Robosoft Technologies Inc.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the manager of IT services at RAK Medical & Health Sciences University (RAKMHSU), which is a medical university located in Ras Al Khaimah, UAE. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Robosoft Technologies?

Robosoft designed and developed a tailor-made university management system (UMS) as per our academic and administrative requirements.

What were your goals for this project?

We needed our constituent colleges and administrative offices to have access to unified data to avoid manual and duplicate work and to enhance automation. Our primary objectives were simplifying our internal workflow, increasing operational efficiency, and allowing easy and accurate reporting. 

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

After meeting with several service providers and speaking to former clients, we decided that Robosoft suited our requirements.

Describe the project in detail.

They designed and developed a UMS with the following 12 modules: marketing, registration and online applications, performance, accounts, core examinations, online examinations, document management, communication, academic advising, transportation, a student portal, and a lesson management system (LMS).

What was the team composition?

Robosoft provided an experienced technical team for our project. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What outcomes or results can you share that demonstrate progress and/or success?

We are happy with the UMS and are enhancing the solution’s scope by increasing the number of modules. All 12 modules are now live and fully functional. Next, we’re planning to develop mobile apps for the UMS with Robosoft’s help.

How effective was the project management?

Robosoft provided proper planning and documentation. They helped us identify our requirements in order to achieve a reliable solution and avoid potential workflow issues.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

They understand requirements quickly and analyze their workflow constantly. When developing a solution, they prioritize end-user requirements and prompt delivery. We are totally satisfied with their level of service and support.

What tips or recommendations do you have?

Robosoft excels in designing and developing custom applications. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

Softura is an IT services company which has been in business for 20 years focusing on multiple verticals, including automotive, healthcare, and legal. We also undertake research projects for universities, but our primary skill is within Microsoft stack and mobile.

What is your position?

I am one of the company's principals, playing the role of solutions engineering VP. My job is to provide the right guidance for the sales team to put together proper proposals and technologies.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Robosoft?

We have partnered with Robosoft for mobile development projects. We have some bandwidth on this area, but for larger scopes of work which need to be executed in a short period, Robosoft can supply a much larger team than ours as well as provide services as partners and go after new opportunities.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in greater detail.

One of the projects we're working on with Robosoft involves the integration of calendar functions into people's everyday lives. Robosoft has helped us through the sales and execution process of the cross-platform mobile app. Robosoft is also good at mobile UI/UX design.

Robosoft will also be assisting us with a research project involving an iOS or Android app, which will be used within a 30-day study for HIV risks. At-risk patients will use the app to report their daily activity, especially as it relates to substance abuse and nutrition. One of the functionalities is an eligibility screener looking at a number of conditions. The information is sent to a central SQL server database, where the analytics part will happen. We will only be delivering raw data to researchers, who will be the ones slicing-and-dicing.

We have partnered with Robosoft for joint-bidding projects with decent-sized RFPs. They've made sure that we came through as being one entity and had good knowledge of what we were proposing in terms of solutions and projects. Robosoft's principal has helped me on the mobile side a lot.

We work jointly with internal project managers in charge of the partnership. Robosoft assigns its own project managers for the development resources.

How did you come to work with Robosoft?

Robosoft is located in my native city in India. They're quite a popular company locally, having won some awards and been featured in the news. When I needed more mobile work, I decided to reach out to Robosoft. They don't have a large presence in the US, with most of Robosoft's work taking place in India. Because of that, I was able to leverage some cost savings and extra bandwidth. Robosoft has been able to deliver a one-year project in four months by allocating more people to it.

The vetting process was easy for us since Robosoft's reputation is out there, and I have personally used apps developed by them. One example is a popular news app from India for a company called NDTV. I use it for reading news and streaming videos and find it to be great. A few of our partners had worked with Robosoft, and we consulted with them about the company.

We have much better sales and marketing in the US compared to Robosoft, so we've been able to leverage each other's strengths.

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

The cost of Robosoft's work has been between $300,000 and $400,000 in total. We haven't started any large, multimillion-dollar projects with Robosoft yet.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Robosoft in early 2015.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

Robosoft's main advantage is the bandwidth they can provide. They're not afraid to assign a lot of people to a single project and make it work. Robosoft is committed to the work, and they understand what our expectations are. Robosoft has been available when we needed problem-solving and having any sort of escalation done. If I'm not happy with a certain resource, the issue will reach the right people, who will take corrective actions. In the end, we are accountable for the projects we take on in the US, but Robosoft has been very collaborative in this respect.

How did Robosoft perform from a project management standpoint?

We don't let Robosoft handle much of the project management. In order to mitigate risks for ourselves, we use our own managers, but Robosoft has some internal escalation, team leadership, and management channels. Any escalations were responded to quickly, but we deal with our own clients, with few exceptions.

What distinguishes Robosoft from other providers?

Not having the right know-how within the mobile domain, I've leaned on Robosoft's experience for multiple projects. Our work has involved GPS tracking, interfacing with RFID devices, video functionalities, and so on. Robosoft has experience with things that would prove challenging to us, since they've worked on similar tasks across multiple projects. That has been their strength, and we've leveraged it whenever we could.

When I receive some first questions from a customer, I need to make sure that Robosoft's team can participate in the call, as they can speak about their previous engagements. If this isn't possible, we've often let the clients go, since we didn't want to take the risk. I've leaned on Robosoft, and they've been transparent in mentioning areas where they lack experience.

Is there anything Robosoft could have improved or done differently?

There have been some communication issues related to cultural differences, but they exist even within my own organization. I've given feedback to Robosoft about the team's use of language, grammar, and attention to detail.

Robosoft is able to fly resources to the US, but they don't have a great local presence, and they also don't work 24/7. Having a contact during off-hours in India would be an improvement. Overall, Robosoft has very good performance.

Do you have any recommendations for others considering working with Robosoft?

Robosoft has highly skilled members and a very good overall experience, especially on the creative side. If the customer is looking for good creative work for a lower cost factor, Robosoft is a good choice. They've typically given us fixed prices, which is rare to see today.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Whil is the only digital wellbeing training solution for professionals, by professionals. Employees access 200+ programs and over 1,250 sessions on-demand to reduce stress, increase resilience, and improve their sleep and performance. Whil's programs are based on science, mindfulness, and positive psychology, created to address the largest stress and healthcare cost-drivers for companies. Whil works with the world's top brands and integrates with the leading corporate wellness platforms to train happier, healthier, and more engaged employees. I am the director of product, responsible for the successful development and delivery of all our products to market. We're based in San Francisco.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Robosoft Technologies?

Whil just released a major update to its award-winning digital wellbeing training platform, available on mobile and desktop. For our soft launch, it was essential to provide an iOS and Android apps to support our responsive website.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Robosoft quickly and seamlessly wrapped our responsive website into iOS and Android apps. They worked with minimal effort on our part and delivered on time and on budget.

How did you come to work with Robosoft Technologies?

We interviewed a dozen companies for this work. We did a technical screen and business interview with most of these companies. Robosoft provided exactly the technical approach we needed, and the customer service and business acumen to make us comfortable to proceed.

How much have you invested with Robosoft Technologies?

Sorry, this is confidential.

What is the status of this engagement?

The engagement with Robosoft is complete.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We had to change and redirect immediately after launch, which Robosoft resolved quickly. Since then, we have been in production for nearly two months without issue.

How did Robosoft Technologies perform in terms of project management?

Robosoft did perfectly. They delivered on time and on budget.

What did you find most impressive about Robosoft Technologies?

Robosoft's team is highly responsive and easy to work with. Robosoft had a clear understanding of what had to be done and were sensitive to our needs at a critical time in development.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the CTO [chief technology officer] of Dubber, which is a cloud-based SaaS [software-as-a-service] providing call recording and audio asset management.

The Playback engine is Dubber’s proprietary technology powering this innovative service. Once Playback is activated on a user's phone service through their providers, their calls are processed through a stream for up to 3 days. When the user decides to keep a call after it's finished or browsing through 3 days of calls, then a secure audio file is generated that is only available to them.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Robosoft Technologies?

We needed help developing the Dubber app, which is available on iOS, Android, and on the web; it can be accessed to securely manage a user’s personal archive of kept calls. A history of calls can be seen for up to 3 days and kept to be played back at any time. The Dubber app has the flexibility to be reimagined to fit a service provider's branding and also serves as a gateway to other Dubber services available today and in the future.

The Playback service by Dubber is available through service providers and carriers. It can be deployed on any major UC [unified communications] platform such as BroadSoft within days and rolled out across the entire network. It is a true native and cloud-based call recording for service providers. Built from the ground up using the power of Amazon Web Services, Dubber call recording with BroadSoft and other UC platforms can achieve unlimited scalability, matched by no other solution.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The challenge for the combined Scrum team from both organizations was to deliver an iOS and Android app at the same time the Dubber Platform was being enhanced to ensure the overall solution came together. Through strong communications and collaboration, this was easily managed. The Robosoft project members just became part of the Dubber development team.

Project requirements did change significantly throughout the project lifecycle, but this was just managed as part of the Agile/Scrum processes, and adjustments were made sprint by sprint.

How did you come to work with Robosoft Technologies?

Robosoft was recommended by Prueba India Pvt Ltd, a fellow Manipal/Udupi Outsourcing organization currently employed by Dubber for QA & DevOps.

Robosoft had developed over 1,400 mobile apps, and we had no real mobile app development experience within our Dubber development team. It was important for us to find an organization that could develop our Playback mobile app and lead us with appropriate architecture and UX [user experience] from a mobile perspective. Dubber uses Agile development processes and practices, so Robosoft's willingness to work with us this way, including our tools, daily stand-ups, etc. was an important factor in them being chosen.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The app developed with Robosoft Technologies is a key piece of the Dubber platform. It allows Dubber to provide an innovative service for our Telco partners looking for additional income streams and drive significant income opportunities for both parties. It is a “game changer” for Dubber.

What did you find the most impressive about Robosoft Technologies?

Robosoft was chosen for their portfolio of app development and associated experience in this domain. This was confirmed during the project and extension; Robosoft definitely knows their stuff. For example, the architect/iOS development lead directed us toward the best solution, and her thoroughness on design and implementation was outstanding.

Are there any areas where Robosoft Technologies could improve?

Overseas collaboration or onshore/offshore projects are always a challenge, especially in an agile project where communication between team members is paramount to success.  Initially, there were “teething problems,” but Robosoft’s project team was keen to make it work and implemented our suggestions to make us one team. Through daily standups via Google Hangouts and constant messaging via Slack, the dynamics quickly evolved and communication become a non-issue.

There is always room for improvement: following agile processes around the correct management of epics/stories (via PivotalTracker in our case) proved challenging for them throughout the project, particularly managing the backlog correctly; prioritization, estimation, and delivery of stories definitely needs more work. Dubber insisted on having both unit and functional testing deliverables from Robosoft on this project, despite not being a “normal requirement” for mobile development. This proved to be a challenge, but as they became more experienced with Appium for both iOS and Android, the quality improved over the duration of the project.

What tips or recommendations could you share that might increase the likelihood of success with Robosoft Technologies?

Ensure you have a “one team” mentality from the outset from both sides and make sure Robosoft fully understands how you expect them to work in “your” agile world.  If this is done, you’ll have no issues, as they’ll work with you to deliver a great app for your business.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am an independent entrepreneur trying to build a website that will hopefully turn into a business. I'm not sure about how it will turn out, given that it's more of a self-help website than a business.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Robosoft?

I needed design and development resources in order to build my website.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Robosoft is building my website and is also helping me with marketing aspects, supporting me with ideas on how my service can be introduced to the public.

We went through an initial process of determining what the best solution would be for me. Robosoft started the work within a week of building the project scope.

How did you come to work with Robosoft?

I found Robosoft through luck more than anything else. For almost a year, I looked for a company which could work with me, without finding one who was actually responsive. A friend had started a very similar company, and told me that finding software and web developers who take up outsourced projects is a challenge. The market is mostly made up of companies who handle their own work.

She also mentioned that the best approach would be to visit fairs and shop for developers there. I don't know much about this field, but this surprised me. I thought that I could pick a company out of a multitude of choices. Robosoft was the first developer who actually responded to me. I eventually received one other offer, but decided that Robosoft had the best portfolio and was the most responsive out of the two.

How much have you invested with Robosoft?

The total cost of Robosoft's services so far has been $35,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

I started working with Robosoft in May 2016. The work is ongoing. I'm also looking to build an app and will most likely use Robosoft again.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Robosoft has designed my website according to my requirements, and we're now starting the development part. I only requested a few design changes, but Robosoft conformed to them perfectly.

How did Robosoft perform from a project management standpoint?

There has been weekly feedback, and we have discussions as required. Robosoft is always there, very responsive, professional, and client-oriented. My experience has been very good so far. Whenever I needed something from them, Robosoft was there for me. My schedule is not the easiest to accommodate, since I travel a lot and work through many time zones. Robosoft has had to keep up with this, but the feedback is always there, and the project management has been a very good part of our collaboration.

What did you find most impressive about Robosoft?

Robosoft adapted easily to my requirements and worked with me, which was what I needed as a customer. Like any other person, I will sometimes change my mind regarding what I want. Robosoft never imposed ideas, but rather worked with me in order to figure out my needs. Especially on the creative side of the work, there will be people who try to impose their own ideas, but Robosoft was very adaptive overall.

Are there any areas Robosoft could improve?

I haven't had a negative experience with Robosoft yet. We're currently going through a modifications phase, and Robosoft is still very responsive.

What tips or recommendations could you share that might increase the likelihood of success with Robosoft?

I would advise any client to trust Robosoft. They have a very good portfolio and client base. Robosoft's products are beautiful, and as a current user of their services, the quality matters most in the end.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are an advertising agency working with clients like Hershey's, American Airlines, Infinity, NBC, and so on. I am the Creative Technology Director.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Robosoft?

We were developing a mobile app for the Jimmy Fallon NBC show. We had a very limited amount of time and needed the help of a developer. Robosoft is one of our preferred vendors, so we used them.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Robosoft provided end-to-end mobile software development and was also in charge of delivering on-time and on-budget, which they did. Robosoft is usually the first name that comes up whenever we need to develop a mobile solution.

How did you come to work with Robosoft?

The groundwork for our relationship with Robosoft was put in place by our executive director, so they came highly recommended inside the agency. Robosoft is used for any work which we need done right.

How much have you invested with Robosoft?

The cost of Robosoft's services depends on the project. We have worked with them on projects for $500,000 and below.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our original engagement with Robosoft was at the beginning of 2015. We have an ongoing relationship.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our client has given massive kudos to us for the work produced. They've had huge gains in traffic through the app developed by Robosoft.

How did Robosoft perform from a project management standpoint?

Robosoft was always very professional, delivered the work way before it needed to be completed, and they've been very easy to work with. Whenever Robosoft needed additional information from us, they were quick to let us know, and we made adjustments from there.

What did you find most impressive about Robosoft?

With very little or no direction, Robosoft has been able to take ideas and make them possible. Robosoft is quick to understand a situation and give us a reasonable estimation, delivering on it. Robosoft is thorough, honest, and gets the job done.

Are there any areas Robosoft could improve?

With overseas collaboration, it will be hard to adjust to the time delay. Robosoft has local people who make the work easier though, and we've gotten a deal that is worth it.

What tips or recommendations could you share that might increase the likelihood of success with Robosoft?

Any client should have an idea ready and be prepared to provide Robosoft with sufficient requirements about what needs to be built. After this, they should see some great results.

BACKGROUND

Headquartered in Silicon Valley, we are the world's most advanced bot and messaging platform. We enable developers to quickly and easily build, test, deploy, and manage chat bots across all messaging channels.

We have been a pioneer in messaging and bots, long before they became trendy. Our messaging platform is used by more than 30,000 businesses, including leading companies, such as FlipKart, OLA, Facebook, Twitter, ICICI, HDFC, and ZeeTV. Our platform handles more than 4 billion messages per month and more than 150 billion cumulative. We also developed a smart messaging app, which introduced patent-pending "smart" messages in 2014, only now being offered by other messaging apps. Our bot platform provides tools for the entire bot lifecycle, enabling developers to build, test, deploy, monitor, and track bots quickly and easily. As VP of engineering, I am responsible for the development and IT operations of the entire product suite.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

We had internally build the first simple version of the mobile app and got a market validation done on both Android and iOS platforms. We wanted to take the UI/UX [user interface/user experience], especially of the iOS app, to the next level. This was extremely important, since we were targeting global users. Also, we wanted to refactor the code such that it would be easier to maintain going forward.

SOLUTION

Robosoft was referred to us by another company that had used their services. We looked at a few iOS mobile apps that Robosoft had developed for a few other clients. We were impressed by the UI/UX and quality of code. The scope of our initiative was design and development of the client-side app. Robosoft has been working on this initiative for almost two years now. They started with the iOS app, and eventually we added Android development to the mix.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Our primary goal was to improve the app's UI/UX in order to take it to a global audience. Robosoft helped us achieve that within schedule. We found that the quality of engineers, especially on the iOS side, was good. They also did a good job of estimating the timelines for the features to be developed. There was practically no on-site presence of any of their engineers, but still the communication and delivery were handled pretty well.

Robosoft has very good expertise in mobile app development. In particular, their knowledge and expertise in iOS app development is exceptional. They have pre-built components in this area which they used to speed up the development process so that the time-to-market is drastically reduced. I can't think of any areas of improvement; they've been great.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

PRO Unlimited specializes in designing and developing contingent workforce management software which helps in the procurement process for non-employees. If a company wanted to hire a temp, a consultant, or a freelancer, they'd use our MSP [managed service provider] and VMS [vendor management system] solutions in order to engage with that talent and handle their payment. We are essentially a private talent marketplace.

What is your position?

I was the Senior Director of Product Management and Design.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Robosoft Technologies?

In 2012, we realized that we needed to have a mobile presence. Enterprise software will always be a bit behind, but we knew that mobile devices were going to be a huge differentiator, especially in our industry. We needed to build a true omni-channel strategy and have our software work on any device, anywhere. Our company didn't have the necessary talent in-house in order to actually deliver the software. There were design resources, namely myself and a couple of colleagues, but we were fairly lean as a product organization. Most of our enterprise software had been done in code from an earlier age. We needed a strong partner in order to complete the grand vision of having people manage time-sheets on their phones, enter in expense receipts, and source talent on-the-go, whether from their tablets or phones.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in greater detail.

The differentiator for choosing Robosoft Technologies was that they urged us to go native and build apps specifically for Apple's iOS and the Android stack. They became great partners in helping us scale engineering in such a way as to crank out four apps in less than a year. They are very complex, transactional apps, with high-end business rules that can change from client to client based on who's logged in and other items.

We wanted to push the envelope with our mobile strategy. One of the things that Robosoft Technologies helped us explore was having voice-based assistance for procuring talent, similar to how Siri works. We worked with one of their senior engineers and one of their designers in order to come up with a proof-of-concept for this type of voice assistance. I was pleased with how quickly their team designed and engineered a piece of software that demonstrated the concept.

Robosoft Technologies was able to prototype anything that we wanted to do in a short period of time. We were happy and impressed with the collaboration.

How did you come to work with Robosoft Technologies?

We went through a request-for-proposal process. Four or five vendors submitted proposals, gave us presentations, and had mock design sessions with us. Robosoft Technologies stood out the most because of their experience with iOS and Android since the very beginning of those two platforms. They made some of the first apps on the app stores from an enterprise perspective, and they had strong experience in B2B projects. A lot of firms boasted consumer-space apps which were simply not interesting for us.

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

The total development cost was well into the millions, maybe even tens of millions, over the course of the two years of work.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together at the beginning of 2012. I left the company at the beginning of 2015, but to my knowledge, Robosoft Technologies is still working with PRO Unlimited. I believe that they've made a few more releases since that time.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

Our apps continue to be the highest-rated ones for their industry in the app stores. We received recognition from Gartner in the form of a Cool Vendor Award because of our strategy. Our mobile presence led to winning an additional estimated $110 million over the course of three or four years. I presented our solution to companies like Facebook and Twitter. They all cited the mobile part as one of the key factors for using us. That piece of software is used every day, and it’s important that the employees of these companies have a good experience.

My company was acquired by a private equity firm at the end of 2015. Our mobile strategy was also cited as one of the key things that made us so attractive. The investment that we put in paid off in full.

What distinguishes Robosoft Technologies from other providers?

I was very hard on them, from a product design perspective. We changed directions a couple of times during the course of the process because no other company had embarked in such a bold mobile approach. We made some mistakes at times, but the one thing that stood out to me was that Robosoft Technologies always went above and beyond to try to make things right. They never flinched when I was hard on them, and it really seemed that they were a part of our team. The people working on our account really cared about what we were doing. They researched things on their own and presented new ideas.

Is there anything Robosoft Technologies could have improved or done differently?

When they first engaged with us, I could tell that we were likely the most complicated project they'd engaged with at the time. I wish that Robosoft Technologies and I would have agreed to collaborate sooner and more closely. It would have helped to have them on-site earlier. I can't think of anything substantial though.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

Pyze helps mobile app publishers build successful mobile businesses by personalizing and automating relationship-building with their app users. Large companies have the data and pipelines to build sophisticated models, so Pyze is levelling the playing field by giving every mobile developer, for free, the same types of sophisticated personalization and engagement capabilities that big companies utilize to interact with their users.

Pyze utilizes machine learning to understand user behavior and automate user engagement, so publishers can ensure that their users are getting personalized engagement. We provide business intelligence software for mobile app publishers as a commercial solution. We have a small agent which is deployed into iOS and Android apps. We collect counters through the intelligence inside the code.

What is your position?

I’m the chief executive officer and co-founder of Pyze.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Robosoft Technologies?

We developed a portion of the software development kit used for our app, but we wanted the help of a company that specialized in iOS and Android.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in greater detail.

There was a lot of coding involved in making our solution commercially available, like automated push notifications, which is where Robosoft Technologies was involved. We are developing a growth automation tool. By running it, it can automatically grow an app for its publisher. A good knowledge of iOS and Android architectures was required. The last thing we wanted to do was to make a product that would crash someone else's app. It's not uncommon to have tens of millions of users for an app, but our code will be featured in hundreds of millions, so it's crucial that it works well without crashing. We wrote the code so that it would be adaptive to its environment. If it's used in poor wireless conditions, it can adapt and send smaller data packets. When it connects to Wi-Fi, it can send the rest of the data.

How did you come to work with Robosoft Technologies?

We didn't want to hire engineers inside the US, so we researched a number of other vendors. We met with the CEO of Robosoft Technologies, who was himself a developer and had a good understanding of Mac OS, iOS, and more recently Android. They invested in keeping their engineers up-to-date. We appreciated this and started working with them.

At one point, we came to use two vendors simultaneously, one of which was Robosoft Technologies, in order to see which would prove to be the best choice. Our own team has a lot of technical and marketing experience. We know how to phrase issues and what to ask for. We met with Robosoft Technologies' senior team a couple of times, and they listened to our feedback.

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

The total size of the project was between $50,000-100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together at the beginning of 2015. The work is ongoing. We have an open contract which has been renewed once.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

Robosoft Technologies developed the first alpha version of our software and continued to work on multiple beta versions. We've recently pushed out the first version for both iOS and Android. They've helped us write blog posts for the release. In total, we've developed 15 versions on iOS and 12 versions for Android. We work as a startup, so we're very fast-paced, and Robosoft has adapted to our pace.

We're very happy with their team. A collaboration of this kind is a two-way conversation. When starting to work with someone, it's important to know how to use them. Both our teams have been flexible, and we've been able to reach results quickly.

How did Robosoft Technologies perform from a project management standpoint?

We are a startup, so compared to a larger company which might have one or two focus points per week, we engage in fifteen or so things per day. Our team has 15-hour days. It was important that Robosoft Technologies shift some of their team so that we could have a 2-3 hour overlap. They do this for a lot of customers, so it was not a problem, even with the 12-hour time difference. There are elements which can only be explained over the phone or through Skype. We mostly use Slack and are very message-oriented. Everything is transparent in terms of bug reporting, sending compliments, and so on. We have integrated Robosoft Technologies's team into our own.

What distinguishes Robosoft Technologies from other providers?

They initially looked at our product and saw that it could be beneficial for a lot of their other customers who were struggling with analyzing their data. Robosoft Technologies has a sister company to which they introduced our software without being asked. Helping a customer improve the quality of their product will make the relationship better, and Robosoft Technologies has seen this in our solution.

Is there anything Robosoft Technologies could have improved or done differently?

We're fairly happy with our iOS engineer. There was an incident that led that person to want to quit, but we really liked him, so Robosoft Technologies was able to retain him. This happened right before the release, so we didn't want to make any changes. We also provided some feedback about an engineer, so they offered to replace him and also have a transitional overlap of around four weeks, at no additional cost. In other words, we came to have not one but two engineers working for us. These are some of the things that Robosoft Technologies has done which allowed us to keep chugging along at a startup pace.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Director of Media of Grace Immanuel Bible Church

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Church

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Robosoft Technologies Inc. to accomplish?

• Create a robust searchable database for our media
• Clean up the current website
• Make the search interface intuitive and easy to use

SOLUTION

How did you find Robosoft Technologies Inc.?

Online Search

Why did you select Robosoft Technologies Inc. over others?

High ratings

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

We have an archive of 6,000 audio and video resources. We needed a way for users to quickly search and find specific assets Additionally, our old website was old and difficult to navigate. Our instructions to Robosoft were:

Intuitive and seamless website design:
1.       Simple to Navigate

2.       Visually Pleasing

3.       Not photo driven website, information rich and engaging

Interactive and Engaging:

Easily Accessible Information (calendars, giving tab, sign-ups)

Website Vision:

1.       Has users from all over the US and in other countries

2.       Envisions website as a ‘portal’ for pastors/members all over the world to learn and consume content

3.       Wants to convey seriousness of their message but wants learning and interaction to be fun

4.       Wants people to utilize website over and over again for personal growth and learning (a daily companion)

5.       Keeping in mind age diversity of church members: youth vs. senior

Website Functionality:

1.       Giving/Donations Tab

2.       Calendar integration: Planning Center

3.       Church Event Sign-Up Tab

4.       Wants to explore continued Playback functionality

5.       Transcription Capabilities: Text and Search (search more important)

6.       Searchable Phrases: if I search a phrase I remember, I want the audio content to start from the moment of that specific phrase

Extremely Searchable Content:

1.       2,000-2,500 pieces/hours of audio content to migrate

2.       10-15 pieces/hours of audio content uploaded per week

3.       Audio Transcription

4.       Robust Keyword bank, Tagging, and Bundling (Bundle sermons by individual Pastor – maybe by prayer or bible verse also?)

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The search function is exactly what we asked for. We can narrow down a search to find a specific media file in just a few clicks. 

The site is attractive and easy to navigate

The CMS is robust and customizable

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

Robosoft is a large company with a lot of resources. Because of that, they were able to handle some of our unusual and difficult requests. Their management of the project was excellent. We ran into inevitable roadblocks along the way, but all team members were willing to work hard and solve the problems

What was your primary form of communication with Robosoft Technologies Inc.?

Virtual Meeting

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

Their developers and engineers are intelligent and excellent problem solvers. We presented them with unique challenges, and they went back and did the research. The most impressive thing to me was that the engineers seemed to personally invest in our project. They came back with thoughtful and well-articulated solutions to our problems.

Are there any areas for improvement or something Robosoft Technologies Inc. could have done differently?

In hindsight, I wish we had been able to foresee some of the design challenges that were part of version 1.0. But we solved them in version 2.0.