[e-spres-oh]

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the VP of engineering of FiscalNote, a global policy and market intelligence platform.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with [e-spres-oh]?

We were trying to scale up our development velocity on one of our core products. Specifically, we were looking for an integrated team rather than trying to find individuals who hadn’t worked together.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

[e-spres-oh] has brought in a lead engineer and junior engineers to integrate into one of our Scrum teams, which includes design and product management on our side. Although we didn't scope the project with them, one of their first tasks was working with the product manager to create tickets and scope their work. Ours is an ongoing engagement rather than a project-based one. 

We already have a base for the product, and [e-spres-oh]'s main task is to make adding new datasets to our platform as easy as possible. They've worked on taking machine-generated data and data fields and having that data displayed on the pages they work on with as little extra coding as possible. They use Ruby on Rails for this task. 

What is the team composition?

We work with one lead developer and four engineers from [e-spres-oh]. We've also worked with Marcel (Partner) and Horia (Engineering Manager), who worked on the project for a while and then stepped back into an account management role. 

How did you come to work with [e-spres-oh]?

I found them through a referral from a colleague; I believe [e-spres-oh] reached out to them initially. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent $300,000–$500,000. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in July 2022, and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They work closely with our internal engineering teams, who view [e-spres-oh] as a pretty strong partner. The team grasps our overall technical strategy very well and provides creative solutions to ensure their part of the work aligns with that strategy. Moreover, they've gone beyond small-level software tasks; they've stepped in and taken a more active role in shaping our technology strategy. 

There have been a couple of times when we've had bugs in production that were somewhat serious. For the most part, the [e-spres-oh] team has done a good job handling them, though they've needed some prompting. On the whole, they take bugs seriously and work with our internal team to resolve them. 

How did [e-spres-oh] perform from a project management standpoint?

They've been good from a project management standpoint. Marcel and Horia have been very engaged and have done a good job addressing concerns and answering feedback. Overall, they're very responsive. 

We use Jira for tickets and phone calls, emails, Zoom, and Slack to communicate. The vast majority of our communication is through Slack. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

[e-spres-oh] 's biggest strength is their ability to go beyond technical requirements and take a more active role in the strategy. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

Not really. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Marcel and Horia are happy to oblige requests, so my advice is not to hesitate to reach out to them; they're very helpful.