GP Solutions

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are an online platform for curated, spontaneous weekend getaways. The idea behind our solution is making it as easy as possible for users to get information on all the possible options for the upcoming weekend at a glance in terms of destinations. Instead of endless searches for specific objectives, we provide a dynamic portfolio based on seasonality and current events that we distribute to users, customized to their location. We know that, if a user lives in Munich, they'd prefer Munich Airport as their departure point. We give them their best options within their immediate vicinity, which are bookable with the press of a single button, instead of undergoing an endless comparison and research process. We act as an online concierge service. 

I am the founder of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with GP Solutions?

We had the decision between building our platform in-house and contracting resources. Given the lack of affordable tech specialists in Munich and the fact that travel is a very specific industry, we talked to several companies with knowledge of the field. GP Solutions has a hub technology and inventory system available, which we could use instead of building 100 percent of our solution from scratch. We spoke to several other companies but, ultimately, chose GP Solutions because they fell in love with our project and understood it from the start. It's always important, in my opinion, that the people involved in the project actually enjoy it.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

GP Solutions built our solution using a variety of technologies. Approximately 40 to 50 percent of our product is based on their platform. We have a custom backend as well as a custom front-end mobile and desktop solution. We mostly worked with PHP and HTML for custom development. Their backend solution is primarily Java-based. 

Other travel platforms build packages and sell them to anyone, no matter if they live in London or Munich. Expedia simply sells everything, giving an overload of information. We, on the other hand, have a dynamic portfolio through which anything can be thrown into the system. It will then, based on various criteria, select the best products, package them automatically and distribute them. We have 180 different packages online, each with its own sub-components. We distribute the right components to the right users based on location, preferences and other factors. We have the same amount of inventory as Expedia, but the user is not overloaded by it. The distribution of content is the most essential part of our software.

This part of our platform is in constant development. We continually add new preferences that the user can set as well as machine learning functionalities. We aim to achieve a system that learns progressively and builds packages based on user preference.

How did you come to work with GP Solutions?

We spoke to some of the largest and most commonly known providers in Germany. GP Solutions was found more by accident. We did a standard evaluation process and ultimately chose them due to their passion for the project and the fact that they made themselves available promptly. The other companies in Germany had wait times of up to six months before we could get started. GP Solutions was able to help us immediately and told us that we could scale the team as we needed. It was exactly what we were looking for.

How much have you invested with GP Solutions?

The total development cost so far has been around $280,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We initially worked on a project basis but, for the last year, we've had a fixed team at GP Solutions. The first prototype of our platform was completed in November 2015. The majority of the automation features were ready at that point. Four weeks ago [March 2015], we launched a version with a fully automated backend.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

We've received positive feedback for the fact that we are the first travel website to offer dynamic packages without any search fields. The front-end is completely different to any other travel site. It is more akin to a magazine. Engagement has been quite good so far. The only drawback has been that the site is members only, although memberships are free. We haven't gathered significant metrics at this point, due to the short period in which we've been on the market.

How did GP Solutions perform from a project management standpoint?

They've been able to deliver work within budget and time, especially in the beginning, when we worked on the launch of our first prototype and had a clear work scope. When we entered the market, we were confronted with new challenges and feedback every day. This led to changes in scope and, inevitably, to some delays. Also, the more complex the project becomes, the more bugs we encounter.

They've used the same project management tool as us – JIRA. It was very easy to communicate and keep track of everything. The project has been great and well managed.

What did you find most impressive about GP Solutions?

I don't have prior experience with any offshore developer, so I don't have a basis for comparison. The only thing I could assume applies to GP Solutions is that they're quite devoted to the project. They feel associated with their team, which is very important. Normally, when working with an offshore IT service provider, there is a distancing that I didn't see in GP Solutions.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We arrange and prepare travel packages from Northern Europe to destinations overseas – that means to Africa, South America, North America, and Asia. We put those packages together with partners at the destinations. We sell it as a complete package – international flights, touring programs, car rentals, and hotels – whatever needs to be included in a full tour. The customer pays one price for a complete package. That's what we put together. Then, we organize it, market it, sell it, and make sure that everything works as planned. In short, we are a travel agency.

I am the managing director.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with GP Solutions?

The first challenge was to develop what we call a variable pricing calculator. We had a need to build an automated way of calculating selling prices and offerings costs on our web pages. This used to be a manual process, which took a lot of time and effort. We had many prices and many tools, so that was a huge task and it was prone to periodic errors. The original idea was to develop a calculator with some settings, some functions, and prices, and putting in basics so that it could really calculate what the price for a specific tour would be. We needed a calculator that could take all this information, calculate it into a selling price, and then automatically post it on our web pages. That was really the original scope of our collaboration.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They provided all the data, algorithms used for the formulas, and implementing them as well. We are non-technicians. We are business people, salespeople, and marketing people. The technical knowledge of how to do this was very low in our case. We needed somebody who could actually understand the business idea and translate that into the final product, including helping us with defining the scope – what should be included, what should not be included, what's the technical platform, and preparing all the algorithms.

We just described what it was that we wanted, and they went from there. They were very much involved in taking it from the conceptual idea to the result and then making sure that we program it the way we should so that it worked. They were very much involved in all the technical things.

The second project that they worked with us on was our other website. It used to be in an HTML, old-fashioned code version, and we needed to have it on a modern content management system. They handled this data migration for us. They programmed the CMS [content management system] and created the platform, templates, pictures, and setups. We said, "This is our website as it is today. We need it on a new technical platform," and that's what they did.

They did all the technical work – the background coding that was necessary to set it up and make it functional. The content management system they deployed was WordPress. Here, my knowledge is limited, whether that needs a second coding language, but the platform was WordPress. That is nothing fancy, but it was the actual task of getting it in there and programming it into that.

We had one project manager on both projects. We have been in touch with her, and with three colleagues on the team that had various tasks. We had a team dedicated to us, but we have always had a project manager that was really our go-to person, and then we had some of her colleagues involved whenever it was necessary. We never met them in person as they are in Eastern Europe and we are in Denmark, but we have frequent Skype calls. We actually feel pretty close to them after one and a half years of collaboration.

How did you come to work with GP Solutions?

We identified them online along with some others, I think. We felt confident that they would be a good fit based on their previous work.

How much have you invested with GP Solutions?

We have probably spent $200,000 to $250,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The most recent project was completed early August this year [2015]. Both of them, actually – they finished at the same time. They were run in parallel. We run 15 websites in five different countries, so we had to organize and synchronize their launches. We also had to move to a new platform system to make sure they did everything at one time. They had to run in parallel throughout the process, so that was an additional layer of complexity.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

We don't have any specific statistics, and that's probably on our part. When we started the project – especially the pricing calculator project – we had no idea how long it would take and what it would really cost. That was not their fault, they made some good estimates, but we changed a lot of the scope along the way, so the project turned out to be bigger than we actually thought it was going to be. We didn't have any benchmarks at the beginning. We just had the idea and we said, "We need this because this is smart, and this can help us." Then we just started.

We don't really have any benchmarks or targets on what we should end up with, compared to what we actually did end up with. It was definitely more expensive than I had expected, but the result is also different than we originally expected. The calculator can actually do many more things than we originally thought was necessary. I can't share that with you because I don't have it.

Our marketing team consists of four people who are working with it on a daily basis. The feedback from them is that WordPress and the new website work great. It's a lot easier to work with. We save a lot of time because we can just upload directly into this platform. That was great, and the pricing calculator saves us an enormous amount of time in not having to complete the task manually. This was done through our colleagues in the office, but they don't do it anymore because the pricing calculator is doing it automatically. There's no question about it that this has given us some big savings and big efficiency increases, apart from the fact that we have a sharper pricing tool for our clients. We've had many benefits out of this.

How did GP Solutions perform from a project management standpoint?

They have their own project management tool, which we have access to but, honestly, we never really used it, because we were relying on GP to control it, which they did. We were just describing what we wanted, we had some milestones in place, and they followed those. It was only when we came with new ideas and new requests that they had to change the timeframe. They managed it, and we were not involved in the project management, they took care of it. They had their own project management tool for this process.

What did you find most impressive about GP Solutions?

One thing GP Solutions has been very good at is understanding our needs. They have not had a need for us to write a 50-page requirement specification. We have been able to explain on the phone or on Skype, and say, "We would like a pricing calculator that can do this, this, and this." They were very good at understanding what it was we wanted, and very shortly thereafter, they came back with some test versions of this and said, 'Is this what you have in mind?'

They are technically very talented. They can solve any issues we might have. I've also worked with other development companies, and it's not often that you work with somebody who understands what you need from a business perspective. "This is what I want, and this is what I need for my business." There have been no misunderstandings. They have been very good at understanding, "OK, this is what you need. Great. This is what we build." I think that really distinguishes them.

I'm not a tech guy, I can't really judge the quality of the technical work. I can say that the solution works, and they have given us what we asked for without really having to spend time on describing it in detail. I think this has been great for us. It saved a lot of time in the process by simply having been able to explain to them what we wanted and then have them deliver it. I don't see that very often in IT [information technology] development companies.

Are there any areas GP Solutions could improve?

One point, which is not a big point, but it's there. I think once you go through a program for a client like us, I think it's very important for the development company to make sure that they test the product thoroughly before they actually send it back to us. We can't check it, and we can't see it, so once we start to use it, we will trust that it works.

There have been a few cases where there are some minor things in the system that don't really seem right, a doc doesn't scan right, or a number is not where it should be. We only find out when we start working with it. I would like to think that they could maybe do a little more on the testing part before they actually gave it back to us. They should really focus on testing, but the functionality of the system is 100%.

There have been a few issues where we have seen, "OK, this doesn't work 100%. When you push this button, nothing happens." There are a hundred buttons in there, but when you push one of them it doesn't happen, because there was one tick in the programming that wasn't ticked off, or whatever it was. Small things, but still things that I would like to say, "Check it before you go live, and then send it back to us." It's a small thing, but it's still there. If I have to point out one area they could improve, it's to make sure that they do thorough testing before they send it back to us.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Our company provides value to OTAs [online travel agencies], airlines, and other travel suppliers as a trusted and efficient channel to promote their products and services to a highly targeted audience focused on purchasing travel. Our goal is to deliver value through innovative technology, which has not been provided by others in the growth sector of the Russian travel market. We show travelers the advantages of planning their trips through a metasearch engine. 

I'm the chief executive officer.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with GP Solutions?

The first challenge of the project was its deadline. The project had to be launched within around two months after the contract was signed. The project scope included back-office system development and creation of the original user-friendly interface to give the website a competitive edge.

The user interface is very specific due to its special way of displaying search results by visually explaining to the visitor how the ticket price is dependable on the departure and arrival time, number of stops or connection time, turning search process into an easy and funny experience.

Another challenge was to allow our clients to compare airline tickets prices by aggregating results from a number of Russian major ticket wholesalers and show a side-by-side comparison of the best deals, redirecting the visitor to the vendor's website to book the best-found offer.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They've been responsible for building the core functionality and the visual presentation, too. We've provided them with basic mockups and details documents explaining our specific requirements, and they've built out the solution from there. The GP team also provides us with ongoing maintenance and support. 

When was this project completed?

We launched the site back in 2011, but like I said, we continue to use them for support and ad hoc improvements. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

I don't have any figures or statistics to share, but I can tell you that the site functions and performs very well. We haven't had many issues with defective code, and the number of support inquiries we've received since launch has also definitely improved. We're pleased with their work and continue to use their development services on a regular basis.

What did you find most impressive about GP Solutions?

They have a lot of experience working with technology solutions for the travel industry. It's really their main skill set. A lot of the challenges we went to them for were things they've already solved in the past, solutions they'd already tested previously. Being able to draw from that past experience and use it to guide the development process is very effective.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

 I am the CEO of a wellness travel company.

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

We are the leading tour operator for health and wellness travel world wide.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire GP Solutions to accomplish?

• Build a new ERP system

SOLUTION

How did you find GP Solutions?

Referral

Why did you select GP Solutions over others?

• Close to my geographic location
• Pricing fit our budget
• Good value for cost

How many teammates from GP Solutions were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Build API connections to partners. Implement endpoints for admin frontend. Development of customer specific software for travel use cases

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

API do work well and our CTO is very satisfied.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

We manage the project ourself

What was your primary form of communication with GP Solutions?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

Fast recruitment, they are highly skilled developers

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

n/a

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the President of a hospitality & leisure company 

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Destination Management in North America for international travel companies  (B2B) 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire GP Solutions to accomplish?

• Rewrite existing custom application

SOLUTION

How did you find GP Solutions?

Tradeshows

Why did you select GP Solutions over others?

• High ratings
• Good value for cost
• Company values aligned
• Engaging professional staff

How many teammates from GP Solutions were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Update code to latest Angular version and add user functionality.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Project delivered as  agreed upon.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Responsible and time consious.

What was your primary form of communication with GP Solutions?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

Engagement and sense of duty.

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

All was delivered as expected, no specific further comments.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Counsel Link, CTO of LexisNexis

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Provider of legal, government, business and high-tech information sources.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire GP Solutions to accomplish?

• Assist in building and maintaining Contract Lifecycle Management platform

SOLUTION

How did you find GP Solutions?

Referral

Why did you select GP Solutions over others?

• High ratings
• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from GP Solutions were assigned to this project?

6-10 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Augmented our core development team.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Predictable feature delivery, great customer feedback on the features built by the team.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Very dedicated and responsible team, consistently delivered features on time and with high quality.

What was your primary form of communication with GP Solutions?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

They have excellent developers, great management, and values that align perfectly with my company's principles.

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

No.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Unit Manager of Itransition

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Itransition is a trusted global software development company with more than 20 years of professional experience. We deliver a full spectrum of software consulting and development services to clients from more than 30 countries.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire GP Solutions to accomplish?

• Senior Ruby Developer to participate in development together with our team and help the customer to reach the project's goals faster.

SOLUTION

How did you find GP Solutions?

Partnership Companies Cclub

Why did you select GP Solutions over others?

• High ratings
• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from GP Solutions were assigned to this project?

1 Employee

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

• Software development
• Unit-testing
• DevOps activities

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

• Delivery of the project in time
• satisfied customer

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Everything is great, and contact is always immediate

What was your primary form of communication with GP Solutions?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

• responsiveness, attention to detail, and willingness to go above and beyond to meet the needs
• values collaboration, teamwork, and open communication to achieve mutual success
• qualified specialists, innovative solutions, cutting-edge technologies

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

Strengthening relationships with existing customers for business growth :)

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the VP of Finance

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

AI-powered B2C prospecting & sales outreach automation

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire GP Solutions to accomplish?

• Develop back-end code

SOLUTION

How did you find GP Solutions?

Online Search

Why did you select GP Solutions over others?

• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from GP Solutions were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Build API for web application and support the application in production under heavy load 

Deliverables: Code

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Web application was successfully developed and customers are able to effectively pay for subscriptions.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

The developer hired through GP Solutions met all timelines for delivery and communicated effectively.

What was your primary form of communication with GP Solutions?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

GP Solutions had a wide selection of developers with different skill sets which made it easy to find the developers best suited for our projects.

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

No

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the head of marketing & product management of a startup providing B2B platform for food ingredients based in Düsseldorf, Germany.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire GP Solutions?

In order to improve our platform, we were looking for a professional designer who was able to develop a corporate design, implement it and transfer it to other areas like marketing. With GP Solutions we found a partner who could help us with an allround talent.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We searched online for designers, found GP Solutions and after talking to them, we were happy to work with them in multiple projects.

Describe the project in detail and walk through the stages of the project.

Our CTO and other developers set the base for our online B2B platform. With the help of GP Solutions, we redesigned the product in order to solve customer pain points and to implement our new corporate identity in design and wording styles. Whenever we received customer feedback, the UX/UI designer was quick to make changes.

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

My team (mainly our CTO and I, the product manager) worked directly with the UX/UI designer form GP Solutions.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We are very happy with the work of GP Solutions. Not only our expectations of the corporate design and the redesign of the platform but we also received positive feedback from customers and partners. We will continue to work with the provided items and designs.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The designer was easy to communicate with. Language barriers were easily overcome and exchanged messages were quickly being replied to. From new tasks to iterations and making changes - the designer always met or exceeded our requirements.

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

The skills of the designer were impressive. As a UX/UI designer it is not common to be able to create designs for social media posts, logos or posters but we were happy to work with an allround talented designer.

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

There's nothing they need to improve on.