Arck Interactive

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a product manager at Keap, an email marketing platform for small businesses. We recently went through a rebrand; when we worked with Arck Interactive, my company was called Infusionsoft.

What challenge were you trying to address with Arck Interactive?

We noticed a common problem amongst small businesses, which was that it was challenging to schedule meetings with clients and prospects. Our customer base said that they spent a lot of time emailing back and forth with clients about availability. My company wanted to solve this problem with software improvements, so we partnered with Arck Interactive to help us develop this solution and build the feature set into our product.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Arck Interactive developed a feature set in our Google Cloud platform’s frontend. The feature set enables our customers to send a link with their schedule to any recipient, who use the link to book time on the business owner’s Google Calendar. Arck Interactive helped us with other cloud functionalities.

What is the team composition?

My team worked with a project lead, a tech lead, and three developers.

How did you come to work with Arck Interactive?

I wasn’t involved in the recruitment process, but I believe our CMO recommended them.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project lasted June–December 2018.

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

The feature set that Arck Interactive developed is our second most popular product in our lineup. Before, somebody that needed this functionality had to pay for an additional monthly service. Our users were delighted that they didn’t have to spend money and time integrating with external tools. This feature set enriched our offering and had a tremendous impact on the value that we created for our customers.

Because of Arck Interactive’s development work, we can now provide small business owners with an easy way for them to manage their availability. This saves time by omitting the back-and-forth email chain.

How did Arck Interactive perform from a project management standpoint?

During development, we communicated every day, almost hourly, on the project’s progress. The project lead and I were in constant contact about tracking project hours and the budget. Arck Interactive helped us understand what we needed to do to meet specific budget requirements. They attended our daily morning standups on Webex; they also set up Webex meetings whenever we wanted to ask questions, talk through something, or provide feedback. The team iterated very quickly. We communicated via Slack.

What did you find most impressive about them?

In the development space, it’s really important to differentiate between software and product engineers. Arck Interactive’s product engineers thought like a user and did thorough user testing, which allowed them to make many improvements beyond our original requirements. They were phenomenal at applying the human element to the technology they were building. In my experience, it’s hard to find engineers that do this.

Also, Arck Interactive accommodated our strict deadline and made sure we met it. They did whatever it took to finish the project on time; their engineers worked long hours through nights and weekends. We didn’t experience any additional fees or double-time costs that you might expect with a tight deadline.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The only thing that’s preventing us from rehiring them is that they aren’t proficient in Java, our backend framework. We tried to engage them for a few other projects, but we couldn’t move forward because they didn’t know Java. It would be nice if they were more skilled in other frameworks and architectures. They were more than willing to try and figure it out, but we didn’t want to pay them for the time this would take.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the owner of a company that provides a communication platform for the foster care industry, allowing parents and members of a foster care team to collaborate and share information.

What challenge were you trying to address with Arck Interactive?

I needed a developer to help build a web-based platform.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Arck designed and developed a web communications platform from scratch, using LAMP and other technologies.

What is the team composition?

I work with two developers and a designer.

How did you come to work with Arck Interactive?

Arck was listed as one of the top developers on the ELK Stack website. Their expertise were very impressive, so I thought they'd be the best fit for the project.

How much have you invested with them?

We've invested about $22,000 thus far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in November 2016 and officially launched the platform in May 2018, but we continue to work with them to make improvements and upgrades.

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

I was very impressed by how quickly Arck's team was able to accomplish many of the development tasks we gave them. I've been developing personally for over 20 years, so I have a good idea of how long things take, and they consistently delivered high-quality work much faster than I thought they'd be able to.

I've been able to get a lot of functionality and work out of them for a very reasonable price. We regularly leverage their expertise in order to add additional features or upgrades as we go, and they ensure that additional features will be upgrade-friendly in the long term.

How did Arck Interactive? perform from a project management standpoint?

They're very organized. We utilize Basecamp for communications, which allows me to create to-do lists, prioritize tasks, and add comments or pictures as needed.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their expertise in the ELK environment is outstanding. I'm very happy with the way the project has progressed.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No. There were times when they weren't readily available and had to prioritize other clients, but given that we're a relatively small client, I think they've done a great job of squeezing in the time to make upgrades on our platform as needed during less busy phases.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am an agile trainer and coach. At the time of this project, I worked with Grapevine Technologies, an agile coaching organization.

What challenge were you trying to address with Arck Interactive?

We needed outside assistance creating a secure social networking site for the religious community.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They built our website to allow churches to communicate with, and motivate, members and collect donations. The site hosts an online marketplace and business directory, a range of social networking features, integrated online giving on a one-time or recurring basis, instant messaging, and a forum for site announcements and other communications.

What is the team composition?

We worked with three developers.

How did you come to work with Arck Interactive?

They were referred to us. I vetted them pretty heavily, asking about their quality management processes and how they approach software.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent more than $70,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from 2012–2014.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m CEO of DailyClout. We make it easier for people to learn about and share legislation. We help ordinary people use their networks for lobby powerfully and directly for bills that affect them, that with our tools they can see, share and understand. 

What challenge were you trying to address with Arck Interactive?

We have a proprietary platform that needed to be faster and more intuitive. We wanted an affordable partner to help us create a sophisticated, effective iteration.

What was the scope of their involvement?

The platform, Billcam, allows people to search any US state or federal bill and share their findings on social media. No other databases like it make information so easy to share. Arck helped us add more functionality, such as voting options on the site. They brought us to the next stage of our development.

What is the team composition?

We had a primary point of contact who managed the rest of their team.

How did you come to work with Arck Interactive?

We were in discussion with a distinguished former tech executive and ally in the space. He used them for another project and endorsed them enthusiastically.

How much have you invested with them?

I can’t divulge specific numbers but they provided very good value for the money and were worth the investment. Our investors agree.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together around May 2017. They completed the original scope of work very effectively and we’ve since returned to them with a new set of functionalities.

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

We were a startup. Two years into the process, we’re a profitable company and are doing extremely well. We never had technical issues that weren’t immediately fixed. The database is first-rate and attracts users from all over the world, including government officials.

We have a few Senate offices and congressional candidates who use Billcam. It’s better than some official state databases and its quality brings in additional investments. Investors are impressed by the functionality and we’re on the verge of a substantial partnership with a media outlet with millions of visitors.

How did Arck Interactive perform from a project management standpoint?

We had very good experiences with their project management. They translate our ideas into material solutions and have already outlined specs for future projects. Communication is clear and seamless from concept to delivery and they bring good insight and ideas to our interaction.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They are flexible and know how to deliver results and help startups succeed. The tech space is a male-dominated industry where women often face cultural challenges. Arck was incredibly respectful and professional. Our interactions were egalitarian and we had no issues.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No. The value and partnership they provide far outweighs anything they could improve. They performed exceptionally well within tight financial parameters.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the president and CEO of an IT solutions company that designs networks and low-voltage cables and provides hosting solutions and support.

For what projects/services did your company hire Arck Interactive?

A client of ours had a custom LAMP application designed by another company that subsequently went out of business. A development like this was beyond our expertise, so we hired Arck Interactive to continue the work.

What were your goals for this project?

We needed a vendor to move the website to a new hosting platform and provide ongoing support during that transition.

How did you select this vendor?

After extensive online research on developers with LAMP experience and interviews with various vendors, we selected Arck.

Describe the project in detail.

We gave Arck the source code. They were able to transition the app to a new LAMP server and ensure that the site was functional in one day. After that, they found (and corrected) inefficiencies in the database and provided ongoing support.

What was the team composition?

We worked with various team members throughout the transition.

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

The new site has run without any glitches for the past two years. Plus, our client said they are satisfied with the site’s increased speed.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

We communicated through email and phone and tracked progress through Basecamp.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Arck’s quick responses and high level of expertise impressed me.

Are there any areas for improvement?

We do not see any need for improvement.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the President and Founder of Nurses Lounge, a professional network for nurses. We act as a LinkedIn for nurses who create professional profiles on our site. They can join associations based on their schools or employers and interact with 600 BSN nursing schools, 6,000 hospitals, and 100 specialties on our platform.

What challenge were you trying to address with Arck Interactive?

We had used an older platform for our site that was eventually taken over by Oracle. We needed a newer software that we could customize. We found an open-source social networking software called Elgg that we thought would work for us and wanted to use. We needed help to implement that decision.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They built our platform on Elgg, integrating our database and customizing features such as a job board. They’ve also built an app for us linking to data from our website and other sources.

They currently manage our server and continue to take on new projects for us. Most recently, they created a searchable directory of graduate nursing schools. Schools can input their graduate programs and contact info. Nurses can search against various criteria to find the school that best fits their needs, whether online or campus-oriented.

What is the team composition?

We worked with three team members.

How did you come to work with Arck Interactive?

We found them on the internet. As we were researching Elgg, their name kept coming up as specialists in that software—for example, their programmers were answering questions on Elgg in different forums—so we called them. They had experience with Elgg and understood our business. After speaking with them, we felt they were our best option for creating what we wanted and needed to do.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $250,000 over the last couple of years.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in 2015 and it’s ongoing.

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

We were able to design and create a site that meets expectations. It’s easy to navigate and looks very professional. When we demo the site at a nursing school or hospital, people can immediately see that our platform is well thought out and well developed.

We’ve had a similar experience with our app. When they built the app, they were able to integrate from multiple data sources seamlessly. We never missed a beat.

How did Arck Interactive perform from a project management standpoint?

We use project management software to track. We talk to them about what we need and they respond to make sure they’ve understood the project. We’re able to communicate problems we had and instantly get an answer from them. They’re quick to respond to any problems, suggestions, or questions we have.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They really knew the social networking market and came it in a very mindful way. They could see the bigger picture and not be distracted by the programming details. They could understand the business opportunity and what we needed to make it work from a business standpoint.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I was the executive vice president and general manager for North America and Europe for Six Apart Inc.

What challenge were you trying to address with Arck Interactive?

I used Arck as my lead outsourced provider for pretty much every project. I started the North American and European offices or divisions for a Japanese company because of the language barriers. We couldn’t really work with a team in Japan, and they didn’t understand US specs because they were different than what we were looking to achieve versus Japan. Arck really was my go-to outsourced team.

What was the scope of their involvement?

I use them for web payment platforms and custom software licensing platforms. So everything that they did for me, they pretty much built from scratch. They also did a bunch of Salesforce integration work and custom coding for things we were working on.

We used Reddit, Elgg, WordPress, and Movable Type. There would’ve been both dynamic scripting and Perl and legacy stuff. Two or 3 developers were assigned to this project.

How did you come to work with Arck Interactive?

It was a weird circumstance how I found them. We met at a conference. Then 6 months later, I had a project and I needed to get it done quick and needed to find someone who had direct experience. When I talked to them, they said, “We built this for someone. It looked just like this, and this is what we used.” That was exactly what we needed so we started working on one project, which led to multiple projects.

How much have you invested with Arck Interactive?

We have spent between $200,000 and $500,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started in 2014, and I have worked with them up until now. The project is completed.

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

The licensing software, the integration, and the automation saved us from having to hire people and lots of man-hours. The custom licensing product they built for us was something that we were able to sell to other small vendors. We had zero bugs, at least to my knowledge. It was really high-quality work and they documented it extremely well.

Some agencies I have worked with in the past kind of hold back on stuff because they want you to keep coming back to them and spend more money. These guys were very transparent, very upfront, and understood us. I made it clear to them how I wanted to do business. I didn’t want to have to come back every time I needed something done, so I needed them to document how they’re building the product and how it’s set up so that we can do some of the general stuff ourselves. This leads to trust and more projects, and they’re 100% on board with that.

How did Arck Interactive perform from a project management standpoint?

I think they were great, both on time and on cost. If we were making any kind of radical departure from the original plans, they were very upfront in saying, “This is a big change. It’s not going to be a freebie. So let us know if you want to complete the project as is and then come back and reiterate it at a later time.”

They really managed everything well and had very clear communication. A lot of agencies promise much and don’t always deliver. These guys were on time. They made sure to get all the specs upfront so I wouldn’t get the constant big tricks in the industry such as, “Sure, we can do that. It’s $12,000. Do you want to add that? It’s another $3,000.” They were not like that. They were very thorough, upfront, and what they quoted was what they did the project for. In one project, they actually underestimated what it would cost. They told me that, but they kept their word and ate the additional cost overrun at their expense. Like I said, they’re real stand up guys.

We were on Basecamp. We did some code review on a code repository.

What did you most impressive about Arck Interactive?

There are a lot of people that have the skills, are they communicative? Do they understand your particular challenge? All that stuff is really the “special sauce” to me, and they had that. It was a combination of skills and ability, but then also understanding the business problem and business challenge. In some cases, even making recommendations beyond what we thought of to make that fix even better.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We run peer networks of senior executives, giving them the opportunity to find and connect with each other, both virtually and face-to-face, solving real problems with real solutions. I am the community technologist of the company.

What challenge were you trying to address with Arck Interactive?

Our business goals were to provide a virtual environment for the executives who are members of our networks to interact with one another and ask questions within our forum tool. We also run online blogs and face-to-face meetings for each network. We needed the ability to have event registrations on our platform and things of that nature.  

What was the scope of their involvement?

Arck Interactive helped us design an environment which provided a toolset for members to find and connect with one another. More recently, Arck Interactive has developed a mobile app which provides the same prime interaction features to our members.

Our site was built using a platform called [Unintelligible [00:01:59.09], which rests upon several other technologies.

We've typically worked with one main developer from Arck Interactive, but there have been other people assigned to our projects, depending on the needed areas of expertise.

How did you come to work with Arck Interactive?

We were already working with Arck Interactive when I joined the company. I believe that someone who was involved in the design of our online platform was connected with Arck Interactive, so we explored that relationship.

How much have you invested with Arck Interactive?

Having come into the company at a later time, I cannot provide a number.

What is the status of this engagement?

I estimate that we started working with Arck Interactive 4-5 years ago. We have an ongoing relationship with them. The main PC-based online environment has been up-and-running for some time, but we continue to make modifications to it based on our business needs. The mobile app is also live and is being evolved continually.

We start development projects yearly, which is why we continue to work with Arck Interactive. They host our environment but are also there to handle our business needs as the company grows.

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

We're in the process of developing some analytics tools in order to measure better and assess the use of our environment, but I don't have any metrics to share specifically.

How did Arck Interactive perform from a project management standpoint?

Arck Interactive has used JIRA for ticket tracking on our sprints. We also communicate to a large extent using Basecamp. Arck Interactive has been accessible and responsive to our needs, both immediate and long-term ones.

What did you find most impressive about Arck Interactive from other providers?

We've had a good working relationship with Arck Interactive. They're responsive to feedback in whatever form we provide. Arck Interactive has helped us scope the nature of our projects, and supplied the resources that could accomplish that.

Are there any areas Arck Interactive could improve?

We have constantly tried to improve the way in which we work and communicate with one another, but there's nothing in particular to highlight in this area.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are a large international financial organization which lends to third-world countries, with the goal of alleviating extreme poverty, and increasing prosperity for everyone on the planet. I am an information officer for the organization.

What challenge were you trying to address with Arck Interactive?

We were in an emergency mode after bringing in an open-source collaboration platform with which we didn't have a lot of experience. We started customizing and changing it to fit our needs but ended up making a mess out of it.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Arck Interactive came in and saved us from ourselves, putting our system on the right track. They had good familiarity with the Elgg CMS [content management system] and had some development resources for this purpose. We maintained a good relationship in tuning the product to what our needs were, from both data collection to its front-end and user experience. 

Arck Interactive assigned 2 development resources for the work. We've since moved away from using the platform. It was an experiment that the bank underwent when we needed some in-house collaboration tools. When we decided to migrate, Arck Interactive was there to help us move the content into our current one, Jive.

It was a great experience, and Arck Interactive was able to come in at a moment's notice. They were willing to work with us across a couple of time zones, originally. When we needed it, Arck Interactive even flew into our location during the holidays and helped get the platform working again.

How did you come to work with Arck Interactive?

We found Arck Interactive through LinkedIn.

How much have you invested with Arck Interactive?

The cost of our project was between $10,000 and $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Arck Interactive 5-6 years ago. 

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

Our experience with Arck Interactive was stellar. I've worked with developers constantly, bringing new software and solutions to the bank during my 32 years in the field. Arck Interactive stood out overall, going the extra mile to help us achieve our goals and get us to where we needed to be.

 How did Arck Interactive perform from a project management standpoint?

We did use a cloud-based project management tool. It was a great fit for the project, allowing us to transfer files back-and-forth in a secure environment.

What did you find most impressive about Arck Interactive?

I don't have anything specific to mention, but the overall experience working with Arck Interactive was great.

Are there any areas Arck Interactive could improve?

I wouldn't say so. Arck Interactive was thorough, professional and extremely confident in their programming strengths.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the founder and CEO of MedEdQR LLC.

For what projects/services did your company hire Arck Interactive?

We needed full development services for a specialized content delivery platform and associated mobile access applications.

What were your goals for this project?

Our goal was to produce a very robust and specialized content delivery platform that’s suitable for the delivery of virtual patient scenarios to medical students and professionals. We also wanted to produce iOS and Android mobile and tablet applications that would provide secure, flexible, and robust access to the virtual patient scenarios contained on the delivery platform.

How did you select this vendor?

I had prior knowledge of the work they had done for another company for whom I was consulting.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

Arck Interactive delivered full stack development of the MedEdQR platform and reimagined the UI/UX. They created features, user flows, and mockups as part of the product development process.

The team also compiled a list of appropriate contacts for marketing purposes. They provide hosting of the finished product.

What was the team composition?

Their team was composed of one project manager and at least one developer at every stage.

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

This is the only product of my business.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

Project management was generally excellent, though I would have liked more communication when developer or development issues arose. JIRA was used initially, but, about halfway through, there was a switch to Trello. GitHub was used for software management.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Their general knowledge of the healthcare industry was impressive. They also gave us access to qualified developers that had a history of high performance.

Are there any areas for improvement?

There’s some room for improvement in terms of communication when significant issues arise. One of the early developers left after the MVP was constructed, leaving a hole that resulted in a complete overhaul of the system by the next developer. There was also one developer that was hired but didn't work out at all, which caused the loss of a few months of development time. Later developers were excellent and added much to the applications.