FYB Romania

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We are a sporting goods manufacturer that sells B2B.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire FYB Romania, and what were your goals?

They have built our entire website and ordering system. some amazing things they have done: our online customizer- by far the best in the industry Linking our website to our ERP and Salesforce Gave us a tool to manage orders and deliver them quickly to production Built the ability for our customers to white label our website

SOLUTION

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

Was a long time ago, but we got it from a referral

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

The project scope has increased so much over the years because of the success we have had. we started with a website and a simple customizer and now they have created a resource that my team cannot live without.

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

we have worked directly with two people. Tudor and Mircea as project Managers. We have had another 7-10 touch the project doing various tasks, but no client facing tasks.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The website has changed our business and allowed us to grow substantially since we started. It has made life for my sales team, production, graphic design and customer service way easier. We are able to grow the business in a very customized way.

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

We use Jira and excel (excel more based on me liking it for big project overviews) we have created a great ticketing system where we can track all bugs, improvements, suggestions that my team can use and allows us to stay organized. these tasks are run through Jira

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

The team has the ability to do what the customer imagines at a reasonable cost."

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

Pushed us to go live sooner on certain tasks vs trying to get to the final product, but this is more my fault. The other one is the same for customers/ systems we have worked with, but make sure to set the same priorities constantly as we get too excited about new projects as a project management team

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the manager of JobsinNetwork. We’re a network of job boards around Europe and the world, but we’re based in Belgium.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with FYB Romania?

Our recruitment platform hosted more than 200 websites. We had issues with the old platform, which was developed in 2007. We needed to create a new one from scratch.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We initially asked FYB to repair our old platform. However, it was too old, so they’ve created a new one. We didn’t provide them with a brief; everything is based on the old platform. After three years, we’re nearly done moving everything to the new application. FYB manages it daily.

What is the team composition?

Alexandru (Project Manager, Team Lead & Senior PHP Developer) is the main contact person. He has around four people working under him.

How did you come to work with FYB Romania?

A friend recommended them. They were already working with FYB.

How much have you invested with them?

We spend between €80,000–€100,000 (approximately $82,000–$103,000 USD) a year.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started the engagement around April 2018, and it’s still ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Since we started working with FYB, it hasn’t been the same. We had a lot of issues with the old platform, but now it’s quite stable with a lot of turnover.

How did FYB Romania perform from a project management standpoint?

Project management is great. FYB meets deadlines and stays on budget. We use Slack to communicate and Jira for daily task management.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We’re really happy with the partnership; our relationship with them is outstanding. When we need something, they always find a solution. They’re also very responsive.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, we’re pretty happy with them.

Any advice for potential customers?

Explain your business at the beginning so they can understand what you’re looking to achieve.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

During that mission I was the CEO a SaaS company. We provided Local Digital Marketing platform for Retail companies.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire FYB Romania, and what were your goals?

We had many requests to create a side tool of our platform for our clients : a Store Locator Engine.

We had many store data about Retail companies :

• location identity : address, phone, hours, etc.
• services info : what is available in terms of services in-store
• Promotional info - event info
• etc. We used to send this data to Google My Business, Facebook Places, Foursquare, Apple Maps, etc.

The idea was to be able to provide our clients with a dedicated website area to present all this store data. We name this a Store Locator. As we had many clients, the idea was to build an engine used by many clients on a templated base.

SOLUTION

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

One of my partner did a trip in Romania to meet several companies to build up this project. We have been seduced by FYB's capacities and the size of their business. It was a mid-size company which corresponded to our situation and found it a good match ! Their references were good and aligned with the type of project we wanted to build.

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

At first they made an analysis of our api and what was available in terms of data. Then they proposed an architecture to build the solution on a SaaS model. They worked in close contact with our product owner and web-designer to build the templates. Once all was ready : templates, analysis, architecture, they started to build the platform.

They worked in PhP with direct access to our apis. In terms of hosting, they selected Heroku. Then we went live and they continued to impact the project by adding functionalities and make custom development on the existing templates.

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

There were 2 people in direct contact with us, the CEO and the Project Manager. Depending on the amount of work, the team went up to 4 people. We only had direct contacts with the CEO and the Project Manager.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We were able to launch our store locator platform in several months and then to make it a long-term successful project. They even helped us on infrastructure when we had issues with our development team.

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

We had good project management. At first, it worked on an Agile way including sprints and demos on our side. Then, once our platform was life, we entered in an ongoing mode with weekly meetings and email communications.

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

Their ability to understand our business was impressive.

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

This project was a success, but on our side we had a lack of ressources to make it a fully automated platform. We tried to fix that together, but could never find the right balance between product development and custom implementation. I think that caused several frustration. But a big part of the responsibility was on our side.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the COO of The Synergist. We're a nonprofit organization that acts as a neutral backbone to solve societal issues in the world with different stakeholders.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with FYB Romania?

We needed help with web development. Our team needed a digital platform to connect stakeholders that we bring for each one of our programs.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

FYB Romania takes care of everything related to the development of IT features. They handle all our web-based development services, using Symfony as the main tool, from the backend to the frontend.

Currently, they offer maintenance services as well.

What is the team composition?

We work with three people from their team, including Alex (Lead Developer), three backend developers, and a subcontractor that collaborates with the frontend designer.

How did you come to work with FYB Romania?

They were referred to us by an external IT consultant who we work with.

How much have you invested with them?

We've spent around €300,000 with them so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

The partnership started in October 2019, and the engagement is still ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have no doubts about the quality of their work.

How did FYB Romania perform from a project management standpoint?

We had a specific issue this summer of major delays, but I think it's due to both sides — we need to improve visibility and tracking.

In terms of tools, we use Jira for project management and communication.

Regarding pricing, we negotiate every year due to inflation. Overall, their cost-effectiveness is acceptable.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The quality of their development work and Alex's insights are their most outstanding attributes.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They need to be more transparent with the management installation part. Also, they should improve on their delivery time.

Any advice for potential customers?

Be clear about what you want and what you hope to achieve.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I was the founder of a platform that used to connect companies and freelancers automatically. The company is now closed.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with FYB Romania?

I hired them to create the front- and backend of my platform.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

FYB Romania developed my platform's front- and backend using  React, Java, and PHP. We had a high-level mock-up, and they created everything from that. 

What is the team composition?

I mainly worked with a project manager. In total, 5–6 people were involved in the project. 

How did you come to work with FYB Romania?

I found them through word of mouth. 

How much have you invested with them?

I spent around €180,000–€200,000 ($178,000–$199,000 USD). 

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with them from March 2018–March 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I was quite happy with FYB Romania and their pricing. I was non-technical, so I appreciated that they had a project manager dedicated to my platform and that the team was business-oriented and technically strong. 

How did FYB Romania perform from a project management standpoint?

They delivered what I asked for within the budget and the timeframe. The team was really transparent with the budget and respected the agreement.

What did you find most impressive about them?

FYB Romania was always there when I needed them. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

They could have more people on their payroll. Three of the 5–6 people I worked with were from their company, and they were great, while the other teammates were average. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

You’ll find a trustworthy partner in FYB Romania that won’t let you down. The only suggestion is to double-check whether the people who’ll work on your project are on their payroll or not.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I was the CTO of the company at the time and responsible for coordinating all external developments.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire FYB Romania, and what were your goals?

We were building a freelance recruitment platform. This involved a public front end for freelancers, a private frontend for managers but also a complex backend to handle the workflows for IT managers to be able to screen & schedule job interviews with freelancers on the platform. The development was very agile as we would be discovering and validating our UI's by consistently releasing beta versions. Our development partner had to :

1. Be Agile
2. Have experience in building functional backends.
3. Have experience in building UX friendly front ends.

SOLUTION

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

I had worked with FYB in a previous company and the projects their were involved in were successful so I asked them to make a proposal for the tender on this project. The deciding factors were :

• the transparency on the resources involved
• we got to interview the developers that would be working on the project if FYB was selected.
• the time FYB took to understand the business problem the application was trying to solve.

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

The project had two parts, the front end for freelancers and the back end for managers. The two front end were in React The backend engine was in PHP/Symfony The first milestone was to develop a minimal API to support freelancer onboarding and a first version of the UI. We then iterated on that and grew the platform features gradually.

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

There were 6 people involved in the project. One account manager, one project manager/architect and 4 developers (2 PHP / 2 React)

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We were able to launch the platform very close to what was initially planned even though the requirements kept changing based on user feedback. The fact that FYB provides consistent & regular releases was the key to making sure we kept the timeline.

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

We setup a very simple communication mecanism. Daily standups (15 min) with the project manager & developers and all stories & use cases were specified in JIRA. We both had access to the projects different code repositories.

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

The most valuable aspect of the collaboration is the effort FYB took to understand the purpose & the business value of what were building instead of just waiting for requirements. They challenged our initial ideas and were key in achieving something that met what we had in mind.

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

Even if the communication level was already correct, pro active communication on issues was something that can always be improved. More so on very agile projects. The other aspect to improve is to be more strict on the types of inputs they needed to be able to work efficiently - we only realized a few months in the project that if we would have provided better UX descriptions & inputs, the front end developers would have had an easier job.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the founder of a consulting and software development agency. We help entrepreneurs to build their business and also provide various IT/online services.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire FYB Romania, and what were your goals?

FYB is our long term partner for offshore software development. They always provide help in all kinds of projects, such as ecommerce website development and support and also in creating new kinds of community portals, complex server setup and support. No project seems to be too big for them.

SOLUTION

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

We were searching the web for both freelancers and agencies and have partnered with dozens of them. FYB Romania is one of the very few that we are still working with because we are happy with them.

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

First we discuss the projects with our clients internally and find out how to develop the project. Then we contact FYB, discuss our results and do some more brainstorming. Then we decide which parts we can do internally, and which parts are better handled by them.

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

So far we have been in touch primarily with the founders and key project management. But we were also able to discuss details with their coders directly.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The results have met our expectations and often exceeded them. Project were completed as discussed and we continue to work with them.

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

We are usually in direct contact via Skype and Google Meet. In addition we use bugtracking and ticketing systems of our choice.

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

The most impressive thing about FYB is that they can basically handle any kind of online development. If there's an urgent question, then we can reach them anytime.

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

There's nothing out of the ordinary which we could complain about. After nearly 18 years of cooperating with them, I can clearly see that they make less mistakes than others, and their expertise clearly makes up for any mishaps. If a problem appeared, they always found a solution to fix it.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the operational director and partner in our company. we are since 25 years importer of home sewing&embroidery machines, accessories, consumables as well as other equipment for industrial and home use.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire FYB Romania, and what were your goals?

Changing the platform with Magento multistore and migrate several webshops inside, syncing orders, stocks and clients with our ERP system as well as the largest online retailer in Romania, emag.ro, web development in general

SOLUTION

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

The former one closed up and recommended FYB, once we got to know them with small projects I decided they are the right partners

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

We had various platforms for our webshops, first we migrate one of them on Magento 1 and then we agreed to migrate all of them on Magento multistore. a lot of work &meetings but all went well, we had to learn a lot also:)

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

Usually one person and 1 programming team. later, when the project became more complex with other team members

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

allowed us to increase the number of order tremendously in the last 5 years, more than 5,5 times with the same number of persons and less errors!

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

regular meetings, Jira and gdrive task lists, all went good!

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

Magento implemented by FYB allowed us to increase the number of order tremendously in the last 5 years, more than 5,5 times with the same number of persons and less errors! They are very accurate, reliable, and helpful in sorting out and finding great solutions.

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

none so far!

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am a Managing Partner of an online bookstore.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire FYB Romania, and what were your goals?

We hired this developer in order to improve and make our website more functional.

SOLUTION

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

It was a very complex project, including several programming languages and FYB was the only company who could manage this complexity.

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

Implementing of various modules.

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

3 people, technical and business knowledge

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The processes, ERP, and sales campaigns ran smoothly after working with FYB Romania.

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

Weekly update meetings with the CTO.

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

Their flexibility and in depth understanding of programming language and business processes.

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

No.