MAVA Partners

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Chief Operating Officer of a nonprofit company 

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Our organization work to build markets, connections and resources for Indiana corn and soybean farmers through checkoff investments and advocating for agriculture legislation and policies.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire MAVA Partners to accomplish?

• App Development for Membership
• API Interfaces between Membership systems and other systems (email, etc).
• Increased membership functionality to encompass multiple organizations

SOLUTION

How did you find MAVA Partners?

Referral

Why did you select MAVA Partners over others?

Good value for cost

How many teammates from MAVA Partners were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

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

Our organization needed to combine membership data from two systems into one system and build custom screens for our entity. This work also included building a mobile app and api functionality with outside systems (Constant Contact and Cvent).

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We were able to have better reporting and management. We were able to send customized letters based on entity and have improved flow of contact management as well as have app access for membership on the go.

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

They respond to our needs via working together via phone calls. We did have turnover in initial project team but currently like having a liason to work with to troubleshoot our needs with the development team that is overseas.

What was your primary form of communication with MAVA Partners?

Virtual Meeting

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

We were able to accomplish our goals at a reasonable cost.

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

The liason position is key. Software changes take a lot of coordinated discipline between client and vendor. I think the challenge on both of our sides is ensuring projects and timelines keep on track.That requires project management on both sides.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the CEO of a consulting company

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

We provide accounting, tax, and CFO services to SMEs.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire MAVA Partners to accomplish?

Create a revenue dashboard for our clients.

SOLUTION

How did you find MAVA Partners?

Referral

Why did you select MAVA Partners over others?

• Close to my geographic location
• Good value for cost
• Referred to me
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from MAVA Partners were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

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

The goal was to pull client revenue data out of a system that had outdated reporting so that the C-Suite would have real-time access to the data they needed.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

• Having revenue broken out by the necessary forms for management reporting (by location, type, function, etc). 
• Having the data be real-time and vetted by the internal accounting staff against other reports to ensure accuracy. 
• All were met.

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

MAVA was responsive and quick to solve issues. Even as updates and changes need to be made after the close of the project, they work with us hand in hand and are highly responsive.

What was your primary form of communication with MAVA Partners?

Virtual Meeting

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

They were highly responsive and worked until they solved the issue.

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

Occasionally, it felt that the team was unprepared for meetings or had not done their homework going in. Not a big issue, but sometimes they created meetings that didn't need to be or could have been shorter.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the President of a accounting and consulting firm that provides services to SMEs

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire MAVA Partners?

One of our points of pride is providing live data and dashboards to our clients giving them easy access to their key financial and non-financial data.

SOLUTION

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

The team at MAVA Partners was kind, understanding, and quick in providing feedback. They replied to emails quickly and set up calls/meetings as necessary to keep things moving.

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

First, we set up the data we were hoping to pull through the API. Then they investigated the structure of the API and we made the necessary changes. They then pulled in the data and we reviewed it against our needs.

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

Their founder was our initial point of contact, but as things go more technical we worked with Curt, VP of Software.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our client has a dashboard with live data from their complex POS system that gives them instant insights to where they're value is coming, cash flow issues and what locations are performing well.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

They had a reliable team of experts who got the job done as described and overcame various issues in the POS API.

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

Their ability to take a one-off project like this was very helpful. They were reasonably priced and it was a great team to work with.

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

None!

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I manage a Sunday school for all churches in the US and Canada for the Malankara Archdiocese of North America. My responsibilities include creating new textbooks and organizing Bible study retreats.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with MAVA Partners?

Until 2019, we were still doing paper exams. Each paper was around 32 pages of multiple-choice questions for the final exam, and we had to mail those to the churches due to COVID. Some tests were sent back, which turned out to be expensive. We were initially planning to cancel the exam, but we started looking at online solutions.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

MAVA created a standardized test software that we're hosting on our server. They were responsible for the frontend and backend development and the UI/UX design. It's separate from our main website, and we link to it. It has a registration form that kids use on exam day, and it's the same across North America. The platform has a two-hour time limit for the exam, after which it shuts down — we manage the software ourselves and upload questions using spreadsheets. From there, we have oral evaluations through videoconferencing.

They built the portal from scratch and did it in an agile manner. After that, we added items as we went on for an additional cost. The site gives the student a warning if they visit another page after the exam starts. The second or third time this happens, it will lock the student out of the exam, and they will have to call in and explain what they're doing to get back in. We're now planning to implement a feature against copy/pasting.

What is the team composition?

We worked with Curt (VP Software Delivery), Kishore (Project Manager), and another person from their team.

How did you come to work with MAVA Partners?

They created another application for the archdiocese, which I'd used myself and liked. I decided to reach out to a colleague, and he put me in contact with Curt.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project ran between May–October 2020, including testing and debugging.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

MAVA Partners did a fantastic job building the platform in a way that we're self-sufficient. They were top-notch from a professional perspective and understood our requirements, which they delivered. We did have a couple of bugs, and we asked for a few enhancements; MAVA was very quick to give those, and they had to get creative because we had very particular development requirements.

Students took the test on the portal across North America, and the feedback was very positive; we didn't have a single issue during the registration, exam, or evaluation, and they were able to convert the whole test to an electronic version, which was a massive benefit for us. They delivered beyond what we were expecting.

How did MAVA Partners perform from a project management standpoint?

We had important delivery dates, and MAVA was fantastic — I rate them 10/10 from a project management perspective. We didn't use project management tools, but we used email for communication and conference calls to discuss our requirements.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their passion is the one thing I underline; MAVA delivered an amazing product to us. Whatever they're building, they go in and give it that extra effort to make sure that it stands out.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can't think of anything they can improve on — they went beyond our expectations.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Once you start the discussion, MAVA will bring many suggestions, but you have to come prepared with a framework.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the VP of Audience Development for Farm Journal, a media data company. My role is to get subscribers to sign up for all the different products that Farm Journal like print digital, mobile messaging systems, and all our websites.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with MAVA Partners?

We hired MAVA Partners to build the system for our print magazines, so that we can accurately collect first-party data from our subscribers. This is to ensure that we’re passing audits for our publisher statements, which are used by our sales staff for print ads. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The system was originally built using Silverlight, and since that isn’t usable anymore, MAVA Partners essentially helped us with a system upgrade using SQL, .NET, and AWS.

The system isn’t only used for storing our circulation data, but call centers can directly use it when they’re making phone calls. The process begins with a file being put under a list and once there, the operators can call and update the subscriptions in real-time while they’re talking to a person.

What is the team composition?

I first worked with Shiren (Co-Founder & CTO), but Greg (Project Manager) is the one who runs the system for us, so we could do our fulfillment and get the duplicating files, warning scripts, and the list for our call centers.

How did you come to work with MAVA Partners?

Shiren was previously an employee of Farm Journal. At that time, they were using an out-of-the-box type of circulation software, but it wasn't meeting their needs. By then, he had started his own company, so Farm Journal hired him to build a custom system for what they needed in circulation.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent somewhere between $100,000–$300,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

I don't really know when the engagement started, but I think it's been at least 20 years. I've been here for seven years so my personal engagement with them started in July 2014, and it’s still ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

What’s special about the system that they’re building for us, is that it’s the only system that I know of, where call centers can directly use that same system when they're making phone calls.

How did MAVA Partners perform from a project management standpoint?

They perform well, despite not having much communication as we had in the past — for the first few years, I had daily or weekly communications with Shiren. They have a bigger team now, and I have a manager that has daily communications and attends their project meetings once a week.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I know they have other clients, but they make me feel like I'm their only client. Anytime I have an issue, they're just right there to take care of it, and I’ve just been super happy with them.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, not really. I've been really happy with the things that they've done.

Any advice for potential customers?

I would advise on having a plan. If they’re going to build your system, just give them as much detail as you can upfront to get it done.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of an independent life insurance broker.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with MAVA Partners?

In the life insurance business, leads are very important. We had to create a systematic way to get more leads so that we could talk to interested people about life insurance.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

MAVA Partners helped us develop a system that provides real-time notifications to our agents about people who called to request more information about life insurance. When someone calls, they get answered by an interactive voice response (IVR). Then, the IVR captures the potential client’s information and sends a PDF to the agents. An agent then can just pick up the phone and call the interested person.

I initially gave MAVA Partners all of our business requirements. It was a complex software solution that took 3–4 months to be coded and developed, but it is working now. We run marketing mailers, and we ask people to call a 1-800 number. When they call that 1-800 number, they talk directly with the IVR system that MAVA Partners developed.

What is the team composition?

I work directly with a project manager, but I don’t know how many more people are involved in the project.

How did you come to work with MAVA Partners?

My wife’s best friend knew one of MAVA Partners' owners and recommended them.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent $30,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in November 2018, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Thanks to this system, I’ve been able to generate income for myself and my agents. Our whole agency is generating around $2 million every year, and our net income is around $750,000–$800,000.

How did MAVA Partners perform from a project management standpoint?

We collaborate and communicate continuously. Although things have never been perfect on the first try,  MAVA Partners has been very diligent in helping us put everything together. Even if something wasn’t delivered as it should have, they’ve fixed it pretty quickly. We use email and Zoom to communicate.

What did you find most impressive about them?

MAVA Partners has great technical competence, and they know what they’re doing.

Are there any areas they could improve?

It would be great if their cost were lower.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Define your business requirements clearly, and be diligent upfront. If you don’t do it, the scope might creep in pretty quickly.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

NCGA is a trade association representing Americas corn farmers. I am Manager, Membership & Association Services. DBA for our internet based member database for our 27 state affiliates

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We needed a member management system with an integrated corn yield contest tracking module. IT need to be easy to use, but sophisticated to handle fit our unique requirements. And easily adaptable to future needs.

SOLUTION

How did you select MAVA Partners and what were the deciding factors?

I had years of previous experience with owner/lead developer.

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

Designed and developed a web base members management database solution. We had several discovery meetings regarding our needs. They provided a detailed quote well within budget, then a few months later delivered a solution which was fine tuned to our liking. Being a built from scratch solution they continue to work to improve, enhance and add any new functionally to fulfil our ever changing needs.

How many people from the MAVA Partners team worked with you, and what were their positions?

Lead developer, project manager, and additional programmers as required to complete each component of the project

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

When delivered on time and below budget, there was high praise from out 27 state offices users regarding the ease and speed compared to previous system. They raved on the worked hours it saved them each month.

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

Always available by phone, rarely had to leave a message and wait for a call back, very quick to responded to emails, or Microsoft Team messages, always wiling to jump on a Zoom meeting.

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

They have been a cohesive team, and everyone works well together.

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

No, it has been a great 20+ year relationship.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of an organization that helps families organize and prepare their estates for their end of life.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with MAVA Partners?

We hired MAVA Partners to build our entire software stack and app.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We explained to them what we wanted to do and what our ultimate goal was. After that, they came up with a game plan on how to complete our project. Then, the team spearheaded the MVP development, and they're now on the full product development stage. They've adopted a multi-stage approach to make sure everything is working smoothly.

What is the team composition?

Our main point of contact is our project manager, and we’re also working with their business analysts, developers, architects, UI/UX designers, and more. At one point, we worked with 11 people from MAVA Partners.

How did you come to work with MAVA Partners?

MAVA Partners was referred to us.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent over $100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our ongoing partnership started in August 2021.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They address our issues as quickly as possible, and when they say they’re going to do something, they always fulfill it. For example, if they promise to implement improvements within 2–3 days, they’ll complete it within that timeframe.

We measure their success based on their ability to complete all their deliverables and their ability to stay on budget. In connection with that, they’ve hit every deadline we have. On the budget part, they’ve been either on budget or under budget.

How did MAVA Partners perform from a project management standpoint?

They ensure that everything’s on track. They’ve got teams in Austin and India that are very responsive. We meet 1–3 times a week and all their teammates always answer our queries. We primarily communicate over Teams, but we also keep in touch through phone calls and emails.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re knowledgeable and are capable of explaining technical terms in a simple way. Since they carefully think about how things should be done, our product is turning a lot better.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I don’t have any constructive feedback for them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be very open with MAVA Partners because they’re great communicators. They’re very talented, so the more data you can give them, the more they can run and create something better.