devabit

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the senior project manager for a multilingual translation company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Devabit?

We needed help with software development.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They developed an internal software. They worked using an Agile development methodology. The software does industry-specific things like quality control and layout. The team also does BPO (business process outsourcing) work.

What is the team composition?

We have several points of contact; the team has managers that provide information when we need it.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent $200,000–$1,000,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them around March 2015, and our work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They are easy to work with, communicate well, and we have not had any issues.

How did Devabit perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re very responsive, even after hours. We communicate via email.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re more accommodating than companies we’ve worked within the past regarding general commitment, communication, and timelines. We enjoy working with them.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, we are just trying to streamline our processes in working with them, overall.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m head of product at GetID. We’re building an identity verification solution.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Devabit?

We’re trying to outsource some of our development while also trying to optimize our operational costs. This is intended to be a B2B product that allows companies to onboard companies. The product offers identity verification for customers.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They’re helping us to develop native mobile and web features. The work is done in JavaScript, Node.js, and a Go-based backend. They’re also helping with backend stuff as well. The product captures data provided by the end-user. They developed an image capture system that uses a “selfie” to do a facial similarity check with documents.

We also have anti-fraud features that check documents against anti-money laundering lists. They customize the frontend for clients’ needs. They also work on backend integration with plugins and other tools. Right now, it’s based in English, but we’re trying to build the infrastructure for global work. They’re helping to make the site more customizable. We’ve increased the team size as the project has gone on.

What is the team composition?

The whole team was around 25 people, of which Devabit supplied four. That was a mobile developer, two senior full-stack developers, and one QA engineer.

How did you come to work with Devabit?

I worked with them in a web development project at my previous company. I’d known them for three years and they’d proved they were a trusted partner.

How much have you invested with them?

It’s about €15,000 ($16,723 USD) per month.

What is the status of this engagement?

It started in November 2018 and the project is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’re quite happy. I thought they were open to any feedback and they tried to organize the development process according to how we need it. Outsourcing can be difficult due to communication problems, but they actually hired people based on our requirements. In previous projects, we didn’t outsource core processes, but during this project, they’ve been quite successful.

They’re quite adaptable. We had one problem where we had to replace one person, but it was very fixed quickly. They’re quite experienced and proficient in proposing new ideas.  

How did Devabit perform from a project management standpoint?

Project management was quite easy. We used Slack and GitHub. Everything was set up from a legal perspective. They’re open to feedback and meet all requirements. They have strong standup meetings and documentation. We’ve visited them to observe their work process and office environment. In terms of environment, they run along the same lines as our internal team.. We’ve never had any communication problems.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They provide developers that meet the required background. One of the owners of the company visited us several times, just to check how things were going. Pricing is fair; they don’t charge to make a new placement.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I think they need to create a better portfolio to showcase their skills. We only started with one person, but when we visited their office, they showed us complex projects that impressed us.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of an online dance community. We create and offer online dance classes through a subscription-based, on-demand service. People pay a fee per month and they can watch as many dance classes as they want.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Devabit?

We needed Android app development for our e-learning platform. Since I’m a web developer, we had a web version in place, and a friend helped us create an iOS app. After that, a lot of users began asking for an Android version.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The goal was to have Devabit clone the iOS version in native Android. They had to work with our database in order to use our content, images, and videos. We used Firebase for the development.

The app had to be able to display all the classes in our database and allow users to log in and watch videos. The trickiest part was integrating in-app payments using Android’s system, which was completely new to us.

What is the team composition?

We had one main project manager, one developer, and one QA engineer assigned to the project.

How did you come to work with Devabit?

I was referred to them by another founder I had met. I checked out their Clutch profile, though I also looked at others.

How much have you invested in them?

We spent around $15,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with them from October 2017–March 2018.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve been able to expand our reach, as there were people who couldn’t access our classes because they only had an Android device. The app isn’t at the same level as our website, but at least it’s another avenue that we can get new users from.

Overall, our users are happy with the functionality of the app. There was a small issue, but that was mainly because we weren’t familiar with Android and didn’t think about it beforehand.

How did Devabit perform from a project management standpoint?

We mainly used email and Jira to communicate. The project manager I initially worked with left the company in the middle of our project. The second person that came on wasn’t up to speed and as communicative as I would have liked compared to the original project manager. I was getting a little frustrated, but it wasn’t really Devabit’s fault. I let them know I was dissatisfied with the newer project manager and they assigned another one.

We’re currently in maintenance mode, so if there are any bugs or issues that come up, I let the new project manager know. She isn’t taking on any major tasks from us at this point, but she seems to be a lot more communicative and on top of things.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I haven’t really used too many other developers, but I had tried a freelance developer before. It was really helpful to have a dedicated project manager handling the work.

Are there any areas they could improve?

When it came to the payment integration part of the project, I expected a little more expertise as I wasn’t familiar with Android at all. It seemed like they were also figuring it out at the same time. It would’ve been nice if they were a little more on top of that.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Empiric Solutions is a technology-consulting services company working with small to large businesses. We do strategy consulting, custom application development, and process optimization. I am the president.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Devabit?

I needed to outsource work, preferably to a team that would be cost-effective and knowledgeable on all facets of development. Devabit was the perfect fit; not only were they competitively priced, but they also had project managers who could lead a team of developers and communicate with me, a less technical person.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Devabit interfaces with me, takes my requirements, and if necessary, leads a team with little or no intervention. They’re the full technical arm of my business.

For our most recent project, Devabit helped with the UI/UX development of a new WordPress website for a client, as well as developing their Salesforce platform. They included a payment system and provided HTML5 coding.

What is the team dynamic?

Devabit has competent project managers and technical leads who can manage the developers without my having to do it. I only interface with the project manager, the CTO, and the head of business development. We use Skype and Gmail for communication.

How did you come to work with Devabit?

A friend had built a whole enterprise software company by outsourcing the work to Devabit. I'm also a sole founder and have a team made up exclusively of contractors. Devabit is helping me function as a company without having a team in the States.

How much have you invested with them?

So far, I’ve spent $7,000 with Devabit, and the cost will go up to $70,000, with the potential for other work in the future.

What is the status of this engagement?

I started working with Devabit in April 2017, and the collaboration is ongoing. Currently, Devabit is helping me build the software for Internet-of-Things products—connected devices for the industrial space.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Since we are still in development, I don’t have much feedback from my customers yet. So far, they've appreciated Devabit’s speed and accuracy.

How did Devabit perform from a project management standpoint?

They're prompt to respond and very flexible when it comes to setting up meetings. There have been times when the business manager was up anywhere from his 1 a.m. till 3 a.m. just so they could work with me at a more convenient time. Devabit is always happy to adjust to the customer’s needs.

What did you find most impressive about them?

What's noteworthy is Devabit’s ability to keep costs low and still be a full-blown technical arm of a startup. When working as a one-person show in the US, hiring a solid developer can cost anywhere up to $120,000. Devabit keeps rates significantly lower than that, allowing a one-or-two-person shop to start up without hiring technical talent full time.

As I'm not a programmer by any means but more of a sales engineer, I can draw out problems and what I want solutions to look like. Having project managers and a CTO managing a team of developers at Devabit’s cost is just wild to me.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I haven’t run into an area where I felt they could improve. Devabit has checked every box for me so far, and I couldn’t ask for anything better right now.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO and founder of Muzaic, a website offering services for bookings in the entertainment industry.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Devabit?

Devabit helped us create our beta product. They offered development skills, particularly in the areas of Linux, PHP, Apache, and MySQL. They also assisted with UX design and development of custom algorithms to create new features and functionality for our site.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We had a base product, and we wanted to customize it by adding additional features and functionality. We wanted to add an algorithm that matched job opportunities to resumes, and we also wanted to add workflow capabilities, particularly for the hiring process.

Devabit provided UI improvements to make the site look more like a social application instead of a job board. Now, it has some social media integrations, and has an activity feed very similar to Twitter’s. Users have a lot more visibility with regards to interaction, communication, and the hiring process.

The business purpose of the platform is to provide an integrated tool set for people working in the entertainment industry which allows them to manage all aspects of an event. This includes talent buying, promotion management, communications, and logistics, among other things.

The matching algorithm is the key component, and what makes our service stand out in the market. We gave Devabit a basic description of the business rules, how it should work, and the different roles in the application, then they came up with the database schema and algorithm.

They did an excellent job fulfilling the business requirements and creating something that looks elegant. It’s a huge differentiator for our app amongst other products on the market. We plan on launching in September 2017.

What is the team dynamic?

I mostly interacted with the project manager. We would have daily emails, along with weekly status meetings, so communication was appropriate for the project. I didn’t really interact with the team other than adding comments in JIRA, and I didn’t have any outside technical resources due to the size of the project. I was completely reliant on Devabit.

How did you come to work with Devabit?

Someone else referred us to them, and their portfolio was very attractive to us. They had done a lot of public-facing websites, as well as some mobile and workflow related apps, that were all in the skill set area we were seeking.

How much have you invested with them?

We've spent around $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in April 2017, and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We did a focus group test to get some initial feedback, and they really liked the UI’s simplicity and intuitiveness. One person was very impressed by the functionality of the matching algorithm because of how much time it could save them. We also received other positive comments related to how the product would fare against others in the market.

How did Devabit perform from a project management standpoint?

They’ve done an excellent job in various areas, and they’ve been responsive to changes. This is a new product, so there have been many iterations. They contributed great ideas for product design, as well as UI. They also suggested features pertaining to the activity feed, which was the turning point where this became more of a social app.

Over the duration of the project, their estimations became more accurate, and they were fairly disciplined about meeting their deadlines. Communication between the project manager and myself was great, and I was able to interact with the team using JIRA. If they need feedback on a certain task, I’m always able to interact with them through that tool.

I was also very impressed with their ability to incorporate business requirements. They really understood the product, as well as the business goals and model. It was very apparent they were conscientious about the end product during development. It wasn’t just about translating requirements into lines of code, but rather how it was going to function as a whole. They brought up questions about the business rules whenver there were gaps, and followed widely accepted development standards. They took the initiative to design and implement the product in a certain way.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The most impressive thing to me was the improvement they provided to the UI. There’s really a huge difference between what I handed to them, and what they’ve given back. It’s an entirely new product.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There are ways we could’ve better utilized JIRA’s capabilities to have better issue and requirement tracking. This didn’t impede our progress, but it would’ve given us more insight into things like velocity, the rate of bugs that are produced, and the defect resolution time with every iteration.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We're a boutique agency based in Dubai working with clients from various sectors of the market, including hospitality, events, and aviation. Our services range from development to UI/UX [user interface/user experience] design and strategy services for digital innovations, CRM [customer relationship management] systems integrations, and end-to-end campaign management. I am a project manager for the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Devabit?

I handle all digital development projects, which is where Devabit's help comes in.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We've worked with Devabit on medium-to-large-scale projects, going from simple frontend pieces to complete products for clients. We work with various frameworks, based on clients' requirements. These include PHP, Node.js, and .NET.

Our first project was a straightforward, mid-sized one for a campaign. Another one was for a company in the aviation sector. Devabit built an application for internal engagement. We've also worked with an SMPG [Securities Market Practice Group] company, introducing a new way of communicating with clients, using bots. Devabit's engagement involved understanding who the customer was, presenting relevant information to them, as well as capturing data from the customers' statements, for agents to pick up the conversation from there. Devabit had an interesting approach, consulting with us on how we could have a better timeline. From time to time, when we've had technical roadblocks, we met with Devabit to understand what could be done better in order to enhance our products.

For certain long-term projects, we engage 2 to 3 dedicated resources directly from Devabit. They are in charge of providing the teams for smaller, ad-hoc requests. This has worked in our favor, and it has mitigated the cost factor. Our communication for more extensive projects is streamlined, making our process smoother.

How did you come to work with Devabit?

We were approached by Devabit initially. Once we had a look at their work, we became interested in running a quick project for testing their services. We liked working with Devabit's team; they were in-sync with us and ready to provide support.

How much have you invested with Devabit?

Cost varies from project to project, going from $30,000 to $100,000, for mid-sized projects. We've worked with Devabit on a total of 10 projects, varying in size, some of them ongoing, long-term ones.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Devabit in 2016, at the beginning of the second quarter.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

At this point, we've worked with Devabit on around 10 projects. It's difficult to put a metric in place, but we've looked mainly at their velocity. When we have large-scale projects building complete apps, it can be difficult to understand why something is taking more time, but Devabit has sped up the process, and constantly looked at the most effective way of doing the job.

How did Devabit perform from a project management standpoint?

When starting a new project, we typically send complete requirements and a user story to Devabit, receiving estimates within one day. This is quite fast, considering our general speed. As an agency, we have stricter deadlines than those of another company in the same space.

We are quite comfortable working with Devabit. They've responded to our strict deadlines in a very prompt manner. When they do commit, they ensure that the commitment will be delivered. The way in which Devabit shares feedback has improved our project success rate. If we are to build a new feature, Devabit will analyze it properly and anticipate any roadblocks we may have in the future. Devabit's overall involvement in our projects has changed the feedback we receive from our clients.

We've used Jira and Confluence for tracking and bug reports on many of our projects. Standup meetings typically happen over Skype. We are constantly looking to improve the velocity of putting out new features. The overall record has been good, considering that many of our clients have ad-hoc work. Certain requests can change in a matter of days.

What did you find most impressive about Devabit?

A key factor, which I find essential in today's age, is allowing enough time for feedback. We have our processes for working with first drafts, which can be difficult for typical outsourcing companies to follow. Devabit's team has understood us well, and always fixed items that didn't turn out as we expected.

Are there any areas Devabit could improve?

Tracking estimates has been a challenge for us. We work on many projects simultaneously so that a financial tracking system would be helpful.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We're a small startup based out of the [San Francico] Bay Area. I'm the vice president of engineering and I developed the first few versions of our app. The app is in the health tech space - patient care self-servicing.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Devabit?

We needed to reduce our turnaround time and build the app very quickly. As we got customer feedback, we also needed to iterate quickly.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Our team split up the activities based on segments of the app. Devabit then took our code and added onto those specific functional segments. All the stuff they did for us was in Node.js, using frameworks like Meteor. On the front-end, they used ReactJS. I think they're able to use Blaze and Angular, but our app was already built in ReactJS. We like that framework, so we've been keeping with that framework. Right now, Devabit is operating as an extension of our team. It seems like they do have some designers but we haven't used them. We just haven't had the need to use them, yet.

How did you come to work with Devabit?

How we found them and what led me to work with Devabit were 2 totally different things. I don't remember how we found them. They might have reached out to me in LinkedIn. The thing is, a lot of dev companies reach out to me on LinkedIn. Because I'm a developer and because I actually used to have a software consulting company, I can spot the BS pretty quickly. When I looked at the framework that Devabit used, it caught my attention because it was the same framework that we were using. We use a relatively new framework, so not a lot of outsourcing development companies use it. I talked to someone from Devabit and I looked at the previous work that they did. I validated and verified the work they were showing. I sat down with their lead developer and said, “Explain this work that you just showed me.” I looked for the things that are technically a little bit tough. Not just technically, but even from a business standpoint are tough. “How did you come to pick these constraints?"

They had a lot of really good logical answers. It was clear to me that they were technically savvy. It was also clear to me that they were hungry, and so we gave them a really small project. It was a project that I already knew what the cost should be and how long it should take. Devabit was right on. A lot of other development companies will say, “We'll do it for $5 an hour, but it'll take us 10 weeks to build this little thing.” Devabit didn't do that with me. I also had confidence in their lead engineer. At that point, I was good to go.

How much have you invested with Devabit?

I think we've spent about $38,000 on Devabit’s services, but we're still doing stuff with them. With this development sprint, we'll probably spend another $5,000 or $6,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Devabit around late March. We're presenting at a couple of conferences. If that goes well and we get more customers, we'll probably keep using them. They've been really good so far. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They're really open to using different tools. When we got started they said, “These are the tools that we use, but if you use something else, we're more than happy to use those tools.” They seem pretty flexible from that standpoint. I would say their code quality is good. I don't feel like I have to go through and refactor the codes. With our team developing over here, they understand the code.  Devabit does a good job of fitting it in. It's not so verbose that it's a pain, but it's not so concise that it's impossible to see what they're doing. It's at that right level.

I've been pretty happy so far. They've been really transparent with me. They check in code for the same repository that we do, working alongside other developers. That is actually a big jump, from having 1 person work on an app to having multiple people work on an app. They're quite responsive. Overall, I've been happy with Devabit.

How did Devabit perform from a project management standpoint?

They interface with our team and work with them directly. We hold weekly meetings and they join some of those meetings. We use Slack and GitHub. I think Devabit also uses Asana. They track their time in Toggl.

What did you find most impressive about Devabit?

Internally, I've been impressed with their code quality and their responsiveness. Every single design decision has been made by us and they've been able to follow the designs pretty well. They're quite responsive versus other development groups that I've worked with. They're pretty autonomous. They don't need to be hand held to the same extent as other dev companies I've worked with, so that's been good. I wish it hadn’t taken me so long to get my team up to the same standards. If I had known about Devabit, I probably would have used them and gotten rid of my own dev team. They're right on point.

Are there any areas Devabit could improve?

There's always room for improvement, but so far they've been doing well. They've been making reasonable suggestions on things that we should do differently. I might have to get back to you on that. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We’re a digital product development agency. We’re based in London. It’s made up of two components. First there's the consulting work. We help our clients across the startup enterprise sector to shape the vision of their product. Then, we manage the work - and sometimes also launching, iterating, and testing those products.

I work with our contractors - we call it our talent pool. I communicate directly with Devabit.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Devabit?

We don’t have our own engineering or design team. We are focused on product design and management. That’s why we cooperate with a number of development and design agencies. With Devabit, some projects are finished and delivered and some projects are currently in the pipeline. They are one of our oldest partners. We did a fashion website as the first project with an artificial intelligence component for fashion recommendations. Then, we did a children’s app for iPad where they can create their own toy called Toogle Toy. We also did an indoor positioning app for social discovery called Panda. Currently, there are two other projects in which they’re involved. They are under NDA’s [non-disclosure agreements] but one is a coaching app and the other is part of a bigger team in doing a Fin-tech [financial technology] app.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Mainly it was mobile stuff, iOS and Android. They also do backend as well. I think they used .NET and PHP. They had elements of web development especially for [our client] Ormary and this was PHP, OpenCart, and some other frameworks. They also did some quality assurance work and some elements of dev ops. In some smaller projects, they were the primary contractor. They did pretty much all the work – full stack backend and front end. In a bigger project, like the Fin-tech project, they are part of a mobile team.

How did you come to work with Devabit?

We found them by recommendation. I have a friend of mine who runs a design agency, who is also our partner. When we were looking for developers, they recommended Devabit to us. I met them and we did some preliminary interviews. They did one small test project and I was more than satisfied.

How much have you invested with Devabit?

Between 300,000 to 500,000 GBP [USD $400,000 - $650,000].

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve worked with them for almost three years. We started in early 2014.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I think we have two or three case studies published on our website for the previous project we did with Devabit. The product has been launched. One was more successful and one less successful, but it was due to the business, not the quality of the solution. I am more than satisfied with all of their work. That’s why we keep working with them.

How did Devabit perform from a project management standpoint?

What I appreciate, is their flexibility. They are not a big team. They’re a rather small, boutique development agency, but they’re very agile which is good when you have startups for clients and you have a very dynamic development process where requirements change frequently. I think they were a perfect partner because they are really flexible. We didn’t have any issues with the management, but our model is such that we ourselves provide a product manager who not only steers communication between the team and the client, but also manages the work day by day like a product owner. So we provided the high level management. On their side, there were team leads and scrum masters sometimes. As I said, it all went smoothly. We didn’t have any major issues.

What did you find most impressive about Devabit?

They are really proactive with coming up with optimal solutions. That’s really valuable – sometimes it has really made a difference. They approach stuff with genuine peace of mind and they are proactive in suggesting what they consider to be more efficient for a particular solution. Even if it contradicts with the vision of our project manager or a client, still there were several cases when we agreed with them, adopted their solution, and it proved to be better.

Are there any areas Devabit could improve?

Not anything important.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are Bit by Bit Mobile. I am the Chief Executive Officer.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Devabit?

We were developing a totally new solution - a cost saving solution mobile app. It captures coupons and discounts in the surrounding areas, and display it on user’s iPhones or Android phones.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They were programming everything - backend and our website. It was done in stages. They developed iOS first, then Android. The backend was done first. They had seven people in the group. There was a senior developer with a couple of junior developers, a project manager, and quality assurance testers.

How did you come to work with Devabit?

I was referred by a mutual friend who’s done business with them before.

How much have you invested with Devabit?

We have invested $160,000 US.

What is the status of this engagement?

It started in 2014. It was completed about six months ago. Right now, we’re looking for the next round of investors.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They delivered a high quality product. The technical team was very professional. They understood the assignment very well from the beginning. They provided support as well.

How did Devabit perform from a project management standpoint?

It was excellent project management. We had daily reports and weekly Skype calls with the team. They used the Agile method of project management. It worked out extremely well. Their English is perfect. I have no complaints. If there were any delays, they were willing to work on the weekends and overtime. It was well managed.

What did you find most impressive about Devabit?

They’re extremely innovative. They gave suggestions that we implemented. The graphic designers are very good, and quality assurance is excellent.

Are there any areas Devabit could improve?

Not really. The Android development could have been faster maybe, but it wasn’t their fault. We weren’t pushing much until it became critical.