Authentic Digital

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a business architect that works as a consultant, looking for opportunities to implement my business solution. The automated tool is used for complaints of FCA-regulated companies. I operate in one of the IT companies under a much larger parent company. We mainly work in the finance sector.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Authentic Studio?

We needed to build a prototype for our FCA-regulated complaint management tool.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We wanted to enhance the UI/UX of our solution using a Microsoft tech stack. At the time, we had a framework in place with certain constraints. We wanted to examine the possible arc of the project. After presenting them with what we had already, we asked them to spend time brainstorming design ideas.

This was an iterative cycle, functioning almost as agile development. They would present their work weekly for our feedback before reiterating on the project. We left room for their creativity and decision-making. As long as they could deliver a presentation layer that could communicate with our framework, we were content.

It was important to include users types in the product, integrating information in the background to legacy systems. We wanted the system to be effective and dynamic from agent to agent. That required us to enforce short timelines to best resolve and address issues.

What is the team composition?

We were liaising with two people: a lead architect and a business architect. There was a bigger team working in the background as well.  

How did you come to work with Authentic Studio?

One of my director’s colleagues came across Authentic Studio’s positive online reviews. He contacted them and fell into an instant rapport.

How much have you invested with them?

In total, we spent about £5,000 (approximately $6,600 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

The main development work has about a six-week turnaround. Otherwise, the engagement lasted from June–December 2018.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Their work was solid and we were blown away by their abilities to use the most modern, cutting-edge technology. They have the ability to create impressive, dynamic work. Unfortunately, we had to bring someone permanent in to realize the UI/UX of the final product, but they provided us with ideas to get us to that endpoint.  

How did Authentic Studio perform from a project management standpoint?

Because it was an agile, iterative development project, we commonly shared 5–6 screens on WebEx. At the first kickoff meeting, they were able to provide estimates for time and cost. They delivered to that schedule.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re very engaging and possessed the bandwidth to handle our project. They had the resources to easily scale up, even as a smaller company. We knew that they could always accommodate our demands.

Are there any areas they could improve?

If they were to really expand within the region, I’d love for them to have a location in the United Kingdom. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Provide them with materials like sketches or wireframes in the beginning. Along with those, offer clear metrics. That will guide them in building your project. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the CEO of a company that provides a software infrastructure for educational organizations, including private schools and franchise businesses that own them. We offer wide range of fully customizable products, which help school owners and managers take complete control over timetable planning, student databases, attendance, rescheduling classes, student payments, and detailed reports to assist with their managerial duties.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Authentic Studio?

We needed a company with a modern approach to user experience since our legacy system had rather outdated user interface plus the brand needed a revamp too. Our solutions where a bit out of date - we need to migrate to the cloud and change architecture to SaaS. We also lacked a mobile app to facilitate communications with parents.

We've started small, with branding. The results kept us coming back for more, and in the end, we outsourced pretty much all the design, and front-end development works to Authentic Studio. We also used their expertise for market analysis, competitors check and SEO, plus we used their consulting services for data migration and architectural choices.

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted a fresh new look for our SchoolTracs brand and a reliable partner to carry our product to the next level. Most of the established agencies in Hong Kong provided either obsolete or overprices solutions.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We have selected them mainly on the offer they prepared and few conference calls we had. We'd put all proposals and reports we'd received on the table and their stood out not only because of the printed layout but also the content quality. It wasn't some just another generic proposal. We felt that actual people with knowledge and skills took the time to analyze our case - surprisingly free of charge at this stage, which is rather uncommon approach in Hong Kong.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

They seemed to use all of the available pro tools. The feedback and presentation were well prepared, swift and semi-functional so we could actually discuss future user experience; all mockups and prototypes were presented in InVision, bugs were reported via Bugherd and the communication took place primarily on Slack. They kept the process structured and organized. A clear set of steps always followed a presentation or a feedback session.

This workflow worked for pretty much all of the services they provided:

• Logo Design
• Responsive Website Design
• IT Consulting
• Front-End Development
• Back-End integration
• Deployment
• Copywriting
• Mobile App Design

They also had leaders that were actively working on the project, so no one had to bother with 'empty' project manager roles.

What was the team composition?

They had an efficient structure, two people to lead the team. One was responsive for UX and the product look and feel while the other one handled technical details. Leaders dealt with 90% of the conversations; only 10% of the issues were discussed between specialists but always with leaders present, so everyone was on track. Their team totaled to 7 people at the busiest period.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

It changed the way our clients looked at our product, which helped us to become market leader in Southern Asia and enable us to think about expanding our business to other International markets. Refreshed brand, new website and precise plan SEO helped us acquire quite a few new customers over last year.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

As mentioned, Authentic Studio have been always presenting everything using prototypes or mockups so we were always on the same page and we did not waste time on emails and pointless notes. We even adopted some of their managerial flow and tools to our team, this meaning using Avocode or inVision, for instance.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Blazing fast response and accurate and fresh ideas. Hiring them felt like expanding our team - they cared about our product as much as we did.

Are there any areas for improvement?

The scheduled was tight, so they did missed flew deadlines by day or two. We knew that before though, and the result was always outstanding, so we forgave them every time.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.
I was a digital marketing manager at a financial services company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Authentic Digital?
We needed a company that could help us revamp our e-trading platform, which allows our customers to buy, switch, and sell mutual funds. We wanted to improve the platform’s user interface and customer experience and make it more user-friendly.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?
We hired Authentic Digital to revamp our e-trading platform’s UX/UI design and improve its backend. Their work involved implementing a shopping cart and a notification feature into the site and improving their check-out flow. They also made sure that the site was compatible with different mobile devices and desktop versions.

Additionally, the team integrated a risk rating feature that recommended mutual funds based on the user’s profile. The platform also had a two-factor authentication feature that sent a one-time passcode to the user’s registered phone number. After the e-trading project, we reached out to Authentic Studio to help us create banners for our marketing campaigns.

What is the team composition?
My primary points of contact were Jack (Director of Operations) and Kamil (Co-Founder & Director of Engineering), but there was a team of designers working behind the scenes.

How did you come to work with Authentic Digital?
We found Authentic Digital through an online search. We decided to work with them because of their great portfolio and because they had a local office.

How much have you invested with them?
We spent $120,000 on the e-trading project and $30,000 on the campaign pages.

What is the status of this engagement?
We worked together from January–April 2016.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
Authentic Digital delivered the e-platform revamp project within 3–4 months, and the outcome was successful. The new platform was highly responsive with an excellent user interface, which resulted in improved customer experience. It was easy to use, and we received fewer phone calls from customers because of the platform’s self-help center, making it easier for customers to make a purchase.

Our internal IT was also impressed with Authentic Digital’s clean code, flows, and algorithms. Because of their excellent work, we reached out to them for other projects after this one.

How did Authentic Digital perform from a project management standpoint?
Authentic Digital performed well in terms of project management. They delivered on time and were easy to get a hold of. We primarily communicated through phone calls and email.

Are there any employees from the service provider's team that you would like to give a shout-out to in this review?
I would like to give a shout-out to Jack. He was incredibly responsive, responding to my requests and concerns even on holiday. He always thought of ways to speed up the project, working very long hours to meet our timeline and avoid delays.

What did you find most impressive about them?
We used to call Authentic Digital the impossible team because we challenged them a lot, and they always delivered.

Are there any areas they could improve?
I can’t think of anything they can improve on.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the CTO of Calastone

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Asset Management Services and Technology

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Authentic Studio to accomplish?

• Create a Modern Design System
• UX Design Excellence
• Design and Development of new Products

SOLUTION

How did you find Authentic Studio?

Other

Why did you select Authentic Studio over others?

• Referred to me
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Authentic Studio were assigned to this project?

6-10 Employees

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

Deliver a modern design system, based on Angular. Provide UX design and thinking at a product level. Deliver custom UI software development in complex asset management domains.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We now have a design system foundation and our applications look aligned and coherent.

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

They are authentic and always go above and beyond to deliver for us.

What was your primary form of communication with Authentic Studio?

• In-Person Meeting
• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

Dedication to doing the best job possible regardless of the circumstances, including going above and beyond to get things done on time and budget.

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

No