VAO

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I work for the Polish branch of a major supermarket retail chain. We run one of the biggest retail chains in Poland, with over 2,000 shops and 55,000 plus employees. As the product and marketing manager, I’m responsible for digital channels. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with VAO?

We decided that we wanted to engage in a new online marketing campaign. We needed developers to build a platform that would support our campaign. The project included apps for Android and iOS, as well as a Drupal backend platform to highlight our products. We needed an agency who could understand our needs and help us transform our ideas into an IT solution. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The main purpose of this application was to provide our customers with a mobile system on which they can view the products in our marketing campaign. It was also for communication and for users to collect points. It was important for us to have the app available on both Android and iOS, as we have a lot of customers using both. Our stores sell mostly food and beverages, but this campaign was focused on other products available in our stores. It was very important in this campaign to tell our customers about everything we offer. We explained the requirements to VAO, and they built it for us.

VAO dedicated a single point of contact for me, and we communicated by a ticketing system as well as in-person. I believe they had around 10 developers working on this project. It was nice for me to communicate with a specific person only. If we wanted to change something, we would discuss it as a team. I appreciated that we didn’t communicate only by email.

How did you come to work with VAO?

We had worked with VAO on a smaller project in the past and had a good experience with them. When we decided to start the new campaign, we got in touch with them again. We were confident they would understand what we needed.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project started in March of 2016 and ended in November of that year. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I think they’ve done a very good job on this project, and we are planning to have them work on other projects in the future. We were very satisfied with how the development was completed. We had a bad experience in the past with launching an app that was not user-friendly, and we didn’t get a lot of engagement. This app was very easy to use, and our customers were happy.

How did VAO perform from a project management standpoint?

The schedule and deadlines were very important to us, and VAO knew about this from our previous collaboration. We needed to roll out the new campaign across all of our shops at the same time, so we couldn’t have any delays. VAO delivered the products within this timeline, and everything worked out well.

What did you find most impressive about VAO?

We have a large number of people using this platform, and sometimes we need quick action from VAO. This is something that they do very well. They react fast and were always available during the whole campaign.

Are there any areas VAO could improve?

No. When we wanted something changed during the project, VAO took care of it really quickly. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the head of IT for Kompas Consulting. We are an IT consultancy based in Poland, focusing on architecting solutions for clients. We have a number of offices across the country. We don't handle the actual development.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with VAO?

We had an outdated internal CRM [customer relationship management] solution which needed to be changed without impacting our organization. We didn't want to break our day-to-day operations, which was the biggest challenge. We knew that we would have to integrate the system with our existing solution, and not disrupt the everyday work of our staff.

The old system managed our client invoicing, documentation, and everything else involved in our operations. We needed to make it bigger, and also integrate mobile applications for clients, which would allow them to check online documentation.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

VAO developed our new CRM using the PHP Zend Framework, as well as HTML and JavaScript for the frontend. We have native applications on the mobile side.

We had a single point of communication from VAO's side initially. It was a long process which started with an analysis stage, and our contact was with us for every step. We worked with different contacts for development and had no actual interactions with the developers themselves. We weren't involved in the selection process and only focused on the results.

How did you come to work with VAO?

We were introduced to VAO by a friend, but also went through an online search and looked at three other companies. It was a big step for us; we had a few meetings with VAO before starting the engagement. We found VAO to be reliable, and they also had a good online presence. It was a good choice, from my point of view.

How much have you invested with VAO?

The cost of VAO's work is $500,000 so far, including development and maintenance.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with VAO in 2015. There was a long period before the actual development started, of around six months, since there was a lot of research to be made. It was also a challenge for VAO, and they wanted to ensure that the project would run well. The project was completed in 2016. We have an ongoing process based on the changes we identified later on.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Based on my previous experience with other companies, I found VAO's analysis and preparation process to be very good. Since we also work in IT, we know that it's important for clients to present what they really want. We presented some use cases to them, and VAO provided the development. There have been some bugs in the system, but they were fixed fast.

We've had experiences with developers disappearing after the job was completed, giving us no way of finding them. Delivering a good product and ensuring maintenance for it were important factors for us, and this is what VAO provided.

How did VAO perform from a project management standpoint?

We used Slack for communication. We created user stories within it and put together our requests. The communication and delivery time were good. We have made some changes along the way, and VAO also came upon challenges, but the overall timeline was good. We would have wanted the work to be done faster, of course, but VAO gave us a realistic deadline. We needed to wait a bit in favor of quality. VAO's flexibility was also good, and it allowed us to get what we wanted at the end of the day.

What did you find most impressive about VAO?

Language-wise, we can understand each other well. VAO can speak to us in our own words, and not in IT language. I care about results more than scripts.

Are there any areas VAO could improve?

From my point of view, no. VAO may not be the ideal company for everyone, but they were perfect for us.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Intermarché is supermarket retail chain with over 240 shops in Poland and 15,500 employees. I worked there for 13 years and part of that time I spent working with VAO on different projects. I was the private label marketing manager, responsible also for Intermarché’s product brands’ online presence. We worked on a website project and they really helped me develop my idea. It was a really good business relationship.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with VAO?

We did not have a web development team in-house. We analyzed whether to hire or outsource, and decided to subcontract the whole project to an external vendor. We followed our internal vendor selection procedures and decided to continue with VAO as soon as all the business proposals were received and evaluated. VAO was awarded the contract for consultancy services and IT developments.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

I had some general ideas about online activities but I didn’t know what exactly to do with this idea and how to develop it on the website. VAO started with some basic help on how we can provide this idea online. Part of this job was already created by a French company. VAO supported me with technical details because I didn’t know how to take my idea forward.

The first phase of the project was where we worked together with VAO to come up with the final scope. After this, the second phase was launched, which involved all IT developments and testing. The last stage was the project launch, where the system was rolled out on production servers and customers were engaged. We established clear communication channels so that our team could cooperate with VAO. The project was a Drupal assignment, where VAO supplied IT development, testing, and installation.

After the construction of the website, they showed me how to manage the site and how to add new elements. It was my first experience with online activities and it was a good start.

The target audience for the site was children and their parents. We created an online area where the children and parents can benefit from online games to educate and provide solutions on how to spend free time effectively. We promoted a hero of the market that we created. We also put this hero on the packaging of products. The website was created to promote the idea but not to sell the product.

How did you come to work with VAO?

I did some research online and invited three companies, including VAO, to give me a proposal. Previously, we had cooperated with VAO on packaging design projects, so they were listed on our approved vendor list. I organized a meeting with the companies, and after the meetings, I chose to work with VAO.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

As a client, I felt that I was well supported by them. They were able to explain the details in a friendly way, which was really helpful. There were a few people who worked on my project. I felt safe when working with them and as they reported on the project, which was good for me and my bosses. If I analyze the Polish companies that work on online activities, it’s not very often that I meet people who understand the needs of the customer. The site works well and we are happy with their work. We reached the goals we had for the site. My colleagues within the company were satisfied as well as the end users. We compared our site to competitors’ websites and I observed the number of the users which play our activities; the answers were satisfactory.

How did VAO perform from a project management standpoint?

The schedule was important for me because it was a huge component. VAO made a schedule and I approved it. There were times when we both needed more time to get things done. We were in constant contact by phone or email.

VAO pays a lot of attention to project management and they are comfortable to follow any wide-known project management framework. The VAO team supported us with other electronic tools for communication and issue reporting like Slack and YouTrack. This proved to be very effective in terms of project management.

What did you find most impressive about VAO?

We were used to subcontracting since we do not have internal IT team. VAO proved to be a reliable partner and this allowed us to proceed with the project execution smoothly. We could see that VAO pays a lot of attention to quality and testing, and project management.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

When we worked with VAO, we were a B2B advertising agency offering marketing service to our clients.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with VAO?

Part of the services we offered was to be able to produce software and websites for our clients, and we used VAO to do that because we didn’t have the capability in-house at the time.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

VAO helped us with a piece of software on the Drupal framework that allowed users to view all the latest press releases, news items, stock and configurations of the product and be able to make selections and place orders. VAO offered all the backend functional coding as well as advice on placement of front end elements such as buttons, forms, and so on. The resources they offered were one project manager and two or three developers. We interfaced with the PM, and they passed the information along to the developers.

How did you come to work with VAO?

I’m not sure if we found VAO online or if they reached out to us, but we went to Poland and met with them and decided to work with them as a result of that trip. We chose VAO because of their professionalism, their staff count, and examples of their work. They seemed capable, and after working with them, we realized we were correct about that. They were also capable of conversing in English which was a great bonus.

How much have you invested with VAO?

I don’t know how much we spent, but I remember that VAO was very cost-efficient. When we asked them to help reduce the cost, they suggested changing the scope or elements of the development. It gave me a great deal of comfort that they came back with suggestions to reduce the cost.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with VAO in 2011, and we stopped working with them in 2013 because we had our developers in-house.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The project was a large project and took several months. The client was exceptionally happy with the final product. That’s good evidence that VAO was doing what they promised. We would always test everything before giving it to the client, and if there were any bugs we would highlight them and VAO would fix quickly. Bugs are always part of the process, so it wasn’t unexpected.

How did VAO perform from a project management standpoint?

VAO delivered on time and budget. We were always very careful not to promise the client something that VAO hadn’t said they could commit to. We set VAO up to succeed by asking them first how long the project would take. They would give us the deadline, and they always kept their word. They were always available during our working hours.

What did you find most impressive about VAO?

The fact that VAO did what they said they were going to do, made their deadlines, and stayed on budget is unique in the development world.

Are there any areas VAO could improve?

The working relationship was good. VAO did a sterling job. It’s always difficult to do development offshore, but I can’t remember anything negative that stands out.

BACKGROUND

I’m a CEO of Cogito Group. My company has four newspapers and online magazines for the younger generation.We focus on several niche books segments including: school kids audience, high school children audience and more. We are based in Warsaw, Poland. Our company has more than 100 employees. We are growing very fast.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with VAO?

We wanted to enhance our digital presence and engage our customers, as well as  collect key data from them to conduct further marketing actions. Initial requirement set has been developed by our internal team. The platform was our preferred way to get this working. From VAO we requested Drupal skills which we do not have in Cogito Group company.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

VAO completed scope documents, which were initially supplied by our team. VAO added very valuable insight into those documents and recommended some features and actions which we did not think of. We supplied all graphic items to be used on websites.

Several websites for various books were launched. This was all Drupal work, where VAO supplied the whole IT part of the project (whole IT development, testing and installation part of the project).

How did you come to work with VAO?

We did some market research and evaluated various business proposals. VAO was recommended by one of our business contacts. Face-to-face meeting with VAO representative made us sure, that VAO is the right choice. There were helpful in initial phase of the project.

What is the status of this endeavor?

The relationship with VAO started late 2016. VAO is now doing maintenance of our platform.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Websites were supposed to work on various viewports including: desktop, tablet, and smartphone screens. We know VAO did detailed testing, when the product was handled over to us there were no issues reported by our team and the service was ready to launch. VAO helped with domain configuration and server configuration and installation. There were no issues in those areas, too.

How will you rate VAO from a project management perspective?

VAO can be viewed as well-established organization. They follow project management best practice. They worked to understand our need and goals. I would say that VAO from project management perspective this all proved to be very reliable partner.

What did you find most impressive about VAO?

Due to lack of IT team in Cogito Group, we were afraid of the technical stuff behind. VAO helped us understand technical concepts, which we weren't able to deal with. I like on point of contact approach, so that all involved parties (Cogito Group and VAO) can benefit.

Do you think VAO can improve in any area?

I cannot think of any such area. They are great to work with.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Hubstone Ltd. is a business consultancy company based in Walton-on-Thames, Surrey, UK. At that time, I was leading the project team at Hubstone.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with VAO?

I was working on a project for a publishing company based in London. The company was using a number of websites as their publishing platform, but the sites were quite outdated. The publishing company wanted to redevelop the platform. Our company was unable to find skilled Drupal developers in the UK, which was why we decided to look for nearshore partners.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Hubstone Ltd. established a partnership with VAO related to Drupal development of various company projects. This was an ongoing relationship where VAO developers worked with our team on a daily basis. I was the technical lead on the project, and I worked closely with the developers supplied by VAO. So, Hubstone was the consultancy that contracted with the company that needed the websites redeveloped. We used the time and materials cost model. All tasks were related to Drupal development, such as; theming and frontend development, backend development, and custom module development. The work involved developing a content management system for articles and academic writings on various medical topics. All work was reported to Hubstone at the end of the month, with the approval of each deliverable being granted during the project course. I believe VAO supplied five developers over the course of the project.

How did you come to work with VAO?

After they decided to use Drupal, the publishing company invited a few suppliers to bid on the work. Hubstone won that project, but they didn’t have internal resources to do the work, so they hired me. We went out looking for someone who could actually develop the project. After considering other options, we set up an initial call with VAO and were impressed with their approach. The relationship was established very fast, and Hubstone team members visited VAO offices in order to improve cooperation and communication. The overall rating and the good communication skills made us choose VAO.

How much have you invested with VAO?

The total investment with VAO was around £100,000 [$127,634].

What is the status of this engagement?

The relationship with VAO started and ended in 2008. We eventually were able to find other Drupal talents in the UK and decided to keep this part of the business in-house.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We thought that communication might be an issue, as we were located in different countries and used different native languages. However, when the partnership had been established, it worked very well. There were minor communication issues at the very beginning, which were all resolved quickly. The developers provided by VAO were very skilled, and it helped that they spoke very good English. One of them even dealt directly with our client. From my perspective, the experience was very good. They had a lot of knowledge about the Drupal framework and other surrounding technologies such as JavaScript for example. It helped also that the company employed more developers. I went to their offices once, and I think they had 30–40 people working for them. So, if the developers assigned to our contract needed some extra help, they could talk to each other and come up with the right solution. Hubstone was definitely happy with that collaboration. The project was a success, and the end client was happy with the outcome.

How did VAO perform from a project management standpoint?

I was facilitating the communication between VAO and the client. It was difficult to get the full scope of the project from the client, so we needed to work in an Agile way, scheduling smaller tasks for the developers. We never had any problem with delivery. The whole project was finished within a timescale that was acceptable by the client. The client expected it to be a year or so before they could start migrating the massive volume of content into the new system. It worked well. This project was 100% managed by Hubstone. I can also confirm that VAO can effectively use communication tools like Skype, email or phone..

What did you find most impressive about VAO?

Although the project was very complex, we were able to split it into tasks and VAO delivered everything on time and within budget. They are enthusiastic about new technologies. Even if we requested something which was not in their employees’ skill set, they were able to schedule training sessions or hire new resources very quickly.

Are there any areas VAO could improve?

Due to the type of relationship, this is difficult to assess. Nothing that I can think of right now.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are a new media creative agency working on new ventures. One of the new opportunities identified was soccer player scouting where VAO helped us deliver the right solution. I am the chief executive officer of the organization.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with VAO?

We needed to build a system that will allow young soccer players to present their skills, upload their personal data and statistics, and do networking. The system also allowed scouts to search through the players' database, create custom reports, and contact prospective players. We required Drupal and Zend Framework skills, which we do not have in-house.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We initially worked with VAO on some small IT project some time ago. VAO supplied a cross-skilled team of eight people, which allowed them to fulfill the project requirements. There was one liaison person/project manager on VAO's end, which helped establish good communication.

This was a Drupal and Zend Framework assignment, where VAO supplied the entire IT part of the project – whole development, testing, and installation of the project. Makadu supplied all requirements and passed it to VAO for further discussion and progressive elaboration. If, for any reason, we don't receive a quick answer from a resource, we have additional channels available.

How did you come to work with VAO?

We were looking for vendors who are reliable and have good references. We looked for a stable partner for a long time. We worked with VAO on a smaller assignment before, and they performed very well. This bigger project was a natural step further in our relationship.

What is the status of this engagement?

We have been working with VAO since 2015.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have a big number of users on the platform now. We have a feedback button implemented, and it seems like that users are only requesting new features, which we simply have not planned for yet. But, there is almost no feedback about any errors or UI/UX issues. It seems that good work has been done.

How did VAO perform from a project management standpoint?

We use Slack, Eventum, and Google Docs for our communication and document-sharing with VAO. We also use version control systems and collaborative platforms. We agreed to agile approach in terms of project management framework. This seems to work very well.

Is there anything unique about VAO?

VAO provides great Drupal and Zend Framework expertise. It is easy to get in touch with anyone at their organization. If someone is not in the office, you are notified in advance, and a replacement point of contact is given. I've appreciated being able to reach out to anyone on VAO's team.

Are there any areas VAO could improve?

So far, VAO has proved to be a reliable partner. Any issues that we discovered were addressed early in the project lifecycle, and now the relationship goes very smooth.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the owner of Sqoup LLC, which is based in Seattle, Washington. We produce numerous direct-to-consumer mobile applications that focus on managing your data in the cloud, managing your devices, etc.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with VAO?

When I first started working with VAO, I was looking to build an application that would allow people to create and edit content on their mobile devices, then publish that content to the web, and share it efficiently through any social channel they wanted. The problem statement was, “Can we give people an easy tool on a phone that they can use to create a nice looking piece of content that they can share via the web with anybody through any channel?” The app was built for iOS and Android mobile devices and tablets. The app is free to download, but there are in-app purchases available that allow people to buy extra credits to create more content. We’ve also built a website for the app that you can access via a browser.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

I’m a one-man show, so I generally outsource everything I do to different engineering groups throughout the world who help me solve either technical problems or help me execute on what I’m looking to solve. VAO is one of those engineering groups. I handle all of the strategy and marketing, I take on the role of product manager, and I define the product, what I’m going after, how I want to distribute it, etc. I don't have developers, so I use VAO as my development team. I treat them purely as a development and execution shop.

How did you come to work with VAO?

I was referred to VAO by a friend who had done some work with them in the past. I was already working with several different developers at the time, usually individuals, but the VAO referral came along, and we started talking. I didn't have anything specific for them to work on at first. I eventually had an idea, and my existing developers couldn't help me, so I thought I would give VAO a shot and see how they did. That’s how we got started working together, and we’ve worked together for several years now.

How much have you invested with VAO?

I’ve invested somewhere between $30,000 and $50,000 with VAO.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working on this project at the beginning of 2016, and we’re still working on this one app at the moment. We have an app on iTunes now, and it’s taken us about a year to get to the point where we’re past testing alphas and MVPs [minimal viable products] and things like that. We’re working on a second wave of development right now that’s going to update the app that’s already out there, update the website, and add an Android app. That will probably take us three months to get ready.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

There’s no way for me to attribute a metric to VAO. If the apps are successful, then that’s because I’ve been good at marketing myself and finding the right distribution channels. That being said, some customers have said they love the simplicity and intuitiveness of the app. They say it’s stable and works well. The app is fairly bare bones; I’ve stripped out a lot of frills. People seem to appreciate that. My app is similar to a lot of prototyping apps that are also straightforward and clear to use. I tell the VAO developers, “This is what I want,” and then they help me solve the technological problems. Sometimes we’ll bat around ideas on how to solve certain issues, but I’m pretty clear about what I want from them, and that’s why I appreciate them. VAO is really good at executing on my vision.

How did VAO perform from a project management standpoint?

VAO is good at project management and meeting deadlines; all the things that you’d expect a good shop to do. We used GitHub, Slack, and Scrum. VAO is definitely versed in all the common things people like to hear. Three developers worked on my project full time, and sometimes a designer also would come into the mix.

What did you find most impressive about VAO?

One of the things I really appreciate about VAO is that they don't beat around the bush, and they don't try to oversell anything either. We always have good and hard conversations before we ever start anything. I've been in contact with lots of different agencies during my career, and I haven't come across many that you can sit down with and trust what they say. Agencies always are either moving onto the next greatest project, or they put someone on your project who then misses all the deadlines and has no idea about the history of the project. That’s not the case with VAO. They keep developers on projects who know the history and who know you. We have a close-knit relationship, and that doesn’t happen with other agencies like them.

Are there any areas VAO could improve?

VAO sometimes lacks a little bit of creativity, and they sometimes lack the ability to look for an extra solution when I ask them to come up with ideas for how to solve something. But I wouldn't really blame VAO for that because I'm fairly direct about what I want. That might be part of the relationship we have because I'm pretty clear about what I'm looking for usually.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

Management Angels is a German company providing staffing services to companies looking for interim project managers. We have a pool of 6,000 resources, based on which we recommend candidates who can start work within 48 hours. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with VAO?

We wanted to refresh and rebuild our website, creating a mobile-friendly version. 

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in greater detail.

VAO rebuilt our website from scratch based on our requirements. The biggest challenge was connecting the site to our Microsoft CRM 2011 login area. We needed our interim managers to take care of their own profiles. VAO implemented this successfully, and the platform is still in use.

After this step, we started to build more functionalities based on project references. This included building a related website, the purpose of which was to host SEO content and a self-generating newsletter based on its articles. VAO also built proprietary profiles which are stored on the main website servers for the sister site. VAO helped transform our business requirements into a functioning solution.

VAO handled the development, while we took care of requirements. I am a half-business, half-IT person, so I was able to translate business requirements, allowing developers to take them further.

VAO worked mainly on the development side, but they were required to gain a good understanding of our business approach. We acted as our own marketing and sales people, but VAO helped put together our newsletter and other content.

How did you come to work with VAO?

We found VAO through the recommendation of a former colleague. I also looked at other developers, but we chose VAO and continue to work with them. Their founder is a very smart person. I met him and the team in person in Poland, which is a 6-hour drive from Germany. I felt very confident that this could lead into a strong business relationship.

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

The website was built through a continuous improvement process, so it would be hard to give an accurate figure. VAO's pricing is half of what a German company would have charged us.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with VAO in 2013 for the website project, but we did have another one prior to that. VAO continues to work for us, improving our two websites' functionalities. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

We were able to bring both websites into a good SEO position, relative to our business. We don't aim to compete with eBay, but both websites were brought to top positions for our keywords. VAO helped us do this by creating flexible measurements in order to integrate content easily.

How did VAO perform from a project management standpoint?

Most deadlines were met. The exceptions came after we asked for changes, but not because VAO didn't perform well. We continue to use their company, which shows that we are happy with VAO.

What distinguishes VAO from other providers?

There is an extreme flexibility in adapting to client needs. VAO wants to know what a clients business is, and only after this will they engage in development. This is very important for providing a tailored solution for clients. This is due to VAO's founder, who is able to rally the team behind him and motivate them to participate in the client's idea.

Is there anything VAO could have improved or done differently?

There is room for improvement in the testing area. It has been done, but much of it was by ourselves. For other clients, this may be different, given that I have a background in IT. VAO's team knew that I would be performing tests anyway. I would appreciate more evaluation in terms of business logic from VAO's side.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am a self-employed freelancer who commissions digital projects on behalf of my clients which range from small business to enterprise level.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with VAO?

I inherited VAO from a client. I was looking to manage the existing infrastructure. They worked with a digital agency that I got when I came on board. We parted ways with the digital agency but continued with VAO for a couple of years.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

VAO did Drupal development for us. VAO has very advanced Drupal developers. They did integrations with Salesforce and maintained that as well. They took other people’s front-end developments and integrated that with the Drupal back-end as well. VAO is a very versatile agency.

How did you come to work with VAO?

I knew other people who had worked with VAO.

How much have you invested with VAO?

I can’t remember what I spent. I remember VAO was quite competitive relative to UK developers.

What is the status of this engagement?

I began working with VAO in September 2012 and, the relationship lasted two years.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I work with a lot of different developers, and everyone has their strengths and weaknesses. VAO is very flexible and communicative. VAO is very precise in what they do and very cost effective. VAO tends to be more focused on the development side, so I find that to manage them it takes more involvement. VAO doesn’t interpret anything and needs quite a lot of instructions. Although in getting those instructions, VAO always seeks for your input. Overall I had a positive experience with VAO, but you have to say exactly what you want.

How did VAO perform from a project management standpoint?

VAO was very dependable and met our deadlines.

Are there any areas VAO could improve?

I would have liked to see more creative input from their side. If VAO came back with a proposal rather than you having to spell it out in detail, it would be helpful.