BairesDev

What was the scope of their involvement?

We modified our architecture with the added capability of delivering real-time data we collect in the plant to support staff. Employees included within the envelope of secure users can access data on safe operations of the plant and environmental protection through a mobile app to help the operational staff produce power. Our team’s engineers built a RESTful-based API and used JSON to transfer information back and forth from the web service. 

I brought BairesDev on to help us build the frontend of a mobile app that consumes data sent from our web service. We’re developing it to support both Android and iOS. There is a relatively small amount of native code for each platform. The bulk of the app runs on a progressive web app (PWA) with a common code baseline for both platforms

We started with a discovery kickoff that lasted two weeks. When they came to our offices, we sat down together to hash out the project. I provided exact requirements. We discussed the functionality and mapped each feature back to the scoping document I had created. After we broke the project down, we entered each aspect into Jira.

Our biggest technical challenge was deploying push notifications built using Firebase under the iOS platform. Apple is very particular and restrictive about how they allow companies to send users notifications to their devices.

What is the team composition? 

The team includes a lead developer, a supporting developer, a scrum master, a UX designer, and a QA person. I also interact with a business development manager on a regular basis and speak with other marketing resources periodically as well.

How did you come to work with BairesDev?

I conducted various Google searches and asked my contacts in the industry which kinds of resources they had used to build mobile apps. For a while, I couldn’t find any companies that fit the bill for us until the CEO of BairesDev sent me a very timely email.

Another company contacted me and I found two other potential candidates around the same time. During a two-month evaluation process, I wrote out scoping document to send to the four vendors. I held various phone conversations with each one and quickly eliminated two.

Based on our discussions and their references, BairesDev was clearly the most experienced in the areas that I wanted to build the frontend to address. They were more competent than the other companies and had already built an enterprise-scale mobile app. I wanted to leverage the expertise that they brought to the table and liked their overall approach. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent $125,000-$150,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in February 2019, and the work is ongoing.  Our current plan is to continue using BairesDev for version two of our mobile app. We are already in negotiations about a follow-on project with another group in our organization that I’ll be helping to facilitate. We hope to kick that off sometime this fall.

What was the scope of their involvement?

BairesDev helped us fill two roles for a developer and QA tester on very short notice. The mobile developer they found for us has worked as a regular part of our team for the better part of 18 months. We didn't hire them for a specific project. Instead, they have contributed to our team's efforts on a daily basis. 

From the QA side, we had some challenges filling roles here in the US because it's such a competitive market. BairesDev was able to source people who had our desired skills and background within a matter of a week or two. The quick turnaround so far has been a strong positive.

What is the team composition?

BairesDev helped us augment our staff with two contracted specialists, one for development and the other for QA testing. 

How did you come to work with BairesDev?

The CTO started the initial conversation, so I don't know what evaluation criteria he used. From my perspective, we had success with the initial hire for mobile development work. Since we were happy with that engagement, we went to them again to try to find someone who could fit our QA role.

What is the status of this engagement?

We've been working together since the fall of 2017 and have an active ongoing collaboration.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Feeling wary initially based on our experiences with other contractors, we started our off with a proof of concept project to make sure we felt comfortable working with BairesDev. During this initial endeavor, they proved their merit. Both their company itself and the engineers they provided were the right matches for us. 

This particular collaboration focused on web development. Angular and Node.js were the primary technical skills we requested, but BairesDev can find resources for any type of development we need. 

At this point, we're expanding our partnership for the next quarter. We will source a greater number of resources through BairesDev including QA engineers who can perform web-based automated end-to-end testing. 

What is the team composition? 

BairesDev assigned three resources to our project. We work with a developer, an account manager, and a project manager who checks in every two weeks from their team. 

How did you come to work with BairesDev?

After working with several unsuccessful vendors in the past, we really wanted to find the right fit this time. BairesDev was quick to find and turn around high-quality candidates. They were very flexible about our collaboration and offered several options for the developers we contracted. 

How much have you invested with them?

Many intangible factors aren't included in the cost, including the time we spent in meetings and my personal working hours. Since we purposefully integrated BairesDev within our team, certain variables are difficult to capture. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We first came across a sales representative from BairesDev earlier this year. Based on our email correspondence, we started working together in August 2018. We have an ongoing partnership.