Calibrate Software

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m an executive of a nonprofit organization.

What challenge were you trying to address with Calibrate Software?

We wanted to create a website for our organization.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Calibrate Software created a functioning WordPress site for us; they took our existing designs and implemented them into it. The platform is now live.

What is the team composition?

We worked with two members of their team, including a developer and one of their co-owners.

How did you come to work with Calibrate Software?

I’ve known someone from their team from a previous partnership.

How much have you invested in them?

We spent $5,000 with them.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from August–October 2021.

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

The success of their work reflects on the fact that we now have a functioning website that we can update regularly. We’ve also received great feedback from users saying that it has a lot of information compared to our previous platform.

How did Calibrate Software perform from a project management standpoint?

They performed well in terms of project management; they were responsive when we had any questions for them. Regarding communication, we used emails and phone calls.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They were quick in taking our designs and implementing them into our website.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t think there’s anything they can improve on.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Have a clear direction on what you want from the project and your long-term goals for the website.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the manager of digital experiences and engagement at Wilson Sporting Goods, a manufacturer of high-performance sports equipment, apparel, and accessories.

What challenge were you trying to address with Calibrate Software?

We needed a company that could help us develop a mobile app. This was our company’s first mobile app project, and the original concept involved putting NFC tags in our products. We previously worked with an Ohio-based company that was supposed to white label the app for us, but it proved to be a very unsuccessful, difficult, and overall very expensive project at every turn.

About nine months ago, we decided to go in a different direction with a different team and engagement driver. We wanted a company that’s based in Chicago so we could work with them closely and on-site.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Calibrate Software has designed and developed a community builder and engagement app for iOS and Android. They’ve walked us through the whole design process and developed the app in React.

Additionally, they’ve built a CMS that allows us to change the app’s content on the fly and gather data about our user base. It’s also integrated with Amazon AWS and Amazon Recognition, which is an AI image recognition service. This allows users to scan any Wilson football or basketball to unlock various pieces of content such as giveaways, stories, insider access, exclusive price drops, and tickets to events.

We’re currently in a soft beta phase, and the app is now live in both the iOS App Store and the Google Play Store. We’re still working with Calibrate Software for the app’s maintenance. The next big step for our partnership is the app’s integration into a lot of Wilson's digital environments like ASP, Salesforce, and on-site POS in our new retail stores.

What is the team composition?

We primarily work with Kevin (CEO), our scrum master and main point of contact, and Sean (CXO), who’s in charge of the UX design and creatives. We also work with a developer and a project manager from Calibrate Software.

How did you come to work with Calibrate Software?

We came across Calibrate Software through Clutch.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $118,000 for the initial scope, and then we’ve signed them on a retainer agreement for $205,000. I’d say we’ve spent over $300,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in August 2021, and the engagement is ongoing.

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

The app now has under a thousand users, but we don’t have any metrics outside of that yet. However, I can definitely say that I’m 100% satisfied with Calibrate Software’s work. They've gone above and beyond for us, and even though we still have a long way to go, they’ve definitely gotten us where we needed to in just a short period of time.

How did Calibrate Software perform from a project management standpoint?

Calibrate Software has performed exceptionally well in terms of project management. Their response time is unbelievable — they consistently get back to us almost immediately. As far as the deadlines go, I think we'll get on a sprint delivery cadence now that the app’s more stable and in a full beta build. 

We primarily communicate through emails, phone calls, and text messages. We use Jira to keep a log of all of our communications and ideas and for feature tracking.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I really love how Calibrate Software is very passionate about the project. They’ve really dived in and thought about our project from a 360-degrees standpoint, and they bring a lot of great ideas to the table, too.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They could do better in delivering on time and managing the deadlines and our expectations.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Come in with everything you know about your company and allow them to be creative and expand the project a little bit. But if you know exactly what you want to do, they'll get it done and then take it to the next level.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We have a lab in a university, and we do research in mobile health and ubiquitous computing.

What challenge were you trying to address with Calibrate Software?

Calibrate designed a website for me. 

What was the scope of their involvement?

Calibrate revamped our website with a focus on design elements. They also generated templates for us to follow and eventually embed into our academic template. While they didn’t recreate our logo, the team created a unique design: certain pixels turned on and off on the web page, showing us a theme of zeros and ones. This theme was applied throughout the entire website. 

What is the team composition?

I worked with Kevin (CEO) and Sean (Chief Experience Officer). 

How did you come to work with Calibrate Software?

I asked one of my colleagues at the university about their web designer since their website had beautiful designs. He connected me with Sean, who then connected me with Calibrate. That was the start of our engagement. 

How much have you invested with them?

We invested between $1,000–$1,500. 

What is the status of this engagement?

This project lasted from June–September 2021. 

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

We measured success by checking whether the team accomplished their tasks and went above and beyond what we wanted. We also gauged whether they were enjoyable to work with and professional. Overall, Calibrate was highly professional, and working with them was enjoyable. We had a nice experience with them. 

With this feedback, we want to work with them again in the future to do our logo and a few other projects. 

How did Calibrate Software perform from a project management standpoint?

We appreciated Calibrate’s attention to detail and creativity when it came to designing the website while thinking about the goals of our laboratory. On top of that, their ability to stick to our schedule and budget was of high quality. They even waited on content from us, so it never felt like they were behind schedule in any way; they were always ahead of the curve. If the project took longer than expected, it wasn’t their fault. 

Moreover, the tools they used allowed us to comment on the website, and it was phenomenal. We could easily select parts of the site and leave comments about what we wanted to change or add. To communicate, we mainly used emails. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Calibrate’s persistence stood out to me, and they were focused on customer satisfaction. They also consistently reminded me to be responsive. This way, they showed that they truly cared about their customers; they weren’t simply trying to get things done. On top of that, we could see that they enjoyed their work, and they had integrity. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, there weren’t any. They did a good job. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Enjoy working with Calibrate. They have good management skills, so don’t worry about the tasks — they’re going to be accomplished. As long as your project and objectives are well-defined, the team will follow through. 

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CFO of a sports tech company that has an app dedicated to coaches, parents, and athletes.

What challenge were you trying to address with Calibrate Software?

We hired Calibrate Software to help us with our UI/UX design needs.

What was the scope of their involvement?

The team worked on implementing a UI facelift on our existing iOS app as well as some UX within a certain area of our platform. They worked using InVision.

What is the team composition?

I mainly worked with two people, including Kevin (CEO), but there were more people working behind the scenes.

How did you come to work with Calibrate Software?

Calibrate Software’s colleague referred them so we ended up meeting Kevin a few times to let him know what we were doing. During that time, he also introduced his company. At the same time, we were talking to other companies to see who else would be interested to take on our project.

In the end, Kevin’s personality stood out. We saw that he could fit well with our team and that he had a very strong vision and understanding of our product. Overall, it was a pretty decision for us to engage with Calibrate Software.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from August–October 2021.

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

They produced exceptional design work. Calibrate Software was able to give us a pretty overhaul on our system, and it was clear that we never had a good UI/UX expert until they came along. Internally, we’d still develop our app, but we expect to launch it at the end of November 2021. 

How did Calibrate Software perform from a project management standpoint?

They finished our project ahead of schedule, and they were able to hit our target budget. They did a good job of setting expectations for the project, too. As a result, we had a very good experience with Calibrate Software because they were very easy to work with.

Furthermore, throughout the process, Kevin was on top of everything. Whether it was about emails, notes from meetings, details about discussions, and project proposals — Kevin was always organized. We had weekly meetings, and there were also times we met twice a week to discuss the project’s progress.

What did you find most impressive about them?

There were two impressive things about Calibrate Software. Firstly, they knew how to engage with us, and they had really good and realistic ideas. Secondly, we were impressed with their design skills. In the end, what really mattered most was if they were able to create good product designs — and they were able to do that.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, they had no areas to improve.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Come prepared with your ideas as well as some examples to give Calibrate Software a place to start with. After that, they’ll run with your ideas.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and CEO of a social networking application for student athletes. Our goal is to provide a platform where these athletes can get exposure in the hopes of receiving college scholarship offers.

What challenge were you trying to address with Calibrate Software?

We needed assistance from someone to take over our platform’s development lifecycle.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Calibrate developed a mobile-responsive web application for us. First, we started with the design phase, and we then moved right into the development phase. They didn’t have to create wireframes because the project was already well-planned when they joined. After the development phase, we engaged in a testing phase until completion.

What is the team composition?

I worked with a total of three people from Calibrate, including Kevin (CEO) and a project manager.

How did you come to work with Calibrate Software?

Calibrate was referred to me by someone whom I approached in the hopes of getting this app developed. They referred them to me because they were both local and former college athletes, so they understood my vision.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent somewhere between $25,000–$50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in December 2020, and Calibrate finished their work in September 2021. We’re now planning and preparing for its release on October 1st, 2021.

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

Calibrate ultimately produced a product that we’re happy with, and we’re really excited about its upcoming release. Our app wasn’t easy to develop, but they were very hardworking and helped us get it across the line.

Overall, they did a great job taking my idea and making it a reality. Being former athletes, they understood what I was trying to do.

How did Calibrate Software perform from a project management standpoint?

Calibrate was diligent in their work, and they provided us with weekly updates via email. Our lines of communication were always open, and they communicated properly.

Kevin did a great job keeping me updated along the way about any issues, and the project manager communicated with me weekly to let me know the status of the project. Additionally, we always jumped on a call whenever necessary.

In this business, there are always delays. We missed a few deadlines, but Calibrate always gave me notice when a deadline needed to be extended.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Calibrate leadership’s communication was impressive. Kevin didn’t just introduce me to his team and disappear; he was intimately involved in the entire process. I could always pick up the phone or email him and have a conversation with him.

Another characteristic that really stood out to me was their responsiveness. Calibrate seemed to work 24/7, and they always responded to our emails. They never had an email sitting in their inbox for longer than an hour.

Are there any areas they could improve?

My only criticism is that they need to improve their deadline management. I come from a space where, if I get promised a deadline, I expect it to be met. We missed a few deadlines, and they sometimes rushed to deliver something that wasn’t final, so we had to do some tweaking and bug fixing afterward.

I don’t have a background in technology, but I now understand it better. I know that these situations are fairly common in this space.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Have someone internally who speaks the same language as them and understands design, UX, and development. This person will help you communicate your needs and wants effectively.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a pastor of Saint Benedict the African Parish, a Catholic Church in Chicago. We service about 300 families, a school community, and the people living in the 60621 ZIP code.

What challenge were you trying to address with Calibrate Software?

We were trying to increase our understanding and footprint in the technology world to appeal to the part of our population that uses technology.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Calibrate first introduced us to app development, and they guided us through the steps of signing on with them as our developer company. Then, they organized everything and led us through all the processes required to develop our app.

Once Calibrate had our concept and knew what we wanted, they provided us with different ideas and honed in our thoughts about the app. Given our lack of technological expertise, they offered a consistent way of communicating, and they learned who we were and what we were trying to do to make excellent suggestions.

Then, we moved into the development and testing stages, where they've provided us with great assistance and kept us in line so that we can move forward efficiently. The app hasn’t been rolled out yet, but I know that there will be a launch stage as well.

What is the team composition?

We’ve constantly had two people from Calibrate involved in the project, one of which has been our guide. This person keeps both of our teams in constant communication so that there aren’t any gaps. At times, their team would increase, and we would work with 3–4 people simultaneously.

How did you come to work with Calibrate Software?

One of our members recommended Calibrate to us. This person had developed an app with them prior to us conceiving the development of one.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in November 2020, and we’re looking at the tail end of the project.

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

Calibrate has been transparent and very organized; we’ve always understood at which stage we are. They’ve also provided us with options to chose from.

The greatest feedback that I can provide is that we’re now considering Calibrate for additional projects, and they’re a favored partner for us. We’re very close to launching the app, but we want to reserve some resources for marketing.

How did Calibrate Software perform from a project management standpoint?

Calibrate provides excellent communication and organizational skills. Given their high-level expertise, they’ve also been very patient with us. They’ve accommodated our needs at times where we need the project to move slower. Additionally, everything has been smooth and timely.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Calibrate’s development expertise is impressive. I didn’t even know what questions to ask, but they were very helpful in educating me about the development space.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t know if part of Calibrate’s plan is to accommodate the gap between them and people with very little technical knowledge. They did a flawless job teaching me everything. However, I’m sure that there are more people like me, so I recommend them always to be prepared to teach the language and explain development.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Engage them with enthusiasm, be sure to assess your own ability to understand technology and development details, and acknowledge that your skill sets can be vastly different than theirs. This will help you keep the communication clear and continuous.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

My company is called Renfi Capital. We give out home renovation loans to people, and we’ve come up with a platform that allows customers to submit an application in under three minutes and get approval within 15 minutes. Then, we find them within 72 hours.

What challenge were you trying to address with Calibrate Software?

They did two things. First, they designed the website, and then they created the underwriting module. In summary, they built both of the softwares to underwrite loans.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Calibrate has created the UX/UI designs and everything else for the landing page to capture the customer’s interest enough to click on an application. They’ve also physically designed the application, which consists of nine questions. We did it to get the smallest amount of information we need to go ahead and underwrite loans in less than 15 minutes.

In the backend, they’ve built us an underwriting platform. It’s a queue that provides us certain data, and they’ve connected it to three different providers to underwrite our loans. Then, it also allows us to approve or decline customers directly from the platform and send them an email with an immediate response.

For development, we had phases. Initially, we had a bunch of meetings with them so they’d understand what we were looking for. Then, we started designing for approval. The last phase was creating the actual software, connecting it to the third-party vendors, and ensuring it all worked with all the calculations and things we needed. We gave them the third-party software they had to integrate, and they used WordPress from their side.

What is the team composition?

We work with six people in total. The chief of design is the one who physically designed the look, feel, and operation of the website. The project manager coordinates him and the developers, and the chief of development runs the development team and all the tests.

How did you come to work with Calibrate Software?

My brother lives in Chicago, and he worked in a family office for investments. He knew Kevin (CEO) through an investment.

When I talked to my brother, I mentioned I was looking for somebody, and he highly recommended Kevin.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent roughly $50,000 CAD (approximately $40,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in the summer and signed in December 2020. We have different environments, and they’re still managing those, so we’re still working with Calibrate.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Calibrate has created the UX/UI designs and everything else for the landing page to capture the customer’s interest enough to click on an application. They’ve also physically designed the application, which consists of nine questions. We did it to get the smallest amount of information we need to go ahead and underwrite loans in less than 15 minutes.

In the backend, they’ve built us an underwriting platform. It’s a queue that provides us certain data, and they’ve connected it to three different providers to underwrite our loans. Then, it also allows us to approve or decline customers directly from the platform and send them an email with an immediate response.

For development, we had phases. Initially, we had a bunch of meetings with them so they’d understand what we were looking for. Then, we started designing for approval. The last phase was creating the actual software, connecting it to the third-party vendors, and ensuring it all worked with all the calculations and things we needed. We gave them the third-party software they had to integrate, and they used WordPress from their side.

What is the team composition?

We work with six people in total. The chief of design is the one who physically designed the look, feel, and operation of the website. The project manager coordinates him and the developers, and the chief of development runs the development team and all the tests.

How did you come to work with Calibrate Software?

My brother lives in Chicago, and he worked in a family office for investments. He knew Kevin (CEO) through an investment.

When I talked to my brother, I mentioned I was looking for somebody, and he highly recommended Kevin.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent roughly $50,000 CAD (approximately $40,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in the summer and signed in December 2020. We have different environments, and they’re still managing those, so we’re still working with Calibrate.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of a hospice and palliative care provider. 

What challenge were you trying to address with Calibrate Software?

We hired them for website development services.

What was the scope of their involvement?

At the time, we had a very outdated website. Calibrate Software developed a new website for us from scratch. This included web design and content strategy. 

What is the team composition?

I worked with two people, but Kevin (Principal) was my main point of contact. 

How did you come to work with Calibrate Software?

Kevin’s mother is a business acquaintance of mine because she also works in healthcare. She mentioned that her son did web development, so I decided to contact them. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $10,000–$25,000. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together at the beginning of 2020, and our work is ongoing. 

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

We have a lot of people visiting the site. They guided us in order to maximize our engagement. 

How did Calibrate Software perform from a project management standpoint?

Their communication is exceptional. They’re very proficient in what our company does because they took the time to do some background research. They met every deadline. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re very innovative and keep up with the latest trends and technologies. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I can’t think of any area that needs improvement. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be prepared to engage with them. You’re not going to get the quality you want if you don’t work collaboratively with them. 

Introduce your business and what you do there. 

We’re a residential design build firm. Mostly, our work is done in the North Shore-area of Chicago. I’m the founder and president.  

What challenge were you trying to address with Calibrate Software?  

We needed to create a new website that was more responsive than our existing website.  

What was the scope of their involvement? 

They provided both development and design work, as well as new features. One such feature was video integration onto the home screen and in other areas. This will help with our findability and SEO. They also developed a more intuitive way for the users to access our online portfolio.  

What is the team composition? 

I worked with two people: Kevin (Co-Founder & CEO) and Sean. Sean handled the hands-on website design and coding, and Kevin managed the business development side.  

How did you come to work with Calibrate Software? 

I’ve known Kevin from other businesses. He’s a very professional and conscientious person and had always spoken highly of Sean and their abilities. It seemed like a good fit.  

How much have you invested with them? 

We spent between $7,000–$10,000 with them.  

What is the status of this engagement? 

We worked with them from November 2019 until April 2020.  

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

We don’t have metrics yet, as the site hasn’t launched but that’s not their fault. In terms of working with them, we probably ran them around a little bit. We’re in a visual business, and they were very good at taking the vision we communicated and finding a way to make it work. They’re very creative and resourceful in that way.  

How did Calibrate Software perform from a project management standpoint? 

They did a good job with this. The management was very professional, with them providing status reports after meetings or at key dates that revolved around decision making. Kevin kept everyone on track.  

For communication, we used a combination of emails and in-person meetings; this was pre-COVID. They would also send a link to a test site so we’d be able to see things at the very end.  

What did you find most impressive about them? 

Their knowledge of different platforms they can work on stands out. There’s a lot of add-ins and sub-programs–different ways to create effects within a website—and their knowledge of those was very strong. The ability to allow our website to be unique to what we wanted was great. They didn’t give us a template to fill in.  

Are there any areas they could improve? 

Like in the building industry, sometimes things take two months when you thought they were going to take one month. It’s difficult to manage expectations, as they don’t know what I’m going to ask for, but if there’s an area to improve in, it’s communication and managing expectations of delivery dates. That’s the same for any company.  

Do you have any advice for potential customers? 

Have as clear of an idea as you can, at the beginning, of what your goals are and what you want. For web design projects, you can lower the costs and shorten the experience by having as much of your homework done before you launch. Otherwise, make sure they’re asking the right questions to draw out those things they need to move efficiently.  

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of a parent-child journaling app that helps parents capture key moments with their children in a secure place. 

What challenge were you trying to address with Calibrate Software?

I had to fire the initial tech team that built my app because we were running into all kinds of technical challenges. So, I approached Calibrate Software to take over development and complete the project. 

What was the scope of their involvement? 

Calibrate Software is getting my project back on track. The solution originally consisted of web and mobile versions. But, after maintaining the web app for some time, we realized that the management was too complex for our small startup and decided to bench it. 

Their team is now developing our product for iOS and Android. They’ve provided a bunch of design work for us, coming up with some great creative ideas.

What is the team composition? 

I work directly with Kevin (CEO) and Sean (Designer). 

How did you come to work with Calibrate Software?

A peer of mine had used Calibrate Software for a small project and was happy with the results. Out of all of the teams that I interviewed, their responsiveness and attentiveness stood out the most. I was also drawn to some of their past projects as well as their principals’ backgrounds.

How much have you invested with them?

To date, it’s been under $200,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

I started working with them in November 2019, and we’re still working today.

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

I measure their success by looking at the work that they put out. If it functions as intended and we’re getting good user feedback, then I’m satisfied.

How did Calibrate Software perform from a project management standpoint?

Calibrate Software is always on top of my needs and constantly communicate. Compared to the first development team I worked with, they’re much more responsive. That means a lot to me, especially when a project ends up taking longer than expected. 

We use a shared Trello board to see where we are in our sprints. I get notifications when a task moves from one stage to the next, which lets me and my team to jump in and test what’s happening.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Not to go back to this ad nauseam, but their responsiveness is a big part of why I like working with them. I might send a text message or an email and get responses soon after. They’ll even respond on weekends sometimes if I’ve got a technical issue with my program. 

Besides that, they’re creative in thinking through ideas. The team iterates through future versions of what we could do or include, coming up with different ways to improve our app. In that sense, they’re more like a team member than a contractor.

Are there any areas they could improve?

As the founder of a startup, I always wish that things were moving faster than they are.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Looking back at my own journey, I’ve found that it’s really important to map out the way your programs and processes are supposed to work. That includes the analytics. What data are you tracking and how are you going to track it? 

You’ll want that data reported upfront so that you’re not trying to tie your product back into it later. Understanding the data behind our user journey has been an ongoing challenge for us.