Data Dynamics, Inc.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a franchise owner of an accounting company. We provide accounting, tax, and payroll to sell business owners and individuals. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Data Dynamics, Inc.?

We have a network of computers and servers, and we needed assistance to address downtime quickly. During tax season, we need to make sure we’re up and running because we fully depend on technology.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Data Dynamics provides and manages our servers. Any time we lose data or accidentally a file, they can recreate it from the last backup (which takes place every 15 minutes). They also help manage our computers. If we ever have an issue, we send them a ticket, and they look at what’s going and resolve any issues we might have. They’ll try a remote solution to the problem. If not possible, they’ll come into the office and go from there.

What is the team composition?

We work with primarily two people.

How did you come to work with Data Dynamics, Inc.?

We initially had another company, but we weren’t getting the service that we needed. We came across Data Dynamics in one of the various marketing groups we’re a part of and decided to give them a shot.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent less than $10,000 per year.

What is the status of this engagement?

The partnership started in October 2018 and is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They’re competent, and more importantly, they’re responsive. If our technology goes down, there’s very little you can do, and it’s critical to get timely responses so we can stay productive throughout the day.

How did Data Dynamics, Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

We have a ticketing system. Any time we have an issue that’s IT-related, we’ll send a ticket, and they’ll contact us right away via email or a call. They’re very responsive and take care of our needs

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their response time is great and so is their ability to get the job done. They’re able to diagnose a problem and resolve it quickly. We need both to prevent a lot of downtime. That distinguishes them from past providers. Their pricing is competitive as well.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything. They’ve resolved any issues we’ve had.

Any advice for potential customers?

Give them a shot. I highly recommend that you get a proposal from Data Dynamics if you’re looking for a new IT provider.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I was the president of a testing lab when I hired Data Dynamics, Inc.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Data Dynamics, Inc.?

I hired them to support our development requirements and our technology needs, as well as some special projects. We basically hired them to staff up our whole IT organization. We didn’t have a dedicated technology group that supported our development efforts when I came onboard as a full-time executive.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They acted as the primary development arm for us, which involved debugging any ongoing issues related to our e-commerce site. Our e-commerce site is the most critical element of our organization as it’s where our clients initiate service with us and track our services. They also use it to download our work products. If that site isn’t working or isn’t providing the best experience it can be a big crutch for the whole company. We pretty much trust Data Dynamics with the most critical element of our whole company.

I won’t go into the technology piece since it’s proprietary, but Data Dynamics had the skills and experience to support our technology framework. This was also a critical part of our selection process.

What is the team composition?

We worked with a half-dozen of different folks, though it changed depending on the part of the project we were in.

How did you come to work with Data Dynamics, Inc.?

My network or friends and acquaintances got me in touch with Data Dynamics. With any kind of product or service selection process, it begins with understanding the key individuals in the organizations. Do they have the credentials to be trusted to fulfill what we need? Past that point, you look at whether the company can support the individuals with their capabilities. Then, finally, it gets to the company’s services.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working together since January 2015.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

With any organization, it comes down to the top individuals at the organization, and everything trickles down. If you don’t have that group on top that has the vision in terms of the quality of work and what the company should stand for, then it’ll be hard to support everything. Their top team has supported them at Data Dynamics, helping the operational and development flows support the vision.

How did Data Dynamics, Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

When you’re working with an outsourced firm with offshore resources it really creates the need for a disciplined group of individuals — both here and there — to make sure it works and to articulate all requirements clearly. You’re only going to be able to build and support what’s already been articulated, so you have to rigorously document your requirements. Then, you have to communicate them to Data Dynamics.

Our collaboration was the key piece in this project. We were able to communicate clearly; there were no issues there.

What did you find most impressive about them?

What’s clear to me is that they’re very thorough at understanding requirements and building against them. They also pushed us to develop a strong statement of work, which helped us understand what we needed built. Everything is formal with them.

Are there any areas they could improve?

It’s probably closer to our side, but we could be more demanding of them to be more of a part of our IT strategy team. As a third-party team that’s a fine line for them to get into, however. Should they define a strategy or just follow what the client company is dictating. With hindsight, I’d ask them more forcefully to be a part of the strategy side.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Make sure you have disciplined requirements to clearly articulate what you’re trying to build so that everything’s being built in line with what you want now and in the future. Otherwise, what you built will put you in a box regarding the future.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CFO of Decipher. We’re a professional services company that mostly works with law firms.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Data Dynamics, Inc.?

We were a small company — well, we’re still a small company — and we needed some kind of upgraded computer system or network.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They put in a server, an email client, and got cloud-based applications for us. They also have a local data center that we use. Beforehand, they did a security analysis of our systems, looking for vulnerabilities and opportunities to shore things up. Then, they made some recommendations and put together security and business continuity plans.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with two people.

How did you come to work with Data Dynamics, Inc.?

We went to a technology presentation a couple of years ago and met Saeed (SVP & COO) and his team there. When we met, we weren’t at a point where we could engage with them; we didn’t know our technology needs yet. 6–9 months later, we reached back out to them, along with other companies. They all provided estimates and we chose Data Dynamics, Inc.

How much have you invested with them?

We’re spending around $25,000 a year.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working together since August 2018.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

When we’ve had a problem or a system goes down, which hasn’t been that often, they get it back up within 2-3 hours. One of the things we really appreciate is that we don’t have a huge understanding of technology. We come up with things we want to fix; they’re very solutions-driven and they come back to us with options that are in line with what we’re looking for. They stay on top of technology trends for us so we don’t have to spend time keeping up.

How did Data Dynamics, Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

We haven’t had a bunch of large-scale projects, but we’ll meet in advance to discuss timelines and deliverables. As things progressed they kept us in the loop and stuck to the timeline.

They have an online ticketing system where we submit issues. If things are really critical then I’ll call or text our contact. In most situations, they’ll be in our office in an hour.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We’re a growing business, and they’ve provided services for two years now and they’ll continue. We were at eight employees when we started and now we’re almost at 20. As we continue to grow, they’ll grow with us. Having that partnership is really important to us. There’s a strong desire in them to help us succeed.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There are so many things outside of your control with technology. A computer update may work on 95% of the computers but then there’s an issue with one computer. They do very well with the things they can control.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Originally, we were working with our IT provider — just a solo guy who didn’t have a whole lot of extra capability. It’s been good for us to be open to growing and bringing on a more formal IT system. I would say be open. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We are an Edutech startup composed of two Physics Professors who have a vision on transforming STEM education. I am a founding member and act as CTO.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Data Dynamics, Inc.?

Data Dynamics has been hired for all our development and deployment needs. They have build our platform which includes a MS Windows based app (for instructors) that creates content for the iOS and Android (student) apps.

We have also used them for business advice, as well as help seeking financing, and other aspects of our business. We've been able to rely on them for just about everything and they have always come though.

What were your goals for this project?

The project was to create the platform that we now use to create content for our (student) mobile app. The platform also needed to be able to support non-specialist users (instructors) who could assign and evaluate the homework of the students (completed on the tablets).

The data must be synchronized and the mobile app must allow the students to complete their homework even when offline. We wanted to have the full platform created and tested as this is our entire business. The app needs to be responsive, adaptable and have the manuability to allow for many of the unique inputs needed when solving STEM problems.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We spoke with other businesses who had also commissioned software development as well as the Illinois Small Business Development Center. We met with multiple vendors and the two members (myself and my partner) chose data dynamics.

The choice was based on:

1. The strength of the recommendation
2. The knowledgable questions about the development and the business model that gave us confidence in their understanding our business
3. The cordiality and availability of the personnel when we had additional followup questions

Describe the project in detail.

We initially presented them a mocked model (using powerpoint) of what we wanted to be created as well as the technical specifications we needed in broad strokes during the vendor selection process's second meeting.

Afterward, we provided them with a detailed document of all the additional aspects of the projects that were needed to be incorporated to ensure and accurate picture of the requirements was known.

Lastly, we met to explain the business model so that they would be able to have the context for their internal decision making process. Data Dynamics then created a very detailed Statement of work (SOW) with mockup diagrams of the interface and their function.

After iterating over the SOW, we agreed and work begun. We have since continued with 4 additional SOW.

What was the team composition?

I am aware of the project manager, project lead, and at least two developers (and the occasional graphic design artists and architect) on the vendor side. The developers have changed over the course of the four years, but only twice and never at the higher levels.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have been able to use the system with more than 100 students who have enjoyed the experience and offered helpful suggestions. We have received requests for the app from other students wishing to improve their learning. The app is now available on both app stores and we have had discussions with major publishing companies about partnering and distributing our system within their products.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The workflow has been seamless. I feel I can always reach out to them in times of need when something requires immediate action. We meet weekly and I feel heard and obtain detailed progress reports on the new work (we are constantly improving the product as more testing and feedback come in from students and instructors).

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The knowledge and capabilities of Data Dynamics is well above what I had expected from a vendor and matched only by their service. I feel I can come to them with any problems and they can either provide the service or give suggestions of who can. They are always available and really care about my business succeeding.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Nothing realistic.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Accounting and tax services Lisa Cotner, CEO

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Data Dynamics, Inc.?

Cloud creation and maintenance for accounting and tax software security

What were your goals for this project?

To keep secure data on behalf of clients, as well as remote access for multiple locations and client access

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

Interviewed several ooptions

Describe the project in detail.

They created a remote desktop, placed my software and files there, setup firewalls, antivirus, user accounts for employees and clients with varied access permissions.

What was the team composition?

Owner, main account rep tech, and support staff

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Clients and employees love the service, functionality and accessibility. If we have issues, Data Dynamics is quick to respond and find solutions.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Perfect. We have a tech rep we reach out to for urgent issues, and an email for less urgent tickets.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

They provide fast, responsive services and one-on-one support as needed.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Not really. IT can be tricky and we are not experts. We rely on them and they provide the best services they can efficiently and effectively.