Volpis

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the product manager for a company that offers cashback services. We have a mobile app called “inShopper” and it’s the first of its kind in Russia. With it, users can scan QR Codes on receipts and gain cashback for their purchase.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Volpis?

Our mobile app was created three years ago on Android and it required a large update. We decided to completely change the design and logic of the app, but we didn’t have in-house mobile app developers. Furthermore, the quality that our previous development team provided was low, so finding a new team was our biggest goal.

What were your goals for this project?

Our goals were to attain a clean and simple design, update the app’s UX, increase the user base and number of downloads, and integrate AppsFlyer and other analytic systems within the app to track paid traffic.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

Our CTO and I searched for a freelance developer on Upwork, providing clear deadlines and such. We spoke with Kostya (CEO, Volpis) and discussed our needs. We looked at his company’s portfolio and saw that his latest projects were of high quality, he offered a fair price, and also promised to deliver on our deadline. We made the right decision.

Describe the project in detail.

Kostya's team handled the update of our app through three iterations. I shared detailed specifications and the new design, describing each task in Trello before starting the work. After two months of collaborative work, we completely changed the design of the app and made a release. We continued the partnership to include more features in the app. Volpis also provided support and fixed small bugs.

What was the team composition?

Kostya acted as the project manager at the beginning. I later worked directly with an Android developer. All design, iOS development, and QA was done on our side.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The new design and UX has produced a twofold increase in our user base and lots of positive feedback on the app’s usability. This led to our startup being bought by a large Russian IT company as well as the investment on the further development of our product.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The work process was very well organized and structured, which helped us make complex decisions quickly. Kostya is highly responsive and available at any time. His team always paid attention to details and are true professionals. We used Slack and Skype for communication and Trello for setting tasks.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Volpis has vast knowledge about mobile app development and UX. Their team was patient and flexible, often working during weekends to meet our deadlines. This was valuable for me and the project!

Are there any areas for improvement?

I wish they would share their vast knowledge of app development with their clients more. Their advice has helped me a lot, particularly regarding Android development.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

My name is Vadym Grynchenko and I'm a product designer at Green&Co, which offers a series of health-related mobile diagnostics apps.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Volpis?

We had the idea for a mobile app that will help people understand their health problems and figure out how to proceed with treatment, and needed a company to build the app.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They helped us define user stories and use cases for the app. An algorithm for disease diagnosis was created. The team developed the code and the UI for both iOS and Android versions.

Multiple iterations were built and tested. The first iteration used images for the buttons, which looked nice but made the app too heavy (around 100 megabytes). They found another approach using colors to make it lighter.

They launched the app in the App Store in Europe and Ukraine.  

What is the team dynamic?

My main contact is the iOS developer, and I also work with another person on invoices and other project management details.

How did you come to work with Volpis?

They were one of several firms that responded to a request for proposals. I chose them because they’re based in Ukraine, which means that they are highly skilled developers and offer low rates.

How much have you invested with them?

To date, we've spent about $8,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The work started in 2015 and is ongoing. There have been some gaps in the work due to needing to secure additional funds. The plan is for them to develop a version 1.3 of the app.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

According to our statistics, the app has very few bugs or reports of crashes.

For us, the big win is simply that it is already available in the App Store in Ukraine and in Europe. It needs additional testing to ensure compliance with the FDA [Food and Drug Administration], but we expect it to be available soon in the U.S.

How did Volpis perform from a project management standpoint?

It’s been a standard Agile development process. Everybody works remotely; I'm in Germany and they’re in Ukraine. I thought this might be an issue but it’s worked well. I'm in touch with the iOS developer almost every day.

They created a dashboard that I use to create tickets for work that needs to be done. The ticket is passed on to them, and then we set up the deadline for that piece of the project. They generally hit all of the deadlines, plus or minus a couple of days.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Most impressive is that they are able to find a solution for any task, even if a small budget limits the technology they can use.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I frequently had to wait a long time for an answer, which was very stressful. I would recommend they hire an account manager to handle client communication.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Road Hunter LLC is a truck navigation mobile app. I’m the founder and CEO. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Volpis?

We needed someone to develop our mobile app.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They built a whole route-finding app for drivers starting from the sketches. We started with a native Android app on the server side and Java. Then we developed our iOS app with Objective-C and Swift. We use Google Maps APIs, REST APIs, Microsoft XML, and data process using different languages with JavaScript and some React. We have features like navigation that require a lot of skill. We’re working with a product called SQLite. Other features are route planning, truck stop finding, diesel prices, severe weather alerts. We’ve used all the latest technologies.

What is the team dynamic? 

I mostly work with the founder of Volpis and a couple of developers. We use them for more than 40 hours a week.

How did you come to work with Volpis?

My main focus was to have a team who knows how to work with Google Maps APIs and Lifetime maps. They sent me quite a few projects that they have done and I was amazed by the quality of the work. 

How much have you invested with them?

$35,000–$55,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together around 3 years ago and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

If you type “Truck Stops” on Google Play, we’re in 2nd place in the U.S. and Canada. We have a 4.5-star rating on Google Play and 4.8 stars on the App Store. We have 80,000 downloads and around 2,000 active users every day. They’ve done a good job.

We’ve also been mentioned in 5–6 magazines in the U.S. and we’ve been published in several trucking magazines. 

How did Volpis perform from a project management standpoint?

They are doing very well. These guys are not only developers but software engineers, which are really different things. Coders and software engineers are different people. They’re always on top of the new technologies and giving me good suggestions. They did an amazing job on that. We used Trello. We used screenshot trackers so I could see what’s going on. We used Bitbucket for our code repository. We used JIRA, Slack, and Skype. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re a very responsible team. They give a lot of good feedback about the product. They suggest interesting things. Most of the time when working with offshore companies, they just follow whatever you tell them to do and code it. With Volpis, before coding, they asked me a lot of questions about particular features. It saves me time and money. Time is money in this case.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, everything is perfect. I like to work with them. That’s why I’ve been working with them for almost 3 years.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and CEO of Taddrees, an education platform app. We just launched in the UAE and plan to grow throughout the Middle East.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Volpis?

I had an initial idea for the application and needed developers to build it.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Volpis essentially functions as our full-time IT team. They built the application based on my specifications, but also provided a range of solutions to make the app more user-friendly. They also recommended a number of functionalities I hadn’t considered.

The app is available for both iOS and Android, and we plan to launch a web-based service.

What is the team dynamic?

I communicate directly with their CEO.

How did you come to work with Volpis?

I did an online search and initially contacted three companies, but these candidates only offered excuses and lacked the technical skills to build my desired functionalities.

Volpis, on the other hand, stood out immediately. I could tell they were hard workers and possessed the knowledge necessary to build my app. They were excited when I told them my idea and immediately put forth their own suggestions.

How much have you invested with them?

I spent approximately $25,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in April 2017 and launched the app in November.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We gained 20–30 subscribers within the first two weeks of launch, and in a very short time have grown to 300 subscribers. We haven't encountered any bugs, and Volpis is still hard at work adding new functionalities.

How did Volpis perform from a project management standpoint?

I have a background in business and management consulting, so while the tech world is new to me, I’m used to working in a highly organized way. Volpis has a similar work ethic and provides detailed plans.

We coordinated through online tools, including Trello and Slack, and they provided constant updates. They were transparent about day-to-day operations and quick to respond to any questions.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Unlike the other vendors I considered, Volpis demonstrated real dedication. They believed in my product and worked to ensure development of a superior app. They constantly offered suggestions for improvement, and even incorporated additional functionalities at no extra cost.

Nothing was beyond their technical abilities. Given enough time, they accomplished every goal we set.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I'm normally a very critical person when it comes to other businesses, but no, I can’t think of any suggestions.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am a project lead at FieldLogix

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Field Resource management

• GPS Fleet tracking
• Dash Cameras
• Routing & Dispatching

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

• Redesign of web application
• New feature design
• Mobile app design

SOLUTION

How did you find Volpis?

Online Search

Why did you select Volpis over others?

Good value for cost

How many teammates from Volpis were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

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

Redesign of our web application New feature design

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Completed redesign of new web application

Completed design work for new features

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

Yes, they were very responsive and responded to our needs effectively.

What was your primary form of communication with Volpis?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

I was impressed with their response times and quality of work.

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

No

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am an executive at Nineva Studios

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

We provide game development and other software services.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

• Help develop a Kotlin Multiplatform app from sratch

SOLUTION

How did you find Volpis?

Personal Connection

Why did you select Volpis over others?

• Close to my geographic location
• Good value for cost

How many teammates from Volpis were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

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

For this project, we needed a senior engineer familiar with Kotlin Multiplatform technology (KMP) to help rewrite existing Android app from scratch so it works both on Android and iOS. The deliverables consisted of a ready Android and iOS app developed in Kotlin Multiplatform technology stack having all the features of the previous app.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The app was rebuilt with working version for Android and iOS in Kotlin Mutliplatform technology which allowed to have a single codebase. Also Volpis provided the designer to refresh the app UI/UX.

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

They were very careful to our needs and made adjustments rapidly on short notice.

What was your primary form of communication with Volpis?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

I would like to highlight their excellent communication skills and empathy, they always try hard to figure our what exactly business requirements mean in detail.

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

Everything was up to our standards.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the CEO of Purple AI

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Guest WiFi and Analytics

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

• Mobile Development with Maps

SOLUTION

How did you find Volpis?

Online Search

Why did you select Volpis over others?

• High ratings
• Great culture fit

How many teammates from Volpis were assigned to this project?

6-10 Employees

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

They have worked on two projects, one for an SDK for our indoor wayfinding solution and the other on our PurpleConneX app which is for crowdsourcing WiFi networks. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The solution worked and was able to blue dot navigate around an indoor environment and for the ConneX App the features all work and users are able to quickly add in wifi networks. 

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

Deliveries were on time and any delays were caused on our end for lack of services we needed to build, the project manager, UX designer and exec staff are all very responsive. 

What was your primary form of communication with Volpis?

Virtual Meeting

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

Trustworthy to make a commitment and stick to it both timeline and budget

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

Not that I can think of

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am a Developer of Webdevium

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

We are a web and software development company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

• Get project caught up and on track.

SOLUTION

How did you find Volpis?

upwork

Why did you select Volpis over others?

• Pricing fit our budget
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Volpis were assigned to this project?

1 Employee

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

I hired Volpis to help our agency with some manpower to get a project back on track to meet deadlines. They fit in nicely with the existing developers and collaborated with us fantastically. Their developer delivered their part of the software project on time and as expected. I look forward to working with them again very soon.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

A functioning MVP in under 4 months. They helped get this done.

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

• Great project management.
• Great communication.
• They addressed any issues right away.

What was your primary form of communication with Volpis?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

Their ability to adjust and learn quickly.

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

No, I'm happy with my experience.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I'm an executive at Sharpen Technologies

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Provide an Agent First Contact Center solution with a focus on usable AI that enables the Agent to be successful and see personal growth but ultimately resulting in Contact Center interactions that their customers love.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

• Solution development
• CloudOperations development
• QA automation development

SOLUTION

How did you find Volpis?

Referral

Why did you select Volpis over others?

• Pricing fit our budget
• Good value for cost
• Referred to me
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Volpis were assigned to this project?

6-10 Employees

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

Their communication, collaboration skills and general contributions were excellent. They brought a proactive approach and eagerness to learn which was impressive for a contractor relationships.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

• Completion of many product tickets being released. 
• Deployment of ECS.

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

We were happy with their performance and how they worked with the team.

What was your primary form of communication with Volpis?

Virtual Meeting

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

The Volpis team was keen on constructive feedback highlighting areas of improvement as we learned how to work together and showed an active interest in all aspects of each project. Overall, working with Volplis felt much closer to having full-time employees on staff rather than contractors. We would definitely enjoy working with Volpis in the future.

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

Nothing that we can think of now.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Founder of Evexia - Wellbeing

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

To design our product the provides support for mental and physical wellbeing

SOLUTION

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

I was recommended a near shore vendor as opposed to UK and searched UpWork, they were highly rated and extremely diligent in all their supporting presentations and estimates

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

They covered everything off for me, which as an entrepreneur with minimal experience was extremely helpful. Everything from estimates, to kick off meetings, weekly catch ups and anything in-between

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

Our project manager Myk has led from start to finish alongside 2 designers, two back end developers, and a range of iOS and Android developers

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

So far all deadlines and pricing points have been met. Not yet to launch

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

The project manager has been exceptional in his application, and communication. No questions has been left unanswered

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

Their level of tech knowledge has been exceptional as well as communication and suggestions. They have problem solved at every stage with full clarity on additional costs fro anything I have needed changing

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

Not as of yet