DA-14 Corp.

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

We didn't have any issues with the code and we're planning to launch our private beta test next month.

How did they perform from a project management standpoint?

They were flexible and accommodated the difference in time zones when we had our weekly Skype calls.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They're great communicators. That was one of the biggest things we were looking for, especially when working with an offshore provider. They went above and beyond to make sure their team was communicating effectively and consistently.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We used software called Sketch for our design files. Sketch is a very popular design software in the industry, but their team didn't have access to Sketch. I expected that their team would have better access to the software.

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

The tool wasn’t working very well before we started with them, and now we have a range of features that they have developed for us. Their main selling feature was that they had done a lot of work in Angular, which they lived up to very well.

We had the funding to be able to accomplish three milestones, and we hired them to complete the first milestone. We are planning to hire them again depending on our funding for milestone two and three.

How did DA-14 Software Development perform from a project management standpoint?

It has been very good. At my request, they worked through Slack. I was nervous about the 5 1/2-hour time difference between us, and I wasn’t sure how that dynamic would work. Anton, our developer, sends updates every day letting me know what was accomplished and what the plan is for the day. At the end of every month, Alina gives us a detailed report of everything Anton accomplished which includes the requests that we had. I am very impressed with the project management side of it.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Anton’s communication with me has been great. After initially meeting with Dmitriy and another person, they clearly communicated what I was looking for to Alina and didn’t miss a step. This showed me that they clearly have a great team dynamic going, and that really impressed me.

Are there any areas they could improve?

While there is a break in our service, they can’t keep their developers waiting around. So, when we restart the project, we might not get Anton again, and there would be a learning curve for the new developer. It isn’t a big concern for me, but it is a minor thing that we might not be able to get the same people every time. However, it might be flawless with a new developer.

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

We started with an €8,000 [$9,130] budget, but the relationship expanded to 3-times more, which reflects how pleased I’ve been with their work. If not, I would have changed our partner. I knew that we would have to adapt and add on many features of the website and selected DA-14 because I felt they would do it in a fair way. DA-14’s work has been quite clean. More importantly, they react quickly whenever we have any issues or bugs. We can send them a notification and have the issue corrected within a day.

Our clients have been pleased with the design. They mainly have old-fashioned software internally, so they’ve appreciated our web app’s integration.

How did DA-14 perform from a project management standpoint?

We’re constantly improving designs, which would have been a problem with most companies, but DA-14 was well-organized. Their project manager considered every request and tracked the work hours. We have frequent exchanges and could request a call for any issue. The project management was very convenient for us, letting us focus on tasks beyond their hours. It would’ve been difficult for me to estimate the scope of the project due to the many changes we’re making. Every line was justified on DA-14’s side.

What did you find most impressive about DA-14?

I’ve appreciated their follow-up and responsiveness to all the change requests. Everything was clear, and I cannot complain about cost increases since DA-14 explained each item. They adapt well and expedite work with no problems.

Are there any areas DA-14 could improve?

Based on the work so far, I have no negative comments. 

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

The app has been launched, and we have users. We also have some major partners for the launch, which are some of the nation’s largest companies in the beauty industry. It’s difficult to attribute metrics specifically to DA-14 because we use many developers. We’ve had increases in revenue and users, which should also be attributed to our marketing team. When I think about metrics for engineering, I notice pull requests and completion timing on tasks. They’ve been doing really well in those areas.

How did DA-14 Software Development perform from a project management standpoint?

I’ve actually asked them to step away from management. I’m a developer myself, and I like to manage the sprints. Our DA-14 engineer is working in conjunction with other developers on our team as well. I don’t want a project manager to get in the way.

What did you find most impressive about DA-14 Software Development?

I appreciate their flexibility in working with our needs and their ability to understand our concerns. About 95% of outsourced developers are not going to be a good fit for most companies. The fact that they were able to work with us right from the onset was impressive. Before we started development, we had an hour-long conversation with DA-14 where they dove into everything we wanted—the skill set, the type of person, and everything else. Initially, they spent a lot of time making sure we had the right person, but other development shops will just throw you the first open developer they have on staff.

From a pricing perspective, they’re very reasonable. They have an onshore person as well, who I can reach at any point, but that doesn’t inflate the cost. They are obviously making a margin off of this, but, given what I’ve seen in the market, it is a lot less than other shops.

The talent that they’ve pulled is really specific to our needs. In general, they’re a young company, so I think they are still learning how to build their model. They are very open to suggestions and feedback. We had a few billing issues with them because their finance department is a bit unsophisticated, but they are always willing to listen and pivot.

Are there any areas DA-14 Software Development could improve?

Their billing process is unwieldy, which makes payments complicated. They have an Estonian bank account with a lot of intermediary banks. Setting that up is not easy. We had to go to our bank and change our bank account type to be able to do unlimited international wires.

We offer everybody on our team perks like free food, and I was trying to enable that for our developers as well. It just wasn’t easy because their accounting is not up to par. Setting up something like that was difficult. Now, I pay the developer directly for the perks, rather than going through the company. That’s a really minor point that most people probably don’t care about.

Also, the turnaround time for getting a new developer is not as fast as we’d like, probably due to their size. Our other development shop can bring on resources at weeks’ notice. With DA-14, we’d probably need about a month of lead time to be able to roll on a developer.

I want to stress that they are not the type of shop that works on a contract basis and then is done. In that case, a month of lead time would not be acceptable. They help us augment our staff. I’m hiring somebody to be a part of the team for the foreseeable future. That’s why a month of lead time isn’t a big deal because we’d spend that long hiring an engineer anyway in New York.