ITernal Group

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of a data company where we collect all types of media from television, radio, and print advertising to social media. We collect data from those media and provide them to agencies. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with ITernal Group?

We had a huge development team, but we also had plenty of development projects. As a result, our team didn’t have the time to handle all of our projects. When we needed to launch a new portal, we outsourced its development. ITernal handled its design element, and then we used another third-party developer for other aspects of its frontend.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We already had the portal, and ITernal helped us improve its UX. Initially, we briefed them about the project and gave them the research we’d done with clients. We told them those client’s pain points and some of the frustration they’d experienced. Apart from that, we also briefed them on where the business was going and what new elements we were going to add into it. In other words, we wanted them to understand our needs and business objectives. 

Then, they came back to us with a couple of questions, which we answered. They also provided us with proposed designs for the portal’s look and feel. We gave our feedback, and they started designing it from there.

What is the team composition?

From ITernal’s side, we worked with the designer and the liaison officer. They also had a project manager. Meanwhile, their resources worked with our head of sales, head of IT, and lead developer. Occasionally, our product manager also collaborated with them. 

How did you come to work with ITernal Group?

We had a relationship with their salesperson, and I trusted him. That trust ultimately made us decide to work with them at the end of the day. More than that, we truly needed outsourced teammates. When he introduced us to the team, I liked their understanding and approach. We also liked the ideas that they provided from a UX perspective. 

How much have you invested with them?

We paid around €12,000 (approximately $14,000 USD). 

What is the status of this engagement?

The project lasted from March–May 2021.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We didn’t have specific metrics because the project was a creative process. As a result, we measured success by checking if the design was in line with our customers’ pain points and if we covered those pain points. We also checked whether our internal team can play with their design and if the design fit the look and feel of our organization. In the end, ITernal’s design was absolutely phenomenal.

How did ITernal Group perform from a project management standpoint?

In terms of project management, ITernal updated us about the development every two weeks, but we weren’t happy with it. As a result, we scheduled daily meetings. Once we did that, the iterations happening on a daily basis were a lot better and more in line with our needs. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

I love the fact that once they got into our heads, they truly understood what we needed. They learned about our clients’ pain points and provided inputs on how we could solve them. Even though we could already solve the problems, their team members provided alternative ways to solve them. Their alternative solutions were much better than ours — they were phenomenal. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

ITernal team members could improve their communication. They must be honest and open even if this might cause tension. They shouldn’t shy away from tension because it’s the only way they’re going to finish tasks. For context, we had language issues since they were working in another country. There were also some cultural differences, but the largest issue was communication on a day-to-day basis. 

Cost was also an issue. We gave them a full, written brief explaining our needs and budget, so when we received their quotation, we thought it was within our budget. However, what they provided us was different from what we expected: they only finished the portal’s dashboard, but we wanted them to do the whole portal. When they completed the dashboard, they provided another quotation. 

If we knew that they’d exceed our budget, we could have done the project in phases from the start. In any case, they didn’t quote for the whole project. That was hugely frustrating. After a little bit of debate and arguments, they agreed to give us a quote on the full development of the portal and a timeline. We then met on a daily basis to ensure that we were getting what we wanted. Once that was done, the development process made our lives simpler. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Go through the budget with a fine-toothed comb, and spend time with the development team to ensure that your expectations and ITernal’s outputs are aligned. Apart from that, have daily agile meetings instead of biweekly meetings. Even if the meetings are only 10–15 minutes long, that’s all you need to see progress. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the CEO of a motor vehicle rental agency. We serve customers in the southwestern region of the United States rent vehicles.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

The websites we were using to reach customers were not custom designed for our purposes. That meant we lost on revenue, on customer recruitment and we failed to create brand loyalty. We hired ITernal to create a custom designed website so we can recruit customers, control our messaging, and create brand loyalty and appeal.

SOLUTION

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

We selected ITernal group by doing research on the internet on companies that could deliver a custom solution to our problem. This was the seventh company we came across. An initial meeting with a scout led to team meetings where we described in detail the scope of our project and they mapped out a plan and how to accomplish it. The terms were favorable so we went ahead with the project.

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

The key deliverables were an MVP 1, followed by MVP 2. We started with 2 planning meetings with the entire team to delineate the scope of the project, the detailed items needed in the MVP 2. ITernal translated that into an excel form with line items for the deliverables. We worked in 2 week sprints. First deliverable was a front end look, achieved by working together on Figma and JIRA. Then the team moved to creating the back end and building all the functionalities of the website.

Our MVP 1 has been released to production. We are currently working on the second iteration, the MVP 2, in which we add greater customizations to better serve our customers. There is collaboration with other vendor solutions - API integrations that ITernal group successfully built into the website.

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

The number of the people on the ITernal changed depending on the stage of the project. We had a Project Manager (SCRUM master), 3 Full Stack developers that had roles of Front End UI/UX designer, Backend designer and Quality Assurance testing. At certain stage of the project a Website Development Operations specialist was employed. We also have a Client Relations Manager from their side for the duration of the project. We did work with other vendors as well, to provide expertise in a few areas.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

MVP 1, our custom designed website solution has been released and we are happy with the outcome. As non-technical founders, and lacking a technical person on our side, we relied on the expertise of ITernal group a lot. We did experience scope creep, which we wished we had a control on earlier as this also led to being over budget. We are currently working on MVP 2.

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

Our communication was via Google Meet on video, via email, and rarely phone calls. Responsiveness to communications was always prompt. Team meetings included everyone from ITernal group that were assigned on the project. The project manager always led the meetings, and we appreciate their style. All the other team members had input, their expertise was sought and their input valued.

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

The most impressive aspect is the professional acumen of their developers. Their ability to code and create custom-designed software is top-notch. Transparency with completed work and planned work. We had access to that data at all times. Willingness to create edits per client specifications.

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

Halfway through the project we had a change of Project Manager and some key developers. While this could not be helped - I believe the changes introduced some temporary turbulence.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the design manager for a real estate technology company. We build tools to support agents and their everyday workflows.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with ITernal Group?

We brought them on board to support more of a general need.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

On an ongoing basis, ITernal supports us with designers as needed. Their team creates desktop mockups for us as well as mobile mockups. They create static mockups, and one of their designers used Sketch to design a prototype too. Most recently, we brought one of their product designers on board to support the organization for the next four months. He’ll work on a variety of design projects.

Their designers directly work with our product managers and our lead developers. We bring the problem and requirements to the designers but then it’s up to them to bring a couple of ideas to the table if the timeline warrants it.

What is the team composition?

We work with a couple of designers and Daria (Happiness Manager).

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in the second quarter of 2020, and it’s an ongoing partnership.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We receive high-quality work from their designers. The two designers working with us are super professional. They take the task at hand and then provide great mockups, so I’m happy with them. Overall, our experience with ITernal has been positive.

How did ITernal Group perform from a project management standpoint?

We usually only hand them one project at a time, so ITernal's not juggling too many tasks. However, they meet all of their deadlines. Their communication’s great too. We use Slack and set up weekly meetings. I touch base with their designers about once a day to see how they’re doing. Their team’s super responsive.

Their designers were great at hopping on board and becoming a part of the team. They work collaboratively with our different teams, so I don’t look at them as contractors. They’re not afraid to ask questions or share their expert opinions.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The quality of their work and their ability to understand end-users distinguish them from other providers

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, nothing comes to mind. I brought up any speed bumps along the way, and ITernal was responsive. Their responsiveness to those problems helped us have such a great relationship.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Know your project’s scope and timeline to effectively hire their team. As a startup, we’re fluid. ITernal has pivoted quickly however, we have better success when we give the designer all of the details upfront.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a program manager at EMnify GmbH. EMnify is a leading cloud communication platform provider for IoT. We enable secure IoT connectivity globally through the EMnify SIM card and EMnify connectivity management platform. Our services include backend infrastructure development, to operate the device connectivity and ensure secure management.

I’m responsible for our enterprise portal where our customers manage their devices, connectivity, and security while improving our processes and adding new functionality for our customers.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with ITernal Group?

We wanted to revamp our customer-facing management portal. We needed help with both the design and front-end web development.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

ITernal Group provides web design and development services to help us revamp our connectivity and order management platform and portal. They assisted us in rebuilding the platform from the ground up using Vue.js, TypeScript, CSS, and HTML.

The platform, which is meant to be self-service, has management features for managing SIM cards and devices. It also has pricing and calculation functionalities.
ITernal Group provides consultancy on design and oversees the delivery of the Figma designs themselves, which are very specific to our business. The designer is still guiding us and helping us to develop the designs, which the developers are implementing.

What is the team composition?

We started with three developers, soon engaged a design specialist as well. Currently, we’re a team of six developers assisted by a part-time designer. The ITernal Team is working as one team together with two of our in-house full stack developers.

How did you come to work with ITernal Group?

I searched for medium-sized companies that looked like a good fit. We needed a partner that would be flexible in how they work. I found ITernal Group on Clutch.
I went to their office to interview them and work with the team for two days. We did one day of development with planning in the morning and delivery in the evening. They were the only team that pixel-perfectly implemented the design as it was given to them within a day. They even delivered more functionality than any of the other teams.

They were one of the most friendly, helpful, and impactful teams that I met. Process-wise, they outperformed all other teams that I interviewed.

How much have you invested with them?

EMnify has invested $300,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in November 2019, and the collaboration is ongoing. The platform is already live, and our customers are using it.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

It’s hard to say, since we just rolled out the platform; it will take a while to measure the impact of the UI improvements. EMnify’s back- and frontend teams implemented processes that reduce new customer onboarding and improve automation so that customers can do everything themselves. However, it’s hard to say at this stage what role ITernal Group played in this.

How did ITernal Group perform from a project management standpoint?

I’m the product owner, and ITernal Group is in direct contact with me at all times. So I provide priority and background info regarding the requirements but the team is highly involved and supports me process-wise as well as with critical questions and feedback! I specifically asked that they didn’t have a project manager on their side to not add a proxy between the requestor and the team to empower them. We use Airtable to manage the project until now.

What did you find most impressive about them?

In my experience with other companies, vendors are always trying to sell you something. We have had the opposite experience with ITernal Group. The team we work with makes a lot of the decisions and provides most of the support, while somebody from the customer success management team is there to assist.

They don’t get in the way as much as other companies. The company didn’t try to force any process on us, such as adding testers, or proxy project managers, which often increases cost and harms the teamwork and scrum process.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I’m very happy with everything.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Avoid being too restrictive in technical implementations, and don’t try to add what you don’t need. If you already have a project manager, don’t add a proxy. You also don’t need to add a tester if you’re not sure you need one yet.

Listen to the ITernal team and trust that they can deliver and improve processes without adding massive headcounts. They’re really supportive and solve issues when they come up. When I ask for functionality, they always ask me to clarify why we need it. If I don’t have an answer, they ask me if we should really do it and if the priority is correct.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Our company is a complex business solution for carriers. We help people transport their belongings to and from various locations around France. I am a digital transformation consultant with the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Rademade?

We were managing all of our jobs manually through Excel, which was taking up a lot of time, so we wanted to move that into an automated system.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They helped us to create a platform that facilitates communication between our clients and carriers and helps us to track, organize, and bill for jobs in one streamlined process. The solution we developed together allows us to manage 100% of the responsibility and privacy of the deliveries without spending any more time in the weeds with the details of each job.

Rademade delivered the entire infrastructure of both front- and backend on the project, including a client and carrier portal on the web and our administrative dashboard. They used Ruby on Rails, as well as Angular for the frontend.

What is the team composition?

I have a scrum master who serves as my main point of contact for the work, as well as a QA lead and a full-stack developer. They provided a team of designers for the frontend work, and all of their work flows through the project manager.

How did you come to work with Rademade?

We had a pre-existing relationship from a previous company that I worked at, so I knew that they would be able to develop this for me.

How much have you invested with them?

The total cost has been around $120,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working on the core of the product in November 2018, and the project is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

All of the work that they delivered to us was very good. We haven’t had any issues with the deliverables. We were able to increase our reservations per day by nearly 60% through the solution that we rolled out thanks to their work.

They have also helped us to incorporate feedback from a lot of different clients in order to improve the application, and we are currently launching a new version that will provide even more functionalities based on what those surveys revealed.

How did Rademade perform from a project management standpoint?

We worked in two-week sprints, so we met at the beginning of each period to define and choose what we were going to work on during those two weeks. 99% of the time, we were able to deliver each of those milestones at the end of the sprint.

They used Slack for both of our teams to manage day to day communication. We also made use of Figma for design and JIRA and Confluence to help make sure that all team members were on the same page throughout our work.

What did you find most impressive about them?

One thing I really appreciate them is that they are not just a development outsourcing team, but also provide a strong business analysis aspect to their skillset to help you understand your needs and goals in the marketplace.

The leader of their design team is a former marketing director, so he has a very strong understanding of how we can launch our product with a user experience that will draw in far more users than we would have been able to otherwise. They are not just product-focused but are also very proactive in terms of ideas and depth of strategy.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I don’t think there’s anything in particular that they need to improve.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Go and meet with them to have a team workshop. The key to success with any development process is to make sure that you have good communication and are up to date with everyone involved and meeting face-to-face goes a long way in getting off on the right foot in that regard.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the co-founder and CEO of operations at Doxy.me. We’re a secure telemedicine platform.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Rademade?

We brought them in to increase the development, speed, and features of our platform. They also fix bugs as well as giving their design and UX expertise.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Rademade provided outsourced development and design for our platform. They’ve helped with the patient check-in workflow and streamlined it to make the workflow easy for patients. This was done on the front- and backend. They used AngularJS and Node.js.

What is the team composition?

I work with Katerina (IT Recruiter, Rademade), Daniel (UX/UI designer, Rademade), and Andrei (Frontend Developer, Rademade). My main points of contact are Katerina and Andrei, but there have also been others along the way.

How did you come to work with Rademade?

Our CTO pointed us in their direction.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested over $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve had an ongoing partnership since May 2018.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We receive positive user feedback on the changes they’ve made and features they’ve implemented. Their team has streamlined our processes and ability to deliver features faster. The functionality and reliability of the solution are excellent. Inevitably, there are bugs, but Rademade meets expectations in resolving them.

How did Rademade perform from a project management standpoint?

With some exceptions, Rademade has consistently delivered on time and within budget. Some things are always more complicated than anticipated. We talk almost every day and correspond through Slack and Jira.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re nice people. I flew out to meet them and really enjoyed it. Their team has the right idea as far as serving our customers and building delightful products go.

They understand that we’re all working with people, and we have to manage people as much as we manage a product. This really differentiates them from others we’ve used before. Other companies are usually transactional, but Rademade isn’t.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Nothing beyond those standard clichés. You can always be better, faster, and cheaper I suppose. But regardless, I like working with them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be clear on what you’re ultimately trying to achieve. It’s easy to engage with outsourcing development groups with very specific tasks. It’s even more effective to work toward understanding the whole and long-term vision.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We are administering self funded health plans for small companies in the USA. I am Chief Operations Officer and I coordinate development of tech tools to optimize operations and to reduce manual labor.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Rademade?

We have a product that is economically attractive to our customers. However the traditional way of selling it is very complicated for users. We had to dramatically improve user experience making it easier and intuitive.

What were your goals for this project?

Automating initial quoting workflow and creating new simplified user experience that matched the one of traditional insurance products.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

Through recommendation and by results of preliminary pilot project. We considered two other candidates and Rademade scored highest by attractiveness of their designs, systematic approach to project management and the level of their team's energy and involvement.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

They analysed business requirements, designed, programmed and launched online quoting system and made several design and workflow customizations.

What was the team composition?

The team was about six people including a project manager, business analyst, designer, full stack programmer, front-end programmer and tester. Project manager was our main point of contact through out the project.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

High quality design made major impact on how our business is perceived by customers and business partners. It also made easier for us to engage other vendors and associates. In a very short time we have received the tool to enter the market and position our company as an innovative player in this field.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

The team has an established and well-developed project management structure. At the same time they were flexible enough to adapt to our specific preferences with tools and manner of communication. We communicated via Zoom with addition of shared documents on Google Docs. There team continued using other tools for their internal management.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Very strong company culture spreads through the whole their team and it also positively "infected" our people. They were able to switch some people on their side to achieve a better fit with our needs and personalities.

Are there any areas for improvement?

no suggestion

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Agenda Video focuses on creating videos for businesses—restaurants, real estate, hotels, events, and so on—for around $100. We provide editing and processing services using clients’ content.

I’m a co-founder and the COO of the company, responsible for making things happen. We have a second co-founder, responsible for marketing and sales. I’m responsible for product and website development, among other things.

We’re not exactly a professional video production company, given that we don’t also film the videos, but we’re developing a video editor through which people can make their own videos.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Rademade?

We needed a web platform to promote ourselves in the digital world and present the services we provide.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Rademade designed and developed the website we use as a customer interface. The site has a payment integration and some client interaction elements. It was built on Ruby on Rails.

What is the team composition?

They assigned a team of 6–7 people, which varied across the project. Our main contact was the scrum master managing the team on the Rademade side.

How did you come to work with Rademade?

I asked for recommendations for a professional web development team and got the names of four companies. We sent them requests, and three of them agreed to participate in a small tender we organized. There were two competitors in the tender process at the end, and we chose Rademade because they were much more organized from a process point of view.

We were looking for a design-driven interface, and they created a better design. It took us a month to choose the winner, and, even though Rademade’s financial proposal was rather good, it was nearly equal to their competitor’s. We didn’t make a choice based on discounted prices, but on how they organized the process.

How much have you invested with them?

The project cost was £100,000, or around $120,000. They quoted us in dollars since they’re a Ukrainian company and they don’t use pounds.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Rademade in June or July 2018, and the collaboration is ongoing. We’re currently in support mode.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have a good impression of what they’ve done. This was our first development experience, and Rademade was a consultant and a web developer in the digital world. It was important for us to sell an experience to our customers through the website, so it needed to be really good visually. We ended up liking the design, as did our customers.

The site is live, and it’s being accessed by customers. We don’t currently ask them for feedback, but we did in the beginning. We asked them what they liked about the site and whether they understood the kinds of services we provided. I’d give Rademade a 4+/5, but the result is dependent on the categories we have on the site.

From a functional point of view, the site is really reliable. We haven’t seen a lot of significant problems. There’ve been some minor bugs, but Rademade has generally provided a reliable product.

How did Rademade perform from a project management standpoint?

We were slightly over budget went over-schedule by 10–15%, but this wasn’t because of Rademade. We were developing a new product and a digital interface at the same time, so we had to change the scope of work in real-time based on customer feedback. That process was mainly on our side.

Rademade was good to very good in terms of project management. They used Jira and made us a part of the system, in order to share tasks. They’re well-organized—sometimes too organized—in terms of sprints and rules. At the same time, we learned a lot of skills about how to manage our internal activities from them. The scrum master from their side is very experienced, but it’s difficult to say whether it was a particular situation or whether Rademade has general consistency.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their design skills and highly structured approach to project management were outstanding.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There were some problems connected to their development team, which had a turnover of 30–50%. There’s a hot market in Ukraine, as I understand, and every developer is trying to get a higher salary. At the same time, they managed substitutions properly and with care.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

The client needs to understand what they want from Rademade. Otherwise, it’ll cost them too much money.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We provide custom software development for both web and mobile solutions. I’m the CEO.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Rademade?

Rademade operates as a white-label contractor for us. They’ve delivered full-stack services for several different projects.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They’ve completed three different projects for us. Whenever a project comes up, and it seems like we can leverage their resources, we take them on to develop for us.

In one project, they provided a full team to build a web solution for our third-party client, an energy broker. It was an e-commerce platform where users could purchase energy services from various vendors.

Rademade built the entire enrollment process of integrating the platform with different energy providers. They used Ruby on Rails and handled everything from project management to QA development.

In another engagement, they built a mobile app using React Native. This app was for an industrial steel company, and it enabled users to scan the company’s products to visualize factory testing results.

What is the team composition?

I’m always in contact with the account manager, no matter what product or project. They provide a full team. Recently, I worked with two developers, a QA engineer, and a DevOps specialist.

How did you come to work with Rademade?

I think my partner found them through a Google search. We were looking for developers in Ukraine, with Ruby on Rails competency in mind. We then realized that they had React Native capabilities, so we started using them for that too.

How much have you invested with them?

So far, we’ve spent $75,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in March 2018, and it’s an ongoing engagement.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They’ve allowed me to be pretty hands-off with their work since they handle everything from project management to testing. Their QA process has been extremely helpful; they’re good at catching bugs and fixing them right away. Their services are very cost-effective and take a lot off my plate.

They’ve also been flexible in scaling their resources to be the appropriate size. If we need a full team, they can provide it. Not to mention that their work itself is very high-quality.

How did Rademade perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re generally very good. With any project, things can get out of control, but I keep weekly tabs with my account manager who sets expectations for every two weeks. They’re good at adhering to time and budget. Whenever there’s an issue, we discuss it with the team and come to a solution.

We utilize JIRA to communicate. It allows me to see how each sprint is going and how the tasks are progressing. The time difference has actually worked to my advantage, where the work is done by the time I wake up. They speak excellent English, so language hasn’t been a problem, either.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their communication and the quality of their work are both stellar. They’re able to foresee issues then bring them up as quickly as possible.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They could do better at keeping their hours in control. Even if they were having trouble, I’d appreciate it if they’d let us know a little sooner. That way, we wouldn’t have to go over budget. That hasn’t happened more than once or twice, so it’s not a major issue.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Keep good communication with them, and they’ll produce quality solutions. They’ll be successful for you.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a co-founder of Lemonfrog. We run online marketplaces for finding babysitters, tutors, and cleaners as well as other things across Switzerland, Austria, Spain, and Germany.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Rademade?

All of our platforms are powered by a centralized software solution, which has been on the market for about 10 years. It’s a complex but stable product that helps us manage our different websites. Rademade joined the project to help our main development partner build out and implement our ideas. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement? 

For the past few years, we’ve worked with Rademade to add additional features to our software and existing platforms. 

Our main focus has always been making our onboarding process easier for users. They’ve done several projects such as improving the visuals on the frontend and integrating external software to identify users.

All of our platforms are web-based, using Ruby on Rails on the backend and React on the frontend. We also use HTML, CSS, and MySQL.

What is the team composition?

The account manager is our main point of contact. We started with one developer and now have five.

How did you come to work with Rademade?

One of the reasons why we needed another software provider was because the project was getting too expensive. We decided to look for more cost-effective developers and eventually met Rademade at a conference. After calling them, we started the engagement.

How much have you invested in them?

We’ve spent between $50,000–$200,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working with them in September 2018, and it’s an ongoing project. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We didn’t have a frontend part before, so the new interface is a big win. I appreciate that they have a good understanding of our software. That allows them to give good inputs and help with the design and implementation.

How did Rademade perform from a project management standpoint?

Our main software provider is still in charge of a lot of the project management, so Rademade is mostly responsible for development and design support. 

That being said, I’m very happy with their account manager’s communication skills, qualifications, and desire to help us. They’re very motivated and put a lot of effort into making us happy.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The value for our money is a key driver for us, which is why we’ll continue to scale up with Rademade. We get far more for our money than with other software providers.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, everything is fine. If they got bigger, we could switch over to them entirely as our software developer.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

At the end of the day, it’s about education, communication, and motivation, and Rademade brings all of those factors. Of course, there’s always a quality difference between individual developers, so you need a bit of luck to get the best. But that goes for any software provider.