247 Labs Inc.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They were initially subcontracted by our main vendor, who came from the learning space. 247 Labs was involved in two stages of the project, focusing on development work for our administration and data analytics site. Once the product was launched, 247 Labs was retained to provide support.

The platform has a MongoDB and MySQL databases. 247 Labs used Laravel PHP for development on the application side and implemented the Experience API (xAPI) for the MongoDB side. This lets us track analytics like time spent on pages and users’ progress on the learning modules.

Since our applicants have trouble describing their capabilities in civilian terms, the platform gives them the ability to create automated profiles with relevant skills. Once a user has entered the system, it also makes automated matches based on rank and military training. Candidates can quickly see the jobs they are compatible with.

The employer side also has a degree of automation, allowing recruiters to easily see which candidates are suited for certain roles. In addition, the platform has a number of learning modules about interviews, writing resumes, and negotiating salaries. We also match mentors to candidates based on different criteria.

What is the team composition?

The main project manager was from our company, while 247 Labs assigned a project manager from Ukraine. We also worked with two developers, one of whom was based in Tunisia. I met the CTO of 247 Labs in person. He also handled some development work.

How did you come to work with 247 Labs?

We found them through our main vendor, who retained 247 Labs as a subcontractor after one of their developers left the company. Our main vendor gave us assurance that 247 Labs could deliver on what they promised.

How much have you invested with them?

The cost of their services has been in the $50,000–$60,000 range.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with 247 Labs in March or April 2017. The project was launched in September of that year. We liked their work, so we maintained our relationship with 247 Labs after terminating the contract with our main vendor. They continue to support our product.

In addition, we are about to enter the machine learning area in order to implement some job-scraping plug-ins. I don’t know what 247 Labs’ capabilities are in this area, but their CTO is a local AI expert.

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

Our membership has grown over the years and a big part of that is we have an upgraded interface for our customers to learn about what we offer and the checkout experience. 247 Labs definitely had a hand in developing that work to spec. The feedback has been positive. It’s been a very smooth transition. For the most part, everything has been budget and within scope. There has been a huge improvement on the upgraded website.

How did 247 Labs perform from a project management standpoint?

They performed well. We didn’t have too much interaction, but they were always very responsive. We spoke on a week by week basis. We communicated mostly through Jira and sometimes Google Docs and InVision.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I appreciated their reliability and the trust in our relationship.

Do you have any advice for potential clients of 247 Labs?

Have a really clear idea of what you’re looking for. If you’re doing web development, have the design laid out and have a clear vision. That helps move things along really quickly. That’s not specific to them, but for everybody.