Futurist Labs

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the COO of a UK hospitality media company. Among other things, we run the CODE app, the only dedicated hospitality benefits platform.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Futurist Labs?

We hired Futurist Labs to develop native iOS and Android versions of an existing app, along with a new backend and CMS.

What were your goals for this project?

The key goal of the project was to deliver much-needed upgrades to our front-and backend offerings. We wanted to improve engagement, reliability, and serviceability, and ultimately lay the foundations for expansion.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

A personal contact originally introduced me to an alternative supplier based in Bulgaria. Since the nature of the work didn't fit their capabilities, they introduced me to Futurist Labs.

We approached them before this project to discuss support for our existing HTML5 app. We decided on an alternative UK supplier because of concerns about working across the border, but weren't satisfied with the quality of work. We approached Futurist Labs again a year later to engage them on this project.

Describe the project in detail.

Following a number of phone discussions to scope out the work, their CEO and CTO visited our London offices to finalize the project brief and meet the board. After an initial design phase, we hired a separate designer with whom we had an existing relationship to design the new app. Different teams built the two platforms separately, developing the CMS in tandem through continuous, collaborative feedback and improvement.

What was the team composition?

We primarily liaised with the CEO and CTO. When they weren't accessible, we also had direct contact with the lead iOS and Android developers.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The new version of the app has only been live for three weeks, but feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. The UI/UX is vastly improved and the new functionalities—such as geolocation, search, advanced filters, and mapping—have greatly improved the product for our members.

Unsurprisingly, we experienced some teething issues in the first week after going live. We might have avoided some, but we addressed them in good time and fixed all major bugs within a week.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Futurist Labs is easy to work with and highly responsive, even outside of normal working hours at key project milestones. Their project management is fairly fluid, since this is our first major project. We primarily use Google Sheets to keep track of workflow.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Working with the team has been great. After difficulty working with developers in India, it's invaluable to have the process managed and delivered in plain English, especially given our team's lack of technical expertise. Time and again, they've worked with us to find the best solutions to our needs and the most innovative solutions to our requirements.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Since we're new to app development, our inexperience led us to miscommunicate about the scope of work and slip up on the project timeline. When deadlines are more pressured, they could test our builds more before sharing.

However, most of the responsibility for improvement lies with us, not the developers. We're really happy with the current product, and are looking forward to continuing to work with Futurist as we grow.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the CEO of a mobile technology company called Ridar Systems. We’ve developed a cloud-based technology that allows motorcycles and bicycles to be ‘seen’ by automobile and truck drivers.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Futurist Labs?

We had a basic working version of our app but needed resources to further develop the technology. We approached Futurist Labs to make our app more functional so that we could launch it on app stores.

What were your goals for this project?

At the time, the system was only about 75% complete. We wanted their team to collaborate with our CTO to enhance the app’s functionality.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

The CTO and I were both involved in the vetting process. We looked at several vendors before determining that Futurist Labs was the best fit for us. We chose them based on their previous projects, innovative ideas, and can-do attitude.

Describe the project in detail.

They worked closely with us to get our app to an MVP state so that our strategic partners could evaluate it. As they developed the technology, we maintained regular contact to provide input into the progress. The team finished the app for iOS and Android, though we expect to utilize them for most, if not all, future updates.

What was the team composition?

At any given time, we worked with 4–7 individuals, which consisted of two people who oversaw the project and assisted in development. The team size changed with the needs of our project.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve only recently launched the MVP on the App Store and Google Play, so we don’t have any hard metrics yet. However, we were able to provide our technology to both our strategic partners as well as investors. As we further deploy the app, we’ll be able to better address the needs of our end-users.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Futurist Labs kept us in the loop at all times, providing regular updates, addressing questions and changes, and clarifying any inquiries. Despite the fact that they were several hours ahead of us, we never had any real issues with them being an off-shore contractor nor did we encounter any language barriers. They communicated with us through Productive.io.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Their strength lies in their ability to quickly grasp what we wanted to accomplish. On top of quickly getting up to speed, they also thought outside the box, which allowed us to consider other functionalities that we hadn’t considered previously.

Are there any areas for improvement?

No, nothing comes to mind. They’ve been great to work with, and we anticipate partnering with them for some time to come.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m a founder of a SAAS company in the real estate space. Our program automates transactions in real time from start to finish. It connects to each involved party and updates each live event within the transaction as it occurs.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

How did you select this vendor?

Our affiliate accelerator/incubator in California recommended using Futurist Labs.

Can you go into detail about the services they provided and the scope of the project?

Our engagement has required Futurist Labs to rapidly gain a comprehensive understanding of U.S. real estate transactions. Thankfully, they’re a team of quick learners. We’ve had problems with other programmers who couldn’t grasp these critical concepts.

What was the team composition?

Futurist Labs dedicates 3-5 resources to our project at any given time. The team collaborates with two of our internal employees.

SOLUTION

Can you share any information that demonstrates the impact that this project has had on your business?

Futurist Labs immediately relays critical updates promptly and consistently to keep everyone in the loop. The program isn’t finished yet, but they keep us abreast of each new development as it occurs.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

We mainly communicate via Slack. Our project manager Mark (CEO, Futurist Labs) understands every aspect of our business and is easy to communicate with. He’s extremely responsive and is a reliable liaison to the development team. An easy partner to work with, he accurately conveys all our instructions to the programmers.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The team always promptly responds to us despite a seven-hour time zone difference, even outside working hours. In multiple instances, they’ve worked during their own vacations. We receive consistent status updates along the way. We really appreciate Futurist Labs transparency, which preempts duplicating any work.

Are there any areas where they can improve?

I can’t think of any notable areas for improvement. We have a great partner in Futurist Labs!

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any information that demonstrates the impact that this project has had on your business?

Futurist Labs immediately relays critical updates promptly and consistently to keep everyone in the loop. The program isn’t finished yet, but they keep us abreast of each new development as it occurs.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

We mainly communicate via Slack. Our project manager understands every aspect of our business and is easy to communicate with. He’s extremely responsive and is a reliable liaison to the development team. An easy partner to work with, he accurately conveys all our instructions to the programmers.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The team always promptly responds to us despite a seven-hour time zone difference, even outside working hours. In multiple instances, they’ve worked during their own vacations. We receive consistent status updates along the way. We really appreciate Futurist Labs transparency, which preempts duplicating any work.

Are there any areas where they can improve?

I can’t think of any notable areas for improvement. We have a great partner in Futurist Labs!

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the president of a small software company based in San Francisco that serves the higher education market. We specialize in on-campus events such as commencement ceremonies, offering tools to help schools plan and execute these events seamlessly while enhancing the experience for participants and guests. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Futurist Labs?

We needed a mobile application to scan and validate guest's website-generated event tickets at the door. We had previously been using a web-only scan method, but our clients needed the flexibility and portability of handheld devices.

What were your goals for this project?

Our goal was to develop a downloadable ticket validation scanning app that was user-friendly and required little training, since most of the users would have no exposure to it prior to the event. 

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

Futurist Labs was recommended to my by a mutual acquaintance. In an initial call, Mark (CEO, Futurist Labs) demonstrated a quick and thorough understanding of our project’s needs and was confident they could deliver it on time and within budget. His team provided the framework along with impressive, accurate specifications that were easy to approve. It was a great decision!

Describe the project in detail.

Within days of awarding them the project, we received mockups of the graphics and interface as well as a plan incorporating a camera-based scan engine. The first iteration of the iOS version was completed a week later. A few rounds of testing resulted in some tweaks and improvements, all of which were handled very quickly and gracefully by Futurist. Once the details were finalized in iOS, they ported everything over to the Android version. Futurist has completed all updates required in the three years since launching the original product, and they always do exactly what we need them to. They have a very solid understanding of the issues we encounter, routinely presenting a robust, long-term solution instead of just a temporary fix.

What was the team composition?

Mark is our primary contact with a development team that reports directly to him. I'm unsure of how their internal load is balanced, but all questions from the developers indicate that they are skilled and informed on the project specifics.  

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our clients love the app. It is flexible and easy to use, but also boasts several forward-thinking features to meet any potential issues. Because it requires no specialized equipment to scan tickets at the door, sales of the ticket product have increased dramatically every academic semester. 

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The workflow was easy and effective. Mark was very responsive by email and open to calls whenever necessary. Once they had a solid grasp on the project, they handled all of the details and had us establish the proper server endpoints for transferring data back and forth. They would ask us poignant questions as needed, but didn't bombard us for details that they could resolve on their own.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

I was impressed by the quick turnaround, their deep knowledge of the technology, and the reasonable cost. They also implemented thoughtful design decisions for both the user-facing features and the system architecture. I highly recommend them to anyone I encounter who needs app development services.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Nothing comes to mind.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the CEO of a cosmetic product import and distribution company. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Futurist Labs?

We hired Futurist Labs to build an that app brings beauty professionals to the home for on-demand services. 

What were your goals for this project?

I required a mobile app for customers to book orders, manage payments, and rate beauty professionals. 

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

Futurist Labs have worked with us in the past. They previously designed and developed three websites and an e-commerce shop for us. They have built trust with us over the years and we appreciate their work.

Can you go into detail about the services they provided and the scope of the project?

They discussed the requirements and functions of the app with us. They built a wireframe, estimated the project's scope, and created designs. They programmed the app and managed the project. 

What was the team composition?

We worked with the CEO, CTO, project manager, and frontend and backend iOS/Android developers. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any information that demonstrates the impact that this project has had on your business?

The app is launching now and we are very pleased with the final product. Futurist Labs are on standby to help with any technical issues and have been an ideal tech partner.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

We collaborate efficiently on this project. They are great at openly communicating and being transparent.They updated us with progress every two weeks and we were in constant contact with their project manager.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Futurist Labs always finds a solution for our projects. They are creative in their plans to achieve our business goals. They have connected with our business thoroughly and understand its needs. 

Are there any areas where they can improve?

They have very little to improve and are worth every penny. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the owner of a company focused on Internet solutions and services. Our current project revolves around Amazon Alexa skills.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Futurist Labs?

We asked them to help develop a backend system and administrative panel.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

This is the first version of the software, and although it’s an MVP [minimum viable product], it still needed to meet certain criteria. It was important that the project be flexible so that if I decided to change something, it wouldn’t take five more weeks of development.

There is an administrative panel instead of having to go through different developer portals in Amazon. Mostly everything is in one place so that external people or non-developers can work with it. The interface makes it easy to use.

They also used Javascript to assist with backend development.

What is the team composition?

Their team is growing. At the moment, they have 10–13 people. We communicate with Mark [CEO, Futurist Labs] regarding high-level requirements, but we discuss things on a deeper level with Stefan [CTO, Futurist Labs]. He specifies whether something will work, how long it will take, and the cost of development. He monitors everything, but I have a dedicated developer who works closely with me on my project. Once everything is cleared on what he needs to do and how to do it, he starts working on it.

How did you come to work with Futurist Labs?

I met them through a startup accelerator, Founder Institute, which I attended to learn how to start companies. Mark was one of the mentors, and we kept in touch afterward. When I graduated, he was really supportive in providing working space, etc. I knew other developers when I started this project but the trust he had put in me made me choose his company. I could see how they work and what their values were, which aligned with mine. I decided to trust them with my project, and they completed it quickly with good quality.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in September 2017, and the project is basically complete. We’re now conducting final testing and providing feedback.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Everything went as planned. I got exactly what I requested, so I’m very happy. They managed to find a developer with the exact skills I was looking for. They were honest in the beginning and informed me that they didn’t have the right person for the project, but found him in a few weeks. The project took 22 days once he started working on it.

How did Futurist Labs perform from a project management standpoint?

Everything was extremely fast and we had no unnecessary communication. We had a few Skype calls to determine final requirements. I also reviewed the work at various points throughout and visited their office. Everything was going according to plan, so they continued. We kept in touch through email and other communication tools.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They are very honest and respectful with their clients and themselves. There were a lot of clauses within the contract which protected the client and takes care of things that may not be thought about, like giving back the licence and data.

They’re very flexible and quick. For example, I’m working in another place during the day, so I have limited time to test. I did testing on a Sunday, and I had to write an email to them because I couldn’t access one of the elements. I immediately received feedback and a new password from them.

They don't just develop, but strive to learn and progress, get better all the time. It’s not a static job because they do more and take time to learn.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything. I got exactly what I asked for and everything went according to plan.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

It’s important to accurately identify what is being asked of them, because they deliver quickly.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO and founder of a social networking app.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Futurist Labs?

I needed a developer for my app.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

A previous developer had done a couple months of work on the location portion of the app. Futurist Labs had to scrap all of that and start over. They did all of the development from the first line of code. I provided design work, wireframes and hard assets and they built the app. They developed it as a native app for just Android currently.

The app is for college campuses where students have on campus Wi-Fi all the time. The geofencing uses GPS and Wi-Fi triangulation, and Futurist got that to work. In addition, they’re starting on a data collection soon.

What is the team dynamic?

There’s one main guy, but there may be another team member.

How did you come to work with Futurist Labs?

I'm connected to an organization in California that helps military veterans finance startups. One of their guys has a cousin who’s with Futurist, and they introduced me to them.

How much have you invested with them?

Over $25,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in June 2015 and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We haven’t launched the app yet. We’ve been doing a lot of testing using 4 phones. Testing went great when the phones were side-by-side, so I thought everything was good to go. When we spread the phones out, though, we found a lot of bugs. Now they’re working on that. Besides that, everything was good.

How did Futurist Labs perform from a project management standpoint?

I just got a new project manager recently. I didn’t have a problem with the last project manager, but I like the new one a lot. He communicates often and very well, and he answers questions quickly.

I know their timetable. When I’m going to bed, they’re going to work. I know how to make it work and resolve things quickly. We communicate through email and used to have frequent Skype calls. Now that things are moving along faster, those calls happen on a more occasional basis. We use Trello for task management.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re great communicators. They talk to me all the time and whenever I reach out, they always answer back. I’ve never sent them an email without hearing back from them. If they don’t have an answer, they acknowledge my email and find an answer.

One time they sent me an email, but I didn’t understand what they were trying to say, and I let them know. The owner immediately explained what they meant. That was great.

I’m always confident in what they do. They’ve been very flexible with me, including with invoice payment.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We haven’t completely figured out our flow with Trello. Occasionally they’ll do a different task than I intended them to start on and I’ll tell them the other one was higher priority. I had to clarify the task priorities again, and they adjusted. That situation was infrequent, and it was a communication issue on my part. It’s easy to think everyone knows what I know when in fact they don’t.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

They’re great, keep working with them. They do good work and communicate very well. They put customers at ease, especially 1-2-person operations that are funding their own projects. They’re very flexible, they work with you, and they show progress all the time.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the CEO of Popboardz, a non-linear presentation system, unlike PowerPoint, Keynote or other options. I’ve never been in a linear meeting in my life, so I don’t like those systems. My app allows users to put content in various tiles, and access them instantly, the moment they’re needed during the conversation. We’re the perfect wing man for any discussion. We’ve been featured three times in the Apple App Store banner, and have a couple of thousand downloads. We have actively pushed ourselves to the next level.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Futurist Labs?

My lead programmer had to take on other things, so I needed to staff up and meet the needs of the platform. Beyond being a website or a simple application, Popboardz is a cross-platform solution running on Mac OS, iOS and the web. What is simple on the frontend is deceptively complex on the backend, so we’ve needed a lot of work.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Futurist Labs has worked on our platform. The online aspect of the solution is new to us. We are working with Amazon Web Services, Lambda, and EC2. Whatever is created on the native apps—be they iOS or Mac OS—needs to not only be stored on our cloud, but have website version of the presentation created, as it’s being uploaded. Our clients love this, since it means they can share complicated boards with clients instantly, without requiring our software; they can provide a URL on which the content will behave just like it does on the native apps, only in a read-only format. This sounds simple, but it requires tearing each board apart and making it web-friendly.

What is the team dynamic?

We have four dedicated developers and a CTO from their side. I’ve worked directly with Mark Rogers, their CEO. We’ve used Trello quite a bit, since it had been in place with the single developer who preceded their team. We have considered using JIRA as well, but it was too complex for our needs.

How did you come to work with Futurist Labs?

I met Mark Rogers back when we were both working for 20^th Century Fox. He ended up moving to Bulgaria and starting a company, which was a perfect fit. I’ve told people that he speaks English and “Hollywood”, which works for me.

How much have you invested with them?

The cost of their work has been around $100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Futurist Labs in May 2015, and have an ongoing relationship. During the last 6 months, 50% of their team’s time has been dedicated to our product.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve been working together for almost a year, and Mark’s team has been excellent. All the services we’ve developed with them have been for the subscription-based version of the platform. The product has been free up to this point, and we’ve been trying to build a user base.

Having over 200,000 downloads worldwide is fantastic, but we’re really making sure that the 100 people we’ve been working with directly love the product so that they can become sales ambassadors for us. It’s hard to provide exact metrics since we’ve gone underground while developing the subscription product version. The development we’ve done differentiates us from the free service, so we won’t have the typical freemium problem of users not seeing the need to go pro. We’ve drawn a clear line of demarcation, have learned what our users want, and have developed to that. Users have been using the pro features that Futurist helped to develop, and they can’t live without them.

How did Futurist Labs perform from a project management standpoint?

Development is a matter of “fix one thing, break two”, but this is true for anyone. We have a fluid process and are direct with each other. With them being in Bulgaria and us being in Los Angeles, we have a small window for daily communication. I often speak to them early in the morning.

The communication has been great, and I’ve appreciated their ability to provide answers and explain why something can turn into a challenge. Futurist Labs isn’t simply taking my to-do list and running it without any questioning.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re the first team of people I’ve worked with, and I’d only used single developers in the past. The dynamic I like about having a team has to do with group-think. They’re all sitting around in a room in Bulgaria, and can talk to each other about different problems. The cumulative experience and freedom to speak back-and-forth directly gives me an exponential level of thinking.

Getting senior people for a reasonable fee has allowed me to experiment, which is what I really like. Some places require us to be specific about what we’re trying to get done. With Futurist Labs having such a great value, I can ask them to play with certain tasks, and give them the freedom to make mistakes. This is hard to find in the world of development.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They have lots of clients, which I’m sure they’re trying to pare down into a handful of great clients. Futurist Labs can be stretched at times because of the number of ongoing projects, but I can understand how a company like this needs to work. They could bring in more people, but that wouldn’t necessarily equate to getting more stuff done. It’s a matter of casting the right people for the right things, and Mark has been cognizant of this, pulling in the right resources, rather than trying to put a square peg into a round hole.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I was the CEO/Founder of Getlokal, a platform providing loyalty services to businesses and consumers. I was part of Start-Up Chile and helped develop and launch Getlokal in Latin American markets.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what reason(s) did your company hire Futurist Labs?

Originally, Getlokal was a review site/app and we pivoted into loyalty. I needed to convert their existing mobile apps and build a new website for Chile that was based on existing databases.

What were your goals for this project?

We needed to launch successfully in Chile and begin consumer and business acquisition as soon as possible.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

I wanted a developer who could handle both the website and mobile apps seamlessly. I received proposals from several local vendors here in Sofia and selected Futurist Labs based on their expertise and past experience.

Describe the project in detail.

We had an extensive initial project briefing that covered the history of Getlokal, the existing infrastructure (i.e., a site and apps in five languages, databases, etc.), and what I wanted to achieve in the time available.

What was the team composition?

The project manager was my direct point of contact, managed the individual developers, and did some of the coding work.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They built a new website, complete with access to existing data, within a couple of months. They updated and converted the apps to match our new focus, then launched them—all within three months. We were then able to start consumer and business acquisition immediately.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

It went very well—especially given the time difference between us and the fact that I was working on my own in Chile with no one in Sofia to act for me and liaise in person with Futurist Labs. As a result, once I left for Chile, all future interactions were via phone calls and email.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

I was pleasantly surprised by the level of understanding and input from the project manager. He took the time to understand what Getlokal was all about from a commercial perspective and made many constructive suggestions leading to improvements in the apps.

Are there any areas for improvement?

If they had double the number of coders, we could have slightly reduced the time taken to deliver the initial work and manage the ongoing project. In hindsight, I could've provided a better initial specification since we lost a bit of time scoping the project, which also was not helped by the fact that I engaged them only a week before I left for Chile.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the CEO of a start-up company, which helps companies, councils and railway stations prevent bicycle theft.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Futurist Labs?

Futurist labs have developed a server, admin panel and Android& IOS apps to operate our bicycle racks.

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted to have a working system, which is secure, easy to use, but most importantly Android and IOS apps, which are user-friendly and without any bugs and we simply got everything we requested.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

As a startup company we were participating in an incubator where the CEO of Futurist labs was a mentor. We've directly started working with them as Mark has always been super helpful.

Describe the project in detail.

We've had ideas of how we wanted the apps to work. After several meetings with the Futurist labs team and 4 iterations we've received an outstanding software without bugs. They have developed an IOS and Android app.

What was the team composition?

We've worked with 4 the CEO, CTO and two of the developers from Futurist labs. All of them were super punctual.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The final apps don't have bugs. All of our users like the design and the overall workflow of the app.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

We've used email as communication and have scheduled several office meetings with them.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The communication is key for us, and they have been absolutely outstanding in this regard. The quality of the final product is perfect.

Are there any areas for improvement?

There is nothing in particular.