Exoft

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

We're an IT [information technology] consulting company delivering professional consulting services for enterprise companies like Swisscom, Deutsche Telekom, German Rail, big insurance companies, and banks, and providing consulting in Microsoft environments and using various Microsoft technologies. At the moment, we're building up a new data center. We are creating new software, new strategies and, in half a year, we will provide our own cloud. Our business will transform from a traditional IT consulting company to a data center and cloud provider.

What is your position?

I am the owner.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Exoft?

We started with specific a part of the company conducting a status check-analyzing program. That is a technology where we can realize and recognize how well a company is using a specific Microsoft product. It will identify bottlenecks, weaknesses, inefficiencies and things of that nature, so we can figure out how to implement fixes.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in more detail.

Exoft actually got the job to write an application, and put the different frameworks into one framework, making performance improvements, and doing state-of-the-art development. That was the initial project with them, and they used the .NET framework for this project.

We have a few projects going on with them. The latest project is for a huge automobile manufacturer here in Germany, and they are going to analyze the software and develop code. We definitely extended the business with them. They are using PowerShow, they are using the complete Microsoft stack, and they are using System Center. We are using these technologies, too, so they need to know all the stuff to finish these different applications. They have delegated four to eight people full time, including one or two quality assurance officers working for the different projects.

How did you come to work with Exoft?

I was searching on the global market. I was searching in Eastern Europe, I was searching in Russia, China, and India. I traveled a lot to make the vetting process more comprehensive. I created a demo application that they should review, and I made mistakes in there on purpose. The guys from Exoft were the only ones who wrote back what was wrong with it, and they did it completely fresh and new, and now it's working. That was quite cool, and that's the way I chose them. I performed a global search, and they were ones with the fastest and most accurate response.

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

It should be around 60,000 to 80,000 a year.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them at the end of 2012 or early 2013 – around that time. We still use them now.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics, metrics, or user feedback from this engagement?

That's very difficult. We actually don't have any metrics to share. We don't have any maximum hours or something. We want quality, so we decided to have a commitment on an hourly basis. For instance, if they need 10 hours, they will charge us 10 hours. We have an unlimited contract. They can charge us as much as they need, and we have actually no special metric that helps us realize whether they're good or not. The only way is actually using the production ready code they deliver, which, for the most part has been great.

We have weekly meetings in which every developer is presenting what he did, so we know the amount of bugs, and then the amount of bugs that are being tracked and getting fixed. It's more like scrum – dynamically driven. They are on time, on track, and bug-free 80 to 85 percent of the time. Of course, there are little amounts that are too late, but it's difficult. Sometimes, it's very complex. We don't have any cost estimates, but I'm very happy with the cost overall. We have a short discussion on the hours they need, and that's what they charge us. It's good.

How did Exoft perform from a project management standpoint?

We didn't use any project management tools with them. We used Skype to stay in contact with them during the course of the project. They have user accounts in our corporate network, so they have email accounts in our company. They are reachable 24 hours for us. Developers are often online, so we can chat with the person who actually develops the specific part of the software. We're not using phones anymore. We only use internet technologies.

What distinguishes Exoft from other providers?

It's a very close contact. We regularly meet and discuss the points from both sides. We are very closely in touch with each other. That's the way we manage our relationship. Exoft is open-minded. We talk openly about things, and we don't hide anything. It's perfect. They are perfect. Take them as they are. They are cool and produce great quality work.

Is there anything Exoft could have improved or done differently?

There are sometimes situations where they can improve. The software got complex, so it's very difficult for us to find the issue and the bug. But, that's not something related to Exoft – that's nothing negative. Developers code in their environment, when you put the software to an enterprise company there are firewall rules, there are enterprise infrastructures, and there are many parts of the company involved.

Then, if something doesn't work, it's very difficult to find the issues. Of course, there were times when they said the software is working, but it wasn't, so we needed to invest a lot of time to find the mistakes, and they helped us out a lot to figure out where we could improve the software. That's normal – it's calculated.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

We're a medical software and e-health company.

What is your position?

My role is chief executive officer.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Exoft?

We were deciding between an offshore and a nearshore team for product development. We were looking to move that from Ireland, where it's very expensive.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.

It was full stack – we do our development operations in Ireland, and the products roadmap function remains in Ireland, along with the CTO role. Other than that, we outsource the full development stack, so database design, development, coding, back-end and front end. They primarily use Microsoft technology: C#, ASP.NET, and some jQuery libraries, so it's NBC5 architecture.

How did you come to work with Exoft?

We had a long list of 10 companies. Exoft was one of the three companies we found on oDesk, which now merged with another company [UpWork]. We had previously worked with other companies for smaller oDesk contracts. We just put it up there and they replied. We were impressed with their proposal and capabilities. The long list became five, then three, and then we picked them.

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

It was in the low six figures.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them this year in February [2015], and the collaboration is still ongoing. We have a number of dedicated resources on their end.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

We've gone from two to seven resources in Exoft. We've launched in the Danish market, so we've done a full localization of the platform into Danish. Our company was one of the top five tech startups in Europe. It worked out well.

How did Exoft perform from a project management standpoint?

The quality of the work by Exoft was fantastic. Project management is difficult, and we probably need a full-time project manager. That's probably nine out of 10 for technology and probably six for the project management. It's not uncommon. It's a mixed model. We do the project management, but we probably need a project manager there as well.

What distinguishes Exoft from other providers?

We stayed away from far shores – the likes of India, Philippines, and other countries like that. We feel the Ukrainian and Romanian developers have a better design sensibility for developing enterprise applications to be used by Western Europe, United States, and Australasia users. The English speaking level is more or less native. On the design side of things and in general, their coding ability is very high.

Is there anything Exoft could have improved or done differently?

It's probably a scaling thing for them. The ability to have a dedicated account manager is probably the main thing. We're probably just in or around that stage now. There's a certain time or scale when you need to bring that person in.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Company start new site in APP development, Director

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

Develop App where we can add objects through admin panel. Plan a trip connecting several points on the map

SOLUTION

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

I have select them based on reviews and specialty in navigation

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

We had meeting each week and we where able to check the work what has been done step by step.

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

Project manager and main programmer who can solve all problems

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have finish this App on time, and have positive reviews

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

We had a meetings each time We need to update requests for an APP. There where no problems to get in touch

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

They suggested solutions for everything we needed to implement. They really developed the app we needed.

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

This was first impression to develop an APP, and it was very good. We can not compare. We are preparing next step of Improvements for App and implement new things

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Dukart engineering & production develops, designs, manufactures prototypes and small series, for the areas of aviation, medicine and automotive. My position: Board member

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Exoft?

To develope and programming an App for our boots shunter

What were your goals for this project?

A safe and working app for our boat shunter. To bring the product to the market after 5 months

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We found the vendor with google

Describe the project in detail.

An app for the control of our electrically powered boat shunter

What was the team composition?

*

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

*

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

*

What did you find most impressive about this company?

They worked hard, fast and effective.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Working together on a project couldn't work better