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Expert Network empowers organizations to achieve their true potential through innovative digital solutions. With DevOps mastery, latest tech integrations, and our experienced, dedicated team, you'll rest assured that your business will drive impact and long-term growth.
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Carflow
When it comes to purchasing a car, 88% of consumers research online before they buy. In Belgium there are a lot of websites that sell or showcase cars online. This wide range of choices made it really difficult for both consumers looking for information about a car, as well as for brands and dealers that had to manually update every website on which they added their cars. This was time consuming with no real benefits for them in terms of visibility and lead generation, and it meant that a lot of cars that were not being sold.
Therefore, the client needed someone to develop an all-in-one solution for auto dealers and national brands that will enable them to display information on multiple car websites in one update.
Results of the implementation: Carflow provides a competitive value in terms of sales, marketing and operations management. Currently, 10 OEM partnerships and 1300+ dealers have already chosen Carflow to manage their stocks, showrooms and generate leads.
We are really proud to have helped our client move their business into the digital world.
Workero
Workero is a digital platform that gives corporate partners the opportunity to open up their unused offices to freelancers, startups, scale-ups and independents, who can book their workspace here.
By bringing together these parties, Workero creates business opportunities, helps facilitate innovation and reduces the much debated mobility problems: working closer to home = less traffic.
Workero has taken this a step further by developing a phygital network through its communities and the Growth and Development program, supported by corporates including Procter & Gamble, Decathlon, DXC and many more to come.
During the COVID-19 crisis, Workero developed its offerings to facilitate COVID-proof professional and remote work for companies. Its Building Management Software uses data-analysis to help businesses understand their office space usage, ensure healthy work environments and optimise their office real estate portfolio.
Results of the implementation: the digital platform allows Workero to put in practice their idea of connecting companies and individuals, corporates and startups/scale-ups. Not only does this help them boost their growth by enabling them to handle and fulfil their business needs via an interactive digital platform, it also helps them find the right business partners to fast-track innovation.
Workero is further developing its Business Management Software to help businesses adopt the New Way of Working and guarantee their employees safety at work, whilst improving their real estate portfolios.
With its platform, Workero is a game-changer in the way workspaces are built, used and managed and a driver for innovation and collaboration. This is also one of the reasons for which the project became eligible for funding from the European Commission’s Horizon 2020 programme.
CC4ALL
ContactCenter4ALL (CC4ALL) was founded in 2013 and it is a contact center solution vendor that uses fit-for-purpose technology to deliver a first-class service to customers. In a time where communication platforms are the backbone of remote working, CC4ALL adapted, integrating with Microsoft Teams, Dynamics, or Skype for Business.
CC4ALL was struggling with finding a proficient, reliable team that would reduce technical debt, software bugs, complaints from their end-users, improving platform performance and scalability. They wanted to migrate to a cloud-based platform such as Microsoft Teams for an easy-to-deploy and cost-effective solution that would maintain app functionality at a high standard.
Results of the implementation: by making the significant transition to Cloud and by embracing the new technology, CC4ALL has been enjoying significant results that consolidated its image, maintaining the high-standard services. The impact our collaboration enjoys shows in the:
- Decreased support needs, which allowed us to implement up to 70% of the wishlist for the Hybrid project.
- Reduced effort for fixing bugs that led to gaining extra time for adding value.
- Happy users and improved customer support.
- Stable, scalable apps without downtime.
- Safety and data security for users and finances.
- Stress-free mindset once they noticed we are reliable, highly-skilled, and trusted partners.
- They enjoy our constant guidance, expertise, and vision for their ongoing business’ needs.
CC4ALL and Expert Network are an example of an impactful and successful partnership. Our customer operates profitably, adapts continuously, enjoying clear results for sustainable growth long-term.
Baloise
Baloise Belgium is part of the Baloise Group, a provider of prevention, pension, assistance, and insurance solutions. Among the top five insurance companies in the non-life segment in Belgium, Baloise offers apps and tools that address the insurance brokers’ every need.
The company wanted to optimize their organization and create the best conditions for independent brokers and clients. And this meant transitioning to digital. In 2015, the Hybrid organization introduced Expert Network to Baloise to help it migrate to the online ecosystem and gain competitive advantage. Based on their requirements, we were able to pinpoint their vulnerabilities, which meant:
- Determining their business and development needs to come up with the right plan tailored for their brand.
- Creating apps that would simplify and automate aspects like procedure, legal conditions, contracts, fees, etc.
- Aligning all the remote parties involved in the project to continuously ensure they are in sync and deliver at all times.
- Identifying and fixing bugs along the way, so all online services and products would work smoothly.
Results of the implementation: over the years, the platform expanded along with its increasing adoption by an ever-larger number of users and brokers. As a result of our partnership, today, Baloise reaps the following results:
- We designed their popular application "Decenale", useful for brokers to create offers and policies.
- Customers enjoy a simplified, secure, online insurance process.
- Users can compare different insurance policies online, gaining time and knowledge to make smart decisions.
- We improved website functionality, transparency, and safety.
- Baloise has increased its brand awareness and popularity.
- Brokers are gaining competitive advantages by accessing leads more easily.
With a good system in place, we were able to bring added value, support, and top services to our client, providing Baloise with a new, upgraded ‘face’ for business.
Growzer
The bold initiative took off in 2015 in Belgium, with the aim of creating a powerful tool that would bring restaurant management in the 21st century. Expert Network was part of the journey from the beginning as we shaped the product and offered the technical solution to bring this idea to life.
The particularities of the HORECA market like managing food stocks, invoices, orders, bookings, etc. require robust processes and varied features that determine the longevity of an organization. Creating an online platform that could efficiently handle these tasks while also simplifying the roles of entrepreneurs and users, was the dream.
Results of the implementation: over the years, what followed was the expansion of the platform’s architecture along with its consistent adoption by an increasing number of independent restaurants and chains. Growzer has also boosted its reputation, working with renowned brands like Unilever, Lantmannen Unibake, Sligro, Metro, proving its worth and value in today’s ecosystem.
- increased productivity, improved controls, and lower costs.
- automated internal processes.
- smart insights and ML-based sales predictions.
- high functionality of the purchase order system.
- updated stock information to ensure customer satisfaction.
- connection with HR management systems which report about the human-related costs.
- links with suppliers ERP systems to get updated information about pricing and the stock availability of the goods.
Mediahuis/Vroom
Mediahuis was set up in 2013 as a joint venture by long-established Belgian publishing houses Corelio and Concentra. It is a newspaper & magazine publishing, printing distribution, TV, radio, and online media company. It also operates several significant classified ad platforms in Belgium and the Netherlands, the best-known include Jobat, Vroom, Hebbes, and Jellow.
As lead players in the Belgian media market, their next step towards meeting their clients’ needs, while staying on top of technological advancements, was to transition from print to the online ecosystem. Their goal was to provide customers with the latest news, ads, and information in a safe, fast, and reliable way, serving the present-day demand. Some essential business requirements were: a new Hebbes framework for mobile application, managing a large number of users in small intervals of time, optimizing web pages for Vroom and Hebbes
Results of the implementation: by making the significant transition to digital, Mediahuis consolidated its image, maintaining its credibility and the high-standard services. We are happy to have been involved in their transformation and what they’ve achieved:
- High functionality on the websites.
- Cognitive services to better UX.
- Stable platforms without downtime.
- Competent customer service.
- Cloud solutions with Microsoft Azure.
- Safety and data security for users and finances.
- Smooth Carflow integration using Service Bus from Azure(MaaS).
Having trust in our expertise and experience, allowed them to step forward and boost their organization. Through successfully implemented digital solutions, Mediuahuis is a part of the most competent and reliable media groups in Europe.
Reviews
the project
Custom Software Dev for Automotive Solutions Company
"They’re very innovative, flexible, and hardworking."
the reviewer
the review
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Introduce your business and what you do there.
I’m the chief product officer and COO of Carflow, a company in Belgium that is in the automotive sector. We help car dealers with their digital transformation by providing software and digital business processes. We seek to boost convenient interactions for clients through the use of cell services, virtual products, and more — all to appeal to today’s digital consumers.
What challenge were you trying to address with Expert Network?
We partnered with Expert Network to build a suite of lead nurturing and promotion-related products.
What was the scope of their involvement?
Expert Network has a team of developers who work around an Agile methodology. In Belgium, we conceptualize a vision and strategy for our company along with its technical aspects. All of these are written down on a business requirement. When we write specifications, the translation to the technical documentation is always carried out by Expert Network. We have multiple meetings and work very closely together when we do big changes to our software solution.
There are certain items that we give to other vendors due to the specialization they require. Expert Network is focused on Microsoft and .NET, and if we need another specific language, we have to look elsewhere. However, we always go to Expert Network first in case that expertise can be obtained in some way. Expert Network also validates any other party we work with.
What is the team composition?
We have a product owner with whom we’re always in touch. There are 2–3 people from the Expert Network side who are on the roadmap team as well as 2–3 more from the Belgium side. In total, we work with about 30 people from their team.
On a daily basis, I’m in touch with about 6–7 people. This includes the product owners, the proxy product owners, the founder, the lead developer, and their system architect. The person I interact with the most is someone with whom I’ve split the COO role. It’s difficult to take on the CPO and COO roles completely so that’s all divided between myself and that person from Expert Network.
How did you come to work with Expert Network?
When I started working at Carflow, Expert Network was already with the company. We have a very long history with Expert Network and I believe that when our company started, we immediately worked with Expert Network because they’re also part of the same group that Carflow belongs to.
When our founders were looking for suppliers, Expert Network was still a small firm comprised of only two people. However, they were already creating really cool stuff, including VR applications, for the trading market. They’re very innovative, flexible, and hardworking.
Instead of hiring them as a vendor, we ended up partnering with them. The relationship grew from there and the decision to stay with them was further validated with every project.
How much have you invested with them?
I’m confident that we’ve invested millions of dollars in our product.
What is the status of this engagement?
We started working together around 2006–2007. Our collaboration is ongoing.
What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
Our project manager is very diligent and we’ve set up work streams to solve any issues we have. Another huge benefit of working with Expert Network is that they’re very flexible in ways that other companies are not. They’ll even take on tasks without charging us a lot of extra money.
How did Expert Network perform from a project management standpoint?
We have multiple meetings via Skype. We’ve even met in person before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Our communication has improved a lot compared to 5–10 years ago. Our structure is also a lot more mature. They strive to stay within deadlines even if we don’t make it easy for them. For instance, in some cases, deadlines would be overshot due to adding new requirements or changing specifications. Some items may be underestimated due to unforeseen situations like when the lack of documentation from a third party causes estimates to be based on guesswork.
Five years ago, we wouldn’t have been able to address issues like this. These days, however, our communication is much better and information flows much more easily between us. We can now detect issues with deadlines ahead of time and promptly find a solution.
What did you find most impressive about them?
The most distinct thing about Expert Network is their creativity.
Are there any areas they could improve?
I understand that when creating large, enterprise-level applications, you only want to use validated items. In some cases, using cutting-edge things can also produce benefits depending on the context that you’re using them for. They should try to take some risks sometimes.
Do you have any advice for potential customers?
Be very clear and make sure that you’re in alignment with them at the end of each day.
the project
Custom Software Dev for SaaS Contact Center Solution
“Everyone on their team is well-trained and fit for the job, from QA testers to developers and designers.
the reviewer
the review
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Introduce your business and what you do there.
We provide a contact center solution available as SaaS, especially for Microsoft Teams. We’re headquartered in the Netherlands and work with partners worldwide.
What challenge were you trying to address with Expert Network?
The quality of our previous team wasn’t good enough. We were getting a lot of bugs and had to do reworks at a high cost. Also, our software is hard to learn and managed because it’s related to real-time voice communication, so we needed someone who could help us with that.
What was the scope of their involvement?
Expert Network is developing our contact center software. They’ve incorporated a web-based client for agents and a sophisticated routing engine for connecting callers with agents. The software also has a database integration.
What is the team composition?
We have a team of around 10 dedicated people at this moment, including a project manager. We can add to the team if necessary. They have different people on the team, from junior to senior. The senior ones are good at thinking about the next steps and what’s coming in the future.
How did you come to work with Expert Network?
I found them via our network. One of our investors knew Expert Network’s owner. We looked at other companies; Expert Network wasn’t the cheapest, but they were the best fit.
We liked the management in their organization. They put a lot of attention into training and keeping information up to date. We also liked the diversity of the team. The other companies we looked at were mostly men, while Expert Network had a lot of women in their team.
How much have you invested with them?
The cost is €500,000 per year (approximately $610,200 USD).
What is the status of this engagement?
We started working with them in January 2020, and it’s ongoing.
What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
The quality of our services has improved. They’ve delivered the software efficiently on the first try. We haven’t had problems with testing, and everything’s gone smoothly so far.
Customer satisfaction is also a success indicator. We have fewer bugs, so customers and employees are happier. We save on cost and get a faster time to market by doing fewer reworks.
How did Expert Network perform from a project management standpoint?
We use Jira for project management and Microsoft Teams for communication. There’s a tight collaboration between our project owner and their project manager. They think about what we’re doing and come up with their own ideas. We have discussions about what’s better and why. They can be tough sometimes, but that’s good for development quality.
What did you find most impressive about them?
Everyone on their team is well-trained and fit for the job, from QA testers to developers and designers. They communicate fluently in English, so we don’t have misunderstandings on what the expectations are. We’ve outsourced our work in the past, and communication was a problem.
Are there any areas they could improve?
No. Good developers are hard to find, including in Iași, where Expert Network is based. However, that’s more on the development market, and not specific to them.
Do you have any advice for potential customers?
It’s helpful to meet the team. We were lucky to start in January 2020, before COVID-19, so our team visited Expert Network’s office. That made the communication smoother, and we’ll take a plane to Iași as soon as we’re able to.
Expert Network’s long-term involvement with the client has resulted in a highly productive and profitable partnership. Through the years, the team has created enterprise-level applications while polishing their communication processes and proving their flexibility and technical expertise.