Future Processing

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the founder of Cancer Central. Our organization is creating a technology platform to help people affected by cancer find the support and information they need.

Our organization operates differently as it's run entirely by volunteers. We've been fortunate to receive more than 70,000 hours of donated time from various companies and individuals.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Future Processing?

We sought professional assistance for UX and frontend development for our new website. While we had already built the backend with the help of volunteers, Future Processing was very keen to assist us in achieving our goals.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement? 

We began with a lean product canvas to reconfirm what we were trying to achieve. The team brainstormed UX ideas and built upon our previous work. I already defined my user personas, but they did a check-through and a refresh with me. 

They interviewed individuals impacted by cancer to ensure the UX design was effective. Upon approval, they then implemented the changes. Following that, they had a fantastic software developer who then changed specific pages of our site and connected it to our new backend part of the platform. They did everything from design, checking it through user experience, to delivering the change on our site, which has been excellent. They utilized Figma for the design and React for the development. 

There was a particular piece of our site where there was an issue. We had UX support from others and were given ideas on what to bring forward. I presented numerous suggestions to the Future Processing team and made them aware of the issues. The developer who assisted us actively listened, made revisions, and devised a straightforward method to integrate everything. It impressed both me and my CTO. The solution was almost obvious, but he still managed to come up with something extraordinary.

We'd developed the backend engine, but needed to understand the APIs connecting the frontend to the backend. Our software developer did a great job of adjusting the frontend to match the desired user experience and analyzing the necessary APIs. Together with our other developer, they determined the optimal approach for transferring diverse sets of information. Overall, their work was outstanding and valuable.

What is the team composition?

One UX designer and a senior software developer were dedicated to the project. Others from the Future Processing team joined us for the workshop, including the heads of UX and marketing. 

Are there any employees from the service provider's team that you would like to give a shout-out to in this review?

Jan (UX/UI Designer) was brilliant in finding the solution to our problem. I can't speak more highly of him.  

How did you come to work with Future Processing?

I knew of them through my network. 

How much have you invested in them?

They graciously completed the work for us pro bono.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with Future Processing from April–June 2023. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We are currently doing live testing, but we have received very positive feedback. The live testers are super impressed with it.

Future Processing exceeded our expectations. It was an incredible experience with a fantastic team. I knew Future Processing had the expertise to support us, and they've just blown me away with what they have produced. 

How did Future Processing perform from a project management standpoint?

They performed exceptionally well when it comes to project management. We used email and Zoom calls for communication.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The most impressive thing was their innovation. They grasped the concept and found the best way to deliver. 

Future Processing was incredibly generous. The team donated time and expertise pro bono because they're aware of the growing number of people affected by cancer.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There are no areas for improvement. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be extremely open with the problem you are facing. Future Processing is there to help you find the right solution.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm an executive at a startup in Switzerland's mortgage and brokerage market.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Future Processing?

We hired them to create a software solution to compare end customers' cases. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Future Processing provided us with software development. We had an initial call, and then we had a two-day workshop to discuss the requirements further. Future Processing built the MVP of a tool where we could type in each individual client’s case, including the affordability of the property, and the solution matched the client with rules and regulations from each bank and interest rates. 

What is the team composition?

We worked with 5–6 teammates from Future Processing, including programmers and a business line manager. 

How did you come to work with Future Processing?

I did online research and found them on Clutch; since Future Processing had very good reviews, I decided to meet them. After the workshop, we had a really good feeling about Future Processing.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent roughly $400,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from March 2022–March 2023. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The entire team did a really good job; Future Processing built the MVP we wanted. Since the project was only finished a couple of months ago, we don’t have any quantitative metrics about its impact yet.

How did Future Processing perform from a project management standpoint?

They respected the budget. Although the delivery was late, the issue wasn’t only on Future Processing’s end; there were features we didn’t think of from the beginning that took time to develop. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Future Processing was so keen on staying within the budget that they didn’t bill us for a couple of days’ work, which we appreciated. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

As strategic advice for Future Processing, they would make more sense as a partner for more established companies rather than startups or companies with a limited budget. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I recommend doing Future Processing’s workshop; even though it has a cost, it will enable you to compare offers from other providers and better understand each other on a personal level. Additionally, I wouldn’t suggest going with Future Processing if you have a limited budget. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the head of software engineering at Ito World. We work with public transport data that we collect from cities around the world, and then we process that data, clean it up, and provide that to subscribers for use in journey planning tools like Google Maps. 

We also provide analytics tools so that public transit operators and local authorities can see how their public transport network performs. I oversee all of our products' software development and QA.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Future Processing?

We wanted to augment our teams with extra people to give us more capacity. We had existing products that we wanted to do more work on, so we brought in Future Processing to work alongside our teams to give us that extra capacity.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement? 

We’ve worked with Future Processing on several small projects and brought in developers with different skills. The prime areas that we worked with Future Processing on were Angular and Java.

What is the team composition?

We engaged with developers and a business analyst for a short period of time.

How did you come to work with Future Processing?

We looked at a number of alternatives, using Clutch to identify potential candidates. We originally met with Jamie (Business Development Manager), who introduced us to the business and what they could provide, and we talked about what we wanted. We wanted to bring in some software and quality engineers and be involved in the selection process. 

The people that were presented to us had already gone through the Future Processing selection process, and had been identified as people they thought would be a good fit in terms of our culture, the skills we needed, and their overall ability. We then had a 30-minute interview to confirm that.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together between June 2022–May 2023.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

There was that aspect of making sure that we were delivering what we were setting out to deliver according to the timescales we set out for the project. In terms of the developer's abilities, output, and the way they fit into the team, we had a very positive experience with Future Processing. 

In general, culture is very important to us, and we wanted to ensure that we had people who were invested in and supported our culture to maintain it. The people that Future Processing provided were fantastic in terms of their engagement with the team and how they gelled and became one with the team. They really fit in with the culture. 

How did Future Processing perform from a project management standpoint?

All of our development was done using the Scrum methodology. We had agile teams as part of the scrum process, and we measured the team's performance and what they were able to deliver. 

The developers would meet daily with the teams for the scrum stand-ups through Slack and Microsoft Teams, and we communicated with managers through these channels.  Everything was online because we were working remotely. 

The nature of our engagement meant that the budget was not really a measure we looked at because we were engaging with them for a period of time. They were augmented within our team, and we were managing that team, so it wasn’t like a piece of work we had sent them to deliver within a specific timescale.

What did you find most impressive about them?

For me, it was the quality of the people we engaged with. We like to get people engaged with the teams as early as possible so they can get up and running to learn from the team. Future Processing was a nice and supportive team that always helped get people started, but what really stood out was how quickly they started contributing.  

Are there any areas they could improve?

I think there were a few little things because everyone was learning all the time, especially when we were taking on new people. We pointed out a few things for some of the individuals to consider, but there was nothing that troublesome. It was very standard advice that developers get as they continue their careers. It was nice to give that feedback, and Future Processing was very open to hearing it and learning. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Initially, we wanted to have oversight of the selection process to ensure people fit for us. As we progressed further and grew that relationship with Future Processing, I am sure we would have been able to step back and feel confident that they knew what we wanted. For us, that was a good approach that worked well. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the web services manager at a software solutions company. We provide ERP and e-commerce solutions to companies in the UK.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Future Processing?

We were struggling to identify and onboard Magento developers, so we engaged Future Processing to provide developers to work alongside our team.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Future Processing has helped us deliver 20 websites to our customers. They’ve been responsible for developing the backend of each site using Magento and conducting QC testing pre-launch. Each website development project has had bespoke requirements, which we’ve communicated to the team in a brief. They’ve worked alongside our developers to build the required functionality of each site. 

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with three Magento developers, a PHP developer, two QA specialists, a business analyst, and a project lead. 

How did you come to work with Future Processing?

Our new managing director had worked with Future Processing before and recommended their services. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested roughly £375,000 (approximately $415,000 USD) in the partnership with Future Processing. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve worked with Future Processing since May 2021, and the partnership is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Future Processing has taken a lot of groundwork off our plate by identifying the right resources with the necessary skills to achieve our development goals. We’ve measured success by evaluating the timeline and quality of their deliverables and monitored their success when identifying and addressing bugs. Overall, they’ve met our timeline and quality expectations, and the partnership has been successful. 

How did Future Processing perform from a project management standpoint?

We’ve been pleased with Future Processing’s communication style; we’ve had daily stand-ups and monthly review meetings to discuss progress via Microsoft Teams. During our monthly reviews, the team has made recommendations to realign and improve our processes, which has been helpful. Our project lead has managed the project successfully and provided valuable guidance. We’ve used Jira, GitHub, and other Atlassian tools to collaborate on tasks and track progress. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

We’ve been impressed by their ability to take our requirements and deliver high-quality, practical solutions. They’ve outlined their plans clearly and been flexible and accommodating to our changing needs. Despite the time difference, they’ve been available, responsive partners. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

I have nothing Future Processing could improve on.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I advise clearly outlining your requirements so Future Processing can execute an effective solution.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I work as a Head of Digital Operations for an HR company providing an online staffing platform for temporary workers.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Future Processing, and what were your goals?

We were looking for rapid product innovation. As we were expecting significant growth, we needed to modernise our solution’s architecture and technology with a view of gaining flexible system framework.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

We engaged in initial discussions which led to Future Processing formulating their recommendations. There was a series of meetings and short workshops at the beginning. We liked their ideas, and so the project kicked off with a few months’ long transition from our previous software supplier.

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

The team’s idea was to clean up, stabilise and digitally transform the system through redesigning existing processes and refactoring the code. Future Processing team has worked alongside our in-house Tech and Product Teams on the design of new features and system upgrades. To avoid high costs associated with changing the existing monolithic application, the team migrated it to a microservices ecosystem. They also added automated testing and deployment to the process. Key technologies: .NET, Azure, Xamarin, Microservices, SQL.

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

At peak times we had three teams with Future Processing - two development teams and one data team, with around 20 engineers in total. Roles included Scrum masters, Architects, Developers, Data (BI) Engineers and a Business Analyst. This team composition eased the management of day-to-day operations, supported our Product Team, delivered needed features, and provides clear high - quality data which is so valuable in making business decisions. On the business side, Future Processing assigned a dedicated Client Engagement Managers to facilitate strategic planning of the partnership.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The collaboration has led to a digital transformation of our existing processes. The team delivered continuous and seamless product innovation and delivered it with short time to market. Future Processing were operationally agile, allowing us to rapidly scale the team up and down and adjust its competences to changing requirements.

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

Our day-to-day work has been based on flexibility and constant flow of information between us and Future Processing. We have enjoyed our engagement with Future Processing and together we’ve made a well-working, proactive team of experts who regularly met, attended workshops together and shared a similar work ethic. We see the collaboration as a success.

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

They are proficient in various technologies and frameworks, challenged us and suggested better ways of doing things, are operationally agile, can be trusted as a partner, have strong work ethic, ensured predictable and high-quality delivery, are an easy-going and highly-flexible partner, gave us great customer experience, have an agile mindset

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

All good.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the chief digital officer of Datapharm, and we publish medicine information in the UK. We gather data from pharmaceutical companies and publicize it on their behalf in an accessible format using our website.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Future Processing?

We were a fairly small company with only 30 people, and we were growing very quickly from a commercial point of view. However, our product and tech side is not growing as quickly in terms of finding the right talents and executing projects. Whenever we found talents, it took time for the team to get together, which we couldn’t afford. 

We needed to start delivering quickly, as we were working on a time-sensitive opportunity. Because of Brexit, medicine information applicable to Northern Ireland differed from the UK’s. Pharmaceutical companies had an issue with distributing information, and we had to fulfill that very quickly. We needed help in scaling and speeding up our development efforts. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Future Processing is helping us develop our software from scratch. The tool is built on Microsoft Azure, and we are using platform as a service components. 

What is the team composition?

I work with a team leader, a QA specialist, three backend developers, and a frontend developer.

How did you come to work with Future Processing?

Someone recommended Future Processing to me. When I looked at their company setup and processes, they gave me confidence that they could step up to what we needed them to do. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent about £160,000 (approximately $210,000 USD). 

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working since December 2020, and our partnership is ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our main metric has been to launch the product in time for our clients’ cut-off period, and Future Processing has successfully delivered. 

How did Future Processing perform from a project management standpoint?

I’m impressed by Future Processing’s very mature project management processes. We’ve relied on their team to run the project. We have an operational and steering group meeting weekly, and we collaborate using Microsoft Teams. Communication has been free-flowing and instantaneous, making things easier for us.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Future Processing’s work quality level and transparency make them stand out. They’ve been predictable and professional from onboarding to engagement — I know what I’m getting at each stage. They also send reports financial reports monthly. 

In addition, Future Processing has a robust internal quality standard, and they don’t allow resources to work with clients until they have passed a certain level of QA. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

Future Processing seems to be losing a good number of resources, and probably it’s because they aren’t competitive. It also takes them longer to replace people who have left despite having a one-month notice period.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

If you’re going to rely on Future Processing’s services, request that the people you hire have longer notice periods. Also, consider having a team leader from their end to get the best from their team. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the IT director for DX Network Services Limited, part of the DX (Group) PLC. We’re a parcel, logistics, and freight solution provider. We deliver many packages all around the country on different services. I’ve worked with DX for 30 years, and I’m based in Liverpool, the company’s IT center of operations.

We have a separate part of the business called the Document Exchange, which is the oldest part of DX and why the company was created. The Document Exchange is a member’s only network to move secure and sensitive documents around the UK, predominantly for the legal space. However, we also work with other types of organizations.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Future Processing?

During the pandemic, many people's working environment changed, many of our Document Exchange customers found themselves working at home instead of working in their offices. We wanted to augment our Document Exchange (a private member’s only physical document network) with a digital equivalent. We believed that having a solid digital offering along with our unique physical delivery proposition in the UK puts us in a very strong position.

Initially, we looked at the sort of product that we wanted to create and realized that besides all the essential features expected in any kind of digital exchange platform, the solution needed to be extremely strong in privacy and security. For example, many of the documents that move through our network are related to ongoing court cases or somebody’s mortgage documents for a new house. Therefore, the digital equivalent of those documents could contain a lot of sensitive and private information.

At that point in time, the internal was fully engaged on other development priorities, also we wanted to tap into leading edge secure development knowledge. We needed someone to help us with custom software development.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

When we started fleshing out our strategic vision, collaboratively with Future Processing’s developers.  We’d decided to make the platform as secure as possible by keeping it separate from the rest of our IT environments, completely firewalled in its own secure area. We selected the Azure cloud for that environment, and we relied heavily on Future Processing’s skills to develop that arena.

At the moment, that work is drawing to a conclusion. We’ve developed the DX Exchange Portal and are currently running a pilot.

What is the team composition?

They’ve been excellent at scaling up and down the team when we reached specific pieces of work. Providing just the right skill sets as and when required. At the moment, we’re working with eight employees who are pretty much dedicated full-time to this project.

How did you come to work with Future Processing?

We were looking around the marketplace for a development partner that could do the bulk of the work we needed, bringing key knowledge sets in areas of security.  We loved Future Processing’s story and attitude, there was a strong cultural fit.

Future Processing gave us a lot of confidence, both in the structure that they operate and in the individual capabilities of the team. They have incredibly strong skillsets in secure application design. Therefore, we awarded the contract to Future Processing.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in March 2020, and our relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Future Processing has delivered everything they said they would and more. The Document Exchange is a private member’s network; there’s a high level of interest from many of our customers. Many of those organizations are looking into their own digital journey,  we’re effectively making that journey easier for them.

How did Future Processing perform from a project management standpoint?

They’ve done really well. We’ve worked with many different partners over the years, and Future Processing is definitely in the top three in terms of capability. They’re very clear and concise in their communications, and they give us complete visibility in every aspect of the development — both from the high-level project management approach and down to all of the daily technical activities that are happening.

Also, they’re great at managing stakeholders, particularly when it is a brand-new custom software. As a customer, we can potentially get carried away and throw the kitchen sink in there because we keep thinking of all these great ideas. However, Future Processing is excellent at holding us to the brief and making sure that we make good progress on our true objectives.

Moreover, they’ve worked well as part of the team. They’re a very personable bunch, and it’s easy to get along with them — they’re very clear and effective.

We use a variety of project management and discovery tools, but Jira and Confluence are the bread and butter. In the early stages of design, we used Miro, which allowed us to collaborate on the design. This was during the height of the pandemic, so we were both operating outside of our normal working ways.  Usually, we’d get people together in a big room and spend several days on design workshops. Instead we had to do all of that remotely and electronically. At this point in the development, we have a minimum of three Teams meetings every week to keep everything on track and answer any detailed design questions that arise as part of the agile development process.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their approach to estimating costs and sticking to those costs is one of the best I’ve experienced. They absolutely make sure that we have just what we need, and if we’re not using something, it’s instantly dialed down.

We also have had excellent visibility of what the development is costing us at any point in time. It’s basically a greenfield development; we’re building a new solution, not replacing, modifying, or refreshing something. It’s a completely new business requirement, and we’ve done incredibly well at sticking to the budget.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We’re reaching the end of our time together (at least for this project), so we’re now doing a little bit of a handover at a technical level. I think both parties would’ve preferred to meet more frequently in person.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend them to anybody as a solutions development partner, especially to augment an existing team; they represent great value. However, you need to fully commit to their level of intensity and make sure that you have IT and business stakeholders dedicating their time frequently and regularly. There needs to be a commitment throughout the development lifecycle so Future Processing can do their best work.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We are the leading privacy-first, location-powered programmatic advertising partner. I'm the Chief Technology Officer.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Future Processing, and what were your goals?

Future Processing was brought in to help us build a new data visualization and management application, working in conjunction with our Product team and designers. Our key initial goal was to accelerate our time-to-market relative to building it strictly in-house.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

I received a set of recommendations for development partners from other CTOs in my network. My team and I met with these companies and evaluated them on culture fit, the depth and similarity of their portfolio, extent of technical competency, our gut feeling on trustworthiness, and also the perceived value for investment. We felt Future Processing's working style was the best fit for ours and we had confidence in their trustworthiness and technical capability. Although they were not the lowest price potential partner, we felt we'd get the best return on investment from them.

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

We began the project with a set of specifications and designs put together by our Product and design team. Working with the FP team, we crafted these into user stories that fit into the Kanban working style we wanted to work in. We defined some technology standards for the project (e.g. Java backend, React frontend, and Docker and Kubernetes for containerization) and the FP team proposed an architectural framework to build the application. The project was launched with daily standups and typical Kanban rituals attended by the FP team and our assigned product managers. Development, from the initial launch and through to ongoing refinement, is done using agile practices that aim to deliver incremental functionality quickly and often. All pull requests are code reviewed by our in-house development team that support the relationship.

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

The initial team consisted of two java engineers, two frontend engineers, and a fractional project manager. We've since expanded the team to bring on two additional java engineers and another frontend engineer.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Future Processing exceeded our expectations on project delivery and were able to deliver on-time and on-spec in a manner I'd typically only expect from an in-house team.

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

FP's project management was well executed and well structured. We executed against a Kanban process to allow flexibility and FP were consistently able to deliver against expectations, without requiring or relying upon excessive management overhead or time spent in meetings.

We primarily communicated "in person" in the daily standups and planning rituals, with frequent ongoing communication via Slack. Our Product team would communicate new features using product specifications, shared and refined via Google Docs.

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

I've worked with a number of development partner organizations over the years and almost all of the experiences have been less than great. One of the common areas these relationships can breakdown is if tasks aren't delivered on time or if the partner organization is unable to see the product with the same eyes as the sponsoring organization.

Future Processing has been aligned with our vision and has had the appropriate processes to keep aligned. As such, the product we've built with them has fulfilled our vision. Importantly, we feel the code has been written to a high standard and we're confident that, were we ever to inhouse it, we could maintain it and not be hindered by technical debt.

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

We've been happy with the relationship and whenever there have been bumps, as there will always be, we've felt FP has handled them exceptionally well and transparently.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Triq builds digital endurance sports training prescription application for triathletes that generates personalized training plans— scientifically backed by the latest sport science insights to provide better training success in the highly individualised and fast changing lives of ambitious hobbyists endurance athletes. The plan is generated based on race goal, the personal schedule and current fitness status. I'm the CTO of TRIQ.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Future Processing, and what were your goals?

Developing a state of the art visually appealing mobile app and cloud infrastructure. We were looking for expert developers, a quick start and a fairly dynamic access to talent.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

Near shore. Good expertise and talent, availability, english skills.

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

First key deliverable was an app to release for the market fit phase. We have 2 weeks sprints producing a releasable mobile application. Tech used is iOS, Swift, .NET, C#, Azure, Azure App Services, Azure Functions, Python, Garmin API, web, Firebase push notifications, CleverTap, etc

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

Scrum master, lead dev, 1-3 iOS developer, 1-2 Python developers, 1-2 backend developers, 1-3 QA, 1 requirements engineer for sometime.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Every two weeks we get a well tested high quality application from the team. Consistently.

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

Classic Scrum. Because of the pandemic, we've rarely met in person. Various meetings online: Dailies, all the sprint rituals. Slack. Jira, Confluence. It works well.

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

They are really good. Experienced, bright, professional. They work well together in the team. They follow best practices without asking for it.

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

Nothing that I can think of.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

CONNECTS has been designed to care about SMEs, Start-ups and Suppliers and the business networks they are organised in. Our vision is to create a global level playing field for all entrepreneurs and companies to do successful business. We’ve created a global matchmaking and community management service that connects businesses and businesspeople via their local chamber and business networks.

It opens up a world of opportunities to develop new business connections and collaborate within communities of common interest. Today the CONNECTS platform hosts almost 50 Chambers of Commerce from representing more than 60 different countries around the world, with more than 35.000 of their members making an average of 5.000 monthly queries. Position: Head of Partnerships

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Future Processing, and what were your goals?

First, we needed to migrate the platform to a newer version of the Symphony framework and PHP, to ensure secure and sustainable development of the service as the previous framework was no longer to be supported. Second, we needed to extend the functionality of the platform to deliver new modules to our clients within the agreed timescale.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

I have been collaborating with Future Processing over the past 3 years in different software development projects and knew the way they work and deliver. We needed to scale up in short amount of time with a partner that could support our growth. After reviewing several candidates, we decided that Future Processing was the best fit.

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

Future Processing developed the new features of the Communities module, which enables users to join online communities to connect, do business, and exchange information and ideas with other companies. The module was based on the code of our existing functionality enhanced with additional features. Apart from development work, Future Processing helped automate quality testing and part of the deployment process. Technologies used: PHP Symfony 5

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

There were 4 people in the core team, 2 developers, 1 DevOps and 1 QA. This team was supported by 2 project managers, one relationship manager, one partner manager and one presales solution architect.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Despite some initial challenges in the cooperation between Future Processing and CONNECTS’ development teams, we communicated very well on the management level. As a result, together, we managed to turn things around and deliver a fully functioning Communities module within the agreed timescale. Through our cooperation, we achieved our business goal of being able to offer our clients a new opportunity to develop relationships, cooperate and share expertise.

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

The project management communication was open, transparent and timely. Tools used: Teams, Zoom, our CONNECTS platform, GitLab, to which we added in-person meetings and visit to each of our offices.

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

We were impressed by their focus on people and building relationships. This is what Future Processing prides itself for.

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

In our project review, both parties recognized that we started the project too quickly, more time should have been spent on scoping out the project and socializing the internal and external teams. More in-depth feedback should have been sought about the quality of some of the junior staff put on the project.