The Gnar Company

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the CEO of a financial data and document distribution firm to investment management firms.

For what projects/services did your company hire The Gnar Company, and what were your goals?

We were spending countless hours manually dissecting and reporting mass amounts of data to a large number of industry databases in varying formats. We wanted to remove the margin for error with built in detection, expedite our reporting and streamline the data flow from our managers.  We realized to remain competitive in our market we needed to automate our process.  We hired GNAR to built a manager portal and a proprietary software solution to automate our client data for distribution by us.

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

We did a comprehensive search and spoke with 5 firms in total.  It was clear from my initial conversation GNAR was the perfect fit.  While cost was a factor, more critical to my decision was the firm understood, on some level, the financial industry to better understand our end goals.   In my first conversations with Pete Whiting, Director of Marketing, it was evident he understood my firm and what I was trying to achieve. 

He also offered some valuable input with ideas I hadn't conisidered.  Speaking with some of the development team it was evident they we highly skilled and the right match for us as well.  Personality was also key, we had a lot of work to do together so fit was important and they were all awesome to work with!

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

The project involved developing a manager portal & software application to automate mass amounts of data to very specific individualized template formats for reporting to external databases.  We started with a discovery phase to assess the project, cost and expected deliverables.  Impressed, I hired them at that point and we created a scope of work outlining the project and timeline.  I worked with a senior developer to design/develop the user interface. 

Then moved on to work with 2 additionla senior developers to code the software.  Prior to starting, we reviewed at length, the data being reported and output expectations for every template we needed to automate to.  This was a very in-depth process for all involved.  We used Trello to track progress, Heroku to build the application and AWS to host it.   

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

Pete Whiting, Head of Marketing and Client Service was my initial point of contact for the discovery phase.  He participated in weekly development calls and stayed on top of the entire project end to end.  Josh Hathaway, Jon Yurek and Ethan Fertsch were all senior developers on my team when we started, each playing a different role. 

Josh built the user interface while Jon and Ethan developed the coding for the software.  All were impressive with their skillset and knowleadge and fantastic to work with!

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

We had calls every Monday morning to review Trello Board and discuss expected outcomes for the week.  We had a call every Friday to discuss how the week went, deliverables and any issues we encountered in the week. We also discussed any concerns at that time. 

Nothing is without hiccups, mainly on our end in capturing very specific buckets for the mass amount of data output required.  They produced an exceptional product on time and had really great ideas throughout the entire process. 

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

I was extremely impressed with the communication at GNAR from day one.  They excel in this area which was important given the complexity around this project.  We used Trello to communicate around tasks and deliverables and had scheduled calls every Monday & Friday.

What did you find most impressive or unique a

I found everything impressive about GNAR.  Each individual I worked with was highly skilled in their respective roles and all fantastic to work with.  The communication was exceptionla and they offered out great ideas, more efficient ways things could be done if applicable and were cost conscious.  I would recommend them to anyone.

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

No.  These guys were on point start to finish. If something could be done more efficiently they made a suggestion and we made changes.  I was extremely pleased with all aspects of the project.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m an engineering manager at a two-sided marketplace for business catering. We service people looking for catering services, as well as catering partners who want to get their restaurants or businesses online to sell their services. 

What challenge were you trying to address with The Gnar Company?

We needed some capable and expert-level engineers to supplement our internal team. 

What was the scope of their involvement?

The Gnar Company provided staff augmentation services. They were hands-on software engineers who wrote and tested code. The resources collaborated with us to make sure that they were working on the right tasks.

They were fully embedded in our team. We didn’t have a narrow scope or fixed deliverables; rather, we knew we’d need The Gnar Company’s help for three or more months. They did a lot of their work in Ruby on Rails.

What is the team composition?

We worked with two developers, one of whom was also a partner of The Gnar Company,

How did you come to work with The Gnar Company?

One of their developers was already working with my company when I joined. Then, I knew the other developer from the industry as well as locally. I was familiar with both The Gnar Company’s work and each individual’s work. 

How much have you invested with them?

My company spent $10,000–$50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from August–December 2019. 

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

The quality of their code was really good — it was well-tested and well-factored. It was clear that they’d been working with technology for a long time. The code is still in production today.

From an interpersonal perspective, they were very professional, collaborative, and insightful, all of which are as important as the quality of the code. They were really great partners, not only in getting the work done but also in helping us drive the software in the right direction.

How did The Gnar Company perform from a project management standpoint?

They performed really well. They were on time, and when expectations were set, they met them. The team overcommunicated when they needed to. They used the project management tools we had in place. I was very pleased with the interaction that we had and the deliverables that we expected of them.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The Gnar Company’s professionalism, enthusiasm, and ownership of the technology space distinguished them. I never felt that they wouldn’t be able to do anything that we threw at them — they were ultra-capable and ultra-enthusiastic about the type and level of work that we were looking for.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t think so — I would hire them again.

Any advice for potential customers?

Make sure that everything lines up in terms of what the client needs and the Gnar resource implementing it. They’re experts at what they do; I’d just find the right person to slot into what you need to get the most out of the engagement.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the VP of engineering at a large advertising technology company.

What challenge were you trying to address with The Gnar Company?

The company wanted to plug a recently acquired startup into a larger application. The project had aggressive timelines, so we needed to engage resources that could help us meet our existing commitments and timeline for delivering this larger application.

What was the scope of their involvement?

The Gnar worked alongside our existing engineering team to build the product. Their team used Go— a backend language — and React on the frontend.

What is the team composition?

We had two consultants from The Gnar join our company. They operated as software engineers on my team.

How did you come to work with The Gnar Company?

A friend of mine recommended The Gnar after working with their team.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project started in December 2019 and ended in May 2020.

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

I would describe the engagement as highly successful. We were concerned about adding people into an ongoing project, worrying that it would cause more of a disruption than would return benefits. Based on the quality of The Gnar’s talent, they were able to contribute quickly. Over the course of the project, their team added tremendous value.

How did The Gnar Company perform from a project management standpoint?

The Gnar used all of our tools, so Slack, Gmail, and GitHub. Their team effectively used them.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I was impressed with their ability to hit the ground running. Their team had strategies to address my concerns about potential disruptions by adding new players to the team. They allayed our concerns and helped us execute the project.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Honestly, they nailed it. The Gnar did great.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Don’t hesitate to reach out to The Gnar.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a project manager in the IT department for a property and casualty insurance company.

What challenge were you trying to address with The Gnar Company?

They’re bolstering our in-house development to build a web-based app for our insurance agents.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Using the app, they will be able to enter insurance quotes and submit applications for new insurance policies. They’re basically creating the forms that we need for our core system and validation.

The Gnar Company is using React for the frontend and is providing a lot of expertise in how the UI is built.

What is the team composition?

We just worked with one person.

How did you come to work with The Gnar Company?

A former colleague of mine referred me to them. They were one of 3–4 organizations we considered, but they delivered the best value proposition. They have extensive experience, are flexible, and are willing to integrate with our team. The people seemed like a good fit for our team, too.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent between $250,000­–$300,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in April 2020 and the project is ongoing.

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

They never fail to deliver. They’ve provided a high-caliber resource and I’m really happy with how we work together. The person we’re working with is a good person and they’ve been able to integrate with our team. We don’t view them as a third-party all. Overall, our experience has been very positive.

How did The Gnar Company perform from a project management standpoint?

They follow an agile framework and work in two-week sprints. There’s a continuous flow of work being delivered.

I speak with our contact weekly and chat with their account manager once a month just to check in on how things are going.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They bring a lot of experience to the project. They also have a positive attitude and are dedicated to the team. As a result, they really help carry our team forward.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, they’ve exceeded our expectations.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Future clients should trust them and take advantage of their extensive knowledge and expertise. We’re using them specifically for the UI, but I think we could have used their advice on other aspects of the project as well.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the president of First Line Technology. Our business is focused on building products for first responders and the military that deal with responses to chemical and biological warfare, as well as emergency response. We’ve commercialized a number of products from labs and universities, as well as transitioned into soft products like training.

What challenge were you trying to address with The Gnar Company?

One of the key products we sell to first responders is used for multiple types of threats — from Ebola to Coronavirus. We were handing our customers a booklet to carry around, which was difficult, so we wanted to transition that product into an application that would help them combat whatever threat they faced.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We had another application prior developed by another company. We’d sent it out to users across the country and globe but were stuck because the vendor had only repurposed the old code they had, making it hard to upgrade and transform in the future. Meeting with Gnar Company, our first objective was to look at the old code and see what they could do with it. In the end, we decided they should start from scratch. That was a tough pill to swallow and required us to have a lot of trust in them.

First, we had scoping meetings to discuss what the app (called the Decon Field Guide) would be used for and give Gnar a crash course on how to respond to chemical warfare agents. From there, we talked about redesigning the app and gathering and implementing feedback from customers of the old app. Our internal marketing team did the graphics work, and Gnar built those graphics into the application. They then developed wireframes and moved into development. This all resulted in a cleaner, easier-to-navigate UI. Moving on, they redesigned our WordPress system that linked to the same database as the mobile application used.

Previously, the app was an information guide, but Gnar took it to another level. We shared pain points and they delivered new functionality. Rather than having only text, we now have pictures and images to enhance comprehension. There’s also an index feature that lets customers search for threats, and even corrects typos to show users the information they need even if they typed something in incorrectly. There’s also a timer function that users asked for, which helps customers apply our other products for the correct amount of time when they’re cleaning chemical threats. Gnar also built out analytics features like time-on-page measurements and more. It’s an iOS and Android solution.

What is the team composition?

We worked with 4-5, and Pete (Head of Growth and Client Service) was our main point of contact. We also worked with a UI developer and a programmer (who was quick to turn things around), among others.

How did you come to work with The Gnar Company?

It was by chance, actually. I was frustrated by our old company and the work they’d done, and Gnar happened to email me. I happened to have a trip planned to Boston, where they’re based, in a few weeks and they responded quickly to my asking if I could visit and talk to them about some of our challenges with the application. During that meeting, they immediately started spitballing ideas onto a blackboard. They even looked at the application beforehand. The quote they followed with was a bit over the budget we were looking for since we were hoping to repurpose the old app, but it’s been money absolutely well spent.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $140,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from January until July 2020. Even though COVID-19, they were able to do everything remotely. We were always going to work remotely but nothing held them down or slowed them up.

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

We had around 1,800 users on the old application, which is sizable for our industry, but we’re at nearly 3,000 users on the new app. The feedback we’re getting from our end-users call it clean and friendly; they’re actually using it as a reference material as we intended.

Beyond numbers, we wanted people to be engaged on the app, rather than have a dormant solution. Previously, we’d have one user over 2–3 days, and now, we have 10–15 people on the app every day.

We’re not directly using the application — it’s our customers, and their feedback is that it’s a massive improvement. Our first responder community doesn’t get a lot of good apps, and they’re amazed that Gnar was able to deliver exactly what they needed without being first responders themselves.

How did The Gnar Company perform from a project management standpoint?

They used Trello to help us communicate on a regular basis, doing a good job of updating what was pending on both sides. Every week, we had to the point, direct meetings to churn through issues. This really helped us keep pace with where we needed to be. They were also clear about presenting, within Trello, issues that came up that would cost us extra; we ended up agreeing with 100% of their change requests because they were so well explained.

What did you find most impressive about them?

It’s their whole “I care” factor. We weren’t just a project to them. Even now, they catch up and ask how the app is running, and not from a sales standpoint. They really care about our end-users. Project management was key to them, as we wanted to meet some conference and launch-plan deadlines.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Pete has been our main point of contact, and he’s been outstanding. If one of his coders was slowing the project down, he immediately brought in someone new. Explaining some of the issues to a new coder would be the one challenge I would say, but that’s also normal to have to do in business.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Companies are hesitant about explaining what they want as an end-product to folks for privacy concerns, but we told them where we were and what we needed the end to be. From there, we let them present how to get us there. I’m a computer science person, but I gave them a lot more flexibility. I would advise people not to over-control; trust them.