GLOBALDEV

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We are a fintech that provides technology solutions relating to loans and financing. I am the an executive, responsible for leading the company and overseeing all aspects of its operations, including the interactions with SteelKiwi.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

Our company hired Steelkiwi to help with building our back-office software and augmenting our existing development team. Our goals in hiring Steelkiwi included the building of the back-office software, improving the efficiency and effectiveness of our software development process, increasing the capacity of our team, and bringing in specialised expertise and skills.

By working with Steelkiwi, we hoped to achieve a high level of quality and performance in the software we were developing and to meet internal deadlines or milestones that had been set. We also hired Steelkiwi to help with specific internal projects, such as the design, development, testing, or deployment of back-office application features. In any case, the ultimate goal of hiring Steelkiwi was to help our company achieve its development objectives.

SOLUTION

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

We first learned about this vendor from Clutch, where we found positive reviews of their work for similar clients. After reading the review, we decided to reach out to them and schedule an interview to learn more about their capabilities and experience.

After interviewing SteelKiwi, we added them to a shortlist of potential vendor candidates and conducted client references to gather additional insights into their work. The deciding factors for us were the positive Clutch reviews and the positive feedback we received from client references. Based on these factors, we ultimately selected this vendor to work with us on our project.

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

Our back-office system is a set of stand-alone workplaces which are combined in an end-to-end system and address different parts of the credit financing journey. For the MVP phase, Steelkiwi started by designing the overall user experience of the back-office software. Key features include logging in to the back office and viewing, sorting, searching, and filtering loan applications.

They then built the various workspaces of the back office, including the Origination Workspace (for creating and managing loan applications), Underwriting Workspace (for making decisions on whether the loan application should be approved), Servicing Workspace (for disbursing funds for the approved loans, monitoring, and managing the repayment of loans), Collection Workspace (for processing past-due loans), System Workspace (user accounts, notifications, and documents management) and Tasks.

**Technologies used include:** 

Backend:

• Python
• Django
• Django Rest Framework
• PostgreSQL
• Redis
• Celery
• Docker/Docker compose
• AWS S3
• AWS Cloudfront
• Sentry

Frontend:

• ReactJs
• Redux
• Redux-saga
• Redux-toolkit
• Formik
• Yup
• react-query
• prop-types
• dayJs
• rc-table

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

8 people from the vendor’s team worked with us, including 2 Business Analysts, 1 Python Engineer, 2 Frontend Engineers, 1 UI/UX Designer, and 2 QA Engineers.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

SteelKiwi was able to deliver a fully functional back-office app that met all of our business requirements. The team was proactive, collaborative, highly professional, and always on top of their assigned goals. They were also responsive to our feedback and often took no time to address new queries. Overall, we found it very easy to work with SteelKiwi and were consistently impressed with the quality of the project outcomes.

One area for improvement in measurable outcomes is that SteelKiwi could have been more accurate in estimating timing and costing. While there were minor delays to completion, the delays were not too problematic for our company and are somewhat expected from our experience working with other agencies. In the future, we would appreciate if SteelKiwi could be more proactive in striving to complete projects within the set timeframe. However, as mentioned, this was a minor issue that we anticipated and did not significantly impact the project's overall success.

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

SteelKiwi has a structured and professional approach to project management. They use a variety of communication tools, including Slack, Confluence, Trello, and JIRA, to stay in touch with us and keep us informed about the progress of the project. The team is highly interactive and provides us with regular updates on their progress.

We have found that SteelKiwi's structured project management style, timely communication, and great sense of responsibility have given us full confidence in their ability to deliver high-quality software on time. While we do not have much in-person interaction with SteelKiwi due to the remote nature of the project, their use of these communication tools has helped to keep us connected and informed.

One area for improvement in terms of communication could be to provide more frequent updates on when the next release/deployment/demo will be. While we receive weekly reports detailing the work that has been done, we would appreciate more frequent updates about the actual release to help us stay on top of the project's progress. However, this is a minor issue and has not significantly impacted the success of the project.

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

One thing that really stands out to us about Steelkiwi is their structured approach to project management. They have a clear system in place for tracking tasks and progress, and this has helped to ensure that our projects stay on track and are completed efficiently. Another impressive aspect of Steelkiwi is the strength of their teamwork, despite the fact that they are a remote-working team.

Each team member takes full ownership of their tasks and is also aware of what the other members are working on. This allows them to collaborate effectively and ensure that all aspects of the project are being handled efficiently. We also appreciate the clear and professional manner in which Steelkiwi communicates with us. They keep us informed of progress and are always available to answer any questions or address any concerns we may have.

Specifically, we have been most impressed by Steelkiwi's ability to maintain high quality delivery even during difficult circumstances. During the Ukraine war, when a number of team members working with us were based in Ukraine, Steelkiwi's management team was able to maintain a smooth process and keep the team working effectively despite the challenges and disruptions caused by the war.

This is a testament to their strong management skills and ability to adapt to changes and solve many challenges. Overall, we find Steelkiwi's skills and expertise to be complementary, and this has contributed to the successful completion of our projects. We believe that Steelkiwi's structured project management system, strong teamwork, and clear communication are key factors that have contributed to their success and have made them a valuable partner for our company.

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

Overall, we have been happy with the work provided by SteelKiwi. Their deliverables have consistently met our expectations, and we appreciate their commitment to quality. - There was one instance where we had concerns about the performance of a specific project member, and they promptly replaced that member upon our request. We appreciate their willingness to address our concerns and make sure that the team is meeting our expectations. -

Another issue we have encountered is that the team has changed somewhat over the 1-year course of our interaction with SteelKiwi. While we would prefer to work with the same team for the duration of the project, this has not always been possible due to circumstances beyond the team's control. However, the team has made an effort to ensure a smooth transition and has done their best to maintain continuity despite the changes.

Additionally, a few team members have left the company during the project, which has presented some challenges. However, we understand that these departures may have been due to disruptions caused by the Ukraine war, and we appreciate the agency's efforts to minimize the impact on the project. - We have also provided some feedback to SteelKiwi in terms of giving us more visibility on billing and hours accrued, and they were responsive to our suggestions and implemented the changes we requested.

One thing we particularly appreciate is the quick response times of our project manager, Daniel. He has always been prompt in addressing any questions, suggestions, or enquiries, which gives us confidence that the agency is always looking for ways to improve. Overall, we feel that SteelKiwi is open to feedback and willing to make changes in order to meet our needs and expectations.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am an executive at our startup, it is an e-market place that helps streamline the process between vendors and clients in the event place.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We hired Steelkiwi to develop our application, frontend and backend. Our goal was to have a detailed yet user friendly application and dashboard for both our customers and our vendors.

SOLUTION

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

After countless hours and meetings with various companies, we decided on Steelkiwi for a range of reasons. Significantly, our first point of contact, Igor the business development manager was exceptionally accommodating of even our most ambitious plans and continued to be so throughout. He went as far as making the trip over to Jeddah to meet in person and spent many hours over zoom patiently answering all our questions and always ensuring that the decisions regarding our application were made in our best interest.

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

Our key deliverables were the main application for customers and the vendor dashboard for our vendors, as well as our admin dashboard. The frontend was developed using Flutter and Python. While the backend was developed using Django.

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

We started with a business development manager Igor, as well as Oksana our project manager and a business analyst Igor. We mostly interacted with Oksana and Igor as well as a team of frontend, backend developers (approximately 4 or 5) all who were excellent and quick to adjust to any changes in specifications that we had.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

While we have yet to launch, the quality tests amongst friends and family have gone very well. They understood our desire for a clean interface that flowed very well together and at all stages surpassed our expectations.

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

Oksana was very responsive at all stages of this project, she was very clear and ensured that we were kept abreast of all aspects of development and finances. She was also quick to adjust according to what worked best for us, for example while the bulk of communication between us and the development happened on slack, she quickly adjusted to the fact that our team worked better on WhatsApp and without hesitation continued the conversation there.

There was never a moment where she felt unreachable or difficult to work with. Deliverable timelines were met on a timely basis. In short Oksana is and has always been willing to go above and beyond.

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

While there are many ways in which we could answer this question about Steelkiwi our most standout experience with them happened towards the end of the project, when they should have been planning to wind down and cut down on resources spent on our project. Due to a personal matter that had occurred on our end, our ability to work at full capacity was hindered significantly.

Without hesitation the entire team significantly Igor and Oksana ensured we were taken care of, they safeguarded our interests while simultaneously allowing us the space and time to work out our issues. This situation also occurred in the backdrop of significant instability and turmoil in Ukraine where most of the team operate and reside. Incredibly this situation did not for a moment hinder their synchronicity of their team as a unit and their ability to work seamlessly with us as clients.

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

This is a very pleasant and rare situation in which we can confidently say we have no complaints. In fact we look forward to continuing our relationship with Steelkiwi and recommending them to fellow startups.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m an executive at a financial services organization.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Steelkiwi?

We originally needed help with developing our website.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Steelkiwi has developed our website. Still, their work has expanded since, and they’ve also been responsible for developing the software platform for the customer-facing side of my business from scratch. Initially, we went through a strategy identification process, after which I provided them with some documentation for how I wanted the site to function.

Among its core features, our site presents our branding, presents information about our company, and handles the collection of loan applications for our customers. Additionally, the site contains a customer portal where users can log in and get account information.

This app operates both on Linux and Microsoft. Still, it also has a mobile app component where users can use their iOS and Android mobile devices to access all the functionalities of the desktop version.

Currently, Steelkiwi is developing additional capabilities and features on the web-based platform to deal with a variety of different services. These features include fleet management, automatic notifications on mobile devices, payment processing, and more.

What is the team composition?

I’ve worked directly with the entire team from Steelkiwi.

How did you come to work with Steelkiwi?

Our CEO found them.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together around April 2020, and the engagement is still ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Steelkiwi provides us with what we need and works the way we need them to work.

How did Steelkiwi perform from a project management standpoint?

We have a periodic project status meeting throughout the week. I also meet regularly with Steelkiwi to introduce new projects and identify priorities for their work moving forward. Then, their team breaks those priorities down into tasks, and we collaborate on the definitions, confirmations of completion, and validations of said tasks. We use Jira and Slack to manage the project and collaborate, as well as Confluence for document management.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I really like how Steelkiwi functions. They take full ownership of the projects, and they handle them from start to finish. Unlike other organizations that only provide resources for the clients to handle internally, Steelkiwi takes ownership of entire projects and executes them.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No. Over the last two years, we’ve found areas of improvement. However, we’ve discussed those areas with them, and they’ve addressed them effectively. Whenever something arises, they’re very quick to respond.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the CEO of a peer-to-peer ecommerce platform designed for resale and vintage.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We wanted to develop a mobile app for fast & efficient buying and selling between users.

SOLUTION

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

We used Clutch to find a highly-rated app development company with a large portfolio and experience in this area. After much research, and many calls with varying agencies, we decided on Steelkiwi. Their level of professionalism was top tier, and the questions they’d ask about the project were surprising in their depth and interest.

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

As the designer of the project, I required a lot of back and forth with the development team. I was surprised with how quickly they were able to estimate every feature, as well as how detailed they were with why each feature would require the amount of work that it did. Along the way, several changes were requested and they were quick to respond and change what was asked. Most impressively, they put in so much work to integrate an API from PayPal (our payment provider), which required several weeks of in-depth communication, and an eventual meeting to review the app with PayPal engineers for approval.

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

A project manager was assigned to the project, who would quickly respond to any update requests, questions, etc. I also worked with members of the development team to provide needed designs, prototypes, etc. And lastly, I worked with their very thurough testers to deliver a bug-free build.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The app was delivered on-time, and with almost zero hiccups. I’ve worked with one other agency in the past, and the level of professionalism Steelkiwi exhibits is above and beyond.

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

We used Slack and email to communicate regularly, and the occasional Google Meeting to review progress. Their communication skills were the best I’ve seen.

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

The thoroughness with which they code and test was what impressed me most. This was alongside their ability to quickly change what they’re doing to accommodate a new request.

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

I could not have asked for a better development team, and hope to continue working with them on future updates.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of a mobile gaming company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Steelkiwi?

We needed help to create a software piece from scratch. The game we were making had not been done before, so it was very challenging figuring out the best way to bring it to market while iterating on the go and breaking into a new wave of gaming.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Steelkiwi has been helping us create the software we need. First, we used iOS native technology, but we then shifted over to Flutter, which allowed us to create the product for iOS and Android. This decision was great because we’ve had great cost savings while being more efficient.

Still, it was important for us to provide a native experience, and Steelkiwi has been able to accomplish that goal in a great way — we really can’t tell the difference. Overall, they’ve provided a lot of good context and experience to help guide us through the process.

What is the team composition?

In total, we’ve worked with around 20 people from Steelkiwi, and most of the time, we’ve had anywhere from 5–10 resources working for us at a time. They have a lot of full-stack and Flutter developers, so it is a full-team effort on their side.

How did you come to work with Steelkiwi?

I found Steelkiwi on Clutch. I did a lot of research, vetted out many companies, and talked to several of them. What made me go to Steelkiwi was that I felt the most comfortable with the promises that they made. They demonstrated great openness and willingness to commit to the project and do what it took to get the job done.

When talking with other developers, I often felt that if something went in a different direction, they wouldn’t be flexible or able to adapt, and they would simply claim the changes as outside of scope. As this was not a fixed-scope type of project, I needed someone that could really adapt on the fly; they would basically become my full-time development team. Steelkiwi gave me that confidence.

I also looked at some of their previous projects, and they showed me other projects that weren’t included in their portfolio, which also gave me comfort. Finally, I got to talk to their developers directly and ask them a lot of questions. They were also very transparent and open, so I was sure that, even though they hadn’t done this type of project before, they would get us there.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent approximately $200,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together over three years ago, around 2018, and they’re still working on the project. We are one of their long-term clients.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

In terms of the quality and efficiency of the product, we haven’t experienced a lot of issues or bugs, and we’ve had a lot of great feedback from customers and users who play the game. Every time we release an update, the game keeps getting better.

We don’t have any metrics on the game's performance, but we have a 4.9/5 rating on the App Store and over 200 positive reviews from users. This success is attributable to the great work that Steelkiwi has done.

How did Steelkiwi perform from a project management standpoint?

Steelkiwi’s project management is their best asset. They’ve been very helpful, flexible, and agile in changing their model a couple of times to help accommodate what we were trying to do.

I’m in constant communication with a number of people from their team over Slack, and even though there is a time difference between us, they’re always very responsive. Even if it is late at night or a weekend, they go above and beyond to keep me updated — that’s the key.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The rapport and communication that I’ve built with Steelkiwi are impressive. They’ve shown a great ability to adapt their processes to work with us, an American-based customer with a different time zone and a challenging product.

Our communication has been huge, and they’ve been able to step in whenever we’ve needed them to do anything. It’s been a pleasure working with them in that capacity. Additionally, Steelkiwi produces a very solid code, so on the technical side, they’re very strong.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We’ve had some challenges, but Steelkiwi has addressed them throughout the project. Initially, they had some design gaps, but we addressed the issue, and they were able to add a designer to their team. They hired him specifically for my project, and so far, this person has been amazing. Honestly, he’s the best designer I’ve worked with.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be very literal and descriptive in what you want. The more you can do upfront, the easier the process will be, and the more you can fit your company into their structure, the easier the work will be. However, the most important aspect of achieving success is open communication and transparency.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the product manager for a healthcare software company. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Steelkiwi?

We needed help developing a web-based application. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Steelkiwi is developing a scheduling app using Python and Django from scratch. They are handling the frontend development, and they’ve created a secure database. The app allows patients to find physicians and schedule appointments online. 

We provided internal documents to start the project. Steelkiwi has made design suggestions as they built the app, and the process has been collaborative. The development is ongoing. 

What is the team composition?

I work with a project manager, a business analyst, a UX/UI designer, two backend developers, two frontend developers, and three QA specialists. 

How did you come to work with Steelkiwi?

I found them online.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent $150,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in July 2020, and it’s ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The app has received positive feedback from test users — it’s beautiful. It has a great design, layout, and color scheme. Steelkiwi has met my expectations.

How did Steelkiwi perform from a project management standpoint?

Steelkiwi is good at project management. We use Figma, Trello, and Slack to collaborate. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Steelkiwi is very accommodating. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

They can have better communication in a dynamic situation.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Go ahead with your partnership — they’re a great company to work with. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the CTO of a SaaS startup

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

SaaS Software development

SOLUTION

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

There apparent proficiency with the right technical stack and budget

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

They failed to deliver nad ti was a debacle

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

Four. Sales, Business Development, UX UI designer and two developers

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Startups have runways and it is very important that any technology partner deliver on time. I engaged SteelKiwi two years ago to deliver on a custom software project. This required going through most if not all of the normal SDLC.

To begin with, they seemed very organized and said all the right things however when the work begun the experience was contrary. The UXUI design was the first phase where actual deliverables could be realized. They had only one designer on staff and whenever she took Off for vacation, the project came to a complete halt. This happened twice during the first 6 weeks where she took off twice for one week each time. Please note that at this point the deposit had been paid.

This was a really bad sign and we decided to bring in the UXUI work in house. In a nut shell Steelkiwi represents itself as big company with capabilities and ability to handle complex projects however this is not the case. There is a limitation in English language when you rate the whole team that they have. Specifically some of the members cannot communicate properly but the sales person can.

They have limited staff and inability to adjust when someone goes on vacation. They are too busy to be able to address mistakes and or fix issues in a reasonable manner. The resolution offered by their managing director, Viacheslav P., was inadequate so I declined it and requested a refund at which point he disappeared and as of today Igor, the salesperson contends that Viacheslav P. is too busy.

This is unethical to take money then you are too busy to deliver and or refund. Please note that the core issue here is that the designer took off for two weeks at a critical time and the lack of English proficiency within the whole team to facilitate an average understanding and communication of the project so that the velocity is acceptable.

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

They team meetings with the client then amongst themselves. If the project is complex they have too many meetings and very little delivered

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

Nothing. I do not recommend this company at all

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

Ability to deliver is minimal. English proficiency within the whole team is average. Inability to handle errors and to be adequately staffed when their team members are on vacation or unavailable

Company Responses

The vendor responded on October 25, 2021.

1. The Discovery phase to create specifications and UX started January 2019 with a timeline of up to 6 weeks.

2. We never even started the actual development. Client was invoiced only for $4,000 total and paid this amount for accepted part of wireframes and technical documentation.

3. We had meetings with the client almost every other day with them lasting for up to 3 hours.  At some point we’ve realised that these meetings don’t produce any value and the project is stuck. Seeing this, we decided to stop the engagement (after more than 100 hours of unbilled work) and transfer all the work done (and accepted and paid) so far as we clearly had severe communication issues.

4. Our UI/UX specialist took a 4-day vacation after the kick-off meeting. The BA was present to aggregate information. The other 2-week vacation was planned from 28th February, right after the Discovery Phase was supposed to end, which the client was warned about.

5. In September 2021 (two and a half years later) the client returned asking us to start the estimation based on the materials he created on his own and kick-off the development process. Citing the previous experience we had, we declined the opportunity to estimate and develop the product.

6. What followed were a series of threats and personal offenses of the involved team members.

7. After we declined to continue work on the client’s platform, the above posted review appeared.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CTO of a financial services organization.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

 What challenge were you trying to address with Steelkiwi?

We were looking for a software company with whom we could build a long-term partnership with. We really wanted a high skilled, reliable partner with the ability to scale.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The team works across two independent applications. One is an internal business application and the other is our external customer-facing application. The team works in Django. They offer design work and front-and backend coding.

What is the team composition?

We have one project manager, one designer, one business analyst, three backend developers, one frontend developer, one QA specialist, and two DevOps engineers.

How did you come to work with Steelkiwi?

We did a lot of searching on the internet, including Clutch. We narrowed it down to a shortlist of suitable offshore development agencies. We had an interview process with a number of firms. In the end, Steelkiwi had the right mix of friendly staff that were highly skilled and able to provide the services we needed.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in February 2019, and our work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our applications have been developed with very impressive, high-quality code. We use some highly complicated user authentication rules and we have a focus on security and privacy. Steelkiwi has delivered on all of our requirements. The applications are all clean and modern for user engagement. We’re very pleased with the outcome.

How did Steelkiwi perform from a project management standpoint?

Everything has been great. We’ve refined our workflow practice and cadence to suit the growing complexity of our projects. The approach has always been collaborative and outcome-focused. A lot of concern is paid to the long-term sustainability of the team. We use Slack, Jira, Confluence, Trello, InVision, and Figma.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The team is committed to first-class outcomes. The team is friendly and they work very hard in their roles. The finished product always surpasses our expectations.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, we’re constantly reflecting on our processes. It demonstrates the commitment to our partnership.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

My advice is to be engaged and clear with your requirements.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the co-founder of an online marketplace that allows children to swap their secondhand items.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Steelkiwi?

We needed their team to develop our e-commerce platform.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Steelkiwi developed our online selling platform from scratch while keeping our specific requirements in mind. We relayed these requirements along with our preferences during a brainstorming session with their team. 

Since our customers were children, Steelkiwi built custom software solutions and design materials that were appropriate for our target age group. We asked them to build two-layer controls that allowed parents and guardians to monitor the purchasing activities of their children.

We’re currently in the process of refining our tools to provide our users with a smoother e-market experience.

What is the team composition?

We initially worked with a project manager and a web designer. Steelkiwi would then upgrade their team depending on the project phase and our development needs.

How did you come to work with Steelkiwi?

Our team first looked into the top development agencies in the world to help us decide on our preferred e-market model. Upon studying these, we realized that we preferred a mid-sized team with a reliable portfolio and good project management skills. Those qualifications led us to discover Steelkiwi’s team.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent over $100,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started in September 2019, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve been getting a great deal of positive feedback from our users who especially like our platform’s design and usability. Steelkiwi’s pool of talented resources continues to strive hard to meet our expectations and change our platform for the better.

How did Steelkiwi perform from a project management standpoint?

We use tools such as Jira and Trello to keep track of their progress, but they haven’t been able to consistently rely on one tool for a smoother process. While there’ve been instances where the expenses and activities could’ve been managed and tracked better, Steelkiwi remains receptive to our feedback and understanding of our business needs.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We were most impressed with Steelkiwi’s pool of talents and their willingness to collaborate with our team. Their partnership spirit has been evident throughout our engagement.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Steelkiwi can consider focusing more on their project management approach. Their future clients can benefit more from a transparent and natural workflow.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the Managing Director of a digital technologies company that specializes in the design and development of digital platform solutions.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We were looking for a reliable software development company to build a long-term, ongoing working relationship with to develop and maintain a commercial release of a customer engagement platform we had developed an initial MVP version for.

SOLUTION

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

We identified Steel Kiwi in 2016 when we were looking to expand our development capability by adding an external outsourced team. We began work with them on some test projects. They were highly responsive, reliable, deliver what they promise, and added additional capabilities to our team.

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

Our project was a complex customer engagement and reporting platform with a sophisticated administration and management console. The solution was built using Python and the Django Framework. The team developed a fully commercially ready solution from an initial MVP to reference.

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

We have worked with 8 people, all of which have been excellent. The engagement was led by the Managing Director who in my opinion is one of the most professional people I have had the pleasure to work with. We have also worked directly with 1 x project manager, 2 x back end developers, 1 x front end developers, 1 x business analyst, 1 x quality assurance specialist, and 1 x infrastructure, specialist. All team members have been professional and suitably equipped to perform their roles.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our project was delivered on time, on budget, and exceeded our expectations.

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

The company has a very good project management structure that is the best I have experienced. Communication is efficient, timely, accurate and most importantly upfront. The company uses all of the latest tools that support their excellence in this area.

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

Their professionalism, capability, and reliability. These are the three most important characteristics we look for in a development team.

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

The company is constantly improving their own processes. I have nothing more to add that they aren't already doing.