Envion Software

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Assistant Project Manager of TED Construction

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Construction

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Envion Software to accomplish?

• Website

SOLUTION

How did you find Envion Software?

Other

Why did you select Envion Software over others?

Other

How many teammates from Envion Software were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Jacques, our go-to data expert, played a crucial role in enhancing our website's SEO. His insights and strategies have significantly improved our online presence, driving more traffic and boosting our search engine rankings. His expertise in this area is truly invaluable.

On the design front, Kate brought our vision to life with her keen aesthetic sense. She listened carefully to our ideas and translated them into a stunning and user-friendly design. Her creativity and attention to detail ensured that our website not only looks great but also provides an excellent user experience.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

We had the pleasure of working with Jacques, Kate, and their exceptional team of web developers, and we couldn't be more impressed with the results. From start to finish, their responsiveness, knowledge, and professionalism shone through, making the entire process seamless and enjoyable.

The entire team demonstrated remarkable technical skills, particularly when it came to implementing custom workarounds for our unique requirements. They executed these complex tasks with precision and in a timely manner, showcasing their dedication and commitment to delivering high-quality results.

Working with Jacques, Kate, and their team has been a pleasure, and we highly recommend them to anyone in need of top-notch web development services. Their collaborative approach, combined with their wealth of ideas and expertise, made them a standout choice for any project.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Yes they did

What was your primary form of communication with Envion Software?

Virtual Meeting

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

Very helpful

Are there any areas for improvement or something Envion Software could have done differently?

No.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

 I am the COO of a non-profit company 

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

National foundation that administers a graduate scholarship program

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Envion Software to accomplish?

• Build from scratch a clean, modern website for our national graduate school scholarship
• Rebuild and redesign an organizational website

SOLUTION

How did you find Envion Software?

Online Search

Why did you select Envion Software over others?

• High ratings
• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Envion Software were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

We engaged Envion to utilize a logo, color palette and not much else to build from scratch an appealing, modern website for our scholarship program. We also worked with Envion to build our organizational website.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

On time launch of websites in line with our quality metrics

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Great PM. Extremely fast turns on feedback, often overnight or over the weekend. It really felt like we were on the same team - they also wanted to deliver a high quality product and would give us multiple options to choose from.

What was your primary form of communication with Envion Software?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

They had a smart, honest staff who had a great eye for design. They were out ahead of any potential issues when launching the website. I strongly recommend them and we're looking forward to our next project together - there's literally no reason why we would work with someone else!

Are there any areas for improvement or something Envion Software could have done differently?

I should have asked more questions about technical elements at the end (e.g. how long QA would take.) They were totally reasonable and clear.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We develop learning apps and I am the President. I am responsible for product development and oveersee all aspects, including authoring and programming.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Envion Software, and what were your goals?

Originally, we needed Envion to add functionality to existinbg code. Over time, Envion convinced me that our code was poorly architected and needed a complete rewrite,

SOLUTION

How did you select Envion Software and what were the deciding factors?

We wanted a vcendor that came recommended to us by my own contacts. The fact that their president lived in the United Statres ws a deciding factor.

Describe the scope of work in detail, including the project steps, key deliverables, and technologies used.

Envion has been completely rewriting our code for the past 18 months. They have completely rewritten the code and made numerous functiknality additions. They use REACT on the front end, Node JS on the back end, and Mongo DB.

How many people from the Envion Software team worked with you, and what were their positions?

Originally, 3-4 using the existing code. A senior programmer created the architecture and a single senior prog4rammer has been rewriting the code.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any measurable outcomes of the project or general feedback about the deliverables?

All past functionality has been incorporated into the new code. A hiuge number of functionality additions have been incorporated into the new code. The old code was described by Envion in this way: "I know it works, but I don't understand why." It now works and everyone understands why.

From my perspective, when A ws changed in the cold code, it broke B, even though it took days to figure out the relationship between A and B (which mae no sense when we figured it out). Now, everything is modular and when A breaks, A breaks...and nothing else. And After A has been implementred, it basically never breaks.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

We have nort uysed a project manager. There is one programmer and I work directly with him.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

They have been offering inexpensive services and good value for the money.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

No.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the owner of a counseling practice. We’re located in Illinois, and we’re available in two locations — in Crystal Lake and Huntly.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Envion Software?

I hired Envion Software to develop an app.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Envion Software built an Android and iOS app that allows two partners to engage each other through a co-journal where each person could share their own experiences of their relationship and other events. This solution is unique because it promotes empathy and understanding of each other, and it’s meant to reinforce the ability to gain insight into one’s partner, even before they come home at the end of the day. We’re now exploring marketing options for our app.

What is the team composition?

Our main point of contact is Kateryna (Project Manager & Business Analyst), but our first point of contact was Alexander (Director of Software Development & Project Manager).

How did you come to work with Envion Software?

I was referred by a friend to Envion Software, and I contacted them about my app development project. They listened to my proposal and took their time to offer us ideas on how they could improve our platform. Above all, they created a helpful vision for our app.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent $15,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our partnership started in October 2019, and it’s ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The team has successfully developed our app. I find Envion Software to be engaging and enjoyable to work with. They take their time to explain things to me, especially if they find bugs and other technical issues in our app. If things don’t turn out the way I expect them to be, they make things right.

How did Envion Software perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re transparent on how much we need to pay per hour, and they give us a timeline of their project. We typically communicate through email.

What did you find most impressive about them?

As I previously mentioned, they’re very helpful and patient; they assisted me in setting up my devices in order to create the software I needed.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The length of the project is two years; some of that was due to my own financing plan, and some of that was due to their busy schedule on other projects.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Establish clear communication with Envion Software. They’re more than willing to set up a schedule where you can discuss your project matters.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of a software company. Our main platform is a content management system for travel businesses.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenges were you trying to address with Envion Software?

We wanted to outsource our development.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We were using a MySQL database, but they helped us switch to using Java and C++. The platform that they work on allows for database publishing, among other content management capabilities. Most of the work is done from scratch. They’ve been involved in every evolution of our software and help drive changes. 

What is the team composition?

We mostly work with Sasha (CEO). We have a team of developers and a project manager. 

How did you come to work with Envion Software?

I had a preexisting relationship with the owner. We had used Envion Software previously for some smaller projects. We tried three other companies as well for small projects, but Envion Software performed the best. They were also honest. 

How much have you invested in them? 

We spend around $15,000 per month. 

What is the status of this engagement?

They’ve acted as our development team since 2006, and our relationship with them is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They have a lot of experience. We’re happy with their service. They’ve helped us develop cutting-edge technologies. 

How did Envion Software perform from a project management standpoint?

Our CIO manages the team, and they have daily standups. I meet with them about once a week. We’re always in close contact with them and are aware of the project plans. The process has become more professional and thorough over the years. 

We used to use voice over IP, but now we used Slack and Skype. We also use Jira for bug management. 

What did you find most impressive about them? 

Anytime we ask them for help, they’re responsive. It doesn’t matter what time of day we contact them. If it’s an urgent issue, they address it immediately. They have a sense of ownership of the software. We’ve developed a feeling of trust and loyalty throughout the collaboration. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

When we started to grow the team, some of the developers weren’t right for the job, but they quickly learned. There’s nothing I’d complain about right now. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be very clear on your requirements and listen to their feedback. They’ll share their past knowledge, which can help shape your project. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the president of a full-service solution provider. We have been in business for 15 years. We do custom software development mainly in the healthcare and pharmaceutical industry and we have about 15 people working at our company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Envion Software?

We were trying to improve our cost and quality of service so we partnered with them for development.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We did a number of projects from using Python to implementation on Amazon Cloud, to a large software conversion ATL processes for multi-terabyte sets of data, very large data lakes, and warehouse implementations. It was a variety of software plus some C# and Java implementation as well.

Usually, there are a certain amount of specifications, either verbally or on paper. We get an estimate on the cost of the work that has to be done and the duration of how long it will take, and the staffing needed. We negotiate and then discuss what would the involvement of the different individuals on the project would be, and from there, if the cost and duration are what we are looking for, we start the project.  

What is the team composition?

Over the last several years, there have been different people for different types of projects. Our main point of contact is the owner of the company. We have had Python and Java developers, a database developer who has been with us for six or seven years now continuously. We have had people who just complete their job, disappear, and then if needed, we will bring them back in especially when it comes to specialties like networking or graphic designers as we don’t need them on the project constantly. They just perform certain functions and then go on to another project, so we are able to utilize them as needed.

How did you come to work with Envion Software?

I don’t remember exactly how it came about, but the owner of the company is a local person within my community. He went to MIT and I knew of him and his company for a long time.

What is the status of this engagement?

We probably began before 2010, and the relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

It’s hard to measure something like that, but, in general, our goal is the completion of the work to my satisfaction. That would be the primary goal as well as completing the work on time. We have had some projects that only take a few days and there are some of them that will take years of completion. There are completely different metrics to measure those kinds of things from one to another. If I need a graphic designer, I will just give them an idea of what I am looking for and they will come up with mock-ups and ideas of what can be done, and we go from there. If it is a large application, it can take a multi-member team and quite a few months to implement.

With any company, there are a number of people, and the majority of the people that I worked with were well managed. They have good education and good skills over there, and I felt comfortable with their abilities to complete the work. If someone was sick or leaves the job for something else, replacement candidates were equally well prepared to continue there. They were able to give me a discount initially for them to get some training on the job in order to catch up with the knowledge base. I wouldn’t be working with them for over 10 years if I had a bad experience working with them.

How did Envion Software perform from a project management standpoint?

There are numerous tools we use from bug tracking tools to Atlassian software to manage the completion of components as well as time allocation. Most of the time when it comes to the cost, we do T&M, but in some cases, it is their risk and I pay a little bit more for a fixed price. We usually do T&M on larger projects that have moving targets of information that might change over a period of time. Software projects are not fully defined upfront so it is hard to put them at a fixed price, but my preference would be a fixed price.

I am originally from Ukraine and we usually communicate via Skype, emails, or phone calls. It is easy to communicate and reach people. Usually, they set their schedule to meet my timeframe. I am on the American East coast and they will start working later in the day so that they will overlap more with my time. I have a couple of people who practically live in my time zone, and I am able to reach them at four or five o’clock my time.

From a project management standpoint, there is a lot of communication with the developers there. I do weekly status reports and sometimes I monitor more important projects almost daily to see where we are and if there are any kinds of issues that can be resolved right away. Most of the people there speak and communicate in English. I actually brought a few people to the United States to work with me and transfer information to US customers. We had an arrangement that they would come over and we arranged for them to stay in the US for a few weeks at a time, up to a couple of months. Obviously, there is more cost associated with that but sometimes it is needed. Those people for the most part speak sufficient English to communicate and work in the Boston area and I didn’t have any problems there.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their ability to work on a monthly basis. They can allocate at a fixed cost what the developer cost would be. It is very appealing to me because I know what the expense would be upfront. They are a relatively small organization and I find the people more qualified than some other organizations there. They have more training and they still have a certain group of people with different skills, and if a consultant gets stuck at Envion, they have a group of people there with similar skills and abilities so they can ask someone else to help out whereas an individual consultant might make it difficult to move forward. They are the right size for me.

Are there any areas they could improve?

It’s hard for me to say where they can improve. They don’t pay much attention to market themselves and present themselves in the marketplace and that includes their own advertisement of their webpages. I haven’t looked lately, but at some point, they were a bit dated. I am probably guilty of that myself.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Definitely give them a try and start with smaller projects that you can monitor and be happy about. I do not like to jump in with both feet into larger projects with the unknown. In this case, I feel comfortable with Envion, but you have to build the relationship. If you find it comfortable to work with someone like Envion for a few months, they can be an extension of your larger projects that you build over time. They are willing to build a team around your organization to help you out.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a product manager of Wordsmyth, a small e-learning business. I also take on a web design responsibility. We specialize in educational dictionaries and vocabulary learning tools for schools.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Envion Software?

We’ve created a long-term relationship with them over the years. Basically, all our software development is outsourced to Envion Software, and we have several ongoing projects.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Envion Software provides us with programmers. We provide the design and specifications, and they do the development work and release the apps. We released two dictionary apps in March 2020, one for general learners and one for elementary-to-mid-school children. It took about two months to do. We released the apps for Android and iOS.

We’re developing a new app with Envion Software right now, targeted at kindergarten-to-second-grade children. This project started two weeks ago.

What is the team composition?

I regularly work with two programmers, one full-stack as well as one frontend and mobile. I’m also in touch with their project manager.

How did you come to work with Envion Software?

We’re a dictionary company, so our database has some unique features. A very skilled programmer could probably handle any kind of data, but ours requires that anyone working with us on the technical end have some linguistics skills. Envion Software specialized in that, and their founder has some specific expertise.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them around 2004, and the engagement is ongoing. We cannot maintain a constant relationship, but we have projects going on all the time.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Whether or not the app was successful is a reflection of what kind of app it was and how much marketing we did for it, not of Envion Software’s programming skills. The design part is all on our side. The quality of their work is very good, but the success of the products depends on their design, marketing, and other factors.

How did Envion Software perform from a project management standpoint?

We have in-person meetings with the programmers, and they’re a part of our scrum process. We discuss projects and set deadlines together. We make changes when a deadline needs to be pushed. I’m generally satisfied with Envion’s productivity. Our project manager is very helpful and good with communication.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I’m very happy with and grateful for the two people we’re currently working with. They’re highly skilled and very responsible. Envion Software doesn’t work in the typical outsourced project manner of “Tell me what to do, and I’ll do it.” They put in their own thoughts. Their team will tell us when they think one of our designs may have some issues, and they suggest improvements.

On the other hand, they also respect our designs and simply share their perspective. If we insist on the contrary, they’ll do what we ask them to do. They take on more responsibility than simply doing what I tell them to do.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t have any obvious complaints right now. I may have had some in the past, but they always got resolved through communication.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

I don’t want to generalize, but the two people I’ve worked with closely work well if I give them clear specifications. As long as they get all the information they need, they work fast and produce high-quality deliverables. The problems arise when I’m not sure about something, I’m being wishy-washy, or when my understanding isn’t deep enough to connect with the programmers. That’ll result in some back and forth and may cause issues.

I’d encourage other companies to clearly define their projects and make all the specifications ready.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Director of Clinical Development

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Language learning Mobile App development.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Envion Software to accomplish?

• Build a language learning application.

SOLUTION

How did you find Envion Software?

Upwork

Why did you select Envion Software over others?

Did the best work in a screening project.

How many teammates from Envion Software were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Envion built a language learning application from the beginning, executing the company's custom designs, functions, and vision. They built a basic foundation for the app, and then scaled up the volume of the teaching objectives and performance feedback features, including star meters, error correction, and statistics reporting.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Language learning app with performance feedback, statistics reporting, adjustable settings, and wide ranging learning objectives.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Envion was amazing, working diligently on the project from start to finish, and always remaining highly responsive for meetings, calls, messages, emails, and work revisions.

What was your primary form of communication with Envion Software?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

They have a wonderful team that provides top-notch support in project management and software development. Every single point of request throughout development was attended to correctly, and often the development team helped to shape features and functions in the application in the most optimal way.

Are there any areas for improvement or something Envion Software could have done differently?

Nope, they were excellent! Highly recommend!

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Co-Founder

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Envion Software, and what were your goals?

Design and build a site that included an interactive map and e-commerce functionality.

SOLUTION

How did you select Envion Software and what were the deciding factors?

We completed a thorough review of the competition and decided Envion was the best partner for the short and long term.

Describe the scope of work in detail, including the project steps, key deliverables, and technologies used.

Envion provided consultative and development resources from beginning to end. They were a complete trusted partner.

How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

3-5 varying from Project Manager, Design, Development, and Executives.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any measurable outcomes of the project or general feedback about the deliverables?

This was a ground up project so the deliverable was a functioning site, which was achieved. The secondary build was related to a shift in company strategy due to COVID, which Envion managed beautifully.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timelines.

The team was engaging and helpful. They were tremendously available and hard working.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

The engagement. They consistently made us feel like we were their priority.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

We could have built a more thorough workflow QA plan in the early stages. “We” being the Beach Butler.