Keenethics OU

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m a lab director for a small tech company based in the US. We create hardware and software products.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Keenethics?

We engaged Keenethics to update an existing Electron app’s UI and bug reporting system. They also fixed bugs and built new features.

What were your goals for this project?

We had a roadmap of features that we wanted the updated app to include. We needed a partner to guides us through what is possible within the Electron framework.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We searched on Google for firms with expertise in Electron. After interviewing multiple vendors via email as well as phone and video calls, we settled on Keenethics.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

Keenethics took over an existing code base. After taking the time to understand it, they improved and refactored the code. The team then built new features in response to user feedback. Key features include saving files to a user’s local machine and an automated bug and crash reporting system to improve our feedback mechanisms and how users share information with us.

What was the team composition?

We collaborated with a business development team at the kickoff; now, we work with a developer who serves as our main point of contact and a project manager who handle invoicing and long-term planning.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Keenethics has so far transformed our prototype into a production-ready application. They also helped us move to a more automated system of bug and crash reporting from our users.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

At the project’s start, the project management team established a toolchain for communication, task reporting, invoicing and payment, QA, and other functions. All we needed to do was log in and get started. The toolchain, as well as the developer’s consistent and direct communication, work effectively; we rarely need to bring in the project manager.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Keenethics is highly flexible. They worked with us even when we lacked a complete budget and timeline for the project at first. When a change in developers occurred, they oversaw a seamless transition. The developers we have worked with complete tasks quickly without sacrificing quality. They get to work on features as soon as they process our requests, and they remind us when features are ready for QA that we may have forgotten about, showing both initiative and diligence in completing this project. Overall, the team is highly professional; they communicate clearly and produce high-quality code.

Are there any areas for improvement?

No, I can’t think of anything.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the COO and co-founder of WorldLabs. It is a one-stop collaboration platform that simplifies how organizations engage with their members, while simultaneously tapping into a global community of innovators.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Keenethics?

We are creating a comprehensive web platform with limited resources, so we needed to rely on a highly efficient yet small team.

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted a platform with quality code that is reliable and scalable with the specs we defined.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

Keenethics completed our trial period. They were ideal as a software development partner, giving us the additional resources we needed.

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

Keenethics provides software development and QA services.

What was the team composition?

Their team includes a project manager, various developers, and a QA tester.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Keenethics is instrumental in the development and launch of our project providing all the resources we need.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

Their dedicated project manager makes sure that all tasks are efficiently coordinated. The communication runs smoothly between our companies.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Keenethics delivers the required tasks within the time frame and at high quality. Their expertise in software development and their dedication to our company has helped WorldLabs launch a fully functional product. Keenethics’ cost-effective and hands-on approach was an integral part of our early growth.

Are there any areas where they can improve?

There’s nothing to mention at this point.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the technical lead at Isapiens srl, an e-learning company. We provide services to corporations in Italy.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Keenethics?

Our one-developer team needed extra resources to meet three deadlines for building a software application.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We had a partially-developed application that collected information from a learning management system and displayed it in a dashboard for clients to read, modify, and extract reports from. Before Keenethics became involved, the app had back- and frontend basis, a small dashboard, and a project page. Keenethics added more features and pages. They built and helped launch a training progress page that shows each student’s progress and a general overview of Italy’s geographical regions. They also implemented a system to track how each administrator creates or modifies information.

Keenethics developed the application in Node.js. The backend—built on Express.js—functions as an API and is completed divided from the frontend—built on Angular.js 5. The app uses modules such as Passport.js for authentication among other functions.

What is the team composition?

We worked primarily with 2–3 developers depending on the project’s needs.

How did you come to work with Keenethics?

We found them by posting a job offer on Upwork. We narrowed 50–60 proposals down to four companies. Keenethics was close to our time zone, and their team of developers and project managers provided valuable insights into how the project should continue.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent about $24,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from August–October 2018.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The Keenethics team performed well alongside our internal team. Their intermediate developers produced high-quality code and efficient scripts that emphasized the app’s performance.

How did Keenethics perform from a project management standpoint?

The team was highly accessible and responded to any inquiries within 30 minutes. We communicated and held meetings via Skype.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Keenethics accommodated two weeks of 10–12-hour days to help us meet our strict deadlines. They truly invested themselves in the project.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They write clear code, but it could use more comments.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Because I had a technical background, I interfaced directly with developers rather than with the project manager. Keenethics made the process simple for me, but their project managers are excellent if you prefer a more traditional approach.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am a founder of BankerAdvisor, which is a website and ratings platform aimed at the investment banking and banking industries that is in many ways similar to Clutch. We hope to be live within the next 30 days.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with KeenEthics?

I hired KeenEthics to create the platform that would function as the core part of our business. My background is in finance, and although I understood the company I wanted to build and the type of website and application I wanted, we needed additional technical resources.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

BankerAdvisor is intended to be a comprehensive directory and review application for learning about investment banking and merger and acquisition advisory firms. At the beginning, I provided KeenEthics with a detailed specifications document from which they then worked. They managed the user interface design and branding, as well as the app development. One vital feature that we requested specifically was a multi-varied search capability, which needed to include the use of tags for industry sector experiences and the nature of services for search refining purposes. We also wanted a way to provide prioritization for premium app registrants versus basic registrants in the database. They did their work using Node.js on the backend and JavaScript and HTML5 on the frontend.

The project is not yet finished, although phase one is close to being complete. I have already written the specification document for phase two, to which I have added commercial banking and investment management to the initial minimum viable offering. The plan is to slowly expand our range of offerings as our user base grows, so we are currently planning ahead, and I intend to keep KeenEthics on board for this further work.

What is the team composition?

Our primary code team involved three people—Yura G., our primary full stack developer; Alina K.; and Vlad O.—and our UI team involved at least two designers at any given time.

How did you come to work with KeenEthics?

When I was ready to begin the project, I conducted a series of interviews with development shops and found the KeenEthics team. Since I did not want to deal with fielding responses from a wide variety of firms, I emailed them directly to ask if they had the requisite skills for which I had been searching. KeenEthics fit the skillset in the particular technology stack I wanted.

How much have you invested with them?

So far, we have invested US$30,000, but we plan on spending another US$10,000-20,000 depending on the progress of phase two.

What is the status of this engagement?

We engaged their services in May of 2017 and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Since the project is not yet finished, we do not have any concrete metrics to demonstrate the impact. However, I am very pleased with both the site and the app’s functionality.

How did KeenEthics perform from a project management standpoint?

They performed extremely well in terms of communication and working with the project manager on invoicing and understanding changes as the work progressed. From my perspective, they did an excellent job of setting expectations. I was often to blame for scope expansion, and how they adjusted and responded to the changes was excellent. We communicated primarily through email correspondence, although we also used Skype for video conferencing and Google Docs. Our regular work schedule involved weekly appointments to touch base with KeenEthics, and in between they were very responsive through both email and Skype.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I found their sophistication on technology and keen business judgment particularly impressive, especially for a younger organization. The code itself has been very reliable, tight, and reflective of their knowledge of the technology stack and of coding best practices. They have been patient working with a non-product manager who is a domain expert but not a product management or product design expert. Additionally, their command of the English language truly blew me away. The language difference has been a complete non-issue in working with KeenEthics.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They are fairly understated in their skills versus their profile. Since I believe that this firm is going to grow, my recommendation to them would be to get the word out about themselves more effectively.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Writing a detailed specification about a project and boiling down precisely what you do will make it a lot easier for the development team and project manager to understand what your goals are for the collaboration.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the chief technology officer (CTO) at a technology consulting and strategy firm. We develop custom software and implement custom solutions for our clients.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Keenethics?

We were looking for supplemental additional resources in the MeteorJS framework, which is a JavaScript web application framework.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Keenethics helped integrate Stripe, a payment processing application. Stripe was integrated to one of our applications that we were building to allow for customers to subscribe to paid software. They helped implement that functionality within our application

The technologies that Keenethics used were primarily MeatorJS, HTML, and CSS. There was also NodeJS and MongoDB. 

What is the team dynamic?

I’ve interacted with a total of three individuals.

How did you come to work with Keenethics?

We found Keenethics through a third-party freelancer network. We were considering three companies in total before deciding on going with Keenethics.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested between $10,000 to $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

I’ve been working with Keenethics for off and on for just about a year. We started working August 2016 and the project was finished February 2017.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The quality of work was good. We relied on Keenethics to make sure that we were able to meet some of our tighter schedules. They were able to complete things on time and on budget which was good. The proficiency and skills that Keenethics has were good. I was overall pleased with everything that they did.

How did Keenethics perform from a project management standpoint?

It wasn’t really a complex large project that required heavy project management. We were able to give them the requirements and they were able to manage communication back to us. Any necessary follow-ups were completed using e-mail and Skype.

What did you find most impressive about them?

For an offshore resource, they were very friendly and personable. They did a nice job of taking interest and ownership of the work that they did. They also provided additional support when we have a few issues. Overall, Keenethics’ personal touch was a highlight for me.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business or organization and what you do there.
I am the Owner and only employee of a young startup company based in the Netherlands. My company is an international network of localized price comparison websites. Each site specializes in a certain theme or subject.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Keenethics?
My project began really small, but my aim is to dominate the market and to be active all around the world. I want to have a specific website for every subject . Scalability is the first priority. In the past five years JavaScript’s functionalities have grown considerably, I searched for a company that was eager to try embracing JavaScript competencies and concepts and develops a really cool project. Because I don’t have a big company and my budget is limited, I needed to have a partner that was priced okay.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in greater detail.
Keenethics only did development. Because of my experience as an online professional, I did the whole business strategy, the design, the interaction, and the marketing myself. They are purely involved just to take care of all the technical stuff. We decided to go for the ever more popular Meteor JS plus React combination and we’re now developing in these techniques.

How did you come to work with Keenethics?
I found Keenethics by Googling specialized Meteor agencies. I did a little tender with all kinds of agencies and Keenethics was the best choice. Besides their technical skills, they’re really nice people and they quickly become involved in your business ideas and want to produce a really cool product. In the end, Keenethics is great for little startups based on the quality they deliver and the cost they ask.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?
Between $10,000-$20,000.

What is the status of this engagement?
We started working with them November 2016 and have been working together since.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?
It’s too early because we don’t have a first version of the product ready, but it looks really promising.

How did Keenethics perform from a project management standpoint?
I’m really into having control so I’m not a regular client for them. I’m an online project manager myself and I hired them only for development work. We had about 2 or 3 developers working on the project but the project management was in my hands. You can chat with them until they go to bed and they’re always available by Skype. We do a Scrum every month where we look at new features, what we want to add, what has priority, etc. Hopefully, they continue to be my partner in the future.

What distinguishes Keenethics from other providers?
The relationship, their own ambition and what they want to do in the future were really important to me. Normally, my experience with development companies is that their business strategy is based on selling hours and most of them see a chance to bill you some extra hours just to change stuff within the project. Keenethics just sticks to the hours they initially estimated. They know and understand that nobody is perfect and nobody can predict the future or have it all written on paper before you start. This is what is really unique about them. They feel like a business partner, not like an agency that just wants to sell more hours.

Is there anything Keenethics could have improved or done differently?
They are a young agency that’s only been in existence for 2 years. They’re growing fast and doing more projects and the whole identity of the business and the agency still has to be developed. They are still trying to figure out their view on how to complete projects and what their unique selling point is compared to other agencies. They started with a vision about how things should be done, but they need to go move a new phase where they become more professional so they can sell the things they believe in.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are a strategic management consultancy with about 300 professionals. Our work is basically project-based work for clients in the topics of transformation, strategy, and giving advice in the digital space. I am a manager. I’m the lead of the project team and client projects.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Keenethics?

We needed a prototype and to develop some kind of digital solutions for processes showing the client how it could be done or how to maintain some kind of software solutions.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Keenethics helped us to develop and to prototype several web and iPad applications to help our clients. We used a MEAN stack including MeteorJS as a framework on top of Node.js, AngularJS, MongoDB, D3.js for visualization and Cordova for the hybrid development of the web and iPad application.

How many resources were assigned to your project?

On the first project, we had 2 ½ if you count all the quality assurance and the designer. The second project had also a project manager attached to it, so I think it was two to three people.

How did you come to work with Keenethics?

We proposed our project on Upwork.com. We interviewed all of the applicants which included Keenethics. At first, we did choose another company because Keenethics said that they didn’t have the required employees available at the time. We were unsatisfied with our first choice, so I connected back to Keenethics after two months. They had the resources available at that time, and we continued with them because all the issues and challenges we had with the first company were solved by Keenethics.

How much have you invested with Keenethics?

We spent between $10,000 and $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started searching for the company in October. Then, we had the two-month time frame with another company. We came back to Keenethics in December 2016. The first project was finished last week. The second project was running from March 2017 to July 2017.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

This was a highly agile project environment where several clients were involved. The costs of the work were not that high for the amount of work. That’s why we didn’t need perfect project controlling and why we didn’t use any metrics on the project.

We did have a great full stack developer and he could do everything in terms of user interface, application development, and database design. That enabled us to have a low cost, high result in the end. As we were missing a user interface designer, we got a designer who created the design and worked perfectly well with the developer so that we didn’t have any overhead.

How did Keenethics perform from a project management standpoint?

From a project management point, we used some kind of Scrum methodology and Agile methodology. We had weekly planning and daily stand-ups directly with developers from Keenethics. Everything was solved during the weekly and daily standups.

My native language is German. Keenethcis’ native language is not English either, but we had a Russian speaker on our team whose English is also quite good. In terms of understanding and communicating, it was perfect. Also due to cultural challenges which we had with the first team, Keenethics was perfect in addressing challenges and bringing them up before it would become a problem. In terms of communication, I was happy during the course of the project. I was always informed and could derive my decisions out of the information I got.

What did you find most impressive about Keenethics?

From a technological standpoint, they did great work in terms of the results, consulting, and providing options. They have a great network. At some point, we needed a user interface designer so they could also help with this challenge and provided a good designer to the team immediately. On the other hand, communication is something I value a lot. For example, if an expert is missing, they communicated that perfectly up front so I could search for an expert for a specific small problem and therefore we didn’t have any roadblocks. They chose the right technology and implemented the solution in a very good, perfect way.

Are there any areas Keenethics could improve?

I was satisfied completely with the project. But, as a German, I always see things for improvement. They could be a little better in terms of documentation, but I don’t see that really as a downside. It wasn’t in our job description.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the CEO of gFit

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Fitness app

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Keenethics OU to accomplish?

• Mobile App Development for AI-driven Workout App

SOLUTION

How did you find Keenethics OU?

• Online Search
• Referral

Why did you select Keenethics OU over others?

• High ratings
• Close to my geographic location
• Good value for cost
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Keenethics OU were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

We’re really happy with the work done so far. The KeenEthics team showed solid technical skills in mobile development and quickly understood what we were trying to build — an AI-driven engaging tool that helps people stay on track with their fitness goals.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Collaboration with KeenEthics securd our roadmap for this year and allowed us to start shortlisting potential users

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Features in iOS and Android mobile applications were completed within agreed estimates. Throughout our collaboration we epxeriensed transparent and professional communication. Moreovre, reporting and updates were done on a regular basis and made us confident on the progress and absence of potential problems.

What was your primary form of communication with Keenethics OU?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

They are flexible, professional, and open-minded. Such combination is a great bland to build long-term trust and desire to work with KeenEthics again and again.

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

Nothing we can point out

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and CEO of Altruous, an impact management platform for next-generation philanthropists.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Keenethics OU?

We hired Keenethics OU to build the MVP of our platform.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of work done?

Keenethics OU built the first version of our platform, which is a B2B SaaS impact management tool for philanthropic funders. It’s a marketplace of social impact programs. The team developed features such as user signup, search, preferences and settings, and evaluations pages.

What is the team composition?

We worked with a team of 4–5 people.

How did you come to work with Keenethics OU?

A friend referred Keenethics OU to us. They were highly recommended and asked great questions during the evaluation phase. The team offered great value for the price and aligned with our project goals.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from September–December 2024. We recently hired them again for a new scope.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Keenethics OU delivered a functioning platform. It allowed us to demo the product to early customers and investors. Before working with them, we didn’t have a product to show. The feedback from early customers and investors was extremely positive.

How did Keenethics OU perform from a project management standpoint?

Keenethics OU had strong project management. The team was very responsive and delivered quality work on time.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Keenethics OU’s work quality for the price point was impressive. The team was strongly dedicated to understanding our needs and responding to them.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, there was clear communication and adaptability throughout the project.