Brainhub

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the co-founder and CEO of Meet’n’learn, a tutoring platform.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Brainhub?

We hired Brainhub to lead React app development.

What were your goals for this project?

My company hoped to increase conversion rates, implement new features, and test technology on the frontend.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We sought JavaScript experts that were particularly skilled in React. My team found Brainhub through an online search and liked their website. We confirmed the engagement after a phone call with one of Brainhub’s co-founders.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

Utilizing React on the frontend, Brianhub integrated new landing pages, designs, and features into our existing app. They advised my team on what components and opensource solutions to use so that we did not have to rewrite the entire codebase.

What was the team composition?

We worked with three developers, a delivery manager, a business analyst, and a part-time UX designer.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have converted visitors into leads twice as quickly.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

We had daily standups and weekly demos. At the end of each sprint, my team received a report from the delivery manager. We utilized Jira and communicated via Slack.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Brainhub made sure they understood our goals and how we wanted to achieve them. They took complete ownership of their work.

Are there any areas for improvement?

The cost of the discovery phase initially deterred us. However, we would have agreed to it if Brainhub had better explained the benefits of this phase.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the co-founder and president of Life in Mobile. We build solutions that allow marketers to better engage with customers.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Brainhub?

We hired Brainhub to develop a single page application (SPA) using JavaScript.

What were your goals for this project?

Our goal was to create an engaging SPA to collect leads for a traffic-heavy website. We decided to make it a browser-based game.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

They were recommended to us by a company they had worked with before. We also considered two other vendors, but they lacked experience with React and Node.js.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

They were responsible not only for development but also for shaping our scope and recommending technologies. We began with a short, foundation-laying workshop with their delivery manager and senior developer. Afterward, their business analyst prepared documentation and they moved into development.

What was the team composition?

We worked with two full-stack developers, a business analyst, a manual tester, and a delivery manager.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They delivered ahead of schedule and under budget. The product met our client’s expectations, which earned us a long-term contract.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

All communication was handled over Slack and Asana. It was effective and seamless.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Their developers were not only developers but consultants as well. They asked a lot of questions and wanted to understand why we asked for the features we did. They were both really experienced with JavaScript (especially React).

Are there any areas for improvement?

I would love for them to extend their technical expertise to cover PHP so we could do more projects together.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there. 

My company is a financial/market research company based in Europe, with a few offices around the world.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Brainhub?

We needed help developing an internal communication tool. We didn't want to use an off-the-shelf tool like Slack.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement? 

Brainhub started by talking to us about what we’re looking for. They took our requirements and built a robust communication tool with our own code base, using TypeScript and React.js. That way, we can add additional features in the future. They suggested that we do UX testing in the office with our employees. 

What is the team composition?

My main point of contact and the first person I spoke to there is Patryk (delivery manager, Brainhub). We work with a project manager/scrum master, a senior developer, two medium level developers, and a junior frontend developer. A couple of times we needed additional design work and they’d add a designer to the team as well. 

How did you come to work with Brainhub?

I found them on Clutch. I needed people that knew TypeScript and React.js. Very few people work in TypeScript, so my search returned only 3–4 agencies doing projects. I contacted Brainhub, and Patryk got back to me quickly.

How much have you invested with them? 

They charge in Euros, but I think it’s about $120,000 USD.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in November 2018, and the project is close to wrapping up. There are probably 1–2 sprints left to go.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I’ll have more results in a few weeks. The feedback I have right now is that the user testing greatly improved the design. It was the first time I've gotten solid, tangible evidence of what was wrong with the design. I wouldn't have resolved those issues as quickly if I’d tried to do this on my own or with freelancers. 

How did Brainhub perform from a project management standpoint?

I've done a lot of projects and worked with at least 15 freelancers. Brainhub has been the best by far. Patryk, in particular, is excellent. They’re actually running ahead of schedule, which has never happened before in my experience. I got skeptical that they’d misquoted or overcharged us. I had their code reviewed by my top freelancers. They said Brainhub’s code is a 9 out of 10, which is incredible. They use the latest tech stack for React in addition to TypeScript and PostScript. It’s cutting-edge technology that only a few other companies are using. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

I've never worked with a firm that takes as much responsibility as they do. I've always had to micromanage. It’s different with Brainhub. We wanted to implement push notifications, which is quite complicated. They came back within a couple of hours, having done the research and landed on five options. They gave me the pros and cons, as well as how long it would take to implement each. 

Are there any areas they could improve? 

I didn't want this just to be a glowing review, but honestly no. We had a challenge communicating with one employee, but they were removed from the project. Everyone else is fluent in English.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be available. They hate it when a client gives them a brief and then doesn't talk to them again for weeks. If you respond to their questions within 48 hours, they will be super happy.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the technical director of Paradox Interactive, a game publishing company and development studio.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Brainhub?

I hired Brainhub to work alongside our internal team to build a new version of our game launcher, a desktop application that serves as our digital distribution platform.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Brainhub’s developers have expertise working with the Electron and React web technologies that we needed for frontend development of our game launcher. The project they’ve worked on was built from scratch, but it was inspired and based off of our previous version of the software—which we have deprecated in anticipation of the launch of the new version.

When we sell our games, this is the platform through which our customers can download, install, and play the game on their computer. We also use the application to post news or updates about the game or events that we have. Our customers use this application to access their accounts and manage the game or games that they’ve purchased from us.

What is the team composition?

We requested four engineers and a half-time project manager to coordinate between our two offices in Poland and Sweden.

How did you come to work with Brainhub?

I searched for companies that had demonstrated success in working with the React and Electron technologies. Brainhub had the most case studies and examples of their past work. They also responded very quickly, which made it easier to rule out other companies that took longer to reply.

Brainhub stood out because they didn’t over-promise anything in our initial conversations. In fact, they felt the timeline was unrealistic and too short and that our budget was a poor estimate. I appreciated their honesty. I had tailored our estimates in a way that would make companies want to pick out the red flags, and Brainhub succeeded in doing so.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent more than €1,000,000 (approximately $1.2 million USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

Our engagement began in May 2018. Our original timeline called for a February 2019 launch, but because the game project this application is tied to and dependent upon was delayed until April, we will finish this project in April as well. We have an ongoing engagement right now, and after our launch, I’ve decided that I’ll keep them on a recurring contract with a monthly retainer.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have user KPIs we’re expecting to track, but because the product has not yet been released, there are no data to measure.

How did Brainhub perform from a project management standpoint?

I’ve been very impressed. I had initial concerns about English communication issues, but we’ve had no trouble in that regard. Overall, they are quick to resolve any errors, and they are proactive when they feel that something—technologically or interpersonally—is not working well.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I appreciate that they don’t necessarily always follow the adage of the customer always being right. They are comfortable to push back when they believe something is misguided or miscommunicated. This has led to quite a few significant improvements to features that otherwise would have been subpar or not functional at all if they had not spoken up. In the same vein, they are also respectful when we acknowledge their concerns, but we insist on going in a certain direction.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No. We work with a lot of vendors, and Brainhub is, by far, the one we’ve had the fewest problems with during the course of our business. I’m more than happy to continue doing business with them for the foreseeable future.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

It’s critical that Brainhub understands the context of the project and is treated as part of the team. Our internal team and the Brainhub staff work as one, and that’s been a great advantage because they end up caring more about the product, which doesn’t always happen with outsourced projects.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the founder of a company that builds websites for real estate agents and provides marketing services.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Brainhub?

We were trying to build a new platform and needed someone to augment my software engineering team.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We basically took an existing platform and built a number of new administrative tools to add more functionalities on top of it. We also built out a number of new design templates on our platform that we can use for our clients.

The platform allows us to create high-end real estate websites and then gives our clients — who are real estate agents — access to an admin panel where they can add their listings and the properties to the website. We have CRM [customer relationship management] and CMS [content management system] functionalities. They’re working on integrating SalesForce with SimplyRETS for MLS listings.

Brainhub took over an existing infrastructure. We did some refactoring in AngularJS, which was what the original platform was built on to react to a component based system; Brainhub was heavily involved in that. Over the last year, they did some DevOps-related tasks, setting up the server environment correctly. Node.js is what the application is built in with MongoDB. The database runs on Webpack and SCSS. We implemented Docker in the container base. They implemented Jenkins. They implemented some testing modules. Over the last year or so since we’ve worked together, at most times they’ve had someone continuously working with the rest of our team.

How did you come to work with Brainhub?

It was an introduction by a friend of mine who knew one of the founders of Brainhub.

How much have you invested with Brainhub?

We have spent about $150,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them July 2016 and have been working together since.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve grown from having 10 clients or so to now having 60–70. There’s been quite a bit of growth in the client base, but also on the platform itself. We have about 200,000 unique visitors per month.

How did Brainhub perform from a project management standpoint?

Project management was very good. For an outsourced firm, they’re top notch in communication compared to what I’ve seen from other companies, and they’re also very professional.

They have a sort of project manager even though it’s not a true project manager; it’s someone who is organizing the project and who speaks English fluently. I also had direct contact with the developer and their CTO, who both also speak English pretty well. From a communication perspective, it was really great.

What did you find most impressive about Brainhub?

I would say their technical expertise and raw talent are what most impresses me. It’s unique to have an outsourced company that stays on top of things. They’re on the cutting edge when it comes to knowing the different trends in the market and are on par with most U.S. firms that I’ve dealt with.

Are there any areas Brainhub could improve?

They’re not that big of a company, so if you want to scale up quickly, they can’t do it right away. You will have to wait about two months or so when another project ends for them to be able to put someone else on your project.

The quality wasn’t as consistent as far as project management; throughout the year, we’ve had different people working in different capacities while organizing the project. It was always good, but it was great when their CTO was involved. There have been some inconsistencies depending on who is in charge of the project, although they communicate well when there’s a change of personnel. They’ve gone above and beyond to correct things, even giving discounts when something wasn’t communicated correctly. They’re very invested in making this project work.

What tips or recommendations could you share that might increase the likelihood of success with Brainhub?

They’re at their best when you have a clearly defined and somewhat contained project. If you have very clear expectations and talk those through with them, then they’re going to be very good at making progress and communicating it well. They do their best work when you give them the freedom to do things the way they want to solve them and basically do a project-based basis.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Our company deals with equipment maintenance. We have 50 employees. I lead all of the digital staff, including the team that developed the software to monitor our machines. The team also delivers that software to clients.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Brainhub?

We wanted to develop a software that would track the relevant service data of the machines we are maintaining and give this tool to our clients, allowing them to evaluate the current condition of their equipment.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Brainhub built the software on our request for a company that maintains cranes and doors. With Brainhub, we developed software that allows this client to see relevant machine data, service data, and inspection data online.

I think Brainhub used Node.js and React Native to build the software, which is based online and is accessible via mobile phone and desktop browsers. No matter which device or browser our client uses, they can access the data of any crane by scanning a QR code with a phone. The solution doesn't involve real-time data or sensors.

How did you come to work with Brainhub?

Brainhub was recommended by a friend of a friend, who convinced me to use them. I thought they seemed like a great option.

How much have you invested with Brainhub?

We started with a project that cost around €5,000 [$5,700]. So far, we have spent €10,000 [$11,400].

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Brainhub in March 2016, and our work together ended in March 2017.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

How did Brainhub perform from a project management standpoint?

They are quick to respond and deliver on time, more or less. They report to us on a weekly basis, especially during busy phases. We had about 3 resources from Brainhub, but I’m not sure what their specialties were. One was a backend server guy, and another provided coding.

What did you find most impressive about Brainhub?

Brainhub works quickly and communicates well.

Are there any areas Brainhub could improve?

There’s always room for improvement. For example, Brainhub changed their team somewhat during the project, and the new team members weren’t as knowledgeable as the former members. That could have been improved.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Flowstack is a marketing automation startup platform. I am the chief product officer of the business. I used to be the CEO, but I act as the main concept person at the moment.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Brainhub?

I used to work for a marketing platform vendor as a CTO. I found that I could do better myself and created a startup in order to do things the right way. It would be hard to find the right developers in Denmark, so Brainhub came into play on the technical side.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Brainhub has built a huge Software-as-a-Service marketing automation and customer data platform from scratch. The platform is similar to HubSpot, but geared towards all data channels, not just email and SMS.

How did you come to work with Brainhub?

During my time as CEO, I received a number of emails from various outsourcing companies. Knowing that I needed some developers, I started the process of contacting some of those groups. One of them was Brainhub, and they proved to be the last name after the selection process. I had a very good feeling about them and moved forward. First of all, Brainhub was one of the software vendors focusing on the right technologies, namely Node.js and React.js. After an initial dialogue with the other providers (most of them from Eastern Europe), I found Brainhub to be the more competent choice. They also had a very good startup spirit and showed enthusiasm and interest in the product I wanted to build. There were two other competent companies, but they didn’t show the same spirit as Brainhub.

How much have you invested with Brainhub?

The cost of their work has been around $350,000. The monthly cost is between $40,000 and $50,000, and it has been consistent since the beginning.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Brainhub in August 2016. We plan to have a full release in August 2017, and more customers will mean more development. We are currently running tests for an early beta version. It’s an ongoing process, and we will continue to work with Brainhub for many years.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The platform is not in use by clients, but I have access to a part of the system and have been satisfied with what Brainhub has created.

How did Brainhub perform from a project management standpoint?

They represent our entire technology department, and I see the team more as employees or colleagues, rather than providers of software. We have a dedicated team which will continue to grow. It is made up of three full-stack developers, a UX designer, and a product owner. The latter position has been shared between the CEO of Brainhub and their tech lead, who is basically our CTO.

What did you find most impressive about Brainhub?

I have worked with other outsourcing partners, and I was initially against using another one, given the resources I’d have to put in. What made Brainhub stand out was that I haven’t had to micromanage them in any way. Instead of saying yes to everything I tell them, they are able to think for themselves, and have shown great enthusiasm and understanding around the product we’re building. The team has challenged me with the right questions, and have surprised me many times by giving me more than what I initially asked them to build, or what I was hoping for.

Brainhub has a dedicated team and an excellent product owner who has taken over my role as CTO. They have personal stakes in the project, which is great.

Are there any areas Brainhub could improve?

It would be hard to say. Brainhub is using best practices, and they document the work well. They do cost more than some of the competition, but the quality of work is more than I could hope for.

What tips or recommendations could you share that might increase the likelihood of success with Brainhub?

For someone looking for a competent team, Brainhub is the best choice, but they are not ideal for those used to micromanaging people. I could recommend them, but I need more resources myself, so I’ve chosen to keep Brainhub a secret.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are a startup incubator developing a web platform in the B2C financial area. We offer data-aggregation services by working with a data provider. We don’t provide a lot of analysis on it, but this will come at a later stage in order to improve the level of financial advice we can provide. At the moment, it’s an overview of a user’s financial situation. I am a co-founder and the CTO of the incubator. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Brainhub?

When we started the project, we needed to find web development support, both on the frontend and backend. We needed more dedicated resources for a fixed-term project.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We are using ReactJS for the frontend, and Node.js on the backend. We initially used one dedicated person from Brainhub’s team starting in January of 2017. We added another member in February and have continued using them.

How much have you invested with Brainhub?

The cost of Brainhub’s work has been approximately $12,000 to $15,000 per month since January. The total has been between $60,000 and $75,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Brainhub in early January of 2017. We completed the initial phase on March 10th and have continued to maintain and improve it.

The project is structured between two corporate entities in Switzerland. Unfortunately, it seems like one of them is leaving, but we’re looking at a new distribution partner who will bring the necessary people onto the platform. Our client eventually wants to hire a local team in Zurich. Until that happens, we will continue using Brainhub. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The platform is not live on the market yet because of our internal situation, but it’s ready for testing. The people who have used it have shown it to be stable enough for launch, but our client is holding back because of some legal concerns.

What we aren’t doing at the moment is estimating our tickets in terms of time, which makes it hard to have metrics speaking to the efficiency or velocity of Brainhub’s team. The project has medium complexity, and there are quite a few features involved. From my perspective, Brainhub has been quite good, and I would rate the team at around 80% efficiency. We get through with new features quite fast and they are also efficient at fixing bugs. We’re using a Git repository for tracking reviews and testing features. We have to deliver good quality, which is even more important than being fast. We’ve found a balance between the two.

How did Brainhub perform from a project management standpoint?

We are working directly with our developers and have integrated them into our team, which is composed of Brainhub’s two developers, two other remote resources, an on-site developer, and myself. I guide them and schedule daily meetings. We have demo and planning sessions every second week and have a Scrum-based approach. We use JIRA for tracking assignments. Brainhub gave us some inputs at the beginning of the project when we weren’t structured that well, helping us make the project more efficient. They suggested what the structure of our demo and planning sessions should be, which we’ve adopted since then and run without any input from their side. Since the client does not have this capability, I have acted as their interim CTO. It’s been clear that as the project evolves, I will probably step down from this role and have local resources take over.

What did you find most impressive about Brainhub?

They are very good at communicating. Since the start, I’ve always been able to discuss various topics with Brainhub’s team. They’re also dedicated to the project and have helped us achieve the goals and implementation we need.

Are there any areas Brainhub could improve?

There has been a small misalignment in terms of the billing cycle between us and our client. It would be hard to mention anything else about Brainhub. They’ve been great. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are a startup creating a camera-based product which can observe objects in rooms. I am the VP of collaborations, in charge of application development. We are building tools which will help users interact with our camera products.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Brainhub?

We needed to create a desktop application for driving our USB camera, and needed help.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Brainhub was able to provide two developers who helped on our project. We decided to develop the desktop application using the Electron framework. It allows us to build desktop applications using web technology. Brainhub’s team had a lot of experience using React.js and the Redux Framework, so they basically built our UI framework on those technologies, and also helped us assemble and build the backend and installers for the app.

The purpose of the software is to demonstrate the cameras’ abilities, and also allow power users to create panning, tilting and zoom. It also provides vendor-specific features for the camera.

How did you come to work with Brainhub?

We ran across each other on LinkedIn. Brainhub seemed to be a team of young people who were interested in the latest JavaScript technology. They managed to convince us that they were truly interested in our technology.

How much have you invested with Brainhub?

The cost of Brainhub’s work has been around $100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Brainhub in April 2016. We stopped using external contractors in February 2017, and are building our own team.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Most of the components in our software have been developed in collaboration with Brainhub’s team. I would say that they have developed more than 50% of our tool. We’re not in the market yet, so the number of downloads is not great.

How did Brainhub perform from a project management standpoint?

Brainhub’s team had an expert who stepped in as a technical lead on their side. They also assigned a more junior developer who worked based on instructions from the senior person. Our lead is a good developer, and was able to help on most parts, as did the other resource. We did have one developer who did not perform at the level we wanted, but we took up the subject with Brainhub’s management, and they switched him out fast. They seem to be a competent company, technically-speaking.

We had mostly daily thinks with Brainhub’s team, and the communication was very good. We used video every time, which worked quite well. Language-wise, they are decent in English.

What did you find most impressive about Brainhub?

I would just say that Brainhub is a helpful group, not afraid to spend a few extra hours if needed in order to help complete a task. This is the best thing I could mention about Brainhub: they will do whatever’s needed to get things done during a tight timeline.

Are there any areas Brainhub could improve?

There are always areas for improvement, but, if I was to go back, I would choose to add one more senior person on our team, someone with a bit more experience.

What tips or recommendations could you share that might increase the likelihood of success with Brainhub?

I don’t have anything, sorry.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

‎We are a digital marketing agency. Our specialization is performance marketing, which means we are always focused on numbers. I’m a project manager in the design and development team, so I am responsible, for example, for website development.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Brainhub?

We needed a skillful and responsible software house for development projects.

SOLUTION

How did you come to work with Brainhub?

We already had a partnership when I came to my organization.

How much have you invested with Brainhub?

We have spent roughly $25,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in early-mid 2015.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I can say that we were always focused on top quality and deadlines, which sometimes were really difficult to achieve, but we always were able to find a solution in every situation.

How did Brainhub perform from a project management standpoint?

Perfect. They have been using JIRA, which is very cool tool, and Slack for communication, which is also a pretty good choice. After working a few days with these guys, you are sure that they know how to do stuff and that they are pros.

What did you find most impressive about Brainhub?

I found their mindset most impressive because they are not just a group of developers, but they are a group of cool people with extraordinary developer skills.

Are there any areas Brainhub could improve?

To be honest, I don’t have anything in my mind at the moment.