Velvetech LLC

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO and founder of MJS Apps. Our dating app is called CIND, which stands for Chivalry is Not Dead.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Velvetech?

We hired them to develop our dating app for the iOS platform.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

I made detailed mockups in PowerPoint as a substitute for wireframes. Velvetech used those files to draft designs and refine the look. The team then provided design options. They programmed the solution after I made my selection.

After a six-week iterative publishing process, CIND is now live in the App Store. As a dating app, the solution’s core functionality enables users to browse profiles and match with other people. Features include a system administrator interface, chat, and geolocation-based searches. Users can post commentary and their demographic information, as well as upload photos and videos.

What is the team composition?

I interfaced with a local business development professional in the United States, two program managers in Europe, and at least one technical coder. Those resources had a larger team working behind the scenes.

How did you come to work with Velvetech?

My business partner and I searched for American app developers, but later narrowed the search to local vendors. My experience with remote software developers—which I found difficult—made me partial to a nearby agency. We interviewed several companies including one software developer that recommended Velvetech to us. Velvetech’s costs were lower than the four other estimates we received. We hired them because they offered native app development at a lower price without sacrificing quality.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent approximately $30,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with them from April–August 2018. Currently, my team is building the proof of concept for the Android version. Velvetech is now competing with other companies for that build.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Apple required modifications for the app’s publication; Velvetech executed those fixes quickly. The team appreciated that Apple’s feedback made us anxious. They’ve completed 59 additions to date. Although we had some flexibility for this timeline, Velvetech’s efficient interactions with Apple were valuable.

We don’t have substantive metrics because the app has only been live for two business days. I look forward to seeing how the code and downloads perform. So far, Velvetech has done well.

How did Velvetech perform from a project management standpoint?

Velvetech was the best vendor I’ve worked with. They were proactive, thorough, and punctual. The team had fair pricing and provided concrete cost ranges for complex components. Their extra hours for functionality creep were reasonably priced; Velvetech won’t build extra functionalities for free, but they don’t overcharge either. We used Confluence as the build’s program management system while submitting some requests via email. Their team used Jira internally and a conference call system for our weekly conversations. The user-friendly system—which we could access via computer or phone—made screen sharing easy.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Velvetech was organized, professional, and responsive to all of our concerns. I raised about 10 issues on a daily basis, but the team didn’t let anything fall through the cracks. They helped us navigate new technologies including screen recording on iPhones. Recording helped us convey issues more effectively. A knowledgeable team, they delivered promptly and made the experience enjoyable.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Compared to industry standards, Velvetech was above average for nearly every metric.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Projects are successful when clients develop their ideas fully before starting the engagement. Detailed mockups and clear visions make the experience easier. Provide Velvetech with a comprehensive idea and they’ll flesh out the concept.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the CEO of Runner's High Studio. We're a technology and fitness company. We have 25 automated treadmills and we customize workouts for our clients.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Velvetech?

We needed a company to help us create the automation for our treadmills and sync it to our website.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They developed a website and synced it to our treadmills. Now, people can go to our website and build their profiles, and their data is sent to the treadmills in our studio. They also created a CRM for data management on the backend and linked it to a payment service.

What is the team composition?

We had two main points of contact and a team of 6–7 developers.

How did you come to work with Velvetech?

I was looking for a company for a very long time since it's not an easy task to tap into an API attached to a treadmill. I don't remember how exactly I found Velvetech, but I was impressed by their thoroughness and the detailed proposal they put together.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent about $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with them between August 2016—April 2017.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We haven't had any issues with the website. We were a startup, so things have been a little choppy at the beginning, but they were fantastic at handling everything.

How did Velvetech LLC perform from a project management standpoint?

They followed their scope of work precisely and handled everything very well. The team was based in Moscow, but we didn’t have any issues. They used a project management tool internally to keep track of the project.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They're real experts at what they do. We caused them a lot of work and extra effort on our end, but they were always a great partner to us. I'd strongly recommend them.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can't think of anything.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be mindful that because they're overseas, they do work overnight.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the CEO of a unified communications VoIP provider servicing North America.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Velvetech LLC?

We had a new unified applications platform that needed some integrations with top-class cloud platforms, including Salesforce and Kazoo.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We use Kazoo as our communications platform, which allows for computer-telephone integrations. This lets users answer Salesforce calls through their existing desk phone. Besides sending, receiving, and recording phone calls, users can also dictate notes, assign activities, and view caller ID credentials.

Working with our platform, Velvetch built the UI with JavaScript and created a custom Erlang module for Kazoo. They executed the whole module from scratch—it didn’t exist before we started, but it was a necessary part of the project. They also resolved issues with our computer telephony integration (CTI) panel as we switched our business over to Salesforce. Now, we're able to maintain the view state across multiple tabs within Salesforce in addition to utilizing visual voicemail.

What is the team composition?

We worked with a team of 4–5, led by a project manager out of Russia. The manager was a pleasure to deal with.

How did you come to work with Velvetech LLC?

We found them in a web search. I didn’t know much about them, but they worked very carefully to make sure they matched the syntax and preferred integrations for Kazoo and Erlang. They turned out to be one of the best third-party integrators for Kazoo that we'd ever seen. We took a bit of a gamble on them, but they made recommendations that yielded glorious results. It’s been a really worthwhile venture.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent between $50,000–$100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

They worked with us between January–December 2017.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Velvetech finished the project in a relatively short amount of time, despite building new software from scratch. Although we kept changing the scope, they reacted well and accommodated our requests accordingly. When we switched our business over to Salesforce, they helped us debug the CTI panel. The team quickly resolved the few issues and glitches we found. It was remarkable; we'd never had such a smooth process with any of the programs or languages they worked in. A lot of these were new technologies, but they were always able to adapt and comprehend the task at hand.

How did Velvetech LLC perform from a project management standpoint?

They were the best team I’d ever worked with, and I would give them the highest marks. Not only were they good engineers, but they also had good business sense. They understood what we were trying to accomplish and delivered what we wanted. We mostly communicated through Slack and used GitLab as a platform for tickets, comments, and milestones.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their speed, responsiveness, and meticulous attention to detail were all impressive. They were extremely organized and concise, and we appreciated the work that they did. They were clear and made decisions based on common sense.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No. I plan to keep using them for future projects and don’t have any negative critiques for them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I can’t think of any advice. They’re easy to work with, and it’s a pleasure to partner with a team that knows what they’re doing.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the technology director for an education technology (EdTech) company that creates web applications for elementary school teachers. I manage the development and design of new features.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Velvetech LLC?

We needed a company to build a web application using ASP.NET, JavaScript, C#, and Amazon Web Services (AWS).

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted to build a web application that met our requirements while being delivered on time and within budget. It had to work on all major web browsers and use a scalable architecture that could grow alongside our customers.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

They were recommended to us by a co-worker and met our vendor requirements.

Can you go into detail about the services they provided and the scope of the project?

They designed the architecture before building the application with ASP.NET. Currently, they continue to provide ongoing maintenance.

What was the team composition?

The team consisted of eight people: five developers, a team lead, a project manager, and a QA resource. Some resources changed over time, but Velvetech ensured that the new members were qualified and up to speed before the old ones transitioned out.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

This project represents a foundational addition to what we can offer our customers. Initial customer reviews show great potential.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

Their effective project management allowed them to build out our requirements and meet milestones on time. We primarily used Jira for task management and bug fixes. In terms of communication, there were no language barriers between us.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Velvetech is a flexible company. We regularly changed requirements based on customer feedback, and they were agile enough to adapt to our needs without missing a step. They were also able to scale quickly as our needs grew.

Are there any areas where they can improve?

No areas of improvement come to mind. Whenever an issue arose, we'd discuss the root cause and improve the process.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of Tradespoon. We provide analytics for self-directed investors.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Velvetech LLC?

We hired them to bring new technologies and features to our trade intelligence platform. The goal is to provide our subscribers with a unified experience on both the web and mobile app.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Velvetech LLC built onto our platform using HTML5 and jQuery. Their significant deliverables include brokerage interfaces, trading interfaces, and analytic interfaces. All of which function responsively on mobile to mirror the experience found on the web version. They achieve rapid application development through an iterative process that utilizes frequent scrums. They also work to maintain and support our existing functionalities.

What is the team composition?

They allocated a team of 5–10 people.

How did you come to work with Velvetech LLC?

One of our partners recommended Velvetech LLC after working with them on a previous project. They sent a proposal and we were highly impressed by their portfolio. They've done a lot of web and CRM development in the financial industry. Considering their credible references and relevant experience, we decided to hire them.

How much have you invested with them?

This particular project cost $450,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in September 2010 and the work is ongoing. They handle most of our development efforts.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They’re extremely cost-effective and complete projects for 50% less than their competitors. Additionally, they deliver developments significantly faster than other firms we’ve contracted.

How did Velvetech LLC perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re a reliable team that always delivers on-time. We communicate via Confluence, XWiki, and Jira. We also used their Insightly CRM.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The team at Velvetech LLC are unlike anyone I’ve ever worked with. They love to use the latest and greatest technologies available. They stay on the forefront of innovation.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I have nothing to suggest at this time. I tell them if they need to improve something and they make adjustments. They have a large team, so everything works out well.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Explore their portfolio to see if they have experience in your industry. I know that they excel in financial platforms and healthcare CRMs. It’s important to work with a team that understands your business and how their technology could benefit it.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the manager of corporate communications at Apache Corporation, an oil and gas exploration and production company. We are based in Houston but have a global footprint.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Velvetech?

We had an old website that was coded by a previous designer. They didn’t keep up with our latest changes and we wanted to find a real CMS team.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They built out a great CMS that has withstood three redesigns. It was a basic corporate B2B website but we wanted our news releases to correlate to each country we were based in. They created a cool system that categorized news releases by country, so we could customize the feed for each branch.

They also created a set of responsive customizations based on .NET. We gave them detailed job plans and cost analysis and they always stayed within our parameters. If we rescoped a project, they adjusted. They created a piece that could connect to Dreamweaver and established a redundancy system for us. They completely rebuilt our backend in 2015 and developed a mobile app. They made a timeline that covers our company’s 60-year history and a mapping system that houses information about each of our projects.

What is the team composition?

I have three regular points of contact. I’m not sure exactly how large the rest of the team is but everyone is always responsive.

How did you come to work with Velvetech?

I found them in a web search and have known them for a long time. We chose them for their price and their professionalism. We first hired them for a tiny coding project to add a feature to the site. They were the only ones willing to take on a little project and we remembered that when we were looking for a new firm. I have a great deal of confidence in them.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent about $300,000 on their development, not including hosting costs.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started the relationship in 2008 and we broke from our contract with our previous vendor in 2010. They currently do maintenance for us.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I have had zero complaints about the website and my IT department likes working with them. They’re wonderful to work with and I don’t have a bad thing to say about them.

How did Velvetech perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re experts and I trust them completely. They’re consistent and I never have to micromanage or worry about the work. We communicate mostly through email and occasionally by phone. They had a project management site that we used as we needed.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I can pick up the phone and brainstorm with them. They’re passionate, confident experts who are full of ideas. Their knowledge is impressive.

Are there any areas they could improve?

It’s rare that I don’t have any suggestions for a vendor. They do a terrific job and our other vendors could learn a lot from them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Let them do their job for you. They are detail-oriented and responsive. You can trust them.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the senior vice president for information technologies at Medadept, a software development company that provides tools for healthcare providers. While these are primarily designed for post-acute healthcare, some hospitals also use our solutions.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Velvetech LLC?

We’ve had a number of business opportunities over the last 2–3 years, but didn’t have adequate internal resources to pursue them. Since we would only need the additional personnel for a limited period, we did not want to hire more in-house staff.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They worked on two projects, one of which was executing portions of a development plan for a healthcare coordination app. The app is designed for healthcare providers who would use it for targeted health population management and patient engagement. Velvetech also developed a patient-facing app that would be integrated into our care coordination product. It would be available for smartphones and Android devices

It was a .NET stack. We primarily used Windows for the server of the care coordination piece, while the user interface was developed using JavaScript and HTML5. The mobile app was created using a mobile application platform that integrates with Microsoft Tools and renders native iOS and Android apps.

What is the team composition?

They assigned a project manager who worked with our internal project managers for both products. We also worked with a lead developer, a documenter, a client stack specialist to do user interfaces, one mobile developer, and other staff. I believe their development team was mostly offshore.

How did you come to work with Velvetech LLC?

We were visiting a customer and pitching additional work, and they mentioned they were doing a project with Velvetech. After taking a look at what they did, we asked permission to contact them. We were impressed with the products they’d handled in the last 18 months, so we asked them to do a proof of concept. Since the results were good, we decided to hire them.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent $125,000 on their services.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in October 2016. Our engagement is currently on hold, as we’re bringing both products to market for a trial period. After 3–4 months, we’ll ask them to do some enhancements.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

It was a positive experience, as Velvetech helped us accelerate our pace to market. The tools have been very well received, allowing us to build a pipeline that’s going to keep us busy until the end of this calendar year.

Some of our internal developers had experience that the Velvetech team didn’t have, but they brought skill sets to the table that we would have had to contract, including UI design and implementation of mobile applications using Xamarin.

How did Velvetech LLC perform from a project management standpoint?

They get high marks on project management. They did a good job of managing their resources and estimating time for delivery. We used Jira and GoToMeeting. They also used GitHub for delivering portions of the work.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Velvetech is one of the best vendors we’ve worked with. They were quick, bright, and nice to work with. Even though they weren’t familiar with some of the concepts in healthcare, they learned quickly. They were also polite and communicated well in English.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They’d worked on similar projects before, but they don’t have an extensive background in U.S. healthcare. If they had more knowledge about it, they probably could have worked faster than they did.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I’d recommend them to customers who are searching for a potential provider of contract programming services.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Founder & CEO of Got it Life

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Got it Life is a Mental Wellness & Performance improvement app with AI-driven Internal Dialog & Psycholinguistics recognition system for high performers like business leaders & athletes. It helps them to overcome their mental challenges to achieve the best results in Work, Sports & Life.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Velvetech LLC to accomplish?

• Android development
• Help in AI implementation

SOLUTION

How did you find Velvetech LLC?

Referral

Why did you select Velvetech LLC over others?

• Referred to me
• Other

How many teammates from Velvetech LLC were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

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

Develop the Android version of our app

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Availability & perfectly working Android app of Got it Life

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

They have a great response, and everything is going well.

What was your primary form of communication with Velvetech LLC?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

Yuri is a great person & partner + great organized team

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

reduce a fee for the development per hour

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the COO of a financial services company

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

alternative investing platform

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Velvetech LLC to accomplish?

• product developtment

SOLUTION

How did you find Velvetech LLC?

Referral

Why did you select Velvetech LLC over others?

• High ratings
• Referred to me
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Velvetech LLC were assigned to this project?

6-10 Employees

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

Web Application development and analytics

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

2 week sprint cycle

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

Timely delivery and organized tracking

What was your primary form of communication with Velvetech LLC?

Virtual Meeting

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

I'm impressed with the expertise of their team.

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

n/a

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm a CEO & Co-founder of Comrade Web Agency, a full-service web design, and digital marketing company

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Velvetech LLC, and what were your goals?

We hired Velevetech for our web development project

SOLUTION

How did you select Velvetech LLC and what were the deciding factors?

One of our partners recommended this company

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

We had a kick-off meeting to share all project requirements, followed by the submission of the initial mockup, wireframes and etc. We had a stand-up meeting once a week.

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

We worked with the account manager, designer, head of the technical team regularly, as well as with the top management

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The Velvetech team was working around the clock on our website development project to provide us with top-notch service. They understood all the project’s requirements and implemented them. The Velvetech team was professional and up to any challenges.

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

The workflow ran smoothly, they showed excellent organizational and communication skills. The team provided reliable services in a timely manner.

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

They were professional, trustworthy, customer-oriented, and brought their expertise and creativity to the table. They did a really good job!

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

I don't see any. Everything was great!