the job.

It took some time to find a good working combination and the specific project management skills. Deepak compensated enough for the senior programmer's talents. That took some work from our end and some patience but, all in all, the balance between price and quality is good.

What distinguishes Clavax Technologies from other providers?

What I like is that Clavax has a good pool of people who can work on a project. One month, there would be just one person working on the project part-time and then, in the next month, there might be three people working full time. They are flexible in dedicating resources as needed and coming up with solutions to fit our needs.

Is there anything Clavax Technologies could have improved or done differently?

There was a period when one module turned out to have all sorts of bugs, but that has now been resolved. The quality control before being passed onto us could have been better. Clavax has now added someone to the team that takes care of quality control. The number of complaints from our end on finished products has dramatically decreased.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

Our company manufactures electronic products for the agriculture industry.

What is your position?

I'm in the engineering department.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Clavax?

Our goal was twofold. We have a server side with the website for communicating with the new product we were designing as well as having mobile apps for Apple and Android.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.

Clavax created an app specific to our product for Apple devices. They also created the same application for the Android side. Both those applications had to communicate with the main server – our devices all communicate to a centralized server through software developed by Clavax. That same server stores all the information from the devices and allows them to retrieve that stored information.

How did you come to work with Clavax?

I found them through Elance. Clavax was one of the companies that competed for our project.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

We've spent somewhere between $10,000 and $50,000 working with Clavax.

What is the status of this engagement?

Clavax finished the project for us several months ago, but we're still making changes on a few things that didn't work quite the way we wanted. Clavax is making those ongoing changes for us, but for the most part, the project is complete.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics, metrics or other feedback from your work with Clavax?

Our site is different from sites like eBay, where everything is happening at the interface between the site and the user. Our website is more driven by what is running in the background by talking to our devices and putting material in databases. The site that Clavax designed sends out text and email messages to all the users, depending on the data that it receives from the devices in the field. All this is going on in the background 24/7. Ultimately, there'll be thousands upon thousands of units connected to this site, but it will just perform the same function.

The only interaction the user has with the front-end of the website itself is just to add new devices to their account or change their credit card – things like that. They can monitor information on the website and see historical data, but they pretty much can do the same thing on their phone apps, which is what most people are doing. Once they've signed up on the website, they just use the app or just go to the text messages they get on a daily basis. Ultimately, thousands upon thousands of devices will be connecting to the site.

How did Clavax perform from a project management standpoint?

They were Good. Because I'm in engineering, I knew about the details of the project from the beginning. I knew exactly what I wanted to do and how I wanted the site to function. I defined the majority of the scope of the project before it even started. I didn't have to rely on Clavax to figure things out. They did have to figure out how they were going to get the project done, but as far as the details of how the project was going to work, that was something that I did upfront. I gave them as much detail as I could.

Working with them was not a problem at all. They have several programmers and a project manager here in the United States, but our project manager was a nontechnical person, so she would ultimately have to talk with the people in India anyway. Clavax allowed me to work directly with the developer working on the project, so I didn't have to get second- or third-hand information. I liked working directly with the developer himself because I could resolve problems right away. I could send him an email directly, and the next day everything would be resolved or the problem fixed.

Clavax didn't require me to go through a project manager. I was able to work with the developer directly, which because of the language barrier, is not always the case. In Clavax's case, I was able to work with our developer directly, which was very helpful.

What distinguishes Clavax from other providers?

I got several quotes from American companies versus offshore companies, so definitely from the standpoint of economics, working with Clavax did save us a considerable amount of money in developer costs.

Is there anything Clavax could have improved or done differently?

The one thing I actually had talked about to both their project manager and owner, was to suggest to them the potential importance of having developers here in California to take care of some of the needs that require them to be in the same time zone. I understand that they would have to charge at a different rate for U.S. developers. I suggested to them that the only thing that was a hurdle for us was the time difference, but we knew this was something we were willing to deal with going into the project. The time difference was sometimes a problem since I could only talk to our developer either late at night or early in the morning my time.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

Our company is Bookfari, an online book retailer.

What is your position?

I am the Chief Executive Officer of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Clavax Technologies?

We were looking to build three solutions: an online website for selling business-to-customer books, an inventory and warehouse management system for our bookstores, and integration with selling channels such as Amazon and eBay.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in greater detail.

They have built those three solutions our e-commerce website, inventory management system and integration into Amazon and eBay from the ground up. They were fully responsible for creating www.bookfari.com(link is external), which sells to customers all over the world with sales channel management and inventory controls.

How did you come to work with Clavax Technologies?

We had worked with them in a previous project.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

It was a substantial amount, but I won’t disclose it.

What is the status of this engagement?

We have a dedicated team of programmers and project managers who work with us full time on the project.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

These projects have been very successful. Our website has continued to grow since we started working with them.

How did Clavax Technologies perform from a project management standpoint?

Clavax performed very well. We have direct access to a project manager, and we also have direct access to the team members who are doing the job, which helps speeds up communication.

What distinguishes Clavax Technologies from other providers?

Their honesty and determination to keep their customers satisfied sets them apart.

Is there anything Clavax Technologies could have improved or done differently?

They could be faster, but this is difficult as we keep putting more requirements on.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

Our company manufactures precision-based modular instruments and systems for distribution, acquisition and monitoring of electronic signals. Their products and systems are utilized to gather and monitor data, which characterize the physical integrity and performance of engines, aircraft, and other large structures.

What is your position?

I am the IT lead in the company. I take care of everything website and web application related.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Clavax Technologies?

We reached out to Clavax to develop a web application with a complete backend and CMS solution.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in greater detail.

Clavax was responsible for building a website with various pages. They also integrated marketing automation modules to it and tied it to CMS software and databases. We gave them the concept and content for the application, and they fully developed it using ASP.NET, SQL Server, AJAX, HTML5, CSS3 among other technologies.

How did you come to work with Clavax Technologies?

I was not part of the decision-making process to hire them, so I'm not able to answer this. 

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

The size of the project was in the $10,000 to $50,000 price range.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project has wrapped up. It was supposed to be a three-month project, but it took longer than expected.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

It is hard for me to say what we can attribute to Clavax’s work directly. Right after we launched the site, our traffic was down because we used to have an old, but well-established website. We have since worked on our search engine optimization [SEO] and gotten it back. That’s not on Clavax. The site was deployed too quickly without thinking about the SEO implications of it.

How did Clavax Technologies perform from a project management standpoint?

They did a good job, but we definitely had to keep an eye on them. We had to make sure to communicate and verify that the work being done was what we wanted.

What distinguishes Clavax Technologies from other providers?

The Clavax team is very skilled at what they do. They definitely have the know-how approach and they're able to develop complex projects.  

Is there anything Clavax Technologies could have improved or done differently?

I can’t think of much. In terms of working with an offshore company, they are good.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

We're in the real estate marketplace. We deal with real estate auctions for commercial and distressed properties.

What is your position?

I manage QA [quality assurance] and release processes.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Clavax Technologies?

Clavax Technologies was already a partner when I joined the company. They were already working on several of our platforms and systems. They act as support to our IT [information technology] team.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of your involvement with Clavax Technologies.

They have been our partner for a long time. They developed our website and our backqend applications fully. They did an iPad app, which has been revamped by our onsite teams. That was two or three years ago. They used PHP and the backend is MySQL.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

The overall cost will be $200,000-plus. They are our offshore partners. We add or remove resources based on what's in our pipeline.

What is the status of this engagement?

They are still our partners, but we have shifted strategy and brought everything onshore. The scope of their work has gone down, but we still have Clavax team members working with us today [as of October 2015].

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics, metrics or other feedback from your work with Clavax Technologies?

A lot of their work was on brand new projects, which increased both our traffic and revenue. We're leaders in our kind of technology.

How did Clavax Technologies perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management was very good. We met key deadlines. Quality did suffer because of our aggressive deadlines, but that can be blamed on both of us equally.

What distinguishes Clavax Technologies from other providers?

Clavax Technologies always gives 110 percent. We worked hard in meeting some key deadlines. Dedication and hard work are their strong suits.

Is there anything Clavax Technologies could have improved or done differently?

What we might have done differently would have been to have a team here looking at their work as far as quality and architecture.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the owner of Positive Living By Design Inc. and do individual and group conultations

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

I needed an app for my company and users to be able to implement suggestions for the content I offer. The team I worked with was innovative and terrific to deal with. Very helpful!

SOLUTION

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

I did some searching online

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

The scope of work included creation of a unique application that individuals could use for helping them personally

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

3-4 people

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I get comments constantly about the app. Last one was......it is genius!

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

The style worked well for me and because I run another company I tended to be the cause of delays in communication

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

I loved that they researched and came up with great ideas that were very relevant to my project and helped me get it implemented when I was having a difficult time technically

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

No

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the IT Project Manager for the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

They were hired to continue development on the Healthy Brains project as well as an extensive python based database tool.

SOLUTION

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

Looked for reliability, cost and quality of work.

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

We work via regular meetings, and a well managed Jira and Confluence issue tracking and documentation.

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

As many as 5 to 10 depending on our need.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We were able to solve many issues stalling our project and push new and updated tools.

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

Project Management has been strictly controlled and managed using Jira allowing us to prioritize and monitor each step of the process.

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

There ability to solve issues quickly with well defined requirements and expectations.

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

They have a great team and need more team members to help it grow.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Real Estate Online Auction Company

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

Knowledge of the online auction business and software.

SOLUTION

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

I liked their resume from past experiences of other clients

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

Very detailed work was needed and they delivered

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

I worked with Mayank on everything.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They met my expectations for the project.

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

We had weekly Zoom meetings, shared video and email.

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

The entire process has been really smooth — working with Mayank has been a great experience.Clavex has done a really good job of taking care of me. They have gone above and beyond to help me with my project.

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

Very good at everything I threw at them.