BVG Software Group

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the head Creative Director/Software Designer at Munk studios, a creative animation and VR studio that produces content for TV broadcast and corporate industries.

For what projects/services did your company hire BVG Software Group?

We engaged with BVG Software Group to develop the complex training software with VR content. The team needed to take on the full development cycle with the exception of the content design and artwork/asset production.

What were your goals for this project?

The goal was to create a complex software system that provides with the opportunity of creation custom builds for different clients and with required VR educational content.

How did you select this vendor?

This project is extremely important and interesting for me and my partner and we had been looking for a vendor for a long time. At first, we started developing with a slightly cheaper team but the quality did not suit us. Hence, we were not ready to continue with them.

Regarding BVG Software Group, we worked with them a year before the start of this project and the work was impressive. Although the price is not really their best side, we decided that they should be able to cope with our challenging project. At the planning stage, we already got a great roadmap and after the thorough discussion with the developers, we found the confidence that the project would go well.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

We provided the team of BVG Software Group with the large project specification and meet with them in person in their Ukrainian office to discuss the project objections and the workflow. The team then created the roadmap that allowed to see the project structure, to make the detailed estimate and to divide it into the milestones. This program was planned as a combination of two windows applications, one android application (for Oculus GO), web-portal and server-side (with the custom builder on it).

What was the team composition?

Mainly, all the communication and planning we had with Project Manager but the team was attending some important meetings as well when we believed it was reasonable. The team included 3 Unity Developers, 2 QA Engineers of middle level and 1 of the senior level. At the later stages of the project, we had 3D artists joining us.

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

The results are great! 360 Videos, 3D cinema, 360 photo-locations, interaction with 360 video and photos elements, 360 Quizzes and VR Games supports high-quality educational content to provide training to big audiences.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

The project was divided into monthly milestones since the application is multiplatform, which means that any small bunch of features required a lot of development and testing. We had a demo at the end of each sprint, and I want to say that each of them was wonderful. We had small flaws related to insufficient testing, and it happened that the demo was postponed for 1 day, although, I do not consider this a problem. I was in touch with the team literally every day and was aware of any difficulty of the project and its progress.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

They have a fresh, enthusiastic perspective. In light of our technical experience, they've been understanding and supportive about where we're coming from. They have really high knowledge of IT software development. I also appreciate that they have provided comprehensive support and involvement sometimes out of their working hours when it was extremely important. I feel it has added a personal touch to our engagement.

Are there any areas for improvement?

I believe that we are provided with what we planned initially and even more. The application turned out professional and smoothly working so we have expanded its functionality and BVG Software Group contribution to it can’t be overestimated.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Founder of my start up business. Hey Frendz is designed to help make researching easier, by connecting people together through the keywords they choose to share. Hey Frendz can be used for education and for leisure.

For what projects/services did your company hire BVG Software Group?

I am currently working in a University and my role is heavily based on student engagement. Through my interactions with the students, I realised that there is a need for a platform that would enable students to collaborate with each other easier. My project prototype was created by students from the University. I then consulted with BVG Software Group as I wanted to create a real product that I could release.

What were your goals for this project?

The goals for my project is to attract as many users as possible. BVG Software Group ensured that Hey Frendz was built to be aesthetically pleasing, functional and user friendly.

How did you select this vendor?

I advertised my project on Upwork. I ended up consulting with a few companies at first, having meetings and talking about my project and how each company could help bring my idea to life. I wanted to make sure that I chose the best vendor for my platform development. I decided to go with BVG Software Group as I was very pleased with what they could offer to my project and also their competitive price. I was very impressed with how they communicated, as well as the fact that they had several platforms in portfolio similar to mine. This showed me that they had experience and were the experts that I needed to get my project up and running.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

I provided for the BVG team the prototype which the students built for me. The team reviewed in a timely manner and we began talking about some changes to functionalities and features. The BVG Software team suggested a few things that would improve the programme which I considered. The development team then took over and re-designed the system, always keeping me in the loop during the process. They were constantly asking for feedback and were always willing to amend any changes that I thought were needed. I was very satisfied with the whole process. It was easy to work with the team. They ensured that everything functioned as required to ensure that the website worked properly.

What was the team composition?

The team consisted of a Project Manger, Account Manger (who was responsible for all funds transactions), 2 Developers, 1 Graphic Designer and 1 QA Engineer.

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

The website was released mid semester but already has numerous users. I am confident that in time the user base will grow.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

The project was managed quite well. The team set up a skype group for me to be able to constantly communicate with them. The team set up regular meetings to ensure that each milestone was being achieved and that I was kept up to date, however I found myself chatting to them almost every day. The team was very accommodating and always responded to my questions in a timely manner.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

What impressed me most was how comfortable the team made me feel. They were very open and helpful, always thinking about solutions for the project and how to make it better. 

I am grateful to Ms. Anastasia Voloshyna, Business Development Manager. She is so patient and understanding. Throughout the whole experience, she always took into consideration my needs as a customer. This was my first project which I funded on my own. Anastasia always made me feel safe and sure about where my money would go towards and how it is allocated. She was very precise in the way she reported and always made sure that my needs were accommodated.

Anastasia communicated all the steps of the project to me and I always felt that I knew what was going on, what stage of development we were in and where we were heading. She was very committed to the project, even giving up her time during one of her holidays to send me a quick message. Even though I am from Australia and the team is from Ukraine, I never once felt there was a barrier in regards to communication or accessibility. My interactions with Anastasia were smooth and easy and as a customer, I always felt that she understood what I needed and would work out how it can be best achieved. I have so much praise and respect for Anastasia. She exceeded far beyond my expectations of customer service. She is a true credit to her company.

I also had the opportunity to work with Mr. Andrew Vakulich, Project Manager and Mr. Eduard 'The Wizard' Bondarenko, Lead Programmer. The nickname was to Eduard given during the project as surely, he is a wizard and was creating magic for me! He made things work, pop-up, appear, disappear. I don't know much about the programming side of things, but I am sure there was some sort sorcery happening. I was amazed and very pleased with the result of the project.

Are there any areas for improvement?

This being my first experience developing a project, I have nothing to compare to. I was very happy though with my experience with BVG Software Group. They have set a high standard and I am hoping that in future, that I receive the same quality experience from other companies.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m an agile business analyst at Curve Tomorrow, a health innovation technology company that’s passionate about changing the direction of health. We provide consulting for health organizations, creating concepts and building products that improve the health and wellness for millions of people.

For what projects/services did your company hire BVG Software Group?

We were starting a new phase of a VR platform’s development and were looking for a company with experience in Unity to handle the work.

What were your goals for this project?

Our ultimate goal was to provide training through the use of VR.

How did you select this vendor?

We were looking at numerous teams with similar experience. We provided an outlined scope of work and expected the right team to thoroughly consider the project, provide a reasonable estimate, and prove that they had the adequate technical expertise. We were satisfied with BVG Software Group’s response to all those points, though we also asked for a personal review from one of their clients.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

Their team is assigned to one of the parts of the whole platform—specifically where their expertise in Unity is involved. We gave them our technical requirements and design files before having them begin the work. We spent two weeks on planning and research and then moved on with 1–2-week milestones. I work with their project manager to keep track of the project’s lifecycle.

What was the team composition?

The team is composed of two Unity developers, a quality assurance specialist, a continuous improvement engineer, and a project manager.

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

The project is ongoing, so we don't have any outcomes to provide yet. However, everything is running as planned, with no delays. We feel that we’ve found a reliable partner for the development of this product, so we’ve decided to expand the platform’s functionality. We know that when it’s released, we’re going to have loads of positive feedback.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

We’ve successfully created an effective process aided by their iterated development approach. We’re pleased with each of the demos we’ve seen and are moving forward with work at a good pace. I feel that BVG Software Group is capable of providing experience-based feedback and performs thorough analyses when needed. We clearly communicate the project’s needs and feel that they’re able to meet all of our expectations.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The team they’ve assigned is responsible and trustworthy; they’ve proven to be more than capable of translating a problem into action. They’ve given us reasonable advice when needed and seem to be invested in our goals and results. They’re also friendly, responsive, and solution oriented.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Their communication is generally very good, but their developers could improve on this aspect a bit. It’s nothing serious to worry about though.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the managing director of Edg-VR. We provide VR training for different companies. We also work with schools in the education sector.

What challenge were you trying to address with BVG Software Group?

Because of the unique way we use VR, we need to be able to network the system. We needed a solution where we can work with 30–40 people at once.

What was the scope of their involvement?

BVG Software Group wrote bespoke software for our VR platform. I’m not a technical person but I went over to meet with them. They used Unity and some other basic VR development software. They also had to dig into the hardware and change the way it hardware works. There were a lot of fundamental things they needed to do.

What is the team composition?

There are mainly two people that I deal with, one overseeing the project and one lead programmer. They've got a team of people working on our project.

How did you come to work with BVG Software Group?

I went through a programmer based in the UK. He found them by researching several development companies.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent over $50,000 dollars.

What is the status of this engagement?

The initial project took place from May 2016–January 17. We started working with them on a new project a couple of months ago.

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

Without their great work, we wouldn't be able to do our VR projects in schools. Some days we work with 10,000 people in one day. The system that they built holds up well, and there's very few technical glitches.

How did BVG Software Group perform from a project management standpoint?

Their team is really good. It's don’t regularly meet with them but I understand that our teams have daily meetings on Skype. Working closely is critical so that they get things right, and not have problems down the road. They're easy to work with. They use a dashboard that allows us to keep an eye on the project. We can monitor costs as well as the tasks that are being worked on.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They get results. Our system is used every day so we can't have it breaking. For some of the big companies we work with, it would be a disaster if the software or the hardware broke down. They're good about working on the things that we need them to deliver.

Are there any areas they could improve?

From my side, I want things ready tomorrow. I do understand that these things take months to complete. They're spot on compared to anybody else we’ve used. They know what they're doing and they do a really good job. There's not a whole lot that I would change.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Any time distance is involved—they're based in Ukraine—there needs to be transparency into what people are working on. Make sure that everybody knows the end result that you're trying to achieve, and what it's going to take to get there.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the director of design and development for an American family-run business with a long heritage of authentic Moroccan tile making. Our ancestors, based in Fez, Morocco, have been designing and creating tiles since 1912.

The company was established by master craftsman Solomon Farhi. Maallems, or Zellij artisans, have been trained in the complexities of design and craftsmanship of Moroccan tiles for thousands of years. In 1948, Farhi’s son—Miloud Farhi—began the journey of learning the Maallem craft from his father. He joined the Cooperative of Maallems Zelligeurs de Fez, in 1982 after his father passed away.

For what projects/services did your company hire BVG Software Group?

Our website didn’t look modern. We needed the site to better display our approach to interior design, bring in work faster, and be more user-friendly. We had the new design ready, so we hired BVG Software Group team to rewrite the site’s backend and then decided to redesign it as well.

The main feature of our website is a color matching tool that helps our clients make their custom Zellij colors combinations. It was quite difficult to use, so we focused on making it simpler and mobile device compatible.

How did you select this vendor?

We’ve talked to several developers but no one provided a good solution for our coloring system. Some of them said that such development would cost a lot of time and money. Then, the BVG team came up with a good plan and made the price absolutely reasonable. We were very surprised with their approach.

Describe the project in detail.

After several calls with them, we had the full idea of how everything would work and provided our designs so they could start with the layout stage. We had a lot of ideas about improving the site’s design and BVG helped us implement the best ones.

When the layout was ready, we started with the backend while their designer began preparing the work for the color matching tool in parallel to that so we could save some time. We continued working with them for additional improvements after the project was completed.

What was the team composition?

They assigned a project manager to answer our questions and discuss any problems. The team also consisted of a full-stack developer to work on both the back and frontend parts of the site, a designer, and a quality assurance specialist.

What outcomes or results can you share that demonstrate progress and/or success?

BVG successfully rewrote the backend, redesigned the website, and did a great job with the color matching tool. The pages on our site now load in less than a second and the tiles in look great in the catalog.

I feel like the new website really shows our quality and represents our brand well—it looks and feels awesome! As I mentioned before, it’s a family owned business and I’m greatly inspired because the conversion rates have gone up and we’re all happy.

How effective was the project management?

I’d like to point out that there’s a huge eight-hour time difference between us. In spite of that, we really had no communication issues. The project manager provided very fast responses and regularly informed us of the status of the project.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

We were amazed by their technical expertise and we found their team to be more professional compared to the other developers we spoke to. They always communicated clearly and were collaborative during the entire duration of the project. We faced a few small issues after the development was completed and their response to these problems was instant. They’re a very supportive and experienced team.

What tips or recommendations do you have?

There’s no limit for improvement. We could’ve completed the project faster but they never missed the discussed terms, so I’m satisfied with their work.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

RoundPier is a platform for teachers and students from various educational organizations. I’m one of the co-founders and the CEO of the company.

What challenge were you trying to address with BVG Software?

They’ve provided a full development package for us, building our web platform from scratch.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They developed our platform based on our ideas and continued to modify and maintain it. They developed the website, including its backend functionalities and database, and created a mobile-responsive version. We don’t have an app yet, but we are working on it. The technologies used are Laravel, SQL, JavaScript, and HTML.

It’s a social network similar to LinkedIn, but with a focus on education. It connects various member groups—teachers, tutors, and parents as well as various educational organizations like universities, schools, and summer programs—allowing them to exchange ideas. It provides various opportunities for students, parents, and teachers, and connects various member groups well.

What is the team composition? 

I believe there were 2 developers assigned to the project.

How did you come to work with BVG Software?

They were referred to me by someone I knew, who’d dealt with them. They have a number of U.S. clients but also work in Europe extensively. I’ve also worked with them on another project, before RoundPier. Their previous work and the fact that they have experience supporting a large U.S. business gave me assurance that they knew what they were doing.

How much have you invested with them?

The total cost has been above $25,000. We are continuing to invest in the project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them a year ago, around February 2017.

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

They did a great job putting together the whole platform from scratch and brought a lot of value to our initial ideas.

By running a beta version of the platform, we’ve attracted close to 1,000 users already, without any marketing. People are actually using the platform and they appreciate what we’ve done. The platform is easy to navigate and they did a good job highlighting its main features.

We’re collecting feedback from the existing user base as we go and we’re continuing to add features to the product. The initial feedback has been very good, but it’s only a matter of time until we will improve it.

How did BVG Software perform from a project management standpoint?

There were no big issues. We started the project with only an idea and didn’t provide them with exact technical text. I appreciate the time they put into actually writing one. Their project manager did a great job of taking our ideas and suggestions and turning them into an actual requirements list.

As we’ve spent more time on the development, they came back to us with their own ideas about how to improve the platform. This was helpful to us since neither I nor my co-founder is technical. We understand some things, but not everything, so having a commercially-minded project manager who understood what we were trying to achieve was helpful.

We had clear tasks for them to finish and there was a general plan in place. We had weekly calls to review where we were, and the project manager listed what they were working on and what issues they had. I was consulted on what solutions we should employ to fix those problems. We mostly communicated through emails and Skype calls.

We changed some of the features towards the end, which took a few extra weeks. If we hadn’t, they would have delivered right on schedule.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We quite like that end-product, even though it could still be improved. It was impressive that they managed to collect some of our thoughts and build something pretty much on their own.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Any team can improve and I’ve seen the end-results of other developers. I think they’ve improved a lot during the process—the first month was spent with us trying to get our thoughts and ideas together, but after 2 or 3 months, they started generating their own ideas on how things should look and function on the platform. 

They could definitely improve the design side of things since the team is more technical than presentation-focused. They did a great job on the backend, but could still improve in terms of design. However, we’re not an entertainment-focused app, so the design is not our biggest issue.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

If the customer has a technical task, their team can perform excellently. If someone comes with only a few ideas about the build, they can still do a good job internally thinking through various issues and developing an action plan.

Please describe your company and your position there.

My company manufactures Electro-Optics for the Outdoors Industry, we make many products for sportsmen and for the outdoors. I am the Director of Marketing. We have a global brand and are well known in our industry.

For what projects/services did your company hire BVG Software Group?

We hired BVG Software Group to create an IoT solution to connect our hardware with a web-based software solution. Also, we had them redesign our website to be more modern and engaging with our customers.

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted to see our traffic double by the end of the year, and we wanted to increase the number of inquiries that we received through our contact form. We also needed the website to be easy to update on our end, so we were interested in a simple, user-friendly platform.

How did you select this vendor?

I found them on Clutch.co and verified a few references before selecting them.

Describe the project in detail.

I provided them with my original designs from sketches and they took it from there. They designed the wireframes so that they could lay out exactly how everything was going to look. Then, the development team took over to bring the idea to reality. They made sure that everything functions the way it needs to in order for the website to function properly and to work with a custom cart system.

What was the team composition?

We had a dedicated project manager who handled day-to-day communication. The team also consists of a frontend developer, a backend developer, a QA engineer, a designer, and an account manager.

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

It’s too early to share as the project is still ongoing. About 90% of the development is complete and we’re finishing a few project details at the moment. So far the team has done an excellent job of testing and making sure that everything functions the expected way.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

We communicated through Skype and used Google Docs to deliver files. The project was executed in a sprint model using online project management and collaboration tools that allowed us to get a view into the project. Milestone deliverables were clearly defined for each sprint. Status updates are prompt, and all issues are highlighted early whenever possible.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

What we liked the most is their full-stack involvement and their top-notch, bug-free work. Despite occasional, minor delays, the team is reasonable and hard working. Also, there's no language barrier which is essential for outsourcing.

Are there any areas for improvement?

They're highly responsive and organized but their timeliness could be improved but, mainly, the project has stayed on schedule and we have been satisfied with our collaboration.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the CTO of a company that sells consumer electronics.

For what projects/services did your company hire BVG Software Group?

We hired BVG Software Group to create an online store and automate all processes related to ordering, selling, and shipping goods.

What were your goals for this project?

We needed to fix issues with our code and implement new features in a short amount of time.

How did you select this vendor?

We searched for quite some time, but couldn't find a company with the relevant experience and suitable pricing. We had no doubts when considering our partnership with BVG Software Group.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

They used Angular and Laravel to create a platform that helps people decide what to buy and flawlessly process orders on the backend.

What was the team composition?

We had a project manager as our main point of contact, along with two QA engineers, two backend developers, and one front-end developer. 

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

This platform had an enormous impact on our business and changed the interactions between our users. It has actually helped us develop a marketing strategy for monetization and future growth.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

Their project management was strong, and our communication was easy and streamlined. We worked on a time-and-materials basis, spoke every week to discuss their work and plans, and took estimates in advance. They managed the workload efficiently, organizing their work through Jira and discussing the project through Skype and email. 

What did you find most impressive about this company?

We had a negative experience with our previous web developer, so working with BVG Software Group was refreshing. We're confident that choosing them was the best decision. They went out of their way to provide detailed lists of the pros and cons.

Are there any areas for improvement?

No one is perfect, but I have no complaints. They did everything we asked.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the CTO at a commercial freight transportation company that’s headquartered in Philadelphia. Our company has about 100 employees, and we serve corporate clients all along the East Coast. I oversee our digital products and vendor relationships.

For what projects/services did your company hire BVG Software Group?

We were initially engaged with a different service provider for our web platform and decided to change the team for a variety of reasons.

What were your goals for this project?

We had to fix pilled-up issues with the code and implement new features on the platform in a short period. That was the main solution to optimize the platform.

How did you select this vendor?

We were looking for a development company for some time and couldn’t find an available team that had relevant experience, and that could meet our budget. Hence, we had no doubts while considering a partnership with them.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

The team refactored and wrote code in Angular and Laravel. The main concept of the platform was to help people find each other due to certain criteria. The team developed a sophisticated matchmaking algorithm and managed to improve some of our ideas.

What was the team composition?

We’ve had a project manager as our main point of contact, two QA engineers, two backend developers, and one frontend developer.

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

We launched our web platform, and it’s had an enormous impact on our business. It’s changed the way that our users interact. As for now, it actually allows us to develop a further marketing strategy for monetization and future growth.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

We worked on a time-and-materials basis and required estimation in advance. They managed their workload with efficiency, and we discussed the project on Skype and email. The project management was conducted on Jira.

We had a call every week to discuss what had been done and what should be changed. Communication is quite easy and streamlined when you work with BVG Software Group.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Our experience with our previous web developer was negative, so working with BVG Software Group was very refreshing. They have very strong project management skills. We knew that we’d made the best decision when they went out of their way to provide detailed pros and cons lists.

Are there any areas for improvement?

As is well known, no one is perfect. However, I have nothing to complain about. They have done everything we asked for.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the founder of and one of the directors of sales for a travel site. Our company specializes in high-end trips to Latin America.

For what projects/services did your company hire BVG Software Group?

We hired them to develop multiple websites, both front- and backend.

What were your goals for this project?

We needed help building out several travel sites focused on different territories in Latin America. All of them need to be linked to one CRM and ERP to manage clients, services, and pricing across different regions.

How did you select this vendor?

They were recommended by a colleague in our network who had worked with them for years.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

They worked with us to first understand our business in detail. Then they followed by providing numerous recommendations that we initially did not consider. After working out a price for their scope, they managed to hit all of the initial timelines to go live, and we had them perform more work.

What was the team composition?

We worked with Dmitry Buga (Project Manager, BVG Software Group) and Nastya Voloshyna (Business Development Manager, BVG Software Group). We finalized pricing with Alyona Dobroluobova (Head of Development, BVG Software Group).

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

Their team did a terrific job and greatly opened up opportunities to bring in clients. Our conversion rate went up by more than 12% since.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

Dmitry handled all the project management. He was good, and there were no real problems besides some 3D design work that we weren’t crazy about but ended up using anyway.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

They provided an intelligent and detailed analysis of our business up front. I also liked their quick responses and realistic timelines; we never had to wait days for a response. When we attempted to push them to go faster, they were honest with us instead of telling us what we wanted to hear.

Are there any areas for improvement?

There is always room for improvement. The design work could have been more hip and savvy, but I guess this is always subjective.