Zeus Group

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

44 Parts specializes in digital design. We are developing some digital products including games and communication products. I’m the co-founder; I’m responsible for all the production.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Zeus Group?

We needed to develop an application called Blaaah. We conceived the product and we hired Zeus Group to develop it.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Blaaah is an Android leisure application. It lets you create fun, animated messages with your voice. You can record, send, or share synchronized voice messages through animated characters. You can even change the key of your voice for more fun.

They also worked on an iOS app called Happy to You where you can record birthday songs in French or English using karaoke. It also includes multi-video screening on the same song. It’s a way to make collaborative video with many videos and all kinds of images and voices mixed together. This was a project that a client requested from us. The idea was not ours. We worked with them to rework some elements, and Zeus Group developed it.

Both projects were challenging for us because we did some things we hadn’t before. I don’t know what the biggest challenge was for them. For Happy to You, they had to synchronize the application with a pre-existing website. Zeus analyzed the work and was able to make it fully compatible with something that wasn’t built well. I was very happy with their work.

How did you come to work with Zeus Group?

I worked in a game company where we had a studio and I met some people there. I also worked with other people in Ukraine and one of them went to work at Zeus. I called him to work on this product. They had a good approach and good process for communication. He has a very good financial approach. We worked together, strengthened our relationship, and we continue to work together as much as possible.

How much have you invested with Zeus Group?

We spent $20,000 with them on this project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in January 2016, and the project was completed in May 2016.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

With Blaaah, we didn’t invest much in marketing, but we still have between 10,000 and 15,000 users. Happy to You is still in beta testing.

How did Zeus Group perform from a project management standpoint?

I had great confidence in them. Anytime there were issues, we found ways to resolve it. They have very good reactivity when there are difficulties. They’re a good company to work with. They are able to work with 3rd party obligations when we have clients needing services. I’m not a technical person, but I have confidence in the way they resolve technical issues. They are able to explain in laymen’s terms to a novice the issues they come across. I’m working with some people in the company who are not technical people at all. That’s very important when working with someone offshore. We were very pleased with their price as well.

What did you find most impressive about Zeus Group?

All I know is they are very good with mobile development and back office processes. I know they offer other services.

Are there any areas Zeus Group could improve?

We’re working together to improve Blaaah. We have other projects we want to work with them on.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Playground Ventures develops mobile apps. We have one product in the marketplace at the moment, which has been developed over the last couple of years.

I am one of three co-founders of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Zeus Group?

We have a lot of business experience, but none in terms of development, so we needed to fill that void in our talents by outsourcing.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We laid out some UI [user interface] screens using our own graphic designer. Zeus Group integrated those into our mobile application. We've had about a dozen rounds of iterations, and also added a backend database and dashboard interface as part of those. The application allows users to store videos and photos in a Snapchat-like style.

How did you come to work with Zeus Group?

I had developed another mobile app and found Zeus Group online through a dedicated website. When we founded the company, we looked at Zeus Group again. We had a good previous experience, and the company had good pricing, so we chose Zeus Group again.

How much have you invested with Zeus Group?

The cost of my first project with Zeus Group was between $3,000 and $4,000. The second project has amounted to around $23,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Zeus Group around two years ago. The relationship is ongoing. Zeus Group has taken on more of a project management role, as well as providing continuous development.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Zeus Group's members are go-getters. They're flexible and able to get the big picture, which I find to be unique in this space. Instead of only doing their assigned tasks, Zeus Group's team will come back to us with alternate suggestions for a more efficient result. This is useful for us since we do not have development experience ourselves.

How did Zeus Group perform from a project management standpoint?

Zeus Group is more punctual than we are. Over the last six weeks, we've started having weekly conference calls, and Zeus Group's communication skills are better than one might expect from a Ukraine-based company. They have an overall collaborative approach.

What did you find most impressive about Zeus Group?

Zeus Group has included members from all levels of the organization into our communication, so they're not afraid to get their hands dirty. We may have a prioritized task list which is passed through email chains to all levels of the company.

Are there any areas Zeus Group could improve?

We've had some starts and stops, but I wouldn't say those were initiated on Zeus Group's end. Collectively, we could have done a better job on a couple of occasions in continuing the momentum.

There used to be a communication gap in our conference calls, but we solved this by making a meeting summary at the end.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We create digital editions on multiple platforms, including native mobile ones. I am the president and CEO of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Zeus Group?

We needed a rapidly-developed iOS app.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Our work has varied over the years. For the most part, Zeus Group has worked on our native iOS application. They've been in charge of its architectural design and implementation. We handle all visual design in-house and have built some mockups ourselves, but Zeus Group architected the app. The same thing goes for our Android app, which followed around one year later.

How did you come to work with Zeus Group?

Our former CEO found Zeus Group on a freelancing board, possibly oDesk.

How much have you invested with Zeus Group?

Our project has been hourly and has varied over the years. It was as low as $12 to $15 per hour and has gone up to $25 per hour at present.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Zeus Group in 2009 or 2010. We continue to work with them.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I'm satisfied with Zeus Group's work and have continued the development with them.

How did Zeus Group perform from a project management standpoint?

We use JIRA and have an on-site project manager and QA [quality assurance] specialist. We give Zeus Group specific assignments, have a back-and-forth interaction through tickets, and go through a QA process. Zeus Group has been good about communication, delivering on time and on budget, apart from certain infrequent situations.

What did you find most impressive about Zeus Group?

Over the course of our tenure, we've worked with a lot of offshore development houses. Zeus Group is the only one we've kept. They've made honest mistakes due to cultural differences but were always willing to make it right. Zeus Group's quality is as high a level as we've gotten overseas.

Are there any areas Zeus Group could improve?

There has been some difficulty based on misunderstandings and miscommunication.