CubeZoo

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the CEO and main Partner at WeSub, a Technology Company focused on providing Law Firms with different online tools to assist them in their filings before Legal Directories (i.e. Legal Rankings) such as Chambers and Partners, Legal 500, Latin Lawyer, Leaders League, etc. I am also a Director and the main Partner of Harpa Legal Marketing, a consultancy that helps Law Firms with basically the same thing. The Tech Company (WeSub) I have set up will help my legal directory consultancy, other legal directory consultancies and Law Firms in general do the work that they have to do in order to get their legal rankings in a more efficient, organized and time-effective manner.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We hired CubeZoo to develop a Submission Converter. Submissions are the documents Law Firms have to send the different legal directories with a series of informations related to their legal practice and the cases they have been handling in the past 12 months. For each legal directory (and there are at least 20 of them) they have to send one Submission. The information is often very similar (in terms of content) but changes a lot in terms of form (how it is requested, in which place it has to go on the documents, etc).

Essentially, we hired CubeZoo to develop a Submission Converter for the 2 main Legal Directories (Chambers and Legal 500). The Converter takes a word document, scraps all the information from it, categorizes it, and then passes it on to the second word template. That means that you can upload a Chambers Submission and download a Legal 500 Submission (without having to individually copy-paste all the information from one template to the other), or vice-versa. Our goal was to create an efficient tool that could be used by any law firm around the world to convert Chambers Submissions to Legal 500 Submissions in a matter of seconds.

SOLUTION

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

We selected CubeZoo because they were able to understand the issue at hand and propose great and efficient solutions to the problem we were trying to solve. They knew how to scrap the word documents, what were the best libraries to use to develop the scrapper, and how to design a simple yet nice platform to host this product.

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

I am not a CTO, so I cannot say much about the tecnical aspects of what was developed. The steps were as follows:

Scope

• Milestone 1: Convert Template A to Template B (=1 Conversion)
• Milestone 2: Overall Platform Infrastructure, including Password/Login, User Types/Access, Home Page, Document Download, Payment Methods
• Milestone 3: Convert Template A to Template C, D and E (=3 Conversions)
• Milestone 4: Remaining Conversions between Templates A, B, C, D and E (=16 Conversions)

1. We also asled CubeZoo to develop the code from scratch, as we would like to see they would come up with solutions and create the basic infrastructure needed for the project without any previous bias, since we had had some previous attempts at this code which had failed. This was done to great success.
2. We also asked them to build a code that did not connect the Front End to the Back End. This was done to great success.
3. The code was in PHP and used a specific library suited for word documents. I think its called PHP Word something (haha, sorry I don't know these details very well).
4. The project is working great and up and running. It can be used here: https://wesub.co.uk/ 6. We are so happy with their services that we are now developing a second stage of the project with them... a full-on Platform to store all the data needed to do the Submissions, so each Law Firm can store their cases and data along the year and use it as required.

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

Nick - CEO and main contact in terms of client managment. Nick is very hands on and makes sure he knows what is being done at every level of the project. He is also very much available to answer questions and help steer the project forward. On a personal level, he is very amicable, friendly and attentive.

Louis - Senior developer and main strategist behind the project. He is very knowledgeable from the technical standpoint and was always able to answer all our technical questions with great acuracity. He is also a good problem solver and gave us different solutions to complex issues.

Stiaan - Developer and main executor of the project. He is very dedicated, helped us overcome a series of hurdles in the implementation of the project, and always gave us very prompt responses to our queries and requests.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We were able to launch the project within the required timeframe, which was very important for us due to the timing of some of the Submission conversions we needed to perform. We also had a high conversion rate, with minimal errors, which were very helpful. All errors were appropriately logged and fixed within our timeline. Now our current product is quite well-rounded.

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

They are great in terms of project managment. They are always available, even for ad hoc calls for us to ask a few questions, and were always prompt with their responses. I don't think an email ever went unanswered for more than 1 day... which is very good... especially considering we are not a particularly big client for them.

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

The way they found great solutions to complex issues and the way they treated us as if we were very important clients even though we know we are still relatively small. Their attention to detail, dedication towards their clients and hands-on approach, are very much appreciated in a sector where it is common for developers to be very bad at "people skills" and for response times to be very high.

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

They are not the cheapest developers out there... but we think they charge a fair price and deliver high-quality services, from both the technical and personal points of view.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We are a coffee manufacturer, wholesale and supply. We deal in high-end coffee machines and roast supply and coffee beans.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire CubeZoo?

We worked with CubeZoo in the past doing digital design work. I liked they way the think and operate. For this reason we decided on taking them on to help create the UX/UI of our new sister company. Our next steps if for them to code develop the site end of 2022.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

CubeZoo did past work for us. I like the quality of their deliverables. It was an easy decision to take them on.

Describe the project in detail and walk through the stages of the project.

We require an e-commerce website to sell all of coffee products. This stems form coffee machines, parts, beans and everything relating to coffee. The initial step was to understand the business and its objective. CubeZoo took to this quite well.

Next they introduced Wireframes. This showcased how the website would operate form a user and admin perspective. It showed the importance of buyers journey and how to entice users to buy.

The final step was design, or UI as they refer to it as. This was my favourite steps as you can see and feel how the whole website came to life. CubeZoo did prototype few of the journeys so we could see and feel the how the platform would actually function.

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

Just 2 resources, a mid and senior designer.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Internally the design has been a massive success. Unfortunately due to COVID we didn't get to building the platform as yet. But, my team and partners were super impressed with the outcome of CubeZoo’s work.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

It's been a very smooth transition of communication and deliverables. Massive respect to both Charlene and Sam for their patience and kind will to see the task through in such tightdeadlines.

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

Just the way they work, their experience is astonishing. They showed a lot of past UX/UI work that was completed to local but also offshore clients. The team at CubeZoo are truly 'next level'.

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

None

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Product Manager at Go121 / Flash

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We required a fast, efficient and secure way to complete a RICA process done by our field agents. The previous RICA method was completed using USSD. However, this could take up to 7 minutes, unnecessarily wasting the time of agents and customers alike. We wanted to create an almost seamless process to RICA new customers and have it done in under 45 seconds.

SOLUTION

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

I searched and located CubeZoo online

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

The first challenge to achieving this goal was the conversion of a normal Android device into a barcode scanner. This is generally an easy task, but our scanner needed to be seamless in order to scan one or multiple SIM cards without having any human trigger or confirmation intervention.

Our next step was allowing our app to recognise and read bar codes via the device's camera. We implemented Firebase ML Kit Vision, but we found that the thread that handles the barcode processing was running at full capacity even after the camera was no longer being used. This slowed the device down significantly, especially on slower older devices.

We embarked on a comprehensive testing regime to establish what was causing the problem. We found that when the barcode processor was fed a frame to look for a barcode, it didn’t wait until it was done before it started working on a new frame. Normally, this wouldn’t be a problem as multithreading is great for doing jobs like processing frames in the background while the user continues to use the app, however, in this case, the Firebase ML thread stayed alive until it completed the queue of frames needing to be processed.

A way to shorten the queue of frames for processing was needed. To save some battery power and keep the CPU from running at maximum capacity while looking for barcodes to process, we decided to implement some logic that would only feed frames to the processor after the previous frame has been completed. This keeps the processor’s queue a lot shorter with almost no difference in barcode recognition and read time.

The logic ensured that the app was just as quick to recognise and read a barcode as it was before, with the added benefit of increased battery life. In addition to ensuring that the app delivered on the short timeframe for completing the RICA process, this solution allowed us to support a greater range of devices, especially older and slower phones.

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

We worked with their UX designer, code architects and project manager.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The tech that CubeZoo created is in use today and successfully scans/RICAS up to (±30,000) customers per day.

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

Young, upcoming and enthusiastic. We enjoy working with them.

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

Their out of the box thinking and ability to handle tight deadlines.

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

None

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We are a start up, we have a golf launch monitor app on the Apple App Store. I am the co-owner and COO.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

Our company was in need of a company that could assist specifically with the UI and UX design for the new version of our app. To save time and meet deadlines this was essential and CubeZoo was the best fit for our needs.

SOLUTION

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

We contacted a few companies, after interviews we were very comfortable with our decision to have CubeZoo onboard. Their willingness to meet our needs as well knowledge and understanding of our needs was a big plus.

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

Our initial meeting was to discuss our vision and needs, and we needed to be sure that CubeZoo understood what we needed and could deliver. Before every new project they give us a timeline, cost of the project as well as designs and the have met every deadline. Our needs are iOS specific, CubeZoo has redesigned and completed the app from login to landing page and they are currently busy with the content of the app including a lot of data inputs and calculations and the general flow of the app.

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

We have been working with 4 people throughout the project, Nick the CEO, two lead developers and a designer.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our new version isn't live yet, so we don't have any measurable outcomes as yet, but we are very happy with the way the project is going and also excited for the launch of the initial version 2.0 and future features that will be done by CubeZoo.

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

We have ongoing communication with CubeZoo throughout the project. We communicate through GitHub, Figma, and email. The team is also always available for any other needs.

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

We're impressed with their knowledge and understanding of our needs. Our app has a lot of moving parts and their ideas and solutions have been spot on.

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

We don't have any complaints whatsoever.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the CEO of Intelipower, and we specialize in RetailTech solutions, mostly around Shopping Mall applications.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We needed a local partner to take over an existing platform, and take on the ongoing development tasks. As our platform is in production, we needed a partner who could help with the operations side, as well as rolling out new features on the roadmap.

SOLUTION

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

We searched for a local development company, and engaged with a shortlist. It was important that they were local to us, had the necessary skill sets in-house, and could handle new developments as well as opperational support of our platform,

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

The scope entailed baselining our current platform, and identifying a priority list of onboarding and critical improvements. Our tech stack consists of Flutter, REST API, Python, Mongo DB, Elastic Search, AngularJS and hosted on Google Compute Cloud, under Kubernetes.

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

The team made available various resources, with the necessary skill sets and experience. Their developers are quite experienced, well-rounded, and very professional.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our clients are enjoying better deliverables, and better uptime. Its still to early to speak of market sucess.

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

They provide Discord channels for communication and standup calls, as well as access to Jira. A strict Agile methodology is followed, and we all know where we stand on various issues on a daily basis.

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

Their diverse skill set, and nonsense attitude to getting the job done, coupled with relevant feedback and escalations.

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

We have regular feedback with the team, feedback goes both ways, to improve outcomes.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the CEO of a boutique Human Capital Consulting firm, based in Johannesburg

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire CubeZoo?

Our website had become out-dated. Cube Zoo updated our approach and included an appropriate social media strategy. The profile they designed offers is fresh and exciting whilst accurately conveying our values and philosophy - and moreover, our unique market proposition. Over time, they have come to play a crucial role in our sales strategy too, packaging our proposals - which have been successful at earning us new business and enhancing our profile.

SOLUTION

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

I liked the professional, responsive and respectful approach of the CEO and his staff

Describe the project in detail and walk through the stages of the project.

We had an initial meeting to explain who we were and what we needed. CubeZoo came back to us with options, and we agreed upon an approach. We had an ongoing interchange during the build phase, refining our ideas and helping them calibrate their design.

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

3 prople

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We feel secure in our market image; we have secured a large new contract largely because of the assistance and guidance we received.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Very effective

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

Their responsiveness and there collaborative, creative and fresh design approach. They were always willing to prioritize our work, even when we were in a crunch.

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

To be more proactive in suggesting new ideas

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the CEO for an investment and finance company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We wanted to develop a website that allows for a service provider to keep their client up-to-date in terms of their progress on appointed projects. At the same time once the job is complete the client is able to review the service provider which will assist them in refining their business and identify weaknesses within

SOLUTION

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

We found CubeZoo online through a lead generator app and looked no further as we were very satisfied with Nicks passion, professionalism and integrity in handling our query

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

We had numerous meetings to discuss the application and got further insight from CubeZoo as to where this platform can grow which we embraced fully. The scope was always clear and communication thorough throughout the project

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

A project manager assigned together with other resources where it was deemed fit at different stages of the project

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The project has been refined and is almost ready for launch. Its an exciting time for us all and we are glad to have CubeZoo on board

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

Clear, transparent and methodical project management. They even took the time to empower us with the technical jargon so we all speak the same "language" and understand progress

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

Their professionalism and integrity were impressive. Most importantly the honesty which is critical if you are not familiar with the IT sector

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 co-founder and architect at Urban Signature Architects. We are a bespoke, design-focused architectural studio based in Johannesburg, South Africa.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire CubeZoo?

Urban Signature Architects is a newly formed company from the amalgamation of two existing architectural practices. CubeZoo was tasked with designing a unique company brand that reflects both co-founders while demonstrating the professional service offered in a creative and playful aesthetic. The full scope included brand identity, logo design, business cards and a new website.

What were your goals for this project?

Demonstrate Urban Signature Architects varied portfolio of work in a refined, playful and professional manner. Showcasing our work to potential clients. Design a new corporate identity in including a new logo. Create a Brand Guide for the business.

SOLUTION

How did you select CubeZoo?

We had already seen some of the work done by CubeZoo and after engaging with them, we quickly realised that we could work together in a collaborative approach.

Describe the project in detail.

The project started with several 'design concept' meetings where CubeZoo got to know us, our work and aesthetic quirks in a collaborative setting. CubeZoo then presented us with a graphic look-and-feel pinboard which set the tone for the refinement. This was then worked up in a graphic brand which was formalised into a Brande Guide Document which included logo design, document graphics, email signatures and business cards.

Some of the detail given was font use, colour guide and graphic 'dos and don'ts'. Graphic This amalgamated into the formulation of our new website. The process was fluid and a lot of customisation was achieved even though, due to budget constraints, an existing skin on WordPress was used.

What was the team composition?

The company Director was our main point of contact who oversaw the entire process from start to finish. Two designers were appointed with the implementation and design work while more technical programmers were called on as required.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Clients have been impressed with the output, illustrating our unique offering.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The workflow between us and Cubezoo was both seamless and clear. Communication consisted of virtual calls and physical meetings as when appropriate and required.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Their ability to creatively design our brand identity in a professional and distinct manner.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Time and budget are always our biggest concerns but the quality superseded this and we are very happy with the outcome and product. We have continued our relationship with Cube Zoo indefinitely.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Head of Service Delivery of a consulting company 

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

We are an award-winning Business Continuity advisory firm, we provide not only a comprehensive software platform but also expert consulting services.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

• Replicate existing mobile app on a new platform and refresh the UI

SOLUTION

How did you find CubeZoo?

Online Search

Why did you select CubeZoo over others?

Pricing fit our budget

How many teammates from CubeZoo were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

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

•  UX/UI
•  Dev / API
•  QA

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Functional mobile app aligned to our cutomer user journey

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

Project team were very responsive to requests

What was your primary form of communication with CubeZoo?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

Their development team was exceptionally responsive to our queries and issues.

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

• Strongly encourage clients to have a defined user journey mapped out as a prerequisite to commencing the project

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

 I am the Founder of a Mental Wellness Company

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Mental health & well-being

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

• Design and develop an App prototype

SOLUTION

How did you find CubeZoo?

Director already in personal network

Why did you select CubeZoo over others?

• Close to my geographic location
• Pricing fits our budget
• Good value for cost
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from CubeZoo were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

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

Design and develop the UI/UX prototype for App based on the founder's brief.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

App prototype & dashboard (partly functional for trial/presentation)

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

The team, led by Nick, was always responsive to my requests and queries. My availability and delivery times were often a challenge and, at times, adversely impacted the CZ team on delivering on set project milestones. The CZ team were adaptable and flexible in responding to my needs; they provided timely information and guidance when/where changes to the plan were required.

What was your primary form of communication with CubeZoo?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

• Fresh and creative ideas 
• Flexibility and adaptability 
• Openness and transparency 
• Competitive pricing

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

Nothing comes to mind. Their team is accommodating, approachable, flexible, creative, and hardworking!