UX Development for Data Services Provider
- UX/UI Design
- UX Strategy
- $200,000 to $999,999
- Quality
- 5.0
- Schedule
- 5.0
- Cost
- 4.0
- Willing to Refer
- 5.0
"They've [UpTop] been very supportive, and they have helped us achieve our strategic objectives."
- Other industries
- Florida, United States
- 51-200 Employees
- Phone Interview
- Verified
The client hired UpTop to help design and develop their consumer-facing portal. UpTop created renderings, recommended technologies, and developed the front-end and back-end of the platform.
UpTop excelled in the areas of project management, communication, and setting expectations. They are highly skilled, and the client considers themselves fortunate to have found them.
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
BACKGROUND
Introduce your business and what you do there.
I am the chief technology officer of a data center services provider. We provide space, power, cooling, connectivity, and portal services to a wide range of customers around the country. Our clients include service providers, enterprises, and the like.
OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE
What challenge were you trying to address with UpTop?
Customers traditionally prefer to build their own brick-and-mortar data center facilities for IT [information technology] equipment. They want control over that part of the platform to guarantee the service levels that they need. Also, clients believe it's easier to deal with internal IT systems and IT departments as opposed to working with an external partner. Given this situation, an important pillar of our strategy was putting better visibility and control into our customers' hands. We wanted to build a portal that gives customers visibility, control, and confidence in the underlying infrastructure. Our portal had to be easy to use and navigate. It had to be natural and extensible, almost as if it were the client's own.
We needed help with designing and thinking through the appropriate user experience for that portal. Other than the person you're speaking to right now, we literally had no internal development, software, or design capability in-house. We needed a partner we could depend on completely. Since user experience was critical, we sought out UpTop.
SOLUTION
What was the scope of their involvement?
First, we spent time explaining our near-term and long-term objectives to UpTop. We showed them what we had and where we wanted to take the portal, both technically and visually. UpTop then helped us through the visual design and addressed technical design issues. They laid the foundations for the back-end systems as well. After taking all of that information, they gave recommendations on pieces of the technology platform. UpTop also made a number of initial renderings to help us visualize what the end product would look like. In the process, they refined that visualization to meet our expectations.
UpTop did all the front-end and back-end development work for version one of the platform. We could basically relaunch ourselves from what we had that day. They gave us the option to leverage them as a partner as required or we could continue the development at our own pace as we matured our capabilities in-house, which we've done. We succeeded in launching the platform they built for us from day one. As the platform evolves, we continue to collaborate with UpTop for small piece parts and for tangential support. We've been making incremental investments so that we can have our own development capability. This has allowed us to enhance and expand the platform ourselves.
How did you come to work with UpTop?
My sister happens to be a graphic designer by trade. It's a science and discipline in and of itself. All I knew was that we did not have the experience to make a judgment about our platform's design. Since she was very familiar with the user experience industry, I asked her for recommendations in the country. She also contacted a few colleagues in the industry for additional referrals. Then, we went through a round of interviews with those organizations, and we got a few references along the way. UpTop was one of the companies on her short list. When we were originally introduced to UpTop, we were introduced as a user experience firm. At the end of the day, UpTop just rose to the top. They had the capabilities and the mindset that we were looking for.
How much have you invested with UpTop?
We've probably spent $500,000 or more on UpTop's services.
What is the status of this engagement?
Our engagement with UpTop probably dates back to Q2 of 2015. We had our initial launch in January of this year [2016]. We've continued to do incremental work with them as recently as a week ago [September 2016].
RESULTS & FEEDBACK
Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?
UpTop invested time and the resources even before we started writing a line of code. We worked hard to define the requirements and the scope very well. As a result, there were very few, if any, surprises when the delivery came. Our expectations for the scope and schedule were pretty tightly aligned. It helped that we provided enough details upfront before we moved forward with the project. That gave them confidence in developing timelines and delivering our expectations. As a result, they met our expectations in terms of scope, delivery, and being on time.
How did UpTop perform from a project management standpoint?
We've had the good fortune that project management is one of the strengths that UpTop brought to the table. UpTop assigned us a project manager who was very disciplined and organized. He tracked the scope, schedule, and budget items. As our liaison, he translated our expectations into requirements and got answers directly from development resources. He also knew enough technology to be very effective in his role. He always made sure we were aware of where we stood, where the jeopardy was, and what UpTop needed from us. We appreciated the status reports he provided. We've had the opportunity to maintain relationships with that one PM, so he's had continuity from the start. This helps him continue to be effective for us.
Until the later stages of our initial work with them, I was the primary contact and liaison. That meant I spent time in their offices and had electronic communication multiple times a week. As we were getting close to launch, we had a formal status and technology review once or twice a week. Eventually, I brought an architect on board to step in and take some of the final roles. I still retained the primary business relationships. As we've done incremental work with UpTop, I've re-engaged them, helped scope out the work, and kept the business relationship going.
What did you find most impressive about UpTop?
The other firms we talked to had more Ph.D.s than I've seen in academia. UpTop certainly had those credentials, and they had people who truly understood the discipline. But, what we liked about UpTop was that they balanced those credentials with practicality. We weren't just spinning our wheels talking about theory and user behavior constantly. They balanced theory with practical application in our industry. We found that valuable, and it distinguished them from the others.
The other thing I'd say that set UpTop apart was that they were clear, honest and set expectations fairly. They knew when to push back and ask us to think twice about a request. On the other hand, they were able to take pressure from us since we're still the customer. Compared to a lot of partners that I've worked with, there really were no surprises from UpTop. It doesn't mean everybody bats 1,000, but they had a pretty high batting average. Across a large number of partners, not just in this discipline, they're on the top of my list. I give them credit for that. It's why they've been the first ones we've considered when we've had incremental needs. This may sound like they must've paid me a very large fee to give them a glowing review. But, in all honesty, they've earned it. I don't usually like to do these kinds of interviews, but they've treated us well. We were very fortunate that it was a very good match.
Are there any areas UpTop could improve?
I suppose that the right answer is that no one is perfect, and there are always areas to improve. However, our partnership with UpTop works, so I can't say that there are areas for improvement. If it didn't, we wouldn't continue to be doing business with them. I can't say that there is any area where an improvement would make our relationship better.
RATINGS
-
Quality
5.0Service & Deliverables
"They clearly defined the scope, schedule, and budget. They delivered all of the expectations we set."
-
Schedule
5.0On time / deadlines
"They hit all of the timelines and deadlines that we agreed upon."
-
Cost
4.0Value / within estimates
"I will always try to squeeze blood out of a turnip. I will always try to get more for less. Generally speaking, they are fair."
-
Willing to Refer
5.0NPS
"If I thought that the match was right as it was for us, I would have no hesitation. My willingness to give this interview would be a reflection of that.
