One Beyond

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

ECC is a slightly unusual company. It's really a consortium of different universities. We are owned and operated by members that are all universities or advanced education colleges, and each of those members pay a subscription. That's where our funding comes from, essentially. What we provide is a job evaluation system called either HERA [higher education role analysis] for universities, or FEDRA [further education role analysis], if it's for further education colleges. We also provide a range of consultancy services linked to pay and reward, and job evaluation.

What is your position and responsibilities?

I am one of the consultants, and I am the project leader for the changeover to new software, which is why we've been working with DCSL.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with DCSL Software?

HERA has been around as a job evaluation scheme for around 15 years. It's factor specific, so it was designed for higher education institutions. We partnered up with another company that is a reward company, who also offered job evaluation, and our scheme used their software. They had millions of people worldwide who were also using this software.

It meant that we had no choice over how the software looked, how it operated, and what reports could be produced. We couldn't tailor it in any way or change it. We had an off the shelf product that supported our job evaluation scheme, and we were at the point where we realized that we needed to change that, and we needed something that we could change, own, and control. That was why we moved to finding a partner that could develop that sort of software for us.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement.

It was very much developing a system from scratch. That means they were responsible for helping us plan, design, develop, test, and launch. Going forward, they will be hosting the system for us and will be responsible for the upkeep, maintenance, and any further enhancements.

How did you come to work with DCSL Software?

The process started before I actually joined ECC. I joined in June 2013, and the tender process was underway already at that point. We had looked at around 20 companies, to get a sense of which companies were interested in tendering for this. We had in the area of 13 replies. At that point, we whittled it down to a list of about six, one of which was our existing supplier, but they were way out of range in terms of pricing. We very gently told them that we wouldn't be proceeding with them. That left us with five other companies from which to choose.

We did reference checks, we asked each of the companies to give us some other firms that they had worked with, and they had to complete a detailed questionnaire for us. We gave them a specification, and they told us how they would meet that specification in terms of what they could provide, and whether they thought that that would be something simple to provide or whether it was going to be a more complex piece of development, or whether it was something they would have to buy in expertise.

Then, another consultant and I checked the references that they provided. For each one, we did at least three reference calls, and then we came up with a kind of scoring process. That took us down to two companies, one of which was DCSL, and we had a final presentation day up in London in which we asked both companies to come and present. We asked them to put something together in terms of what you think this might look like going forward – give us some ideas of screens, and how you see it looking. DCSL had better ideas, they understood the brief more, and they were successful in being selected.

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

We're around £450,000 [approximately $700,000] so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We are continuing to work with DCSL Software. What we were looking for was a long-term partnership. It wasn't going to be just a case of them supplying the software and then walking away. We will continue to work with them, and they will host and maintain the software going into the future. We also plan to keep them involved in what we're doing, how we're developing our products, with them giving us some input into how we could develop the technical side of things to support that.

The most recent milestone completed with them was in June. All of our members had existing data on the old software platform, and part of the work that had to be done was quite an intense process of migrating that data onto the new software platform. There was a small team at DCSL that had worked with us on the development, which then also worked with us on the migration of the data. That was almost the final stage of the process.

At the moment, we've identified already, through members using the software, some system refinements. It's nothing actually that's not working. It's just things that we've looked at and determined there could be improvements. Now, it's little refinements and enhancements that they're doing. Some of them require a fair bit of coding, and that work will take us during the next few months.

In the meantime, the board of ECC are going to meet and put together an options paper for them, and we will decide which direction phase two of the project is going in. At the moment, we've got three options for what we might do next. It's up to the board to determine how we will proceed.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics, benchmarks or user feedback from this engagement?

I can say end-user feedback is 99.9 percent positive. People just love the new system, and even if they can't work on it the exact way they used to, we've been able to show them different ways of doing things. Once they can see it's just a tweak to their process, not one of our 125 members has come back and said, "I don't like this." Everyone thinks it's great.

The project team and myself worked with DCSL Software the most, and I couldn't speak highly enough about them. They made an effort to understand what it was we were trying to achieve and what we needed the outcomes to be. We put in a lot of hours, but they put in just as many hours, specifically in terms of some of the work around the data migration, which was a fairly intensive process. They've engaged with us, they've communicated with us, they talked to us, and they always come back with solutions. They've never come back and said, 'No, we can't do that.' Occasionally they come back and say, 'Yes, we can do it but it's going to cost you a lot.' So far, there has not been anything that they haven't been able to deliver.

How did DCSL Software perform from a project management standpoint?

I think to start with, I was a bit disappointed with the quality of the project planning. What that came down to in the end was, we just needed some very frank communication. It takes some time and effort to establish an effective workflow. Once we'd had that very frank conversation, and we understood each other's point of view, then things dramatically improved. It also helped us to understand their processes and how things worked at their end. It was really about understanding each other's processes and how they impacted our timetables, and once we understood that on both sides, it was fine.

On our end, we were using GanttProject, which is a free tool. DCSL were using Microsoft Project and then converting it into a GanttProject format for us. Sometimes, we just put lists and things on spreadsheets so that we could track, so nothing overly formal. I think most importantly, we're just keeping email trails and then showing that we logged conversations.

What distinguishes DCSL Software from other providers?

We worked with a guy named Domingo [Lara], who was the project leader, and he was very responsive to us. They were very good at feeding in other ideas, and that was what we were looking for, because we didn't know what the technology could do. Quite often, they came up with better ways of doing things than we had originally planned.

I quite like the way that we worked with them, in that they built a kind of an incomplete but semi-functional prototype. We were able to see how the system would operate on a basic level, how it would look, and we used that then to build the specifications. It's been very much a hands-on, agile process. They build a bit, we test it, give them feedback but, in the meantime, they're already building the second bit. They build in the changes and then we test phase two, iteration two. That worked, it was a good approach.

Is there anything DCSL Software could have improved or done differently?

I think perhaps right at the start – from both sides now, not just DCSL – being able to understand each other's processes and setting up some realistic expectations. I think that had a huge impact. Once they understood where we were coming from and what we were trying to get to, and understood a little bit about job evaluation, it made life a lot easier for them. Once we understood how certain processes worked and how testing worked at DCSL, then it was easier from our perspective. Fortunately, you only need to go through that process once and then you're set. At this point, we are very much satisfied with them. That was a long time ago.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

We are in the business of providing a cloud-based analysis application for use in the hospitality industry, focusing on the area of conference meeting and events. There are about eight or nine tools in our application that users can utilize to manage their future business strategy. We sell it on a subscription basis to hotels and conference venues.

What is your position?

I am the operations director.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with DCSL Software?

Our founder and managing director ran her own business providing some of these tools, but they were in Excel and in spreadsheet format, which she sold to properties and venues. The challenge was that it relied on the users manually inputting data into these spreadsheets to provide them with some type of analysis. She wanted to automate the whole process.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.

The hospitality industry is not standardized. No two hotel companies are the same, no two hotels within a company operate in exactly the same way. We needed to have flexibility in the application to add extensions to particular tools. Custom features would be a necessity.

We liked the way DCSL approached the challenge. Their CEO [Nick Thompson] had a team meeting with our founder and myself, and we spent half a day presenting what we wanted them to complete. Their whole team was there. After that initial meeting, I think it was only two more half days, and they were up and running.

They used a lot of Microsoft. The system architecture is a Microsoft ASP.NET application using MVC 5 and hosted on Rackspace, which is obviously the company that hosts the day-to-day server.

How did you come to work with DCSL Software?

There were initially four companies under consideration for this project, but we wound up choosing DCSL. A key driver behind the decision was that we needed someone who could grasp the concept of what we wanted to do. They also needed to fulfill the broader requirements for the development of the application, but also the other elements around it in terms of day-to-day storage and management.

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

It cost £78,000 [approximately $122,000].

What is the status of this engagement?

Testing was finally completed at the end of February 2015, and we went onto a live system on March 1. In terms of actual paying clients, we've only been up and running since May. We haven't started QCs [quality controls] or reviews. Two of the properties had our product installed in May and then 10 properties by June, so it's very early days at the moment. We're still working – still evolving.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

Currently, with the users that we have, we know that 99 percent of them are using it every single day, from what we can track, Monday through Friday. We can see that they're importing their own data on a daily basis to update the database, so they have real-time analysis. Some of them are already using the reports that can be exported, or some of the screenshots in the weekly reports.

One thing I can say is the availability of DCSL personnel has just been tremendous, whether that is a specific developer or somebody else without fault. There are rarely time delays, so if something needs to be done today or tomorrow, DCSL has the flexibility to do that.

They do understand that, as new clients come on board, there will always be idiosyncrasies in terms of the way some of the data comes across into our database. There is always staff on hand to provide us with expert analysis on what is wrong. We always have access to peer support and to their developers who have worked on the application.

How did DCSL Software perform from a project management standpoint?

They make it very clear what is going to happen from A to Z, which then gives them a true path to follow. They are very organized without being overly rigid. They're tremendously flexible, and they are quite prepared if things don't work out the way they should because of a particular client we have. They are in there, trying to find resolutions.

What distinguishes DCSL Software from other providers?

At the initial meeting, the one thing that stood out for us was that they were just so prepared. DCSL Software had done their homework. They were more than prepared, even at that initial meeting. They kind of pre-empted our needs. As a small startup company, I think they've very much mentored us in technical areas that neither my boss nor I had the expertise in, especially on the IT [information technology] side.

Is there anything DCSL Software could have improved or done differently?

At this point, I will have to say no. There is nothing that we would change. There is nothing in the whole process that we've felt caused a delay or a frustration. There was nothing.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company.

We're a culinary academy. We provide professional training for people who are looking for careers in food. There are two aspects to our business. We have a professional academy, which is entirely a skill-based cooking school. Then, we also have a restaurant attached to the school, staffed by graduates of our academy while they're studying for a hospitality management qualification.

What is your position?

I'm the managing director.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

Could you describe the business challenge that you were trying to address with DCSL Software?

We had a very antiquated Microsoft Access recipe database. We have about 2,000 recipes that we use as training materials. The database we were using was an automated system that allowed us to plug in the number of students we've got cooking a particular recipe at any one time, and the database would produce all of the ordering lists for us to contact our suppliers and place orders. The database was created in 1997 or thereabouts, and it was a very old system. A couple of years ago, I learned that Microsoft was ending support for that particular version of Access, so if the database crashed, we would be back to doing our ordering with a pencil, a bit of paper, and a calculator.

That's when we went to DCSL Software to build us a new database, but also to incorporate into it a system whereby, once we've plugged in how many students we've got cooking a particular recipe on a particular day, the software would automatically produce all of our educational management materials. So, it would provide the students' timetables and recipe schedules, along with lists of what recipes they were cooking and when they needed their supplies and materials. The system could produce student recipe files and learning materials, and on top of that, perform the functions of the old Microsoft Access database to produce all of our order sheets. So, effectively, what we asked DCSL Software to create was a complete operations management system for our business.

SOLUTION

What technologies were used to develop your database?

You're now speaking a language I don't understand. I'm a chef by trade, and what I wanted DCSL Software to create was a system that is completely user-friendly, so that I could bring a new member onto my team who has no computer training, and he or she could easily grasp how to use the database. So, what we wanted them to do was create a piece of Web-based software that they can manage in time, so as the technology evolves the software can grow with our company. I wanted DCSL Software to create a piece of software that is really user-friendly, and that's what they've done. So, when you start asking me about what software they used to build the database, I have no idea. All I know is that it works.

Did you provide the visual collateral and strategic guidance in-house?

Yes. That's right. DCSL Software came down here and spent about two or three weeks with us. They looked at our existing Access database, how we used it and what its various functionalities were. They also looked at our existing recipes. The 2,000 or so recipes we have are basically all saved as Microsoft Word documents. What they did during those two or three weeks was a lot of data gathering. They learned how our business works and talked to us a lot about what we wanted this software to do.

Essentially what they had to do was get an understanding of how we work, and then identify where there were opportunities to create a more efficient, automated process. We gave them the basic requirements, we showed them the recipes, and we showed them what we wanted the end product to look like. They had a look at our current operation, they looked at what we wanted the end product to look like, and they figured out how best to get us from A to Z using the most efficient route possible.

Could you provide a general cost estimate for this engagement?

We've spent about £40,000 [approximately $61,200] working with DCSL Software.

Is this an ongoing relationship?

It's ongoing in that we're just in the process now of taking the finished product and implementing it into our day-to-day activities. It's also ongoing in that we're going to keep them onboard with a monthly retainer to manage the software moving forward, so as our business grows and evolves, the software can grow and evolve with the business. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics, metrics or user feedback that would demonstrate the quality of their performance?

It's a bit too early to tell because we're only just starting to use the software now. I'm expecting to see about a 50 percent improvement in productivity from the people who are using the software. Historically, the systems that we were using were quite slow and labor intensive. I think this new software is going to save people an awful lot of time in not having to push bits of paper around desks, so I'm thinking 50 percent improvement in productivity. At least, that's what I'm hoping for.

Regarding their responsiveness and ability to deliver your assigned work on time and within budget, have you had any issues in those areas?

No. The only thing I would say is, that during the initial meeting we had with them, they underestimated how complex the project was going to be. When I asked them how long they thought the project would take, their estimate was that it would take about nine months, but it's actually taken something like 13 months. I knew from the outset that nine months was probably unrealistic because I felt certain that once they came down here and spent some time learning how our systems work, they would realize the job was a lot more complicated than they had initially expected. But, importantly, their price has not changed from their original quote. So the project has taken a bit more time than they originally thought, but they've honored their original quote. 

Is there anything you'd consider unique about their practice?

I have no comparison here, since I've never used anybody else for a piece of software development on this scale. I have used a company recently that built us a new website. Our website was a £30,000 project, and I actually think DCSL Software has been much easier to deal with. They got it right the first time around, while the people who built our website created one that has needed a lot of attention and maintenance since it went live.

In retrospect, are there areas in which they could improve as a service provider?

I would like to have seen the solution delivered within nine months rather than 13, but that's also because it's the estimate that they proposed to begin with. We're a small business, so an investment of £40,000 is a lot of money for us. On the other hand, I would rather the project take four months longer if that was what was needed to deliver software that worked the first time around. So, from that perspective, I'm not too worried about the time issue.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

I can't say that there is any advice I would give. I've been really pleased with DCSL Software, and, if you asked me whether or not I would use them again, the simple answer is yes – absolutely.

BACKGROUND

Could you briefly describe your organization?

[We are] a business information provider. We provide solutions to the construction industry on maintenance-type renew and refurbishment contracts. We use a library of pricing and, typically, local authority or public-funded bodies would enter into what are called long-term contracts with contractors on the basis of our pricing schedules. This gives them a transparent accounting of public spending money.

What is your position?

I was the managing director.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

Could you describe the business challenge that you were trying to address when you first approached DCSL Software?

When I joined the company, we had a couple of legacy systems that were really dated. They did work, but the marketplace itself was changing. The client needs were far more sophisticated, and we needed to address this with a more secure, robust, and functional platform than we currently had.

SOLUTION

Could you describe the scope of their involvement in greater detail?

DCSL Software really did the whole thing, from doing the needs analysis specifications, the actual development, and the initial training. They had some sort of workflow tool, which allowed them to mockup the database using a standard Microsoft product. Most of their work was functional development, though.

How did you come to select DCSL Software as your partner?

We made the decision based on size, ability to deliver and our own position in the marketplace. As a small niche company, we needed a partner that we’d be comfortable with rather than a very large software house. We did some research and got some good feedback about DCSL Software.

Could you provide a general cost estimate for this particular engagement?

We’ve spent about £100,000 [approximately $153,000] working with DCSL Software.

What is the status of the project?

It was completed in April 2014. The project was scheduled to be completed a bit earlier than that, but we had a few changes that were required.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

In terms of results, could you share any statistics, metrics, or user feedback that would demonstrate the quality of their performance?

DCSL Software did a very good job in translating our needs into a database that worked almost flawlessly. Apart from going slightly over, both in terms of time and budget, we were happy with the results.

DCSL Software recruited really well, and they are very easy people to deal with. The leadership, the developers, and the quality control – they’re all very professional and personable. We really appreciated that about them.

When working with DCSL Software, is there anything that you would consider unique about their strategic approach or development methodology that distinguish them from other vendors?

I think their upfront ability to understand our business was what impressed us the most. What was different with DCSL Software was that they had the ability to understand both our customers and what our business was trying to achieve. They were smart enough to challenge us about why we were doing certain things, which made us think those issues through again. We had a very interactive development approach, which was useful. Rather than having preconceived ideas of what a database solution should look like, we built ours very much to meet our business needs, which resulted in quite an impressive product.

In retrospect, are there any areas in which you think they could improve as a service provider?

Sometimes, your greatest success can also be your greatest weakness. I think if we had spent just a little more time going through the specifications, some of the quality control issues would’ve been avoided. It’s nothing that I would say was major, but there was a lesson learned. Rather than trying to build too early, just spend the right amount of time at the specification stage. If we had mapped all of the data flows at that stage, we would’ve saved some of the end work that was required when we were at the build stage.

What advice, if any, would you give a future client of theirs?

Sometimes, the actual data flows are difficult to visualize, and just that little bit of investment upfront clearly mapping your data flows would help immensely. What happens is that as you move from the specifications to the build stage, you sometimes lose some of the intent. Most of those involved in the specification know exactly what the design intent was, but the developers who actually do the coding might not. It’s not a major point, but it was a useful lesson. I don’t think you can overspecify, and it’s a useful exercise that will save in terms of later cost development.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Lime is an end-to-end life, health and wellness platform. it is a very different but overdue business bringing affordable and understandable protection to the people of the UK

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire GuideSmiths?

Our Challenge is growing the team in an affordable and sustainable way, we chose Guidesmiths two help us.

What were your goals for this project?

Speed up deployment of new products and service to market

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We had a pre-existing relationship and followed this over to guidesmiths and we've been very happy.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

Guidesmiths provides skilled resources that can add to our existing capability, which we are happy about

What was the team composition?

we just have single senior developers, we do not currently hire teams or pods

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

we've been very happy with the depth and talent of our team members sourced through Guidesmiths

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

Guidesmiths became part of an existing project, they adapted quickly.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

straight talking and little or no nonsense

Are there any areas for improvement?

We like working with Guidesmiths and see this collaboration as a continuing part of our growth plans.