Droid Technologies

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

We’ve had to outsource this project three times so far to different companies, and Droid Technologies was the only one that really took care of the job. We’re very satisfied with their work.

Our company was founded in 2010, and this has been one of the best business relationships we’ve had with another company. It’s been very short, but the quality of the work is convincing, and they’re available all the time, including late hours and on weekends.

How did Droid Technologies perform from a project management standpoint?

We use GitHub to share code as well as Skype and email for communication. So far, we’ve mainly worked in smaller teams, which were completely outsourced or in-house. This time, we did the project with a couple of in-house people along with an external developer from Droid Technologies.

This helped us, in general, to improve the way we handle code and manage data in our system because we have to make it available to different parties. Droid Technologies suggested some solutions for that because they have a lot of experience dealing with customers. For us, this was a bit of a new situation. Until then, we had either developed everything on our own or outsourced entire projects.

One of the developers we’re working with is very good technically, and we can always reach out to Sergii (CEO). If we have a question, he always provides knowledge and ideas. It’s not only the developers we’ve hired that are available to us; the whole company provides additional resources.

We haven’t had any bumps or problems with Droid Technologies. Everything’s gone smoothly, and they're always available when we want to check-in. We’re very satisfied with their work.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Droid Technologies offers good rates compared to other developers. They’re not too expensive, but they still provide high-quality work. The value for our money is very good with them. We could always hire developers that cost $200 an hour and expect more because there’s always more.

For the amount we pay, we get very good work and I’d be happy to pay more — but don’t tell them that. Quality of work is one of the most important things for us, and it makes us happy in this business relationship.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I can’t really think of anything.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Droid Technologies takes care of the job at hand. Clients should try and explain the whole project and give them more insight into it. With this input, Droid Technologies may possibly find a better solution than initially planned.

They have knowledge in different areas and a lot of experience. Don’t just give them a task and ask them to write a couple of lines of code, rather explain what needs to be achieved and what your business is. Then, they’ll contribute a lot more to the project.

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

We expect the project to end in March 2020. We’re satisfied with the product; it works as it should, but we have some minor things left to do.

How did Droid Technologies perform from a project management standpoint?

They’ve been really flexible with us. We wrote requirements, but then we changed our minds several times and expanded the scope. They handle that really well, and they even take the initiative to suggest ideas and improvements based on their own experiences. 

Sometimes, we have some communication issues since our native languages are not English, but that’s how it is when you’re not English-speaking from the start. They use Mantis to track bugs, and we communicate through emails and our weekly meetings. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

This is our first experience developing a product with a third-party company. We’ve found Droid Technologies to be really proactive, flexible, and experienced with building these kinds of products. We didn’t do our job in creating the core requirement specifications, but they’ve handled that really well.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, we’ve had a positive collaboration. We’ve learned a lot for next time: we’ll do better to state the requirements, and they’ll do better to ask questions and narrow down the scope.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be clear in your specifications. Also, be proactive and ask what they think about their experience. Droid Technologies may know better what you’re looking for, and it can save you time.

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

They have top marks from us. Their ability to deal with ambiguity, code structure, and discipline have been great. They're proactive in suggesting changes, or even pushing back if they see there could be limitations, which we appreciate. It always comes from a point of experience, rather than speculation. I'd rather have a development team that's able to chart a course and find their way through problems, rather than do only what you ask. They use their collective experience to understand our broader strategy.

How did Droid Technologies perform from a project management standpoint?

They've performed well. We've had a lot of tight timelines, but they've been proactive; if they see they're falling behind or if there's additional work, they'll backfill with a junior developer that may work on things like display drivers while the lead developer works on refining the UX. There was always an awareness of the broader timeline, budget, and they worked their systems in parallel so that we wouldn't fall too far behind the curve.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They have a cross-section of the disciplines under their roof; electrical, mechanical, and firmware. They understand the actual hardware instead of just the language. That piece is especially significant for us when we're dealing with signaling and communications, and have them produce from soup to nuts a prototype, the electrical schematics, the assembly, the enclosure, and the code that runs on all of that.

They also all have a depth of experience working for corporate brands and clients producing an end product. Additionally, we saw them as having high integrity, honest, good folks. We visited them in Kiev, and they're good people who can communicate in English well. We learned they invest in English classes for their employees to ensure that they can communicate with clients, which was a pleasant surprise.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Although it hasn't ever impacted our business, maybe the next step for their business is to invest in a full-time UX person, rather than having to outsource.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

My advice is to share your strategy because they have the acumen to grasp it and can contribute as a partner and as a team. Don't approach them as contract C programmers, they're more useful than that. You'd be doing yourself a disservice if you don't take advantage of their capabilities.