IT DEV GROUP

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a product manager for a company that’s developing a craftsmen IT tool. Our platform allows both administrators and on-site workers to register materials and work times.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with IT DEV GROUP?

About six months ago, we decided to relaunch our entire platform. We had great backend developers in-house but lacked the resources to do frontend work. As a result, we needed people who could understand our documentation and use it to develop the frontend; rather than just turning an image file into a website, we needed them to dive deeper into the code using more expansive technologies.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Since onboarding them, they’ve provided extensive frontend work, including writing and implementing code. We’re currently still working on launching the new platform, but we want to continue working with them for the foreseeable future.

What is the team composition?

I primarily work with one of their full-stack developers; however, we're able to communicate with everyone involved with the project via Slack. This allows us to ask them questions one-on-one.

How did you come to work with IT DEV GROUP?

We originally posted an ad on UpWork. At the time, we didn’t have extensive experience hiring external developers, so we needed a vendor that could keep that in mind and navigate any ambiguities or pain points. Out of the numerous companies that approached us, we considered two companies, including IT DEV GROUP, and tested a few small tasks with them. IT DEV GROUP performed well on the trial and seemed like a good fit. They were really approachable, understood our requirements, and had all the skills that we were looking for. This helped develop the foundation for our partnership.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent $25,000–$30,000 thus far.

What is the status of this engagement?

Their work began in November 2017 and is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The team's contributions have allowed us to focus on our own tasks without worrying about the frontend work. They also understand our objectives well enough to proactively provide recommendations. For example, if I have an idea that would take three weeks to implement but forgot that I had a conference in a few days, they would remind me of the time constraints and offer an alternative, faster solution.

Additionally, their team always gives good feedback. Because we haven’t worked with external developers much, we occasionally forget that external teams won't have an intimate knowledge of our product. As such, we’ve had a few issues describing certain tasks. Rather than moving forward blindly, they’ve been really good about reaching out to us for clarification, which has benefited us greatly.

How did IT DEV GROUP perform from a project management standpoint?

Their lead full-stack developer has done a great job at managing their team. While some developers understand our product and UX/UI vision better than others, they organize their team to their strengths. We work with the people who understand our project best and delegate smaller tasks to the others.

In terms of communication, we use Slack for day-to-day chats, inquiries, and jokes. It was important to me that IT DEV GROUP wasn’t just an external company. Rather, we wanted to know who their team members were and have a more personal relationship.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their team is full of good people, and we’re able to communicate openly with everyone. The more time they spend with our product, the better they understand it. We gave them access to our previous system as well as screenshots of the new iteration. Initially, most of our documentation was in Danish, so they had no idea what they were working on. Both our teams and theirs have to communicate in a different language, which poses its own difficulties. Despite this, they’ve taken up the challenge and have even suggested new technologies for our product and ways to optimize our environment.

Are there any areas they could improve?

While we enjoy working with their developers, every now and then, one of them will go on vacation, and we’ll work with someone completely new. As a result, the code quality can suffer because they don’t have an in-depth understanding of our product and goals. We then have to revise a lot of the code, which takes time. We recognize that a person cannot learn everything in a week, but we do expect frontend experts to provide high-quality work.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

As with any external developer, do more documentation than you think you need.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

QQ Moving provides quotes for moving services.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with IT DEV GROUP?

I’ve been working in the industry for more than 3 years, and I’ve had issues crating files for dispatchers. I came up with an idea for improving the process, and started to do research and save money since online projects can be expensive. I noticed many of the alternatives were not satisfactory in terms of saving time for sales representatives to process information accurately and give it to the next party.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

IT DEV GROUP built a lead generator for me to be able to process high quality files which can be transferred to a database. Users don’t need to enter every single item or piece of information from the emails generated by the QQ Moving website. Instead, they can simply double-click the information and proceed to the customer with just a couple clicks. 

There’s no need to spend 20-40 minutes with a single customer for a moving service just to get all the details. By making it possible to spend only 10 minutes on the phone, it allows us to show the customer that we’re professional and have the tools to make things right. This ultimately helps us expand our business. 

The platform will also feature professional advisors in the moving industry for customers to receive help from. Additionally, they will build a calculator that can be used as a separate mobile application by estimators onsite for gathering customer information.

IT DEV GROUP conducted research on their end on how the product could be expanded. We have talked about this, and there will be more projects coming up for a CRM and dispatching system that will all be connected together.

What is the team dynamic?

I was in contact with their SEO representative, a project manager, and another member of the company.

How did you come to work with IT DEV GROUP?

I received three quotes, which is the minimum amount for anyone looking to build a price list. I then spoke with representatives from different companies on multiple occasions to give them small design tasks. Some of the companies didn’t feel right because they promised a lot and told me not to worry about anything. This is a red flag for me as a sales representative. IT DEV GROUP didn’t talk about themselves this way, but they instead educated me about many things I didn’t know. Initially, I heard about them from a previous customer who had been satisfied with the company. 

I had no idea how many systems could be used to create good websites or CRMs. Creating an actual website or program requires more than one technology, and they actually expanded on my idea. We started talking like partners, and I didn’t feel that IT DEV GROUP was trying to sell me something, but rather standing alongside me to take my business closer to what I desired. 

Their quote was the highest, but I accepted it simply because of their process. They walked me through the reality of it all by explaining the best and worst-case scenarios, including how we had to launch the website and handle SEO.  

How much have you invested with them?

The initial estimate was $130,000, and I have paid $100,000 already. We’re almost there, and the last payment will be made by the end of this month when everything is finished. I am pretty sure this product will cost even more. The cost of the calculator app will be between $25,000-$30,000 for iOS and Android.

What is the status of this engagement?

I started working with IT DEV GROUP in June 2016. The website has been launched for a couple months already, but it’s not fully functional in terms of SEO. A year ago, they told me I would not be sticking to my original idea and would eventually want to make changes. I didn’t argue with them since I saw them as professionals, so we kept going to see the outcome. I eventually conducted more research and asked them for the changes they predicted. IT DEV GROUP was always willing to help make those changes. 

By the end of August 2017, I will be bringing 2 marketing people to the New York area. I’m still working with IT DEV GROUP part-time for testing, but right now, we’re in the moving season in the U.S., and I’m looking for more partners. The platform will be finished in 1.5-2 months, which will be exactly the time when I’ll be ready. It will be a good time for me to represent my product then. It will be a lead generator initially, but eventually, it will become more than that.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The platform is not 100% finished, and I haven’t onboarded clients. I’m the only one testing it at the moment, but I plan to provide the platform for free to 22 people in order to receive feedback. 

How did IT DEV GROUP perform from a project management standpoint?

From my understanding, the project manager is supposed to take information from me. This aspect went well with IT DEV GROUP, and I never had to worry about the programmers. I knew my emails would be replied to, and never had to wait more than 24 hours for an answer. Communication was done mostly through Skype, while other tasks were done by email and Trello. 

In 2016, I had a chance to speak to 3 people including a project manager, principal, and programmer. My PM knows what she’s doing. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

A large part of my decision to go with IT DEV GROUP was their experience. They didn’t just try to sell me a service, but tried to turn my idea into a real business.

Are there any areas they could improve?

IT DEV GROUP needs to set up an office in New York. I believe they’d have huge success in the U.S.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

DYMC, Inc. is the biggest supplier of doors and hardware in the U.S. We have a manufacturer in Europe, and here in New York we’ve got a distribution center and manufacturer as well. Most of our sales happen online. We also have wholesale, which is like Drop Ship Inc.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with IT Dev Group?

The manufacturer has a very complicated production system which is hard to understand. Each individual order contains materials like a lacquer, veneer, wood, hinges, screws, and how much we need to buy for each order to process. We needed to integrate both the ordering and financial systems to make it happen, which are separately licensed and operated, plus Excel and QuickBooks. When we worked manually, we lost a lot of money due to human error.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

It’s an algorithm, a system that has helped people place orders correctly. It helps us create the orders automatically and set them up in our production system. Human error during this process was costing us a lot. Now that the orders are automatically going through our production system and our financial department, we’re not seeing the same mistakes. There was also the problem of people placing orders on our old website, which wasn’t set up with this new system.

Now that everything is integrated and human steps have been removed from the process, customers can also log in and see their order status, what’s included in the order, and everything. There are no problems. Before, the customers would see our order through Excel, like a quotation, and then in QuickBooks, and then the whole document. I don’t know how IT Dev Group did this; it was very complicated.

The project was complete in May, and we fixed a few minor bugs after that. We’re not working together any longer, but maybe if we need to do something else, we will come to IT Dev Group again.

What is the team dynamic?

I’ve never been there, but our manager, Alex [Aleksandr Rudenko, CEO, IT Dev Group], told me we had around 30 people on the team. I was in contact with 2 different people. Both of them were very professional, as was Alex. I have a lot of varied experience working with different offshore companies; IT Dev Group is one of the best.

How did you come to work with IT Dev Group?

I have a guy who used to work with me, and he recommended them. I have 6 years in this market, in internet sales, so of course I have a lot of experience with other companies. There were so many companies we considered for this project. I can’t even tell you the number. We used to work with many companies, but this last half a year we’ve been working only with IT Dev Group.

We have some internal people that help us with coding and programming, but exclusively for special projects like advertising. In terms of full scope development, we always get the service outside of our own resources.

I had IT Dev Group try a small project for us, a calculator-like plugin to make a simple order, and they made it on time, which is kind of unusual. So, we decided to keep going with them. We agreed that they were pretty good and we liked them.

How much have you invested with them?

$15,000-$17,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them January 2017 until May 2017.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

When we finished, we had some little bugs, which they fixed right away once we told them. People stay on the website more than they did before. Traffic has more than doubled (about 2.2x) as soon as we launched the new site. This could also be partially due to some new design things we did, but still, conversion has gone up.

Other companies in competition with us could probably replicate our project in a year or 2, but compared to these other suppliers, we have a production process nobody else has. I don’t see any companies who can even compete with us in the market at this point.

How did IT Dev Group perform from a project management standpoint?

We communicated through Trello. We used Yandex.ru, where you can send a link and they can see upcoming tasks with pictures. Unfortunately, because Ukraine and Russia had problems, the service was closed; we just changed to another one. That’s not IT Dev Group’s fault, but the government’s. We also used Skype to communicate, when we occasionally needed to actually speak with each other. Sometimes we’d send files via Skype as well. Everything was generally put through Trello, which was more convenient for us because we had already been using that application for a long time.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We typically experience irresponsible vendors, but not with IT Dev Group. With other vendors, with projects big or small, we would have to increase our budget because they would never finish working on bugs. The only company who is still working with us to improve the finished product for no extra pay is IT Dev Group. That’s why I told them that if they need any feedback, I’ll be happy to help, because a company like them ought to be successful. I feel like I need to help.

Are there any areas they could improve?

If we could move their company to be here in the United States market, in order to have them closer, that would be the only improvement.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are the largest representative for companies looking to sell their products to major e-commerce sites. I am the chief executive officer of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with IT DEV GROUP?

We had around 26,000 2-dimensional images that needed to have more depth and be converted into 3-dimensional ones. This was not only a large-scale task; it was also one that we had zero experience with, which forced us to find an alternative solution. That is where IT Dev Group came in. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

IT DEV GROUP has worked exclusively on converting our images from 2D to 3D formats. I interfaced directly with a manager from IT DEV GROUP's side. 

How did you come to work with IT DEV GROUP?

We found IT DEV GROUP through Outsourcely. The quotes we received from the 4 other groups we contacted were all over the place, with the highest one being $12,000. IT DEV GROUP understood our requirements and created software that could automate conversion process, instead of working on the images one by one, manually. That was specifically what we were asking for from the get-go. We had a similar price quote from another company but gave IT DEV GROUP the opportunity to match it, which they did. 

How much have you invested with IT DEV GROUP?

The total cost of our project with IT DEV GROUP was $650.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with IT DEV GROUP in October 2016. We had a 3-day initial discussion period, but the work itself only took 2 days to complete. Other companies told us that it would take 3 weeks.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

IT DEV GROUP has performed brilliantly. Everyone who's looked at the site since the project's completion has been amazed. None of our 26,000 files were lost, and everything ran perfectly. 

How did IT DEV GROUP perform from a project management standpoint?

We communicated and exchanged documents with IT DEV GROUP through Skype and email.

What did you find most impressive about IT DEV GROUP?

IT DEV GROUP actually listened to what we were asking for and got the scope right on the first try. With other agencies, it was as if we were sold a sedan when trying to buy a pickup truck.

Are there any areas IT DEV GROUP could improve?

No. IT DEV GROUP did a better job than we expected. Our manager from IT DEV GROUP is a big part of why the work went so well. Despite the fact that she's from Ukraine, her communication skills are perfect, which made everything easier.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

We're a hosting and telecoms business providing website hosting, domain registration, virtual dedicated servers, and telephony voice-over-IP, as well as other hosted voice products.

What is your position?

I am the managing director of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with IT DEV GROUP?

We needed custom development work and website design. We needed to outsource the complete projects to a vendor because we didn’t want to incur the cost of having a full-time expert in-house.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement.

IT DEV GROUP provided PHP and MySQL development for us, specifically customizations and designs using MODX, CMX, and WHMCS, which is used for our webhost-controlled billing system. They are in charge of our entire web development work.

They were one of a handful of companies that we've used over time, but they're the only ones we still use. This gives an idea of how happy we are with them. Unlike a number of other companies we've dealt with, IT DEV GROUP does what they're asked. They understand what's needed and complete tasks in the timescales they set with us.

How did you come to work with IT DEV GROUP?

We found them through Upwork, which was called Elance at the time.

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

The typical cost for their services is between $1,000-2,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We have an ongoing relationship.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

We've used them for a number of projects during the last year and we're about to assign them another $1,000-2,000-worth of work. IT DEV GROUP has always delivered on time and they understand our projects.

How did IT DEV GROUP perform from a project management standpoint?

We communicate through Skype, without the use of any project management tools.

What distinguishes IT DEV GROUP from other providers?

They do what they say and they deliver on time, which is not necessarily true of many people with whom we've attempted hiring through Upwork. Other collaborators have either not been capable of delivering what they promised, or missed their deadlines. Most other companies took weeks longer than originally promised in order to deliver. This was not the case for IT DEV GROUP.

Any potential customer should take the time to discuss everything as much as possible beforehand. IT DEV GROUP tends to encourage this in any case.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

We run a nail salon.

What is your position?

I'm a co-owner. My wife runs the business.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with IT DEV GROUP?

We needed to produce a website for the company. We had worked on websites before, for the market in Sweden, but our current location was in Germany.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement.

IT DEV GROUP built our site using a content management system called MODX. We provided a template in the beginning, but their developers recommended hand coding it as that would give us several advantages. So we took that advice and went forward with a custom build. We were in contact with one project lead throughout the engagement.

How did you come to work with IT DEV GROUP?

She [my wife] was the one involved in that.

What is the status of this engagement?

The engagement lasted for about three months. Most of the coding was done during over course of a few weeks but, because I run several businesses, I caused some delays in the work. From my side, I was happy with the progress made by them. IT DEV GROUP is still making some small changes for us in terms of the pricing displayed on the site and other elements that we wanted after understanding the market better. We have new ideas for the future of the site. It will never be static, so we will be maintaining a relationship with IT DEV GROUP in the future.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

Other people in the industry have told us that the site is outstanding. There were never any major issues with IT DEV GROUP's work. Setting up the email system was a bit complicated, but that wasn't the fault of the developers. It was because of our domain host.

How did IT DEV GROUP perform from a project management standpoint?

We didn't use any project management tools with them. The work consisted of a five-page website, so it wasn't big enough to warrant something like that.

What distinguishes IT DEV GROUP from other providers?

I've used many web developers in the past. I've worked on a total of five to eight sites during the last 15 years. Some companies are completely incompetent, making the client wait for years before receiving the product. IT DEV GROUP was very responsive and the layout produced by them was exactly what I wanted, even exceeding my expectations. They've been very helpful in their advice as well.

Is there anything IT DEV GROUP could have improved or done differently?

No.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Compare-Supps.com and compare-supps.co.uk is a meta search engine which allows customers to search our website to find the supplements and health products they are looking for. We search over 850,000 vitamins, supplements and health products and drive traffic to our site through online advertising, influencer marketing, and SEO. Compare Supps currently operates in the US and UK, with plans for expansion to other regions. I am the co-founder of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire IT DEV GROUP?

The website design and logo design for Compare Supps.

SOLUTION

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

We looked at many different designers on several platforms and found Oksana Shiyan on Upwork. She had a very extensive portfolio that was modern, diverse and professional. Her pricing was also a deciding factor.

Describe the project in detail and walk through the stages of the project.

We created a sample presentation for Oksana of what exactly we wanted the site to look like. She designed several options for us and eventually through back and forth decided on color, design, layout and others. For the logo, she designed multiple options and we ended up deciding one of them.

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

We only worked with Oksana. She was a website designer.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We use the website that Oksana designed, the links below: https://www.compare-supps.com https://www.compare-supps.co.uk

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Oksana was incredible. She is very communicative, quick to respond and adaptive to our preferences and critiques. She was also very independent to come up with her own ideas.

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

Their quick delivery of our website's design was amazing! It only took a few weeks for the entire site to be developed and for us to be able to use it.

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

None.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Our website crowdfunds from all of the world helping people get answers to their most important questions.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire IT DEV GROUP, and what were your goals?

IT DEV GROUP built our website from the ground up. From setting up web hosting to design to backend development they did it all.

SOLUTION

How did you select IT DEV GROUP and what were the deciding factors?

After interviewing many web development companies we felt most comfortable going with IT DEV GROUP based on their attentiveness and competitive pricing.

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

PHP, JS, AWS, etc

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

We worked with 3 people from IT DEV GROUP's team ranging from backend development to UX and design.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

IT DEV GROUP got our site launched after years of planning and work.

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

They are very responsive. No matter the time zone or day of the week they will respond to your every need.

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

They are very reliable and quick with their work. No matter the size, they can get the project done in a timely fashion.

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

I've been happy every step of the way.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I was the co-founder, along with a friend, of a company called WaggleBook. My focus was mainly on the sales and go-to-market front.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire IT DEV GROUP?

My co-founder and I have very limited technical backgrounds, we hired IT Dev Group to design and build our website and mobile site, along with creating the initial basic product or MVP (minimum viable product).

What were your goals for this project?

The goal of this project was to at least get the MVP up and running and then have some SaaS companies pilot the product for feedback. The IT Dev Group team did an incredible job building the product quickly and working through bugs efficiently. Our product was a cloud-based sales playbook and repository or intranet of sales collateral that was interactive. It allowed for salespeople and managers to upload material, vote, comment and suggest edits.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We found they had great reviews on Upwork and very responsive and easy to work with, they had a very competitive rate and prided themselves on great work.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

As mentioned, IT Dev Group built pretty much everything for us, we bought some of the basic things we needed like the domain, AWS, etc., but we gave them our ideas of the look we wanted and the reasoning behind our name and they came up with design and layout. They did a very good job based on that, and then we just iterated from there in terms of the functionality of the project. Every time Eugene and his team would get back to us within 24 hours of requests and were very clear with timelines.

What was the team composition?

The project was led by Eugene, and then there were two PMs, another Eugene and Diana who had a small team of developers to my knowledge. We created a Slack channel and mainly communicated with Diana and both Eugene's there. They were all very responsive via Slack or email and when necessary we would get on Google Hangouts to talk through anything more complicated.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The IT DEV GROUP did a phenomenal job, Zach and I unfortunately had to hit pause on the development due to other commitments and funding. We were funding the project with our own money, but neither of us were in a position to quit our day jobs and go full steam ahead on Wagglebook. The fact that we got the MVP built and working in about 3 months was incredible though, from there it was really up to us to get companies using the product, but we never got any takers.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

IT Dev Group laid out a very clear plan on how best to get WaggleBook off the ground, first was to agree on design, then build the website and mobile site, then start on the MVP. We communicated mainly through Slack and the occasional Google Hangout. It was very effective and easy, and we really enjoyed working with Eugene's team.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Their communication, attention to detail and ability to stick to deadlines they shared was very impressive. We always felt like Eugene and his team were open to ideas and also provided their own expertise on how we could improve the product. They communicated bugs right away and were very clear about how long it would take to fix them. Or if we requested a new feature, they also would over-deliver. If we pick up

Are there any areas for improvement?

None that I can think of, truly a pleasure to work with, we only wish we could have worked with them longer. WaggleBook isn't completely dead, but we are on pause, if we decide to pursue this business again we are one hundred percent going back to IT Dev Group.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Mass5 a Toronto web design company focused on Laravel and JavaScript. I'm a project manager there. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire IT DEV GROUP?

IT DEV GROUP provided web development services to construct a new intranet for one of our clients.

What were your goals for this project?

The main idea behind this application is that it will feature social networking and community-related functionality and tools that will allow the users to communicate and share and gather information of different types.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

Mass5 selected the vendor based on their knowledge of Laravel and PHP, but also their JS skills.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

IT DEV GROUP provided web development services to construct a new intranet solution. The project was build in Laravel and VueJS. They helped create the UI and the backend functionality for the entire project.

What was the team composition?

The was a team of developers and a project manager. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The project was on time and budget.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

The PM was on top of the project and was always accessible online via Skype.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Their communication skills and their Laravel skills.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Sometimes the time difference would be an issue, but their PM was always trying to compensate for that.