Vidatec

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the digital product owner for a company called Crystal Ski Holidays. We’re the UK’s largest ski tour operator. We’re part of the TUI Group Company, one of the world’s biggest travel companies. I’m responsible for the Crystal Ski Explorer App.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Vidatec?

We needed help with app development.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The application was built for Android and iOS. The app has information for users to prepare before they travel. It has guides to resorts, maps where users can see where they are in relation to restaurants, bars, and hotels. They also have the ability to see all their flight details, transfer details, and their accommodation. 

They also built a ski tracking functionality that records where users have skied, how fast they have gone, and how long they have been skiing for. It sorts that information onto a map so they can see all the different areas of the resort they have skied in.

Generally, we would go to Vidatec and tell them what we were looking to do, and a lot of that is based on our overseas operation. As a company, we have gone more and more digital in our web servicing overseas. 

What is the team composition?

I work with three key people from Vidatec. Lynsey (Project Manager) is my main point of contact. I also work with Jordan (Head of Software Development), who is one of their tech leads, and Chris (Head of Customer Delivery), who is head of project delivery.

How did you come to work with Vidatec?

This is going back slightly before I took this role, so I am not 100 percent sure how the collaboration came about. We worked with another company which was then bought out by Vidatec.

How much have you invested in them?

Since we started working with them, we have spent over $200,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

I started working with them in November 2018, and the relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We collect all of the app feedback from our customers. Every one of our customers gets an end-of-holiday questionnaire so we can measure user sentiments toward the app. We can also see if there are issues with the apps and can measure it that way. We also measure the usage stats – how many people are using the app, how many people have downloaded it, which sections they are using, if there are sections that are doing particularly well, and those that aren’t getting much use. We can see if it is going well.

How did Vidatec perform from a project management standpoint?

We mainly communicate over Microsoft Teams, and we occasionally use their system as well. We also utilize email.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re very easy to work with, and their pricing is reasonable. They’re generally very easy to communicate with, they respond quickly, and they’re always open to discussion. I really enjoy working with the team. They’re down to earth. They fit my personality and my working style very well. They’re knowledgeable and willing to help.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We have had challenges with high staff turnover on their side in the beginning. However, over the last year, it has been steady, and we are now in a position where we are working very well as a team, and it has been much easier. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Apache Associates is an independent IT & Sales recruitment company which I started in 2009.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Vidatec?

To redesign the Apache Website from top to bottom, which had not been changed for about 5 years.

What were your goals for this project?

To ensure it looked up to date, was easy to navigate and reflected a larger recruitment business. Apache was also going to be 10 years old, so we wanted had a timeline to launch before May 2019.

SOLUTION

How did you select Vidatec?

I've known the CEO of Vidatec for a number of years and having recruited for him and his teams over the years, it was about time I reciprocated and gave business to his company! :-)

Describe the project in detail.

Brainstorming, discussing general ideas on the look and feel of the site, as well as showing other sites that we wanted to utilise ideas from. Once this piece of taken care of, they started to come up with designs based on colouration, look/feel and we worked together bouncing ideas between the 2 companies until we were happy with the look. The background work then ensued and the team produced a working site within a week for me to test and make changes to. The full site went live a week later - full scope of project was 3 weeks.

What was the team composition?

A Project Manager and Senior Developer.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

We have seen a significant increase in Candidates applying for job roles through our Website. We regularly receive positive feedback regarding the look and feel of the site, from both Clients & Candidates.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The partnership was a real team dynamic and never felt like a "them and us" situation; they listened intently and made suggestions based on our ideas, whilst adding a lot of input in terms of creativity / design to make the project a success.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The communication is very good - everyone in the company that I have dealt with are easy to talk to and happy to share ideas with you. It was an enjoyable, collaborative project.

Are there any areas for improvement?

No, very happy.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of a company that helps employees find volunteering opportunities through the use of a digital app.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Vidatec?

We needed help building our portal.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Vidatec handled the design and discovery session, and they built the landing pages and the MVP of the portal. The website is built on WordPress and has a .NET backend component.

What is the team composition?

We worked with a project manager, developers, and finance person from Vidatec. There were around six people involved.

How did you come to work with Vidatec?

A colleague of mine did the research and chose Vidatec because of their experience and reputation. We got proposals from three agencies in total.

How much have you invested with them?

The total cost is £136,000 (approximately $175,222 USD) plus tax.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Vidatec around March 2019, and the portal officially launched in May 2020. We have some final bits to do, and we estimate to finish the work by next week.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The design is clean and easy to use. Our target audience is non-technical, and the platform is definitely straightforward for them. Users love the platform.

How did Vidatec perform from a project management standpoint?

We’ve had a number of project managers, however Vidatec managed this as best they could. Vidatec finished the initial MVP quickly, in about six weeks, which was great but the second part of that has been delayed. We are within budget, and the platform went live on time, but development on certain features has been extended. We’re not technical, so we relied on Vidatec as a technical partner. It was a little difficult to get the process of new features correct but once we worked that through things were much smoother.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Our current project manager really understands us as a business and what we’re trying to achieve. Vidatec has been very flexible with us throughout these issues and difficulties, and I think we’ve come to have a good partnership. We can be honest with them about the shortcomings we’ve had. They’re also great at keeping us up to date on a regular basis. The standups we have with them are really helpful.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Vidatec could have a real partnership approach and collaboration. We’re each experts in our fields, and it’s a matter of how we can work together in a way that’s helpful and adds value. We just assume that we know what we want, but we don’t know what the best way of achieving it is.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Clients should make sure that they have a weekly or fortnightly call with the project manager, to talk about challenges, issues, successes, and what’s coming up. That way, everyone will have a clear line of sight into what’s happening with them as a business.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the founder of Connectus and we provide parental engagement services to schools across the UK

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

Every six months we analyse all our customer requests for new and enahnce functionality and create relevant projects for anayis and development.

SOLUTION

How did you select Vidatec and what were the deciding factors?

Vidatec are our retained support and development partner and have been so for the last four years

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

An initial list of project requirements was created. Vidatec provided a 'high level' resource estimate and a view of whether some of the requirements could be packaged together ( for efficiency ) . This then enable us to provide a prioritised list of projects. Vidatec them provided detailed 'Enhancement Requests' with a final costing.

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

A project manager with a couple of developers with QA

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

All projects were delivered on time, to budget, and the appropriate quality

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

Excellent project management with timely updates

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

They continuously deliver excellent and timely support and development.

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

None