Daffodil Software

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m an executive at a health tech company focused on research; we provide support to hospitals for all of the diagnostic services. Many hospitals outsource their lab work to us, and we also research different drugs and diseases, doing tests to find cures and the best way to handle solutions along that line. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Daffodil Software?

We had some resource constraints; there’s a very high demand for DevOps engineers, and many of them have been taken by American companies, so it isn’t easy to get talent in-house — that's why we had to outsource. We’ve had several experiences with interviews and having candidates pass all of the assessments, but when it gets down to doing the job, it’s entirely different. We wanted someone that would be able to provide the service we needed.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Daffodil Software provides staff augmentation for us remotely. We told them our needs, and then they supplied the resources for it. We also had an evaluation period for their work to see their skill set and how they handled their assigned tasks.

What is the team composition?

I work directly with the resource they provide. We also have an account manager, a team lead for the DevOps engineers, and a sales consultant.

How did you come to work with Daffodil Software?

A friend recommended them, and we decided to work with them after doing some research.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in March 2022, and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They've completed every task we've handed them successfully within a good timeframe — the whole work process is easier now.

When I joined the company last year, many things were in a bad state, so my primary mandate was to turn the whole cloud infrastructure around, reduce downtime, and make things move smoothly. I needed someone to support me and make that process easier. Together, we’ve completed several migrations to the new infrastructure, and everything is moving fast thanks to their involvement.

How did Daffodil Software perform from a project management standpoint?

Their resource always works within a good timeframe. In terms of tools, we use Check-Up, Zoho, Slack, Google Meet, and email.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I’ve recommended them to someone I respect, and he doesn’t just give anyone a good review. He’s very conservative with good feedback, so I took it very seriously when he recommended Daffodil Software and gave them full praises.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don't think there's anything they can improve on.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Being upfront with them from the very first call is helpful. I told them the current state of everything — the lack of documentation, how I had been struggling, and everything else. We figured out how to process everything, and everything has moved swiftly since then.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the CEO and Founder of Send Mammogram, an innovative digital healthcare technology company based in Atlanta, Georgia.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We had many items from our product backlog to complete the requirements for our mobile and web solutions. Daffodil helped us organize and prioritize our backlog, increase security and data encryption, fine-tune our use cases, and improve and add new features.

SOLUTION

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

I contacted software technology companies describing my requirements. Daffodil was the top company on my list. Daffodil was the only company that responded back by email. Daffodil won my confidence with their onboarding process for software companies. They walked me through the necessary steps in order to properly understand the project prior to the start of development.

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

Daffodil provided a Laravel developer for our platform and a react native developer for our mobile app. We decided to retain both developers on a monthly basis to complete our product backlog consisting of setting up the code, bug fixes, upgrades, authentication, audit trail, admin, super-admin, digital signature integration, efax, document, and medical image exchange flow fixes, confirming data encryption for HIPAA security.

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

There were 3 people in the core team, a project manager, 2 developers, and an AWS resource when needed.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our goal was to select and develop the backlog items to improve our product and features. Daffodil discussed an approach to completing the backlogged items, promising a more complete solution. We have an enhanced solution to take to the market and obtain feedback for future development. Daffodil delivered on its promise.

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

Inclusive. We appreciated the developers included on the weekly calls and receiving their Daily Status Reports – daily updates about accomplishments for the day and tomorrow's work. Daffodil provided several options for communication and project management. We preferred Google Hangout, Slack, and Jira.

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

I was apprehensive wondering if Daffodil would understand our products and all its moving parts. After attending the initial call and receiving an itemized list of questions discussed I was confident we selected the right company. Most impressive were the suggestions for improvement. They were unique because they provided quality work at an affordable cost — a win-win for both companies.

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

Yes. A 30-day calendar of upcoming holidays, and developer and project manager days off would help the client management side.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the General Manager of an IT and Fintech company that provides innovative digital payment solutions and services.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We realized that there is a need for a robust digital revenue collection and management solution for county governments in Kenya. The existing landscape consists of systems that are not automated, inefficient, have revenue leaks and lack accountability and reporting.

SOLUTION

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

The vendor found me through an email introduction. The deciding factors were Daffodil's many years of experience, well known customers and large team of developers available to take on a project. They also offered to assist us with establishing an Offshore Development Center.

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

The scope of work was a two step process. One was the Discovery and Framing phase where business requirements were gathered, user stories developed and functional specification defined. Next was the development phase that involved actual development of the revenue management system modules.

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

We followed a resource based plan that included up to 11 team members ranging from Project Manager, Designers, Backed and Front end developers, QA etc.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have seen tremendous progress since project launch. We focused on 5 modules that are now at an advanced stage. Within 4 months, these modules have been developed to a point where we are close to having a minimum viable product.

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

The project team have been methodical in their approach. Project meetings have been scheduled in advance and clear agenda and expectations have been communicated. They've used various tools such as Jira for the project and Google chat for instant communication.

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

The entire team was very accessible and eager to make adjustments to schedules when requested.

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

The vendor has done a great job. Perhaps more communication on the project roadmap can be improved.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of an automatic license plate recognition company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Daffodil Software?

We needed someone to provide us with mobile app development.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We initially engaged Daffodil Software to develop a production version of our app that they initially did a POC (proof of concept) of. We went back and forth in identifying the scope and completed the first iteration in December 2021.

What is the team composition?

We mainly engaged with two business development leads throughout the project.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent approximately $16,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from June 2021–April 2022.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They couldn’t put together a team on time for the development of a production version of the app, so what ended up happening was we couldn’t get any engagement from them.

They were non-communicative throughout the process, so it was such a struggle trying to get any form of update on the progress.

The impact was huge as we had promised this app to a number of key clients to be delivered in January of this year, and here we are in April with nothing to show.

How did Daffodil Software perform from a project management standpoint?

Our assumptions were correct when we scheduled a weekly call and found out that our project wasn’t getting their full attention — there would be one feature added then we wouldn’t hear from them again after a long time.

After they missed a deadline by two months, we finally threw our hands up and ended our partnership. We basically managed them entirely, even though they had an internal project manager assigned to them.

What did you find most impressive about them?

There’s nothing in this engagement that I would consider a strength but from a business perspective, they presented a well-defined scope of work with all the features and functionalities documented — the only problem was they didn’t follow through.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I believe they should’ve had a defined team in place and identified their resources before even taking on the project.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

As a client, I should’ve asked to have them define the resources they needed prior to signing the contract, so I would advise you to understand their credentials, abilities, training, and experience ahead of time before committing to a contract.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the co-founder of Vivodoc, a healthcare technology company that connects patients with healthcare providers.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Daffodil Software?

We wanted to implement a digital platform where patients could book appointments and see the real-time availability of each doctor.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Daffodil Software brought us from the idea to the product stage and has developed our cross-platform mobile and web apps. They walked us through the entire app design and development process, brainstorming the design and then implementing it. Once the apps were complete, Daffodil Software moved into maintenance mode. 

On both apps, users can see the real-time availability of providers who can address their specific healthcare needs. Then, because we’re connected to the provider’s patient management systems, our app books the appointment in real-time. From there, the appointment information is relayed to the user, and the app sends out regular appointment reminders. Additionally, patients can check-in for appointments and fill out their medical history on the app. There are also insurance verification workflows. 

What is the team composition?

We invested around $200,000 with Daffodil Software. 

How did you come to work with Daffodil Software?

We were looking for a partner to help us brainstorm the entire app process. We found them through Google, and after looking at their portfolio, we hired them. 

How much have you invested with them?

We were working with 7–8 teammates from Daffodil Software at one point, including a project manager. 

What is the status of this engagement?

Our engagement with Daffodil Software began in January 2021, and it’s ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Daffodil Software has transformed our vision into a reality. We have over 100 doctors on the platform and are currently acquiring patients. The doctors using the platform provide us with comprehensive feedback to help us improve the apps. We’ve had some bugs, but Daffodil Software quickly addresses them. 

How did Daffodil Software perform from a project management standpoint?

Daffodil Software is very communicative — we have daily scrum calls to discuss project progress. We typically communicate through email and Google Meets and use Jira to manage projects.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Daffodil Software’s project management was their biggest strength. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

Daffodil Software should invest more in their QA processes. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I’d advise customers to hire Daffodil Software because they’re a reliable partner. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the group product manager for an e-commerce company that retails beauty and fashion products.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Daffodil Software?

We needed someone to help us increase the bandwidth of our resources.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Without going into too much detail about the scope of work, we use Daffodil Software as our primary outsourcing partner to provide us with staffing solutions for e-commerce strategies.

What is the team composition?

We work with a team leader and four engineers.

How did you come to work with Daffodil Software?

I’m not sure how we came across Daffodil Software because my company was already working with them prior to my hiring.

We chose to continue working with them because of the quality of their work as well as their competitive pricing.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our ongoing partnership started in February 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The quality of their deliverables has been very good and they’re able to quickly respond to any issues and concerns to mitigate any further risks.

How did Daffodil Software perform from a project management standpoint?

They communicate clearly and they have strong communication skills. They’re also proactive when it comes to letting us know if there are any delays and they consistently work hard to meet deadlines.

We typically use JIRA to manage the project and communicate through Slack and WhatsApp.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We’re impressed with their sense of ownership and level of work ethic.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The partnership is going really well so I don’t have any complaints at the moment.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

You should have a clear understanding of your goals on your end before engaging with Daffodil Software. This is to ensure that their process is in line with your vision for the partnership.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the IT assistant general manager of ACT Fibernet, an internet service provider in India.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Daffodil Software?

We hired the services of Daffodil Software to fill the development gaps of our internal team due to COVID-19 restrictions.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We’re working with Daffodil Software for mobile app and chatbot development. Their involvement allows us to augment our capacity for building an Android app while providing a service to our existing customers.

The chatbot is a conversational platform using an open-source product and our team works together with Daffodil Software to evaluate tech stacks and benchmark them against our needs to arrive at a solution.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with around seven people from their team throughout the partnership.

How did you come to work with Daffodil Software?

I came across their company while researching on Google, and we chose to hire them because of their cost-effective solutions and innovative approach to development.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested around $50,000–$60,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our ongoing partnership started in October 2021.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Daffodil Software is able to accomplish our development requirements thanks to their superior knowledge of technology, and collaborative approach to project management.

How did Daffodil Software perform from a project management standpoint?

Their team is very much an extension of our company, so it’s been a very good experience and relationship.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their ownership of the project is a key distinguishing factor of our current success — they go above and beyond in terms of collaboration.

Are there any areas they could improve?

One common problem across this industry is resource retention, so maybe they could improve on that aspect of the business.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I would advise them to get into a more collaborative model when partnering with Daffodil Software, to achieve the best possible outcome.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am founder of Sortajob. We offer a mobile application that manages the job application process. Store and manage your contacts, get your cv reviewed and get access to training.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

I approached a few companies but Daffodil were way ahead of the rest in terms if helping me get a system designed and costed. That was the first step i needed support with

SOLUTION

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

Daffodil helped me scope out the entire solution. After this process it was clear to me they had the skills and processes to deliver. I knew exactly what i was getting and how it would work. There was no saying yes to get the deal. Transparency and honesty were key during this part

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

I have been able to take advantage of Daffodils range of skills including design, data protection, AWS, security, delivery and testing. Any challenge we have had has been resolved internally using Daffodils staff and their skills.

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

Pm Jasmeet Scope Manjit Tech lead Bhanu AWS Prasoon Build and code Utkarsha and Nitin

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Still awaiting to launch. 2 days to go! Am super happy with the app i now have and if it doesnt succeed as a business it will have nothing to do with the build or way it works. I am very happy with the product.

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

Bhanu and team seem to be online all hours of the day. Not sure when they sleep!

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

The ability to see the opportunity and help me get to a position where i could get the funding and commit. With out that initial step i wouldn't have got this started. I'm very impressed with their strong project ownership.

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

Testing fixes is the only thing but sometimes not so easy to do. Sometimes changing one bit has impacts that are straight forward.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there? 

I’m the CEO of GoKonnect Interactive Media Services. We provide local bus drivers with entertainment accessibility that they can offer their passengers.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Daffodil Software?

We weren't satisfied with the services of our software partner, so we needed a new team to take over the pipeline.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Initially, Daffodil Software was only going to refine and complete the solution — however, they encountered a lot of errors as they tested the code, so they rebuilt the product from the ground up. They designed and developed the application via HTML and included a backend with API integration. Additionally, Daffodil Software incorporated a control panel per our bespoke solution.

What is the team composition?

Our main point of contact was their lead developer, and we worked with an entire team of roughly seven developers, a control panel lead, a design lead, an app lead, and a project manager.

How did you come to work with Daffodil Software?

We had a vetting process comprised of several participating vendors — towards the end of the process, we decided to onboard Daffodil Software's team because their skill set exactly matched our needs.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent between $125,000–$130,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project ran from July 2020–August 2021.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We've only recently launched the app and acquired users, so there are no quantitative metrics to share at this point. From our perspective, Daffodil Software strived to deliver a functional and reliable platform despite encountering issues with the existing code they were presented with. We appreciated their proactive approach and eagerness to incorporate all the features we needed our users to have access to — their work ethic spoke volumes about how well they handled adversities, which made us look forward to working with them again.

How did Daffodil Software perform from a project management standpoint?

Daffodil Software met both our deadlines and requirements satisfactorily. They were also accommodating of our team's change requests throughout the process.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Daffodil Software maneuvered well around existing stumbling blocks and rewarded us with high-quality solutions, which we didn't get from the previous team we worked with.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Daffodil Software's members could benefit from a more communicative and encouraging approach — there were instances wherein some tasks piled up and additional services with extra charges weren't relayed to our team clearly.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Present your project and desired results comprehensively to minimize price and timeline changes.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Fabulate is an Australian digital advertising platform. We bring together brands, advertising agencies, digital media distribution channels, and content creators onto a single platform.

We classify as a startup, but we’ve been around for three and a half years. I’m a founding member, and I hold the position of CTO.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Daffodil Software?

We needed to build our product, but because our startup’s budget was pretty tight, we had to find a development partner outside of Australia. Run-of-the-mill freelance developers were also out of the option; we wanted a formal, mature, and well-organized development organization that we could grow with, so we turned to Daffodil.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Daffodil is our IT development partner. They provide all of our software development services except for QA, which I manage through a different agency. Their work covers front- and backend JavaScript development, database management, product design and product creation, UI/UX design, DevOps, and eventually, DevSecOps. Daffodil also handles the upkeep of our marketing website, which is based on WordPress.

Daffodil is a time-and-materials supplier;  I provide the direction, the architecture, and the development roadmap, and Daffodil builds, deploys, maintains, and manages the platform for me.

The team has developed our AWS-hosted platform using PostgreSQL and Node.js on the backend and React.js on the frontend. We don’t have any native apps yet, but they’ve made the platform mobile-responsive. We do have multiple smaller applications for integrated services like payment gateways and invoicing systems, and Daffodil helps with managing that.

What is the team composition?

We’re currently working with five people: one DevSecOps, two frontend developers, one backend developer, and a software lead. We’ve just acquired some investments, so I’m in discussions with Daffodil about expanding the team size in the coming months.

How did you come to work with Daffodil Software?

Our former development partners were based in Ukraine, and I was looking to migrate those services because of communication issues. I looked around India and found Daffodil on Upwork. 

They have about 1,500 people working for them, so they have the bench strength that we were looking for. They also seemed like a formal, process-driven organization that we could scale with, not just a small group of developers, so we chose to work with them.

How much have you invested with them?

Over the last eight months, I’ve spent an average of $12,000 per month on their services.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Daffodil around June 2020, and it’s an ongoing engagement.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

With our previous developers, we were spending as much as 30% of our efforts fixing bugs before a release. Now, with Daffodil, we only spend around 3% of our time on that, which is certainly low. We’re extremely satisfied with their performance.

We don’t have any metrics beyond that since we don’t work on a project basis with Daffodil. In working with them, however, we’ve had a positive experience. They’ve kept the engagement casual enough such that scaling up or down is easy to achieve, especially with their huge pool of quality developers.

How did Daffodil Software perform from a project management standpoint?

I have no complaints. They’ve provided us with a dedicated team that really looks after us and our problems. Even in instances when we’ve had to push them hard, they were flexible enough to work late nights and weekends in order to deliver what was asked.

I’m currently interviewing for additional backend developers and software architects, and I appreciate that they can provide a formal interview process that usually isn’t possible with freelancers.

We use Jira, Slack, Discord, and Google Meet to manage the project and communicate with each other.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their balance of quality and cost is a definite standout for us. We’re getting a good-quality development partner out of Daffodil for a price that isn’t top-of-the-market.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Besides the regular challenges, there hasn’t been any major need for improvement. There could, however, be more emphasis on estimation and planning when it comes to their communication.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Daffodil has skilled developers for median market pricing and they’re a mature, CMI- and ISO-certified organization, so I would recommend them for companies like mine that are working on tight, bootstrap budgets. There are thousands of organizations out there, but what makes Daffodil shine out is their price-effectiveness; you can get the same caliber of developer for half the price.