Geniusee

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the co-founder of RiskStack Inc., and we’re a regular technology (Regtech) company that focuses on providing a core platform to solve compliance risk issues for regulated industries.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Geniusee?

We brought Geniusee early on in our development. We had an idea about our platform, but we needed to think through with some very technical people whether the functionalities we wanted would actually work. We wanted to solve a problem regarding financial regulations and the solution we were thinking didn’t exist in the marketplace yet. We also wanted to get a sense of how much it would cost us to go through the full development process.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Geniusee put together a business plan document, which contained the different functionalities, models, and technology for our project. On top of that, they gave us an estimate and suggestions for various off-the-shelf solutions so that we would know what was possible from a technical perspective.

They helped us build our cloud-native API prototype, which showed all the UI and functionalities we required. For the UI, the team presented options on Figma and we would take a look at them and comment on them. After that, they would implement changes according to our comments. Essentially, their work involved how employees would use the system.

What is the team composition?

We worked with their project manager, technical lead, UI designer, and data scientist.

How did you come to work with Geniusee?

We found Geniusee through LinkedIn, and we reached out to them there. After our discussions, we also talked to their former clients and they gave very high recommendations to the team. Since they had a lot of experience dealing with creating UI for technical products, we decided to go with them after we had done some research.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent $7,500.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from July–September 2021.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The team allowed our possible investors and partners to see how our platform would work, and through that, we received feedback that our design was intuitive. People told us that the features we had were very comprehensive.

We also appreciated that the team provided us with their thoughts on how we could achieve the best UI experience for our platform. It was very helpful to talk to them and to get their advice about our project. We really felt that they were part of our team while they were working with us and helping us develop our product.

How did Geniusee perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management process was very strong. We had Zoom calls with them, and they were always available when we needed them.

We only ran into difficulties because the project took way longer than we expected, but we worked with them to get the project done as soon as possible. The project only took longer because the timeline was underestimated, but we were impressed that they stuck to their original commitment. Above all, they worked on our project for as long as we needed and they produced a platform that we were happy with.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They were very good at comprehending the intricacies related to our platform. Geniusee was a partner to us, especially in critically thinking about alternative solutions we could implement. Furthermore, they didn’t shy away from pointing out things we should change in the project.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Their graphic artist missed certain things that needed to be proofread, and they didn’t have somebody who was able to review everything before the project was sent to us. They would have benefited from a QA person during the engagement because of the difference in our language.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

You need to know exactly what you need and be very clear about the complexity of your project. In addition, make sure that you communicate to Geniusee that they need to provide a very strong person who speaks English very well and someone who’s very good at project leading.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the COO of Pause Breathwork LLC, a training and wellness company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Geniusee?

We needed a reliable team to take over our app development efforts since our previous partner didn’t deliver results according to our standards.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We’ve already acquired the wireframes and app documentation from our previous developer, and we’ve handed those over to Geniusee’s team for them to relaunch the design implementation process. Our app is a meditation platform that allows users to conduct breathwork sessions ranging from 3–45 minutes, and Geniusee has also implemented a journaling functionality for users who want to write about their experiences.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with about seven resources from Geniusee, including developers and designers.

How did you come to work with Geniusee?

They were already working for our company before I joined.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent about $250,000 at this point.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our ongoing engagement with Geniusee started in June 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have more than 280 app reviews and a 4.9 app rating at the moment, with the majority of our users giving us a 5-star rating. While those results already speak for themselves, we also appreciate Geniusee’s technical capacity that improved our uptime by 99.99 percent. I can’t thank them enough for addressing urgent backend issues to streamline our app operations.

How did Geniusee perform from a project management standpoint?

We communicate via Zoom and rely on Sigma for project management. Geniusee is a supportive and deadline-oriented partner that provides us with upfront information and works proactively to meet our development timelines.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We’re most impressed with Geniusee’s undeniable expertise and driven approach — they deliver timeless and innovative solutions and strive to address any issues to meet our critical standards. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

It’s not really an impediment, but we’ll appreciate it if Geniusee improves their English communication skills. Other than that, they’re a reliable partner with exemplary coding and development skills.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Don’t let the time zone difference stop you from engaging a great team.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the project manager of an e-learning platform. We have a music learning application available on Android, iOS, and the web. We use our own algorithm to detect what users are playing on their piano, and we offer piano lessons and everything else needed for people to learn how to play it.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Geniusee?

At the time, our Android app didn’t exist, so we wanted to transition to the Android world as well. However, the project was too big for our own development team. Thus, we decided to outsource it.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Geniusee helped us complete the Android version of our app. We had an existing iOS application, so we asked them to do the same app for Android using native technology. Basically, they had to transfer everything.

This project included replicating our existing app’s navigation system, dashboard, connections to our algorithms, and all the other features like the music sheets and the recognition and validation system that recognizes what the users are playing. The technology stack included Java, Kotlin, Android, and React Native.

What is the team composition?

We worked with Geniusee’s scrum master and a QA person responsible for the Android tasks. Later on, this person also supported our internal QA team because they had many tasks to work on.

Additionally, two developers contributed to the React Native development, and three more developers worked on the detection and score rendering feature. The latter team included a lead developer and two more engineers who worked on the native Android technology stack. We also had some other connections, but we didn’t collaborate with them daily.

How did you come to work with Geniusee?

Some of our team members did some research on companies that offered the type of solution we needed. Geniusee stood out from the rest, and after some interviews, they were the chosen ones.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in August 2020. As our initial collaboration was very good, we extended the engagement to add more features. We’ve reached the feature set that we wanted, so we no longer require the services of their whole team. Although some parts are still ongoing, the bulk of the project is now complete.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Throughout the engagement, we observed regular metrics like how many tasks Geniusee committed to and how many of those they delivered. In this regard, they were always on track. They never overcommitted nor committed to something that they never reached. Additionally, they delivered quality work.

How did Geniusee perform from a project management standpoint?

Geniusee performed very well, and the collaboration was great. They were always punctual, and we reached all the milestones with no delays. Our release cycles were very short, so we released something new every week — it was all very fast.

Whenever there were possible red flags, the scrum master communicated with us, and we met and discussed the solutions, which was very good. Geniusee used some of their company’s tools to manage the project, including a ticket tracking system.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The way Geniusee managed the engagement and the fact that they immediately understood what we wanted were impressive. Working with developers is sometimes hard because the client requests something from them, but they don’t necessarily understand the required output without having some iterations and discussions. However, Geniusee immediately understood the requirements and implemented them.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I would only advise them to keep doing what they’re doing. Their communicative approach was always helpful because they prevented issues before they arose by talking about them immediately.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Working with Geniusee was a very good experience for us, so you should definitely try it. As long as the requirements are clear, this group of people can translate them into code and make your project happen. Don’t be afraid of having a remote team; they were very fast to deliver, and our engagement was very good.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and CEO of SciQuiry, an education tech company focused on the STEM learning of K-12 students.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Geniusee?

We hired Geniusee for a UI/UX design project.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We started with several discussions about the user experience of students. We mapped out how they would log in, what they would see upon entering the platform, and what buttons should be created to make the navigation easier.

After creating a whole blueprint for the development, we met every other day for a month and a half. Geniusee redesigned the UI/UX of our platform to make it more age-appropriate for middle to high school students. They incorporated our existing branding along with my suggestions for the color and other visual elements. As they designed the pages, they also consulted with a backend developer to determine what was doable for the platform. 

The final deliverable was a Figma file that included each and every one of our platform’s pages and interfaces.

What is the team composition?

Geniusee assigned three people to the project: Anna (Project Manager), Mikhail (UI/UX Designer), and a full-stack developer who had a more consultative role. 

How did you come to work with Geniusee?

Since we are a startup, we needed to drive costs down, so I searched online for agencies that could provide design services at an affordable price. I referred to Clutch and picked Geniusee out of all the other providers based on their reviews and experience with edtech projects. 

How much have you invested with them?

I paid $7,500.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project lasted from April–June 2021.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I was extremely happy with their work. They were able to provide a whole UI/UX blueprint that I could work with going forward. Though we have yet to launch the platform with all of the changes to the interface, everyone who has already seen the design has loved it.

How did Geniusee perform from a project management standpoint?

The Geniusee team was very organized and easy to communicate with, which helped keep the project in the right direction. The time difference between us didn’t hinder them from being always available to answer my questions. 

All of our communication was video-based, so we used Google Meet and Zoom quite frequently. After every meeting, they would send me an email detailing everything we had just discussed. Geniusee also has an internal system for tracking the progress of the project.

What did you find most impressive about them?

One thing that really stood out about Geniusee was their teamwork. I also liked that they kept in close contact with me, whereas other providers would simply do an introductory call and only contact me again once they were in the middle of the project. That was really impressive.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Compared to other US-based developers, their pricing is pretty good. They are, however, a bit more expensive than other global development outsourcing companies. Other than that, I have no complaints about the team. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

If you have no limitations or issues with your budget, I would definitely recommend that you work with Geniusee. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the product owner at Mysterium Network, a VPN company. I’m leading our VPN product development.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Geniusee?

We were trying to build an Android application, so we hired Geniusee.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Geniusee helped us design and develop our Android app. We had already built its backend, so we provided them with what we had and explained to them the documents, what APIs we could use, and what we were hoping to get from this product. They've managed the whole project and done the QA needed. Currently, they’re building a website for us while they continue to develop our app.

This app is basically a VPN app. Users can create a wallet in it using blockchain and connect to any emails that they like. Users can also improve their accounts using cryptocurrencies to continue using the VPN.

What is the team composition?

At the peak of development we've worked with six people from Geniusee, but we work with three people on an ongoing basis. Their team has included Daria (IT Project Manager), Artem (Android Developer), a QA developer, two designers, and a Google Play Store expert.

How did you come to work with Geniusee?

Geniusee was hired before I became the product owner, so I don’t know how they were hired.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent over $250,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together around March 2021, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Although their design quality varies from designer to designer, Geniusee has done a pretty decent job overall. Some of the designs are very good, while others are quite average.

However, the thing that I like is that their developers offer a very hands-on approach. I don’t need to ensure that they talk with my backend developers; they connect directly and solve all kinds of bugs before I even know they exist, which definitely helps our collaboration.

How did Geniusee perform from a project management standpoint?

Geniusee handles everything so that we don’t have to deal with developers or designers. We just tell the project manager what we want, and they get it done, which is great. We communicate through Slack.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The fact that I don’t have to deal with the different aspects of project management is very helpful for me.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Not that I can think of.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Geniusee is a very good company to get started with app development. Unless you’re looking for a very high-end solution, they will develop a friendly and simple solution for you.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and CEO of Zedosh, an advertising platform for influencers.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Geniusee?

We needed their help in rebuilding our mobile application.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We’ve had an existing app that we couldn’t launch in app stores because of technical issues, so we’ve engaged Geniusee to rebuild everything from the ground up. They’ve developed the front- and backend of our iOS- and Android-friendly app, focusing on the quality standards of both app stores.

They’ve redesigned the core functionality of our app, which is a payment option that’s linked to an open-banking platform. Geniusee has also integrated other automated API payment methods into the app, so our users can transfer money from our platform to their bank accounts.

Geniuesee’s ongoing work for us centers on app maintenance. They also develop new solutions to help refine the existing features of our platform.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with a project manager, front- and backend developers, a DevOps engineer, and an IT architect.

How did you come to work with Geniusee?

Geniusee was a trusted provider in our industry, so we didn’t hesitate to tap their team for this project.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent more than £100,000 (approximately $138,000 USD) so far. 

What is the status of this engagement?

Our ongoing engagement with Geniusee kicked off in November 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have over 1,500 app users to date, and there hasn’t been a lot of bug-related reports since we’ve launched the product. Apart from not encountering any critical outages, what matters most to us is the successful deployment of our platform into the app stores. Geniusee’s team has worked effectively with us to overcome technical challenges, so we’re satisfied with our collaboration.

How did Geniusee perform from a project management standpoint?

We communicated via email, Slack, and Google Meet.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Geniusee has the determination to get things right — it’s difficult to build something from scratch, but their team persevered to exceed our standards.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything off the top of my head — they’ve delivered our needs satisfactorily.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Assign a dedicated liaison officer to work closely with their team and track their progress.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a project manager of a small firm that deals with a lot of different projects. Our department is partially an agency that works with clients for marketing and branding, while other departments work in sectors such as real estate and financing.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Geniusee?

We’ve worked on a number of different projects that involved creating custom software as well as customer-facing and corporate websites. One project, in particular, revolved around the development of a financing platform in the merchant sector. For this, we sought Geniusee’s expertise.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We’ve used Geniusee’s services for numerous projects. They’ve helped us redesign the UX/UI of an entire website for a client in the gambling industry. They’ve also assisted one of our clients with developing a niche financing platform that could bring offline technologies online. The original version of the platform, which our client had already built, had bad coding and was very buggy and glitchy, so we decided as a company to redo the whole thing from scratch. 

The development of the niche platform had already started prior to my joining the company, so I was not around to write the original scope of work. I did, however, help finish this project and kickstart a new one for which we are also using the team’s services. 

What is the team composition?

I work closely with the Taras (CEO & Co-Founder) who has made himself very available to me, and I speak on a daily basis with Pavlo (COO) who has been there from the very beginning. I’ve also touched base with a business analyst who has helped define certain requirements from a technical and business perspective.

How did you come to work with Geniusee?

Geniusee was already with our company when I joined. To my understanding, the person who I replaced found them through Clutch.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested well over $1 million dollars at this point. 

What is the status of this engagement?

The scope for the first project was written out around November–December 2020. The niche platform was finished in March 2021 but we’re still working with the team.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I can’t disclose exact data and metrics since some of those are confidential, but our clients have been pretty satisfied with the custom software developed by Geniusee. The platform is operable and we’ve gone into creating similar prototypes for other clients for the purpose of investment. 

How did Geniusee perform from a project management standpoint?

Geniusee is able to work quickly, efficiently, and transparently. They always keep me in the loop regarding their progress and we meet 1–2 times a week, depending on the project. The team uses Excel and Jira to manage our projects.

They’re extremely flexible when laying out the scope; every time I present them with a challenge, they’re able to outline the exact technologies and type of cooperation needed for that particular project. They can determine whether we need a dedicated team, a consultant, or a part-time materials developer. We’re always presented with options based on the circumstances and budget.

What did you find most impressive about them?

What I love about working with Geniusee is that they prioritize trying to bring in as much value as possible. They’re not like some companies who will rush into saying yes just to take our money. This team really thinks about all of the potential problems that shouldn’t go ignored before hopping into development, answering a lot of our critical questions, and making sure that all of their bases are covered.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They could work a little faster, but then again, that would compromise quality in their eyes.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be clear about what you want and be transparent when you need assistance. Geniusee can definitely provide a business analyst who will help you think through business problems before you go into actual development. As long as you communicate with the team, they’ll work to solve whatever challenge you have for them.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a manager for a technology startup.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Geniusee?

We hired Geniusee to help us with website development.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The engagement started with a high-level overview of project requirements where I described the site’s functionality and delivered designs to Geniusee. After that, they came back with an estimate. 

The team continues to develop our website. For the front- and backend, they’re using React and Node.js, respectively. They also utilize Serverless or AWS. They spearhead our Google Maps and email integration efforts, too. Then, they're set to develop a landing page that’s in line with our design. Overall, they’re 100% in charge of coding our website.

What is the team composition?

We’re working with six people from Geniusee, including developers, designers, engineers, and a project manager.

How did you come to work with Geniusee?

Geniusee was referred by an experienced developer we worked with.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our ongoing partnership began in January 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve successfully launched our website’s MVP, and they’re able to stick to our agreed schedule.

How did Geniusee perform from a project management standpoint?

We call three times a week, and we use Slack and Jira. In connection with that, their communication is top-notch.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I’ve worked with another team before collaborating with Geniusee, and they couldn’t get our project done. Geniusee is like a breath of fresh air because they have highly capable developers, and they're an agile team capable of getting our product to launch. They’re also disciplined, and they care about successfully delivering our requirements as opposed to some agencies that care more about generating revenue.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I’d like them to accomplish projects even faster.

Do you have any advice for potential customers? 

Prepare a roadmap of your project and have reasonable expectations. You should also communicate to Geniusee about potential needs such as if you need more developers along the way. Let them run the project because they know the process quite well — they’re a very committed team, and they know how to deliver what you need.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of a marketplace for photographers and artists so they can sell their artwork and digital downloads online.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Geniusee?

We set out to make a platform that simplified the e-commerce space. We wanted to include drop shipping options for photographers in an easy-to-use interface that didn’t require a lot of manual product creation.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Geniusee started as the lead on our Laravel side. They focused on the architecture of the application and did PHP-related Laravel development. I did all the frontend JavaScript myself. The site is hosted on AWS.

What is the team composition?

I worked with one developer primarily. I also worked with their CEO and CTO.

How did you come to work with Geniusee?

I found them on UpWork initially. We decided to work with each other directly through a contract we both signed. I chose them because our website spoke to our needs. Their CEO and CTO had some good ideas on how to build this platform from scratch.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent $45,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in January 2019, and we wrapped up in January 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We accomplished a great deal in a short amount of time. The team had very low error rates in their application, too. Their work allowed us to bring the MVP very quickly. They implemented rigid application architecture to make innovating on the platform easy.

How did Geniusee perform from a project management standpoint?

We met daily in SCRUM meetings. The team was honest when I proposed a deadline that was too quick. They’d help me come up with new deadlines, too. The team was very transparent and upfront.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their honesty and transparency stand out. When you work with contractors, it requires a great deal of trust, especially if they’re in another country. Their CEO and CTO were trustworthy and friendly.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Embracing third-party tools that have already been created could have helped us get to market more efficiently.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

My advice is to have a clearly defined scope of work. Focus on what you want the application to do. Understand what the application needs to accomplish from top to bottom.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Factmata helps brands and governments to detect fake news online using a SaaS platform that tracks Twitter and other platforms

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Geniusee?

Data engineering using Kubeflow and Kubernetes, and managing/improving our AWS stack including lambdas

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted to reduce our costs of our AWS platform and ensure our data pipeline was able to process millions of documents per day through a natural language pipeline

SOLUTION

How did you select Geniusee?

Geniusee came to us via a platform called YouTeam. We selected them because of their strengths in data engineering using Python, a rare skill particularly in MLOps today.

Describe the project in detail.

We had daily meetings and stand ups with the team, including getting their ideas on speccing the platform and the key components and roadmap required. We set amazing processes around check-ins and reporting on outputs including user QA

What was the team composition?

1 DevOps architect and 1 data engineer was provided to us

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Our data engineering system can now handle 8 different data types including Reddit and Twitter, and also integrate via API to other social listening tools via a custom schema

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Very effective in reporting and daily management of sprints

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Their commitment to their clients was incredible - the CEO will step in if needed

Are there any areas for improvement?

Better vision potentially in data vendors to use for the goal in mind, and a long term angle on what they were building around our data lake