GenB, Inc.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the former vice president of member engagement for ITI, a tech trade association.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

As a membership organization, our job is to connect with our members and get them information as efficiently as possible. For a number of years, our communications channels were inefficient and ineffective, and we needed a partner who could develop a custom delivery system, so we could engage with our members on a regular basis. The system needed to provide materials and documentation to our members in a secure and easily-usable environment.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Essentially, GenB helped us build our digital brand. They reworked our entire logo and asset system, and they also developed our website. Our organization had several different types of users with various permissions, and GenB tested a few iterations for what a new system might look like. Once we selected a system, we went through an entire process GenB developed to port from our old system to the new one. They had to take care of a lot of data, some of which was bad data, and transfer it to make sure it was functioning after the integration period. We tested it once more and then went live.

After the launch, GenB provided maintenance and any customizations that we needed. They never said no and were always able to develop new tools for us. For example, at one point, we needed a way to send a sensitive document out to our board. GenB developed a system that tracked who was using the document where and that securely sent the document with a unique watermark for each member.

GenB also created an online community for our member companies that included a member directory. Now, anyone who joins our organization can access any number of committees depending on their type of membership, and we can communicate with members via email based on their committees. This and other tools facilitated our staff’s needs, like when GenB created a tool that automatically populated documents on our website just by sending it to a specific email address.

They developed an RSVP and tracking tool for one of our events, which helped with planning and execution. They helped reestablish our brand and developed the website and internal communications platform along with some content creation.

What is the team composition?

We work with our account manager to determine the needs for our projects, and then we get assigned whoever best fit the description. GenB’s team is incredibly diverse and flexible, and we have access to all their resources. We get the team members assigned to us, and I’d interact with them as much as the project required. Sometimes I talked to them daily; other times, I only checked in once a week.

How did you come to work with GenB, Inc.?

A colleague had told me about GenB, and they actually helped develop a scope that we sent out to bid. We selected about ten firms, and GenB was one of them. The content management system (dotCMS) GenB proposed made it easy and seamless for us to manage everything in one place, which was a huge benefit. We had various online assets and being able to manage them through one portal was important.

The selection process took a long time because we’d had bad vendors in the past and wanted to be thorough in making sure we selected someone who would work well with us. We chose GenB because they were clearly committed to our success.

How much have you invested with them?

We have an annual retainer contract with them, but we’ve probably spent around $1 million since starting.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working with them since 2012.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our site has a level of professionalism and member satisfaction that we haven't had before. The systems are solid and reliable, with the site going down only once in five years. If our members want any changes or edits, GenB is responsive in getting them done. GenB has allowed us to be much more effective as an organization, grow our membership, and limit the amount of administrative staff we need.

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

GenB managed the project extremely well. Often, the client can be challenging in these kinds of projects, but GenB was good at reminding us of deadlines and the impact that any changes would have on the overall project. They clearly set expectations and shared updates. A lot of their work is pretty technical, but they were able to boil those concepts down and explain them in ways that a lay audience could understand.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I’ve dealt with various vendors who just want to finish your project and get paid, but GenB isn’t like that. GenB delivers quality products and understands the details of our organization and what we need to succeed.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Sometimes, in the early iteration process, GenB would go through numerous revisions before giving it to us. It would have been nice to see those iterations earlier, which we told them, and they complied.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

GenB's not like a lot of other digital product companies; they like to be involved for the long-term. So, if you're looking for someone to just create a website and move on, that’s not who GenB is. They want to be a partner that adds continual value to your organization.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of Engaged MD.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with GenB?

We wanted to make a software product that would help medical practices better manage their patient education and informed consent process. We wanted an e-learning system that tracks patient engagement. It had to be HiPAA compliant, which is really important and also a big challenge. It had to have an interface that would work in the complex world of healthcare. It had to be quick, easy, and accessible for a medical practice, working on all kinds of browsers and in all sorts of situations that a patient might find himself in.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

GenB helped us design, implement and support the product which is a web application, including both backend and frontend. We've worked with them since the beginning of the company. They’re our developers for this product.

The initial goal was to get a version 1 of the product out and into a pilot. That was the first 9 months of the project 4 years ago. Since then, we've taken that version 1 and iterated over the years, adding new features such as integration of DocuSign.

We started with an overall project plan and designed the core features. Then GenB proposed a software solution for how to set up the backend using Java and a content management system. We built out that framework and they designed the user interface. We went back and forth with them on all of the features. We did testing and then implementation and support.

What is the team composition?

The co-founder is our lead and there’s a team in Poland that does most of the coding.

How did you come to work with GenB?

We found them on their website. We interviewed a number of firms and we really liked them because they were a small team. They seemed to be a good fit for us size- and goal-wise.

We really liked the co-founder, his attitude and philosophy on how to manage and develop software products. Decisions like this are difficult because with software it’s hard to know what the challenges and costs will be. He made it much more approachable. He stuck within the budget that we put out there and has continued to do so.

How much have you invested with them?

Somewhere between $350,000 – $500,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together 4 years ago. Its ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We had 40,000 patients use our system last year, which is more than 100% year-over-year increase. We have multiple specialties using it. Customers love it. It improves patient satisfaction and outcomes, and makes practices more efficient. And we've built the whole business on the software that they created.

How did GenB perform from a project management standpoint?

We probably talked to our lead a couple times a week. We used Jira for project management.

They've been wonderful. We stuck with them because they're are able to produce.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’ve been able to tackle any challenge that's been thrown at them from a technical perspective. We haven’t had a single thing that we couldn't do because we couldn't figure out how to do it technically.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We’re very happy with them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Trust that you're going to be taken care of and that your needs are going to be met. Understand that they’ll break down your project and help you understand how to develop it. But you need to be an equal partner in that development. You can't expect somebody to create software from your vision without your constant input. It's not possible and you're going to be disappointed if you try to do that. You need to approach this project—any software development project—as a team. It's not just someone doing work for you.