Authentic Studio

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.

What challenge were you trying to address with Authentic Studio?

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

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.

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. 

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.

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.

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.

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.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am CEO for a retail information company that uses crowdsourcing/ mobile tech to quickly and effectively deliver location specific information across Asia (www.smart-rocket.com).

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

Through our SmartRocket system, we attract, register, train and work ongoing with thousands of auditors across Asia. At the same time, we deliver information collected by these auditors to support decision making for some of the worlds largest brands and companies. The project was design of a website capable of meeting our communications needs across these two very different targets.

What were your goals for this project?

We needed a visually engaging website that was easy to understand to help us explain what we do to potential members for our SmartRocket communities. The website needed to be scalable, easily adapted to new geographies (languages, content) and include imagery which could provide a thematic basis for other communications channels. At the same time to give an idea to potential clients as to what we do and how we do it.

How did you select this vendor?

We have worked with Authentic before and have always been very happy with their work.They were originally selected from a shortlist of 5 back when we were looking for a web design partner.

Describe the project in detail.

We provided a brief on the target markets, communications needs and general look & feel we were seeking. They did the rest.

What was the team composition?

Authentic a number of capable staff included project management, graphic design, web design and infrastructure support to help with deployment and maintenance.

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

Please visit https://www.smart-rocket.com/ Overall, we are very happy with the result.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Their workflow was very efficient. They held regular but concise meetings to track progress and clarify any issues.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

A one stop shop. We had a general idea on what we wanted. They helped flesh our idea out, suggested improvements and then turned that into something which greatly exceeds our expectations, taking care of all the details along the way.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Overall, we have been and continue to be very happy.