KMS Technology

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the VP of engineering at EditShare, a firm in the media and entertainment space. I manage about 50 employees and 20 contractors. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with KMS Technology?

We were trying to scale up our development bandwidth cost-effectively. We needed a team that we could hire and train and then rely on to work on features and bugs independently. So, we hired ​​KMS Technology to provide experienced teammates to augment our in-house development team. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

For the first project with KMS Technology, we interviewed their architect, a manager, and an analyst for our storage system development. They were a good fit for our technology, product, and company, so we brought them on. Once those teammates settled in, they brought in QA and development teammates from ​​KMS Technology that they determined were qualified for our needs. 

We met with the team to do a knowledge transfer on the product we needed assistance developing, onboarding them as if they were in-house teammates. Then, we provided them with bugs to fix of increasing complexity and added in feature development as they proved their competency. Once we were confident in the first team, we brought on a second to work on our media asset management program — KMS Technology covered our entire product. 

Eventually, we decided that we should extend our firm’s coverage to the Asia-Pacific region because we had such a large development team working in Asia through KMS Technology. We ended up bringing on five support teammates from KMS Technology to work in the time zones we needed to cover — those teammates have triaged and addressed customer issues. Essentially, we've built a new corporate engineering headquarters in Vietnam because of KMS Technology's resources. 

What is the team composition?

We work with 25 teammates from KMS Technology. 

How did you come to work with KMS Technology?

I worked with several offshore teams 15–20 years ago, including the precursor to KMS Technology. I knew Josh (Founder) from that work, and when I needed offshore engineering support, I contacted him. I weighed KMS Technology against several offshore and nearshore development teammates, but KMS Technology ended up being the best balance of cost and effectiveness. 

How much have you invested with them?

We've invested $3–$5 million with KMS Technology over the last two years. 

What is the status of this engagement?

Our engagement with KMS Technology began in August 2019, and it's ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

KMS Technology's team is coming along nicely, and soon they'll be indistinguishable from our in-house team. In general, KMS Technology is handling 80%–90% of our development cases in the Asia-Pacific region — their issue resolution times are consistent with the rest of our support team. Their development velocity, which is our measure of complexity and implementation, has grown from 0 to 30. Their team is consistently at 30 velocity points and can be relied upon to deliver according to our development intervals. KMS Technology always delivers what we need — their team has never blocked a product release.

Additionally, KMS Technology's work quality has also improved throughout the partnership. Our in-house team provides regular feedback on their source code — the amount of feedback KMS Technology receives has decreased as they've learned our product. Their team is self-sufficient, so our in-house team is now just rubber-stamping their work because it's consistently very high quality. 

How did KMS Technology perform from a project management standpoint?

KMS Technology has better project management than any of our in-house teams. I model a lot of my in-house team's development processes on KMS Technology. Typically, written communication is the best way to discuss projects with KMS Technology, so we use Slack and email. When we communicate through the phone, it can be difficult because of the language barrier. Their team accommodates our workflows, scheduling meetings according to our time zone and working late to attend sprint ceremonies. Honestly, the time zone difference is the biggest communication hurdle with KMS Technology. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

I've evaluated a lot of large development shops, but the fact that KMS Technology offers complete resource teams has really made them stand out. They function as a team and work from higher-level directions without needing daily management from our in-house team. Overall, KMS Technology requires less oversight than other firms. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

We occasionally have staffing challenges with KMS Technology because they have difficulty retaining resources — they often hire younger team members who leave after gaining experience. However, KMS Technology does their best to mitigate the impact of the staffing changes.

Additionally, the KMS Technology team's breadth of knowledge is relatively limited. They're always using the latest technology, making it challenging to find resources to work in C++ because it's not widely taught in the region. We're usually limited in the resources we can use from KMS Technology because not as many teammates have the development skills we need. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I'd advise customers to invest time in selecting the proper architect and manager and then slowly provide them with more autonomy as the project progresses. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm working as a Senior QC in ACB Bank

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

Project: build ACB Business App (ABA) for business users - Delineate a mobile product roadmap for 2021 Goal: personalized applications to best serve each type of customer, requires rigorous Penetration Testing and also close compliance with security standards. A mobile app designed only for Business Client focus on 3 key factors: Customer Centricity, Data Security, and Time-to-Market.

SOLUTION

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

They demonstrated both proficiency in User-centric Application Engineering and deep expertise in the Banking domain.

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

Scope of Work: Mobile-first Design, provided with a strategic product roadmap, and the tools and people to execute it Project Steps:

built an Activity Log with asynchronous processing --> ensure data security --> viable builds every 2 weeks Key deliverables:

Mobile App including features:

• React Native
• MobX
• Google Maps
• Firebase
• Reanimated
• React Navigation
• Biometric Authentication

Backend:

• Java
• Redis
• RabbitMQ
• PostgreSQL

Web Portal:

• React JS Technologies
• Katalon Studio
• Katalon TestOps
• Kobiton
• OWSAP Zed Attack Proxy

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

11 people from KMS Solutions along with our in-house staff. Their positions are:

• 1 Scrum Master
• 2 Front-end Developers
• 2 Java Back-end Developers
• 1 Back-office Developer
• 3 Test Engineers
• 1 DevOps Engineer
• 1 Business Analyst

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

With its experience in the banking domain, KMS Solutions ensured that the application architecture is user centric from not only the technical but also the business perspectives. The minimum viable product was released only 04 months after the project was kick-started

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

They demonstrate the owner of architecture, maturity, cost, serviceability and reliability of product; KMSS team has been flexible in adapt ad-hoc cases, they pay attention to details and transparent in their business dealings

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

We was amazed with pricing arrangements, support and company stability that KMS Solutions show the whole time on board project. The team was so enthusiastic and full of energy. They worked closely with ACB Dept, often at ACB headquarter, to make sure everything is aligned and agreed-upon.

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

Not that I could think of

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Vehicles selling and investment. I'm working as a Senior Marketing executive.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire KMS Solutions, Inc., and what were your goals?

We contacted them for a software development project as KMS is a leading IT companies in Vietnam with a wide range of services. We request them to provide a proposal to develop a mobile application for customers. The main purpose is to sell the vehicles online and provide customer services as well as tracking their maintenance schedule. The application needs to be able to support at least 1000 visitors at a time and have functions such as: booking, check the cars and its features, chat function for customers...

SOLUTION

How did you select KMS Solutions, Inc. and what were the deciding factors?

The main reason why we chose them is their reputation in the field, the capabilities to consult and execute the project, their professional working style as they receive our request and work on it with lightning speed, response fast and open for discussion to help us understand what we should do and what is the best for us.

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

They conducted a virtual call with us (because of Covid) to understand our goal and business expectation, who is our customers and their behaviors. Then they discussed clearly about our requirements, every single detail of the project, both on business user and technical side. They bring a project team including developers, tester, PM to interlock with our internal team and finish the project based on the methodology of Agile.

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

There are 4 people from their sides including PM, developers and testers. The real number of people who joined to support the project actually more based on the need.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The end results was very good, our customers happy because they now have a new channel to communicate with us, booking for their care check and maintenance. Beside that the team is friendly and professional, they have technological expertise and good communication skill

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

The team applied Agile DevOps, Design Thinking, Automation Testing the project. They preferred direct communication to avoid misunderstanding, we also discussed via email and online meetings using Microsoft Teams, Slack, Zoom.

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

Their culture of working with customers, listening before speaking, understanding, and then consulting. I'm quite impressed with their professional working style which is straightforward and clear, with newly adopted technologies and best practices.

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

I think the main problem is the cost of services. It's high compared to other IT companies in Vietnam and makes KMS Solutions somehow less competitive than the others but I think it depends on the quality of services and their positioning in the market. They are IT solutions leaders and they invested alot in technology as well as their expertise. It's matching with their customer profiles of international enterprises and big firms.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Co-Founder of (a/an) Real estate

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

SAAS company focusing on customer and employee feedback for the real estate industry.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire KMS Technology to accomplish?

• Identify opportunities in code base
• Identify strengths and weakness in technology infrastructure
• Open source scan of code base

SOLUTION

How did you find KMS Technology?

Referral

Why did you select KMS Technology over others?

• High ratings
• Good value for cost
• Referred to me
• Company values aligned

What was the size of KMS Technology’s team?

2-5 Employees

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

KMS interviewed and analyzed information provided to them to evaluate the tech stack, infrastructure, security protocols, and open source code base. Key deliverables included summary reports with recommendations and line by line open source code base analysis for use as seller side due diligence.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

• Cost to Value
• Priority Based Recommendations
• Short Turn Around Time

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

KMS scoped out the project, provided feedback based on prior experience, delivered report on time within an acceptable timeframe. Response to questions and communications was always prompt and thorough.

What was your primary form of communication with KMS Technology?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email
• Messaging App

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

Small, boutique and the willingness to help and answer questions. They're reliable and experts in what they do. 

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

Nothing. They provided a wonderful experience.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am an Executive of Activated Insights

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Activated Insights helps senior care providers collect feedback from their employees and residents to improve and build their brand.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire KMS Technology to accomplish?

• Due diligence - tech assessment report

SOLUTION

How did you find KMS Technology?

• Referral
• Other

Why did you select KMS Technology over others?

Referred to me

What was the size of KMS Technology’s team?

2-5 Employees

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

We engaged KMS to prepare our engineering and product teams for a potential sale process, including assessing the current state of technology, team, and process readiness; and recommending documentation and positioning updates.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

KMS deliverables included:

• Recommendations regarding updates or creation of technical and product documentation
• Verbal coaching in preparation of diligence meetings (this is not a written deliverable)
• Technical short and long-term recommendations
• Detailed Technical Assessment Report (Word formatted) with details on findings and recommendations found in the Static Code Scan

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

KMS Technology was very professional and responsive - they helped us prepare for the sale of our company in a thorough and thoughtful way. Highly recommend!

What was your primary form of communication with KMS Technology?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

Pattern recognition across other tech company stacks

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

Nothing to improve

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the CTO of an Edtech company. We offer expert-led online courses with an engaging learning platform.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire KMS Solutions, Inc.?

We wanted to transition to automation testing and implement CI testing with Jenkins and Docker. We needed an automation solution that can generate automation test script effectively, and can be compatible with our current operating systems.

SOLUTION

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

We came across KMS Solutions while browsing for IT outsourcing vendors via referral. As they have lots experience in automation testing, we decided to select KMS Solutions as our technology partner

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

KMS Solutions proposed to solve our problems with their automation testing tool Katalon. They integrated Katalon Studio with Jenkins and Docker with Selenium Grid. Afterwards, our internal QA team was able to work with the testing platform to create automation test scripts for GUI and API testing in a short amount of time. It also offers manual and script modes, making it feasible for our manual testers who want to learn automation testing

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

We worked with 4 automation engineers from KMS Solutions

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The test automation we've done cut down the regression testing lifecycle by 50%. We were able to reduce overall development time and release our product earlier than expected.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

They're great and professional. Always updated us on their working progress. Their training with our QA team went well and smooth.

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

Their work ethic was great. They paid close attention to our needs and work really hard to help us achieve our goals.

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

Not that I can think of

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We are an English Language Teaching institution for young learners in Vietnam. Our team is committed to maximizing and spreading the full potential of its students by constantly evoking and promoting their internal strengths and at the same time creating the best platform for young people to perform to the best of their abilities. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire KMS Solutions, Inc., and what were your goals?

Our company was looking for a trusted technology partner to design and build the learning platform for its teachers and students.

SOLUTION

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

KMS Solutions provides business technology consultation and world-class solutions to enterprises in digital applications and platform development

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

Scope of work: 2 months Discovery and Design to assist us in our early-stage for platform development

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

In this project, KMS has assigned: 1 Project lead, 2 Business Analysts, 1 Designer, 1 Solution Architect

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Project outcome: - The feature list for Teacher App - Mockup for mobile app - User story

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

They provide agile, open, and timely communication.

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

They are very productive.

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

N/A