Innovify

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the director of AD Healthcare Solutions. We have a product brand called KwikMedi. It’s an online pharmacy store.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Innovify?

We're business founders, so we mainly understand business problems. Technology is something we don’t understand at all, which is why we approached Innovify.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We went to them with our business idea and explained what our current processes were. They, in turn, explained how we should approach building the product. They produced wireframes for the native iOS and Android apps, explaining user journeys like registration. They handled the entire backend development for the web-based system used by pharmacists to manage the application. The technology used was Ruby on Rails.

There are two to three major functionalities that cover both users and pharmacists. Pharmacists can easily upload medicine databases, and then see orders in the form of prescriptions. They can send those orders to users for approval. Users can search through the medicine database, upload prescriptions, and refer other people to the application in exchange for credit.

What is the team composition?

We've worked with one iOS, one Android, and one backend developer, as well as one tester, and one designer from their team. Their business analyst interacted with me directly.

How did you come to work with Innovify?

They were referred to us by one of my friends, who knows the owner of Innovify. The main reason for choosing them was their portfolio. They had very good knowledge of building products.

How much have you invested with them?

I’ve invested around 35–40 lakh Indian rupees (3.5–4 million INR, $52,000–$60,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in August 2016. The first version of the product was launched in March 2017. They continued to provide support until September of that year.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The backend panel has good interactivity. We're able to manage discounts and product categories easily using it. They suggested that we implement a referral system. After implementing it, we were able to grow our user base fivefold over one month. That was amazing. People downloading the app were referring others to it, given that, by doing this, they would receive credits that could be spent on the platform.

How did Innovify perform from a project management standpoint?

The development process was iterative. We were given demos and we received updates on the progress. We performed user acceptance testing every 15 days. The product was launched after 3–4 months.

They were great at maintaining our budget. The cost was good, relative to what they built for us. The business side was my responsibility.

They managed the project well. We used Jira to track the work. Most of the communication was done through email, but I also had a weekly meeting with their business analyst. We were located in the same city, so it was easy to go to their office and have a meeting. We also had calls and demos at the end of each 15-day sprint.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I’ve reviewed their past work and I really like the products they built. I was also happy with their cost.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Anyone looking to work with Innovify should listen to them. The team can come up with amazing ideas. We had a fixed mindset when we went to them—we're businesspeople, while there are technologists. We had limited knowledge, but they showed us tools that were being used by companies outside India, including Intercom, which was helpful for user engagement, Slack, and Jira.

They also made suggestions of features we should build, but we had a limited budget. They have tremendous knowledge about all of these things, which really helped us. Clients going to outsourcing companies should be open to hearing what the teams have to say.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the founder of an on-demand logistics company providing solutions to small businesses who require manpower to deliver their products to their customers. We accomplish this through the applications and portals we use.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Innovify?

I needed a system where my merchants and businesses could place their orders. When we started, we used mobile phones to get leads and assign drivers, but as we grew, that was getting a little hectic for us. We needed an application and a web-based system where everything is connected. On one hand, we have merchants, and on the other hand, we have the drivers available in that particular area.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

When I first started working with Innovify, I explained my business and what my problems were. They were excited to work on my project because it was unique; they had never done a project with an on-demand logistics company. We had a couple of meetings in the beginning because they wanted to understand how everything works and what my challenges were.

One of the many challenges is assigning the deliveries. There’s a financial system within the system which takes care of all of the cash for the drivers. Innovify built a basic system and showed it to me, and then I gave my feedback and approval. We continued building the system as they showed me their builds and I approved them. They built an Android mobile app and a website. They also gave me some suggestions for marketing and strategy. We had some discussions in general about the business, scaling up, and how to increase my revenue.  

What is the team dynamic?

Initially, I was only speaking to the manager. After they built the system, we had a meeting with the whole team including the Android team, data team, database manager, and web developer. They are very friendly.

How did you come to work with Innovify?

I was looking online for companies in my area, and I also got some leads from other organizations that Innovify had previously worked with. They have good expertise. I’m also a startup so I needed someone to understand that. My office is in the same area as theirs, so I walked into their door and told them my problem.

How much have you invested with them?

I’ve invested $8,000 with them so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in August 2016, and the relationship is ongoing. There were a couple of bugs, and as my work grew, they were helping with more challenges from scaling up.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

When I first approached them, I was doing 30 - 40 orders per day. The system they built has helped me to scale up. We have increased merchant sign ups and the orders have increased to 250 per day. It was a really good experience working with Innovify.

How did Innovify perform from a project management standpoint?

They performed well. Even after the work was completed, they would respond to any problems I had. We used JIRA to keep track of everything. They were good with the budget and timeline. They let you know when they’ll deliver the product, and a couple of days before, they’ll call you for a demo.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re very process oriented which I really like. They have a specific process they follow which keeps every team member on their toes and well-informed, including the client. I have worked with a couple of these companies before but they haven’t been as process oriented as Innovify.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They have good processes in place and everything was good for me.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of TetraNoodle, which provides startups with consulting work, CTO services, and ongoing technical education for their products. Since 2001, we’ve successfully equipped small businesses with the tools they need to optimize their technology and move forward quickly. Our affordable tried-and-tested solutions have already resulted in hundreds of lucrative projects becoming a reality. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Innovify?

We were trying to scale our business by hiring dedicated iOS and Android mobile developers, which are very costly here in Canada. We already had our technical architecture in place and wanted a smart team to extend it. The goal of our partnership was to reduce our ongoing product development cost for clients.  

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We were in a tough position of having a 12-week window to go from nothing to an iOS baseline. Some of the other app development teams we talked to couldn't deliver in that time. Innovify was able to answer every question to my satisfaction. They are also cost-effective. I initially gave them a test project, which went seamlessly, so I expanded their involvement to more projects. We’ve worked with them for a couple of years now, and we’ve found them to be a responsive agency. Their knowledge in the digital space is strong, especially in the projects we’ve worked on together.

How did you come to work with Innovify?

In terms of digital deliverables like mobile applications or custom software and web application development, we started by hiring a U.S. partner. This firm was fine initially, but they didn’t seem as responsive, economical, and dedicated to the work as time progressed. So, I looked for a new digital vendor and found Innovify online. I must have looked at 15 or 20 companies and spoke to a few of them. I searched for agencies in the U.K., India, and Eastern Europe.

How much have you invested with them?

So far, we have spent around $150,000 for this project and beyond. They are not expensive at all. I still feel they underprice their resources.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started our partnership in January 2016. The work is ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I’m using them for all of my digital work right now. I even transferred some of my existing work with my old partner to them as well, which made sense.

How did Innovify perform from a project management standpoint?

I couldn’t estimate the number of man-hours used for my applications. Innovify has given me estimates after requesting an application, which I approved. The communication is great. They have tools for project management, testing, and coding standard measurement. We’ve communicated through those, as well as through email, Slack, video conference, and in-person meetings. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

I appreciate Innovify’s ability to listen and guide us when we’re struggling and to accommodate resources as needed. Those aspects set them apart from other firms. Their development team and AWS-certified DevOps cloud team is active and quick at implementations. They set up, developed, configured, and got the system online in hours. We are really happy with the quality of work and their interactive approach. I am quite impressed with the way they handled complicated parts of our project.

To date, I’ve had no issues with their work in terms of programming, account management, and cost. I gauge my suppliers by two main criteria: their responsiveness (whether they’re able to resolve an urgent matter within a day or two) and cost (how they are pricing their projects up front). As the project develops, obviously, there will be changes to the structure and content, and sometimes agencies tend to take advantage of that process and increase the budget. To their credit, Innovify has stuck to their original quote when possible.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything right now. But, we definitely would love to have them in the same time zone. I am sure that would make us more efficient. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Our company develops an online life skills platform that helps schools and their teachers deliver life skills to students age 16–19. I’m a technologist by background, but not a developer, and my wife’s background is in marketing — she is the CEO of the business. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Innovify?

My wife and I have never developed any software products before. We needed to create a minimum viable product (MVP), and we wanted to work with a company that really understood who we were and what we were doing. They needed to pay an active interest in the proposition, making sure it was the right solution for the project, and not just deliver software on a cloud based system.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Maulik, the Product Evangelist at Innovify, is our main contact. He walked us through the whole process from capturing the idea against the wire framing processes, to running it through their Agile process. Innovify held our hand all the way through that process, acting as a CTO would.

They developed a platform which is all web-based, running on Amazon Web Services (AWS). Then we have mobile apps that are running on both iOS and Android. These mobile apps are connected to our AWS systems. The whole enrollment process is integrated from the cloud to the mobile app. Students are also notified when new lesson content is available, with a notification process Innovify developed. There are answers and multiple choice questions in the app based on what the students have learned, and that connects back into our platform for reporting analytics.

The apps have been launched on both Apple and Google Play, plus the Amazon platform is live so the MVP is ready. When we find things that need to be enhanced based upon feedback that we have from our pilot schools, they get on and do it. Sometimes in an MVP, there are glitches and their team will go in and fix the issue quickly. In that way, even though the MVP is running, our engagement is still very much active.

How did you come to work with Innovify?

We were looking at all sorts of issues and even options such as startup funding. In the UK, a startup funding organization referred us to Innovify because of their experience with them. We reached out to Maulik directly and then found we connected well with the whole team. They stood up to how they were sold to us and delivered what we wanted. Innovify took a lot of interest in what the project was about and helped us get the MVP created and ready for a pilot school.

How much have you invested with them?

Around $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in September 2016 and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The MVP began in September, so there aren’t any real measurable results yet. We’ve shown the product and demoed it in a number of schools, all of which have then wanted to be pilot schools. We’ve had 100% success in terms of presenting our ideas and what the product does. 

When we first started, we had a number of issues and, initially, we made a decision to go with another cloud provider. When their team started to put together what we wanted, they started to realize that AWS was a much better fit for what we wanted, and were able to switch really quickly from one provider to another with minimal disruption for us. 

We also had a couple of situations where there were performance issues, but as soon as we reported it, Innovify started work and promptly fixed it. The mobile development for Android and iOS was good as well — they first developed it on Android and then moved to iOS. They took care of getting our apps certified, and it was a seamless process. We didn’t need to worry about any of those things.

How did Innovify perform from a project management standpoint?

They really stepped up for us and acted as an advisor, taking an active interest in the idea to make it real for us. That role worked for both my wife and I and it got the product ready for us. We didn't have a typical relationship where we told them what to do and they did it. We told them what we wanted, and then they started to question why. It allowed them to put together everything we needed to get the product right.

They deploy an Agile approach to developing and we have a local project manager who takes care of our inbound questions, usually in a very timely manner. We use Slack a lot and communications have been really straightforward. They have a team that’s London based and a team based in India. Everything works well virtually for us, wherever they’re based.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re not just the development house, but an organization that wants to make sure what they’re developing is also right. They want to put their thoughts into the process as well. That’s really good, because sometimes when you’re focused on something, you overlook other important elements. Innovify explained how it things could be different, and that’s what I love about what they’re doing.

They also supported us with our commercial models. We told them that we’re looking to go for funding in the beginning of next year, and they’re very well connected with the Angel investor and the Series A investor community as well. That’s something that really stood out because it’s so valuable when you start to move away from an MVP and into a Phase 1 product. Access to these sorts of people is critical for us, and we’re very pleased they’ve helped us with it.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The only experiences I’ve had have been really positive and I can’t think of anything they need to improve. They do exactly what they say they’re going to do. They’ve done a good job.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I was the co-founder of PathPlanr, a company that helped organizations up-skill their staff. We used machine learning to identify gaps in employee’s skill sets and had a recommendation engine to let them know the best ways for them to develop skills to close those gaps.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Innovify?

We wanted to help employees understand what skills they need to develop, cutting through the noise and giving them a clear learning path that was relevant to the jobs they did or wanted to do. We already had our machine learning engine built by a separate data science team that powered the recommendations engine, which needed to be put on the website.

We were looking for someone who could create our website and integrate the recommendations engine. It was also important to us that the website could be scaled up or down according to need. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We asked Innovify to build the frontend and backend of the PathPlanr website, including the CMS and integration of reporting and analytics. At first, it was quite a simple project but it became more complex when integrating the algorithms and databases that our independent Data Science team put together – Innovify did not build the recommendation engine but did successfully integrate it.

How did you come to work with Innovify?

We created high-level specifications for what we wanted and then met with various development teams to see who could offer the best solution and value for money, especially for startups. We chose Innovify through that process.

How much have you invested with them?

I would estimate that it was around £20,000 [$26,000] in total.

What is the status of this engagement?

It lasted around a year.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Innovify delivered a product that was ready to be launched. Although there was an ongoing road map of improvements, we were satisfied with what they turned out. We attracted some initial enterprise customers with help of the work they produced. At the end of the project, we were very satisfied with what was delivered.

How did Innovify perform from a project management standpoint? 

I found Innovify’s management and technical teams to have a very collaborative and helpful approach. The work they delivered was of a good quality and, despite initial teething problems from all sides, they worked well with a number of remote teams who constituted the team behind PathPlanr. They were helpful on the budgeting front and processes, adapting to our working style.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I would say that they have a good mix of face-to-face and off-shore work. We could go and meet with someone if needed, but we were also able to get a lot of work done since we had an offshore team.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I feel that they could have an independent technical service to review their work and give customers feedback so that customers without deep technical knowledge could understand whether or not they had performed well.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and CEO of an inventory management software that connects to accounting, sales channel, marketplace, and payment platforms. It’s an all-in-one, mini ERP platform that we’ve been building since last year.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Innovify?

I needed a development team that met deadlines, understood the software, and had technical expertise working with startups. Innovify had all of these capabilities.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Innovify took care of all of our development using Agile methodology. I plan out everything and give them requirements for the features, and they then take the scope and put it into a 2-week plan. They dive into everything to plan the impact and obtain an estimate of exactly how long something will take. We do everything in Sprints, so every two weeks, we have a release. They track everything on Jira, including hours worked, who is working on what tasks, and any issues they have.

They also maintain all of my Amazon servers, and if anything goes down, they offer support. They helped us integrate our e-commerce platforms, such as Shopify, with Stripe and Authorize.net. They also worked on internal system features, such as reporting capability and generating PDF and sales reports.

Mainly, they have been working on integrations and enhancing the overall speed of our system. We also plan on having them move us over to a more Angular based system to further enhance system speed. We had a launch two months ago, and so far, we’re really happy with everything. They continue to support and build on various features.

We use JIRA and Confluence for all of our planning, bug tracking, Sprint planning, and deployments. We also use AWS for our development.

What is the team dynamic?

I usually work with their project manager and lead developer.

How did you come to work with Innovify?

After one of my partners referred us, we moved to Innovify after starting off with a different team. The most important thing was having somebody who had experience working with startups. Innovify has a large staff who’ve worked on similar projects in e-commerce, so it was great that they were familiar with our type of business. Unlike the previous firm, they had enough experience to answer our questions, technical difficulties were limited, and they always found solutions. We were originally looking at 5-6 different companies, but Innovify really impressed us with their confidence and experience. We realized how much initiative they put into a project, which is why after fifteen minutes of meeting with them, we chose them right off the bat.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $150,000-$200,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in November 2016, and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We launched within two months, and within a month and a half, we’ve gained 100 users. Although we had to slow our launch down due to being an early startup, a lot of users have given us great feedback. We just need to make sure all of our processes work efficiently before opening the floodgates for new users. There hasn’t been any big activity in terms of feedback.

How did Innovify perform from a project management standpoint?

They do an excellent job, and everything is documented, which is key. They make sure all progress is visible, and after meetings, that everything is updated, which has helped them become a good management team.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I’m very pleased with their work, and as a startup, their experience in the field has been invaluable because they’re not just a development team. They genuinely want to know why you’re doing certain things so they aren’t blindly building a service. It’s good to have a development team who actually tries to understand the scope and customer experience that will result from it. In the software business, nothing ever goes right 100% of the time. Innovify actually knows what to do in the event of technical failure, and they fix it quickly.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They pretty much cover all the bases.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

One Model Place connects models with photographers and directors. We have millions of accounts on a steady basis. Hundreds of thousands of people are logging onto our platform and connecting with us. I’m the CEO.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Innovify?

Our technology was dated and we were losing engagement from an end user perspective. We wanted to revive that engagement with our existing customer base and modernize our experience. We also wanted to develop an app for our solution.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

I really enjoyed the detailed approach they took with our engagement. They run sprints and they have a very detailed, agile methodology in place. We started off with wireframing and trying to put together how the experience can be both from a web and mobile app perspective. Then we started adding colors and started to get a little bit more of a feel of what the user experience was going to be. We are still in the process of developing but we’re confident the end product is going to come out looking really nice.

The app is for both Android and iOS, and it’s going to be responsive on the mobile phone as well. They are starting from scratch for the website. The entire platform that we had was completely agile; we were looking to head in a new direction. I don’t want to disclose some of the new things we’re starting to do, but it was necessary that we come out with a technology solution that’s going to be forward looking. Innovify recommended that we start fresh from the ground-up.

I’ve been working with four resources from a development standpoint and two from a mobile app development standpoint. I have a team that interacts with them directly.

How did you come to work with Innovify?

They approached us through a cold email. We looked at their profile, and it was perfect. When we did research on them, they seemed to be market leaders. They had a very good value proposition so we wanted to move forward.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in March 2017, and the development is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

It’s a bit early for any metrics. People love the design and user experience; the quality of the work is really nice.

The new features that were added are keeping up with the modern trends and revitalizing the current industry that we are in. There is a much deeper connection between the models and the people on the platform. We have come up with a number of ways that have simplified that experience.

Innovify is very deeply involved from a strategy standpoint. One thing I really appreciate is how they understood our business first before trying to come up with the wireframing. We talked about where we are and where we wanted to go before starting to come up with a solution. That helped nail down a lot of the key elements around the user experience and some of the technology advancements that we wanted to have in place.

How did Innovify perform from a project management standpoint?

They are always on time and on budget. They excel in project management. One of the biggest challenges we had with the previous developer was project management; it was difficult to get things done in a timely fashion with the previous company. With Innovify, we have daily calls with them so we know exactly where the project is and where it’s headed.

What did you find most impressive about Innovify?

It’s going beyond the traditional development shop. The team has done a nice job of connecting with us on a business level. They understand what our business is and propose solutions for that. A lot of the other teams that I’ve worked with are typically more focused on just the development aspect of it. Innovify delivered more product management, understood what we wanted, and executed based on that.

Are there any areas Innovify could improve?

We had a little bit of turnover with some resources they had brought on. They can improve in that area. They did a nice job of catching up, but that turnover did impact us.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Our business is a long-distance rideshare app that connects people traveling to the same destination, so they can share the cost and environmental impact of travel. I am a co-founder of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Innovify?

My co-founder and I are non-technical, so we hired a technical advisor to help us set up that side of our business, and he introduced us to Innovify. We’re a startup, so we had some starts and stops in the development process. We were doing a big push for a while, and then we would hold for a bit. We needed a team to pick it up when we needed. We were honest with them from the beginning about eventually having our technical team in-house, but it was a very good option for us to have an agency we could use for the time being.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

It’s a mobile app, and right now it’s only developed for iOS. We are planning on doing an Android version with them as well. They really helped us from the get-go. When we went to them, we had a very basic prototype. We had a sense of what we wanted our app to do, but they really helped from day one. We got it designed by another firm in Vancouver, where our head office is, but Innovify was there to provide feedback and make sure the design would work with their development.

They’re really good about providing feedback on features we want to add. If we made a suggestion that didn’t make sense technically, they were pretty honest with us about pushing back on things they didn’t think would work. They were able to provide an alternative solution to what we were originally thinking. They’ve taken pretty much all the project management on the development side onto their team.

In addition to the ride-sharing, which comes with location development, we have user profiles and user reviews. We have an in-app chat system, and they integrated an API for that. They integrated the Stripe payment system for us. It’s a quite complicated system. Because we have to transfer funds from one user to another, it was not a straightforward process. It did take quite a bit longer than we anticipated, but at the same time, it was a bit of uncharted territory. They also got the app submitted to the App Store.

When we did our MVP, we had one project manager. The team size went up and down during the project, but it was generally a team of three or four. Once we launched the MVP and the work slowed down, it was less. We did switch project managers from time to time, and that was probably our biggest headache. It was just because we didn’t have enough work to give them, so we lost our lead project manager in the midst of it. We’ve since got him back. They took our feedback when it wasn’t really working out with our direct contact there, and now we have the original project manager back. The team has changed here and there, depending on what they’re working on, but it’s been anywhere from two to five people at a time.

How did you come to work with Innovify?

Our technical director has worked with them before, and he recommended them. We had gotten quotes from a couple other firms, but they were way out of our budget. Innovify was the only one that came recommended and was affordable to us, so we went with that and it’s worked out.

How much have you invested with Innovify?

We’ve invested around $80,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We first started working together in May of 2016, and our relationship is ongoing. They’re just doing small maintenance for us right now, and we plan to ramp up in a few months for the Android app.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

This is the first app I’ve ever worked on, so I have nothing to compare it to. However, it’s been a pretty smooth process. There have been some bugs and glitches, but I’m pretty sure that happens across the board.

How did Innovify perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re great at staying on budget. We were really clear about that from the beginning. There was one instance when they went way over their hours, as the job was bigger than they originally thoughts. We did get a large bill that we weren’t expecting, and they agreed that we could pay a portion of it for right now, as it was a mistake on their end as well.

The delivery has mostly been good, but I think the biggest thing for us was the payment system. It took a lot longer than we thought, but it was quite complicated. We also lost our project manager in that time, which I think contributed to the delay as well.

I think our first project manager was fantastic. I would give him a 10 out of 10. Then, because we had slowed down, we got some junior developers that were trying to project manage, and that was probably the hardest part for us. Now we have our project manager back, and he’s great. We use JIRA for tracking, and they keep it up to date with what they’re working on and quoted hours. For communication, we use Slack and Google Hangouts. I have a call with them once a week, or more if necessary. We touch base on anything we need to, and we talk over Slack in between.

What did you find most impressive about Innovify?

I didn’t feel like they were just trying to get the job done, and that’s it. I felt they actually cared about the project, and they came with their own ideas. They made suggestions on integrating some features I hadn’t even thought about, and the whole team contributed ideas that they thought would be beneficial. I really appreciated the thoughtfulness they put into that. They’re all really polite and accommodating.

Are there any areas Innovify could improve?

When they’re working with a client, I believe it would be good if they could keep a consistent contact point. That would have helped us a lot. I think the breakdown in communication between project managers did cause a few headaches.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the founder and CEO of Instantt. It’s a mobile app used by busy Londoners for ordering food and drinks on the go, helping them escape lunchtime queues.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Innovify?

I was trying to find a tech partner who was nimble enough to work with my startup. When launching a mobile platform, there is a need for many iterations and refinements based on market feedback, and I needed someone who could do that at a reasonable cost. I was also looking for a partner who had a good grasp of technology and the market.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Innovify provided end-to-end analysis, captured requirements, and focused on market needs. They put together a development and support team who delivered the entire platform, from the initial analysis to the minimum viable product. The initial version was done for iOS. After 3 months, we developed full Android and iOS versions. We built those once we had tested the market.

The app can identify nearby restaurants based on users’ locations and settings. There are interactive merchant panels on the backend. We have a virtual queuing algorithm that processes orders based on location, order complexity, and the depth of queue. Users receive estimates on how long the order will take, and the merchant is told when the client will walk through their door. We can also customize order items. For example, users can choose their own bread and fillings for a burger.

We had a detailed conversation with Innovify’s team about the different stages of implementing our solution. The MVP was a fairly standard solution that allowed people to order 1 type of burger. As we developed it further, it became quite interactive and allowed users to choose what they did and didn’t want. It also provided virtual queuing.

While working on the initial launch, Innovify had 15–16 people on the project. We had 2 project managers—one senior and one junior—and around 12 developers.

How did you come to work with Innovify?

I shortlisted 3 companies that I wanted to work with. I sat down with each, discussing requirements, timelines, and cost. I found out that I had gone to the same engineering and business school as Maulik Sailor, Innovify’s founder. I didn’t know him at that point in time, but this connection obviously helped. I met him and looked at his projects and team. The estimates given by Innovify were 60%–70% of the proposed rates of their nearest competitor in London. I was quite skeptical initially, but Innovify did a brilliant job in the end.

How much have you invested with Innovify?

The cost of their work was around £250,000. That is about $400,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Innovify in May 2015. The initial development phase took place between November 2015 and April 2016. The project is ongoing. Innovify will be my tech partner for the foreseeable future.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We launched a decent product on the market. The feedback on the app stores is positive, and we have 4.8 ratings on both iOS and Android. The MVP took a couple of months to do, while the full product launch for both the iOS and Android versions took another 3 months. I found this to be quite impressive, given that we had a complete rehash of the design on the next iteration.

How did Innovify perform from a project management standpoint?

Innovify has done a very good job of managing processes and requirements. Their core team was well informed, from the management down to the developers. They have a good engineering process in place for ensuring that they’re doing a good job. However, working with junior resources and needing to tell them exactly what to do can be quite frustrating. This is part of the journey, and I would’ve had the same problems working with IBM or Accenture.

We communicated through Slack, Skype, and phone calls. I was in touch with them 7 days a week. I interacted with their project manager, but I also had direct access to every single resource, from the developers to the testers.

What did you find most impressive about Innovify?

Even though we worked using an outsourced model, Innovify gave me the feeling of having an in-house team. I had direct access to their resources, and they had direct access to me. In this context, given the cost and complexity of the project, achieving what we have is pretty unique. Had I gone to another provider, I would have spent another $500,000 to $1 million in development. In general, Innovify has done a good job compared to my past experience in the telecom and banking world.

Are there any areas Innovify could improve?

There is room for improvement, but this is the nature of the industry. India is prone to a lot of churn, especially in software development. Innovify’s testers are also not as mature and tech-savvy as I would like. Innovify could get more experienced members as they grow, but this will come with time. Communication can also be quite challenging.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.
I’m the CTO of UPPL, a data company.  

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Innovify?
We needed help with the development of our core pricing platform for our marketplace.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?
We hired Innovify to handle the end-to-end development of our new core pricing platform. We worked with them to define the whole strategy, and then we did the product design and software development. They also worked on data collection, provided UX/UI design work, and developed various AI solutions. They used React and Node.js for development and Figma for UX/UI design.

What is the team composition?
We had a key client partner as our main point of contact. We also had a delivery manager who was the point of contact for our product owner and technical team. They had a team of developers available, but we mainly interacted with two people from that end.

How did you come to work with Innovify?
We found Innovify through an online search. Their online reviews were good, so we decided to reach out to them.

How much have you invested with them?
We spent close to $500,000 on this project.

What is the status of this engagement?
We worked together from September 2021–March 2023.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
Innovify delivered a high-quality product, which we were incredibly happy about.

How did Innovify perform from a project management standpoint?
Innovify performed well in terms of project management. They planned their tasks well, kept us updated on their progress, and delivered bi-weekly, so we knew exactly what and when we were getting results.

Aside from that, they were proactive in their communication. We had meetings twice a week, during which we discussed any issues or clarifications required. They used online tools like Figma and Jira so we could see the designs and their progress in real-time.

What did you find most impressive about them?
The Innovify team was very knowledgeable. Their expertise in different technologies and the way they collaborated with us were outstanding. They took a proactive approach to developing the solution and took full ownership of the deliverables.

Are there any areas they could improve?
No, I can’t think of anything they could improve on.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?
I recommend doing the initial discovery workshop with them to help identify all the risks of your project. In my experience, they were very good at implementing a plan to remove those risks.