Benzne

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a department head for a UK-based property technology (PropTech) company with a back office in India. We provide one of the leading residential software solutions on the market for the letting industry, and we work with a number of key clients.

We essentially support the whole customer journey from a tenant to an agent, allowing them to find an appropriate level of accommodation. Once we find an appropriate property for a tenant, our system allows the agent to manage paydays for the landlord. Additionally, we help agents with any queries, contractual issues, or property repairs.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Benzne?

As an organization, we initially delivered projects using a particular framework relying on both Agile and Scrum methodologies. However, we’ve migrated over to a Waterfall model over the years without any kind of external consultancy by reading about the matter and getting education and coaching.

Although we felt that we had done a reasonably good job, we felt that we needed continuous improvement on our framework. Thus, we decided to look externally for an agency or consultancy that worked in the industry to help us work better from an agile perspective. Therefore, we hired Benzne to help us out.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Initially, we engaged with Benzne for a four-week pilot, which they called a pre-game phase. During this time, they came on board full-time to get to know our current software development lifecycle, our agile footprint, our Scrum setup, the roles and responsibilities of our teammates, and our overall framework.

During those four weeks, Benzne listened to us and assessed how well we understood the methodologies and how well we performed within Scrum. Then, they presented back their findings and recommendations, including a roadmap and a plan to improve our key metrics during the next 3–6 months of consistent work.

Benzne’s plan included ensuring that the people filling the different roles within our organization knew what they should be doing according to the industry standard. Additionally, their plan included looking at how our team was formed to ensure that the meetings and ceremonies around the development process were effective and used correctly. This latter assessment also implied ensuring that the number of attendees, the documentation used, and the inputs and outputs for those meetings met the industry standards.

In addition to those areas, Benzne’s plan also included assessing our processes as a whole to ensure that we used the right tools, connectivity, and documentation effectively. The expected outcome after those 3–6 months of work was having a whole team working more efficiently and collaboratively.

What is the team composition?

We worked with Alok and Anuj, as well as with a team coach from Benzne. Alok worked as our account manager, and Anuj acted as our head coach.

How did you come to work with Benzne?

Our COO, who is based in India, found them through a Google search and did the due diligence required. Additionally, I personally reviewed Benzne against another consultancy firm in the UK to compare the offerings of both companies and markets. We ultimately chose Benzne because we felt like they fit in our organization for their personality and values.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around ₹5.22 million (approximately $63,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together around September 2021, and we worked together on the pre-game phase for one month. Then, we had a break to review their plan and understand the contractual terms and obligations of executing it. Then, we engaged with them again in January 2022 to execute their plan. Our engagement ended in February 2023.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We measured the success of our engagement based on how well our teams were performing. To measure this, Benzne put in place an agility assessment to evaluate different KPIs every month, such as team velocity and team health. At the beginning of our engagement, our level of maturity, velocity, and agility were below industry standards. Thanks to Benzne, we managed to see an increase in those KPIs.

How did Benzne perform from a project management standpoint?

Benzne’s communication level was excellent. They always made themselves available and were always present. I had a weekly checkpoint with Anuj and the team coach every Friday to review the week’s progress.

In addition to that, we reviewed our KPIs on a monthly and quarterly basis to look at trends, expecting a linear curve increase in those metrics. If at any point we felt that the team wasn’t performing as expected, we would discuss remedial actions with Benzne, and they would act on those.

Benzne also worked above and beyond the contracted hours. Throughout the engagement, they never told me that they exceeded their work hours or that they wanted to review the payment, even though I knew that they exceeded those hours. Overall, they were very committed to this engagement. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

The great thing about Benzne is that they took the time to understand our organization and culture. Additionally, they were very motivated and willing to learn and adapt. They took feedback very well and were able to react based on that feedback. Overall, Benzne doesn’t only work with companies to try and instill best practices; they’re also very good at coaching individuals on a human level.

Are there any areas they could improve?

It would be great if Benzne spent more time understanding the nuances of smaller companies. This would help them ensure that what they present initially can fit a smaller company. Still, they successfully achieved that for us throughout the project.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

The pre-game phase is the most important part of the engagement. Ensure that you give Benzne enough time to get to know your business during that stage. If Benzne can fully understand your business, the engagement will be successful.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We are a crypto exchange and I take care of engineering team.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Benzne?

We onboarded Benzne team to train our teams(Engineering team, Product team and Quality analysis team) in working on agile way of development. Being a financial product, we deal with a lot of regulatory, ad-hoc and planned changes. We wanted to create an environment and process with which we can manage these changes without much of friction.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

Benzne has been a name in the market and we were impressed by the roadmap and plan they created for us.

Describe the project in detail and walk through the stages of the project.

Initially, the journey was started with only couple of teams. For couple of weeks Benzne team just observed how the teams are functioning and slowly Agile practices were made part of daily work, without forcing it on the team. Gradually, other teams were also onboarded. As the months passed by, teams started onboarding advance practices of Agile way of working and everyone from the team were happy with it.

How many resources from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

Two members from the Benzne team worked with us; with Anuj being the senior member of the two.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Teams started to streamline their work, started to get detailed requirements. Every member from the team started to have visibility of what the team is going to work on in upcoming quarters. A positive pressure is built on everyone to focus on deliveries and take complete ownership of their development.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Working with Benzne team was really smooth. They were able to introduce agile practices within the team without changing the culture of the team. Nothing was forced on the teams. Teams were demonstrated with the positive outcomes of each agile practice and everyone picked it up and adopted agile practices without much of hesitations.

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

I appreciate that they take time to understand the current culture of the team composition and their working style and comes up with custom approaches for each team to convince them to adopt agile practices.

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

None.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm Associate Vice President of an IT consulting company, working from Bangalore at that time.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Benzne, and what were your goals?

We wanted to use Agile Methodologies in executing projects in the company. Not only this project but right from Sales to Delivery we would like to Bring Agility in overall operations and Delivery Execution, thus achieving Engineering Excellence

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

We explored the market in this domain but found Benzne to be most appropriate and apt partner to execute our road map and achieve the laid out GOAL.

Describe the scope of work in detail, including the project steps, key deliverables, and technologies used.

Benzne was involved right from Brainstorming sessions to Project Demos during the course of development of the project. They oriented the team using the Agile Scrum Ceremonies appropriately. Different deliverable artifacts include Jira Dashboards including burndown charts to planning templates etc.

How many resources from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

We engaged one person who worked in the capacity of Agile Coach and other one as Scrum Master. Both did a tremendous and terrific job. Without them we would not have got what we are today w.r.t Agile Transformation in the company.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any measurable outcomes of the project or general feedback about the deliverables?

We would see that Agile Thought process and mindset instilled in our associates. We also saw in this projects all defined agile metrics where met due to guidance in Agile Processes and Ceremonies. They were followed to the letter and spirit.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

Their execution style is inclusive and collaborative. Appropriate tools like Moscow, planning poker , T shirt Sizing etc. were used in addition to various other templates and Jira & Assembla as needed as per the phase in the project.

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

Keeping up their commitment with dedication. They are very passionate about what they do, and their expertise is seen in their execution.

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

Could not think of any major area as of now. They were working in two pronged approach - Bottom up and Top Down. It's very important to get buy in from Management in Agile transformation journey.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I work as a scrum master in a large Indian IT organization.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Benzne?

Challenge was to find a balance between multiple team in a scaled agile framework with onshore and offshore model, Delivery team being at offshore and consulting team at onshore.

Difficult to manage timezones across teams(internal & external) and was really tough to manage dependencies and mitigate the risks considering a large transformation project.

What were your goals for this project?

To deliver the project on time and on a fixed cost in scrum framework.

SOLUTION

How did you select Benzne?

It was through a senior manager referral from my organization who has already availed the services for agile consulting and was very impressed with the way workshops were conducted.

Describe the project in detail.

The idea was to bring all the teams together and make them understand how scaled agile framework works and help them have the mindset for Agile delivery.

We had 5 workshops conducted initially face to face and later online and it helped team members to see and understand the real meaning of working in agile teams. Hats off to the real life examples given which made more sense to everyone and they were able to relate.

What was the team composition?

We had 5 teams spread s ross geographies and team size is typical 7-8 member teams.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Really happy with the outcome and the way the workshops were conducted. Truly professional and real life examples helped achieve the goal of team cohesiveness. I must appreciate Anuj and Alok to manage things during Covid times so brilliantly and seamlessly.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

It was very good and exceptional the way it all came together.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Bunch of professional guys with proper management and resilience to deliver the true value.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We provide devices and solutions that enable transaction processing. I manage teams that define and validate solutions.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Benzne?

Benzne was hired to help us with Agile transformation. In my case we specifically hired their resource to act as the Scrum Master for two different teams and to also train internal resources to be Scrum Masters.

What were your goals for this project?

Successful adoption of Agile methodology by one of the project teams dealing with a high profile customer project.

SOLUTION

How did you select Benzne?

Referred to by another internal team who had already worked with them.

Describe the project in detail.

Project was to implement Commercial Fleet solution on our product line for a high profile customer. The team that was engaged was adopting Agile methodology for the first time. Was also a new experience for the customer.

What was the team composition?

Essentially there were two Agile teams with a total of 10-12 developers and QA engineers along with a Product Owner and Project Manager.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The project met all of its milestones. We were able to demonstrate to the continued progress in planned increments. Using metrics like burndown charts we were able to show up to date progress and any red flags in a timely manner. This resulted in a significant increase in confidence in our ability to deliver a quality solution on time.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The engagement was constant and productive. Benzne resource was able to anticipate issues and plan accordingly. They were instrumental in making sure the the team adopted the right practices when using Agile methodology.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Benzne was proactive in identifying needs and presenting us with solutions. They definitely were committed to making sure our team was embracing and adopting Agile correctly. They were the right partners for us to help with our transition from a Waterfall model to Agile model. I would highly recommend them to anyone wanting to adopt Agile.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Nothing that comes to mind at this time.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

IHS Markit provide financial data infotmation and analytics to various participants like Investment Bank, asset managers, Hedge Funds etc. I lead technology development for securities finance and dividends forecasting products.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Benzne?

We needed to organize agile teams for a usability improvement project that involved rewrite of a web application with major upliftment on user experience.

What were your goals for this project?

Self organized teams on designing , developing and testing various parts of web applications. We knew that this would in many cases require multiple iterations to develop web pages after gathering feedback from multiple stakeholders.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

I heard good recommendations from my engineering friends who worked with Benzne team on successful implementation of sekf organized teams.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

Benzne took over the task with the agile trainings first to make everyone aware of the chnage they all would be going through. These trainings helped on everyone understanding that agile adaptapation is a mindset change and would help on transparency and quick iterations on development.

After a week of training with brainstorming , high level estimation and carving out an agile implementation that works for most of the stake holders involved, Benzne helped us to start to do biweekly sprints.initially, Benzne took the scrum master role for a few weeks making everyone familiar with agile practices and later transitioned that to the team for managing scrum meetings.

Benzne helped us to create right tools to create transparency in the development process and helped us to reach to a point where team velocity is consistent. They also encouraged us to have right team composition and made us to hire 1 UI/UX designer which turned out to be a great asset for the project's success.

What was the team composition?

7 Developers 3 Tester 1 UI/UX designer 1 Business Analyst/Scrum Master

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Benzne left a great impact on team having a good camaderie and a consistent development velocity. We would be working with Benzne on other development teams to set up the teams for a great agile journey.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

Dashboards for burn down and velocity measurement were great way to have a complete understanding on sprint progress and easily setting up larger projects on multiple sprints.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

People. These guys are go-getters — true professionals who get involved with any part of the process and not leave that incomplete until every sorted to perfection. Their command on various agile practices is amazing, and they can help one build practices from multiple agile frameworks effortlessly.

Are there any areas for improvement?

None, i can think of.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a senior technical program manager at a delivery services app.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Benzne?

We wanted an aligned mindset on how Agile project management would be.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They provided a one-day session on all of the Agile processes we should know.

What is the team composition?

One person provided the training.

How did you come to work with Benzne?

They presented themselves well, based on the requirements we gave. We were looking more for a mindset training and a push on the processes that support that mindset, which they also provided.

What is the status of this engagement?

It was a one-day workshop in December 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our team was successfully familiarized with Agile. We gained the desired mindset, as well as the basics ceremonies, based on the principles.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The workshop was very clean and organized. It definitely solved our needs.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I would suggest a more interactive, hands-on workshop; that’s probably not possible since everything is done in one day. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Hi I am Executive Director of a financial services. Additional functional role is of Senior Director Engineering Projects. I head up global product development

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Benzne?

My group embarked on the new product development. For a few years we have been working with multiple Agile consultant. The problem I observed is that all the Agile knowledge assimilated over the years is theoretical and there is a big gap knowing agile and implementing. I was looking for real ground level Agile transformation.

What were your goals for this project?

Complete Agile transformation at the root level

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We went through 3 vendors including local and global vendors. We had exploratory discussions with all these three vendors and understood individual approaches. All the vendors except Benzne were theoretical and did not actually tried to understand the expectations. Benzne understood our processes and tried to map the Agile on the our processes instead of changing the processes.

Describe the project in detail.

After we selected Benzne - we had 1 week assessment of all the following aspects 1. Existing Process 2. Existing Impediments We have reports generated to understand the Agile Maturity level of the organization overall. Then the short term goals were identified.

What was the team composition?

Started with Senior Development/QA managers. Once the initial assessment done different agile roles were identified that included Software Engineers as well.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The overall Agile transformation over last 12 months has been very successful. The overall process is mapped on the existing organization process

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The Agile Coach and Scrum Masters aligned were very efficient. They got inculcated in our process and mapped agile at every stage. Very effectively worked with 12 scrum teams across the overall organization.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Practical approach with the existing processes.

Are there any areas for improvement?

None

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Senior Manager- Learning and Development at ITC Ltd.

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) organization

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Benzne to accomplish?

To deliver training on developing an ‘Agile mindset’ in employees

SOLUTION

How did you find Benzne?

Online Search

Why did you select Benzne over others?

• Pricing fits our budget
• Good value for the cost

How many teammates from Benzne were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

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

To deliver an ‘Agile mindset’ training to mid-senior level employees, with an agenda to improve ‘bias for action’. Various tools and techniques for being agile were shared with the participants through engaging activities.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Quality of training as assessed by participant feedback

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

Team Benzne was very prompt in responding to our requests and came back with a program design as per timelines, and delivered the program for 5 batches as per agreed timelines.

What was your primary form of communication with Benzne?

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

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

The expertise and quality of the trainer were impressive.

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

All good