GLOBALDEV

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the founder of a language learning company that facilitates business language learning through an enhanced peer-to-peer exchange. Based in London and Paris we have helped thousands connect with other people to work on their language skills.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire SteelKiwi?

After building a large community we wanted to launch an MVP to extend our services based on community feedback.

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted to launch an MVP to test validate our value proposition.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

After shortlisting several companies, we found that SteelKiwi had a great team and professional service. We chose them because they had designers, project management, quality and developers all in one place. They were also flexible and professional.

Describe the project in detail.

We started off the project with a meeting in Odessa where the team spent several hours listening to the needs and asking questions abotu the project. We then set up regular meetings to outline the mockups and within a few weeks these had been finalised before development began. The project was launched within two months.

What was the team composition?

My main contact was the project manager, I also had someone to work on the requirements and a designer. Soon there was then the backend and frontend developers and finally quality assurance. There was great contact with support team throughout.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Within 3 months we had a launched MVP webapp which works in web browsers, android and iphone. We now have growing traction and continue to develop this.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The project manager was very easy to communicate with and ther was great exchange with the support teams. There were some misunderstandings but a great approach to work through solutions together and be flexible to find good outcomes.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

I was really impressed by their professionalism, their flexibility, and their speed.

Are there any areas for improvement?

There are always areas to improve, I think a little more could be done on integrating user feedback into design but we worked on this together and I really loved their approach of learning and iterating.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the PO of Expago Inc. an app inspired by reinventing the way we travel and discover the world. We connect travelers with local people in order to gain knowledge and enjoy unique experiences.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire SteelKiwi?

Our company's iOs app was developed but we were not happy with the quality. And we didn't have Android one. So we hired SteelKiwi to get both apps (Android and iOs) to be developed.

What were your goals for this project?

Our goal was to have reliable app that will both look and work nicely.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We have found SteelKiwi as a result of research through the internet for a reliable outsourcing company.

Describe the project in detail.

Since we already had approved design and detailed documentation, we shared with them and after they got acquainted with them they were ready to start the development process. The backlog was finalized, each sprint was carefully planned and the work was done smoothly with weekly sprint plannings discussed with the client in advance.

What was the team composition?

We were assigned 2 front end mobile developers and a PM.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

After 2.5 months of intensive development we were able to release successfully our both apps (Android and iOs).

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The team was very supportive, interactive. All the important points were discussed on weekly meetings. The small matters were discussed over Slack on daily basis.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

I'm very satisfied with the proficiency level that SteelKiwi performed. We had a good working relationship. Ekaterina is a star! Very kind, supportive. Whenever we had an emergency situation, she was able to bring the developer back to fix something even on non-working days.

I liked their ability to rescale everything according to our needs. They had technology trends awareness. We could describe our needs and requirements transparently, and they had active participation in finding the best solution for us. They worked productively fast and knew exactly what they were doing. I have nothing but positive things to say about them.

They’re a very professional team. We treated them as if they were part of our family. Their team made the development process much more manageable by providing clean code.

Steelkiwi is one of the fastest and most reliable teams I have ever worked with. Their highly skilled, experienced team offered great service that our company is blown away. I would highly recommend them for any project or product. They are not only very fancy; they’re just very correct and methodical, and they’re always on time with their deliveries. Happy to have the opportunity to work with them.

Are there any areas for improvement?

I do not have any suggestion, as I stated above, I am very satisfied with the quality of work that they provided. They do not leave space to suggest improvements, they do improvements on daily even hourly basis. Great team, great work ethics.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the owner of YoTutors, which aims to connect tutors with students. We offer one-to-one lessons and online courses on more than 160 subjects. The company is registered in Singapore.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with SteelKiwi?

We needed help designing and developing our platform.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The platform was built from scratch by SteelKiwi, both design and development. We started with the design and iteration, followed by the development, SteelKiwi selected the best tech stack for YoTutors (Python, Django and React).

Some core features like users' dashboards, ability to create online courses, ratings/reviews system and ability to process bookings according to the timezone. Integration with PayPal payment solution was another feature. They were deeply involved in all the details even after the first release, they took care of managing the AWS, Google calendar API and Paypal API settings.

What is the team composition?

I worked with Nazar (Project Manager, SteelKiwi), Kate (Backend Developer, SteelKiwi), Vladimir (Backend Developer, Steel Kiwi), Vitaly (Frontend Developer, SteelKiwi), Kristina (Designer, SteelKiwi), and Sergey (QA Specialist, SteelKiwi).

How did you come to work with SteelKiwi?

I examined their reviews on Clutch, and remember seeing their ads on social media. After reviewing their website, I contacted them, had a meeting, and hired them.

How much have you invested with them?

The total cost of their work was $45,000 to deliver the first release, but there are several adjustments and features that need to be addressed.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with SteelKiwi in July 2018, and the project was finished in July 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The design was simple and user-friendly. SteelKiwi has advised me on the market and future implementations. Along with development, they’ve helped define process details, such as whether the platform should be multi-currency and where we should launch first. Their ideas impacted the project, and how we'll operate after launch.

How did SteelKiwi perform from a project management standpoint?

They delivered the design on the promised date, but the development took longer than we expected. This was because they had too many projects for the frontend developers to properly manage. Even so, they finished all the tasks on the backend very efficiently. We constantly found details that hadn’t been included in the estimate, a lot of challanges regarding the payment systems and timezone. All was successfully implemented.  

We used a Slack channel to communicate. I’m a software engineer myself, so I was very involved with the project on a daily basis. We logged tasks and bugs using Jira.

I’m in Asia and they’re in Ukraine. The time difference made workflows difficult, but I got used to their working schedule. We had meetings in the morning, where I gave them feedback on their progress, and we’d continue to communicate on Jira throughout the day. The communication was very fast, and I appreciated it.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Nazar was amazing, and for me, irreplaceable—he was aware of everything and well-planned. Also, I would like to take the opportunity and thank Kate, Vladimir, Vitaliy, and Kristina for their hard work and efforts to deliver YoTutors.

They were shouldering responsibility when the situation called for. I remember when I had a significant problem with the website, they solved it after working hours, while they were at home.

Overall, they were very organized and had good project managers and backend developers. I’m very satisfied to work with this team and I appreciate how they were consistently so committed.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The only area where I wasn’t fully satisfied was the frontend. I can understand that, given that someone left part of the way through development.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

I would recommend SteelKiwi to anyone. They cared a lot about me, and they wanted me to be happy. The team was friendly, patient with my requests and advised me on several issues, I appreciate everything they have done to make a successful output. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

CEO & Founder of a candidate referral platform.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire SteelKiwi?

To create a novel B2B, widget-based SaaS product that was compatible with most CMS solutions.

What were your goals for this project?

To build a scalable B2B solution that facilitated website transformation, social marketing, email marketing, and referral marketing.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

They were the result of a thorough interview process. We initially engaged in a UX/UI project before moving onto the build of the actual product. They did provide reviews to facilitate this new business process, but they didn’t provide referee’s to speak with. I would recommend them doing so in the future.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

Documentation, UX/UI, frontend development, backend development, QA, and DevOps

What was the team composition?

A UX consultant, a UI consultant, a project manager, a backend developer, a frontend developer, and a QA Manager.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The work done with Steel Kiwi has enabled us to turn an idea into a successful, fast-growing business. I would like to extend my thanks to Anna, Alex, Ivan, Vitaliy and Kristina for their work over the last two years.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

Project management was very good. Alex has done an excellent job and is always on hand to facilitate anything we need.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

I find our weekly meetings very productive, and I feel that the team cares about the quality of the product. I encourage them to challenge me if they find my requests silly or too expensive for the expected benefit, and the team readily engages in that. To clarify, them challenging me is a good thing. It shows they’re thinking about the implications of feature requests and proposed changes.

Are there any areas for improvement?

We’ve brought up the idea of consolidating some systems, and I think they’ll get there. These are small pipe dreams, rather than large areas for improvement.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the co-founder of Ofog.com.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with SteelKiwi?

We wanted to deliver a professional sports website in Saudi Arabia that could match international standards.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Steel Kiwi has developed our sports news aggregator platform on WordPress, handling everything from the graphic design to the database and architecture. In addition to blogging/publishing capabilities, users have access to our subscription system, which allows them to register on our site and post comments.

The team has also installed and configured all of our plug-ins (e.g., SportsPress) to set up the core site functionalities. There’s a competitive module where users can predict future match results and earn points. 

What is the team composition?

For this project, we had one project manager, 2–3 developers, graphic designers, and an account manager.

How did you come to work with SteelKiwi?

We researched about 100 companies online and put out an RFP with our requirements. There were a number of companies that we liked, but we ultimately chose SteelKiwi because they talked about the technical aspects well. On top of that, they were flexible in agreeing to our timescales, and there’s only an hour difference between our time zones.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent about $35,000 so far. SteelKiwi has the most competitive costs out of all the vendors we’ve seen. Their price point is on the lower side, but they offer the best value.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in July 2016 and completed the site in February 2017. Currently, we’re still working with them to perform further development and updates as well as other projects.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

When we launched the site, we started with no marketing at all. We had to build ourselves up by pushing out quality content and publicizing it through social media. Since then, traffic has increased substantially. Our latest report shows that we’ve achieved 120,000 unique visitors per month.

SteelKiwi has supported us throughout this time with site updates and maintenance. About 2–3 months after going live, we had a resource utilization issue on the server and needed them to make some adjustments. Their team optimized the code within two weeks, which made the site quicker and lighter on our server. Now, we have almost zero downtime—there are only minor instances whenever we see a large jump in user volume.

How did SteelKiwi perform from a project management standpoint?

During development, I wasn’t totally happy with the project manager. They were mostly responsive. Toward the last quarter of the project, there were times when they’d take 1–2 days to address my questions.

In contrast, Igor (New Business Development Manager, SteelKiwi) has been so helpful. He took over as the account manager for our other initiatives and made sure that we didn’t have any issues with our project managers moving forward. He’s a great communicator and is always available when we need him.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I’m impressed with SteelKiwi’s capabilities. They’re able to do almost everything we ask of them, and they provide good value for our money. We can trust them because they know what they’re doing.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They could look into having more qualified/communicative project managers across the board so that we don’t have to specifically ask for a different resource.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Make sure that you have a great team assigned to your project. Work with the account manager to ensure that you have the best resources available on your project.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of Pikurate, a social collaboration platform. We offer an invaluable knowledge-sharing experience, allowing users to gain insights from domain experts for various research topics.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with SteelKiwi?

We needed someone to develop our social collaboration platform because we didn’t have an internal development team.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

SteelKiwi developed my social collaboration platform, consulting us to select the best tech stack for our needs (Python, Django, PostgreSQL, React, Next.js, Node.js, and MobX.js).

Our product is a single platform that allows users to connect and interact with people to crowdsource knowledge. It’s really an information curation platform. Users who are interested in specific research topics can use our site to communicate with similarly-minded people. 

We offer three main tools: the first is a unique bookmarking tool to organize valuable URL links; the second is a convenient research collaboration tool for individuals to share their referenced links; the third is a crowd-curated and vetted collection of information. 

These benefits impart a more effective way of conducting online research. Whereas before, users would simply copy and paste single links here and there, our platform allows users to find a set of community-reviewed resources and collaborate with others, all organized by relevant research topics. In the future, we hope users will use the platform to answer more complicated questions.

What is the team composition?

There are eight people, including a project manager.

How did you come to work with SteelKiwi?

I researched online for good development shops and found SteelKiwi on Clutch. Out of the 40 companies I considered, I narrowed down my list to 5–6 candidates and interviewed each. My key criteria were price, quality, the right tech stack, and the right methodology. The estimated project period also had to be a good fit for my situation, and their credibility and reviews had to be great. SteelKiwi was a good option to meet my needs.

How much have you invested with them?

I’ve invested $50,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in December 2018, and the work is ongoing. We’re almost done with the project.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

So far, their project costs have fit my budget, and their time estimates are very reasonable and shorter than their competitors. Adding on to that, when I asked my CTO for his thoughts, he said their proposed tech stack was decent.

How did SteelKiwi perform from a project management standpoint?

They’ve performed very well. The team documents everything they create, so whenever I have a question, I can refer to their notes. This has been helpful because I’ve sometimes had to change a previous request that was recorded in their doc. 

For example, in the beginning, we agreed to do two-week sprints, but I later realized that we had to develop faster. They understood the situation and easily switched gears to meet my needs. I appreciate their flexibility and willingness to adjust to my situation. In terms of communication, we coordinate through Skype, Trello, Slack, Jira, Confluence, and Google Doc.

What did you find most impressive about them?

This is a basic point, but I like how everything is very organized and well-planned—not all companies will do that. Their project manager gives me information well in advance. She lets me know what to expect for this week and the next and even a month later, so it’s easy for me to anticipate any potential changes. If a team member has a vacation coming up, she also gives me plenty of notice so that I can adjust.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Every development project has the same problem which is that time and budget estimates don’t always match up with the actual cost/schedule. This isn’t necessarily the vendor’s fault because startups don’t always know what they want to do and will change their requirements during development. SteelKiwi tries to stick closely to their estimates, but it would be good if they could be even more accurate.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Their team members are very creative and proactive. Even if you know what you want to do, ask for their opinion because sometimes their advice or insight is better. Use them not only to do something, but also to possibly find a better solution.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the founder of Can Tho, which is a chain of restaurants that specializes in Vietnamese cuisine. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with SteelKiwi?

As we planned to open our restaurant, we wanted to introduce an ordering application for our customers. In addition to hopefully reducing the personnel needed to operate the restaurant, we wanted to provide an enjoyable customer experience that would allow users to order and customize their food remotely.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We had many lengthy conversations regarding the ideal UX for the application. The finalization of the app’s flow then drove the development of the application itself. We relied on SteelKiwi to handle all technical elements of the project.

What is the team composition?

We worked with a group of 6–7 people.

How did you come to work with SteelKiwi?

My wife, who is the marketing director for our restaurants, found SteelKiwi. They had an impressive pitch, so we felt comfortable selecting them.  

How much have you invested with them?

We spent between $50,000­–$200,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our engagement began in October 2017. They delivered the first version of the application in November 2018, and we are currently working on a second version.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The app functions as we hoped. It has very few bugs and has performed well. We have received a lot of positive feedback from our customers. They’re delighted and find it very user-friendly. And from a business standpoint, we’ve saved between $70,000–$105,000 in staff costs because of the application.

How did SteelKiwi perform from a project management standpoint?

We worked very well together. We communicated primarily using Slack and Google Meet.

What did you find most impressive about them?

This wasn’t an easy project, and we weren’t easy customers, but they delivered the solution on time.  

Are there any areas they could improve?

Their team suffered from quite a bit of staff turnover, which prolonged the work and required new members to play catch-up on the project details. Also, SteelKiwi could improve by making more of a commitment to product design. My team provided a lot of creative elements.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

As with any project, it’s critical to be clear about what you want.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of a social media startup.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with SteelKiwi?

I engaged SteelKiwi to develop an application for Android and iOS devices.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

I provided at least 70 mockups and screens formatted in Figma. SteelKiwi took my exact design and redesigned it on InVision. Their duplicates matched 80% of my initial wireframes, but they incorporated the original theme and color schemes. They then built the app from scratch using Google Flutter.

The app uses Google Maps to create a location-specific feed. Users can post to publish feeds up to a radius of 300 feet and their posts last up to 48 hours. They can also look up feeds from other locations, pull up user profiles, have friends-only feeds, send messages, and change background images.

After development, SteelKiwi helped launch an MVP, create a mail account using Mailgun, and set up the AWS servers.

What is the team composition?

I worked with five people. The project manager served as my primary point of contact, but I could also message the lead developer as needed.

How did you come to work with SteelKiwi?

I was looking for outsourced developers a few years earlier, and SteelKiwi’s review and portfolio impressed me. However, the timing wasn’t right, so I waited before contracting their team until I had screens to provide. SteelKiwi came back with a cost estimate and a timeline, and we started the project from there.
 
How much have you invested with them?

I spent $40,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in September 2018, and the app launched in April 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The MVP has launched and functions well. There’s room for improvement, but I look forward to the final version. SteelKiwi and I are now working on a website to start attracting users.
 
How did SteelKiwi perform from a project management standpoint?

SteelKiwi was highly organized and accommodating from start to finish. I sent screenshots of any areas that needed fixing, and they addressed it right away. Their team also sent screenshots of anything that needed updating. Their willingness to make time for me while working on other projects impressed me. The back-and-forth made communication as smooth as possible. I received multiple options to choose from at every step, which reassured me that I was getting the most value out of our engagement. We communicated via email and Slack.

What did you find most impressive about them?

SteelKiwi was highly communicative, understanding, and honest. They demonstrated a willingness to take on complicated projects and delivered an app that functions as I envisioned.
 
Are there any areas they could improve?

The team’s timing occasionally ran into issues, but I expected it. I appreciate their responsiveness after work hours and can’t think of any areas for improvement.
 
Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Given the number of developers out there, it can be tough to choose a good one. However, I’m happy with SteelKiwi’s work, and I’d definitely recommend their team.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the founder and owner of Matoph Labs. We’re a new, Vienna-based, digital services company that provides solutions to support and improve users’ mental health.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire SteelKiwi?

I had an idea for a mood-tracking mobile application. I’d put together a design and a set of requirements, but I needed a reliable and trustworthy agency to build out the platform using Swift technology.

What were your goals for this project?

I wanted a store-ready app with room for future expansions and improvements.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

I searched on- and offline for app development companies and freelancers. In total, I considered 50 providers, but only shortlisted 10. I interviewed each one to assess their development capabilities, project management approach, and communication skills. I also requested timeline and cost estimates. Ultimately, I selected SteelKiwi because they offered the broadest skill set, a reasonable price, and a realistic timeline.

Describe the project in detail.

We started with a kick-off meeting, where I shared my planned design and approach for the iOS application. After they had a sufficient understanding of my expectations, we divided the project into sprints and scheduled scope meetings and demo sessions. The SteelKiwi team was responsible for implementing complex UI elements, animations, and screen transitions.

What was the team composition?

I worked with a team of three who handled our project management, development, and testing needs.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They completed the application, and we launched it on time. It was featured on the App Store and received more than 100 reviews with an average rating of 4.5 stars.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Transparency and communication are key to an efficient workflow, and SteelKiwi offered both. We had daily meetings via Skype and shared progress reports and documentation through Jira, Confluence, and Slack. They instantly answered my questions. I always felt like my project was in good hands.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

SteelKiwi delivered on everything that they promised at the beginning of the project. They gained my trust, and I’m looking forward to working with them again in the future.

Are there any areas for improvement?

No, the final product wasn’t just good—it was excellent. That’s all we can ask for from developers.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the IT manager at Nutsgroep. We sell energy and telecom in the Netherlands and Belgium. We want to provide our customers with efficient help via our website, so our customers don't have to call, and their costs are as low as possible.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with X1 Group?

Highly-trained developers aren’t widely available in the Netherlands and the salaries are relatively high. We wanted to add developers to our team, so looked to see what other options there were.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Their developers joined our team to work on .NET software environment. We believe in organic growth—if it works, we want to make it bigger. For that reason, with X1, we started small and eventually decided to take on a larger team. We’re constantly building on the previous successes, and they’re growing with us. 

What is the team composition? 

We started with one developer and grew that to eight developers over the course of a year. Six months later, we ramped up to two teams—one in Ukraine and one in the Netherlands. There are an agile coach and a product owner on my side who interact with the developers daily. 

How did you come to work with X1 Group?

We came in contact with them through a former colleague of mine. It quickly became clear that they could give us highly trained developers.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent over $1 million.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in April 2014 and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have three development teams in the Netherlands and two teams at X1 Group. Our statistics show that the Ukraine team constantly delivers high-quality software and has for four years.

How did X1 Group perform from a project management standpoint?

It feels like they’re our own employees. We have stand-ups every morning, while the product owner and scrum master on our side talk to their teams. I interact once a week with their team lead of development and all the communication is very natural. 

The project management on their side is high quality, so much so that we don’t need it on our side. We work in an agile methodology, and they’re very sensitive to changes and constantly keep us up to date on variations in the team if something happens. It’s very nice working with them—they have the skills to acquire very good people. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their people are highly talented and speak English well, effectively translating our specifications into working packages for the development teams. X1 Group’s teams pick up the requirements quickly and give us high-quality software in a timely fashion.

The company itself provides a stable work environment that is safe and where people can relax. Even so, if I ask them a question, they come up with a comprehensive answer. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No. They’re very adaptive and intuitive to our needs. If we want something different, we explain why and there’s never a problem. They think of everything.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

If I needed to begin from scratch, I’d choose them again. I recommend them to other people if they want to outsource their development too.