Gyroscopic

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We’re an engineering and consulting company based in Ontario. We have five locations in the region and service clients in both the public and private sectors. I’m the president and CEO.

What challenges were you trying to address with Gyroscopic?

We had a number of analog processes and disjointed systems for collecting data. We were looking to optimize our processes and digitize our data collection and data management system.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They developed mobile apps for field data collection and a desktop application we could use in the lab and the office. The platform allows us to seamlessly collect data in the field and notify the lab of the samples collected.

What is the team composition?

We worked with 4–5 people. I wasn’t directly involved with the team, but I was there during meetings and check-ins. 

How did you come to work with Gyroscopic?

They’re a local firm, and they’re clients of our town’s innovation cluster. I met them through the cluster, and we built a relationship from there. 

How much have you invested with them?

I believe we spent somewhere between $50,000–$60,000. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in the summer of 2019. The engagement is ongoing, but we’re now in more of a maintenance phase.  

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

We saw a reduction in transcription errors because the data wasn’t being inputted in multiple systems as it was previously. We’re also able to anticipate our staffing needs based on past sample collection trends. For example, we can predict when we might see an influx in samples, and then we can plan accordingly. The system is quicker and adds value to our reporting and analysis. 

Custom software development made so much more sense for us than out-of-the-box software. We’d previously been using enterprise platforms, but they were difficult to customize to our needs and it ended up not being cost-effective in most cases. We’re much happier with the system that Gyroscopic developed. Their optimizations have saved us upwards of $100,000 so far. 

How did Gyroscopic perform from a project management standpoint?

They were great. The team was clear in their approach. We had a discovery phase, some initial concept provisions, and then we moved on to development. They worked through sprints. The team was energized and capable, and they stuck to deadlines. We were able to switch to a new system without interfering with our work. 

We commuted via phone, email, and in-person. They used their own internal project management tools as well. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their responsiveness is most impressive. They understood what our needs were and provided great ideas. They had an eye for the future when they built this platform and made it easy for us to add new features and capabilities. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

Nothing comes to mind. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers? 

Invest the time in the beginning to discuss your business and your intentions. The more they understand about your business, the easier it will be for them to see your potential and future opportunities for your business. There may be additional processes that can be optimized that you hadn’t even thought about. 

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the co-founder of a workplace strategy forum and service-enabled software company. We help organizations adopt workforce modeling as well as flexible and agile work practices.  

What challenge were you trying to address with Gyroscopic?

We had developed software and we were looking to migrate it to a firm where they could take it to the next version.

What was the scope of their involvement?

As a first phase, they onboarded our software and took over its support. When it’s deployed to different organizations, they support that launch, do troubleshooting, and support the database, as well as the results.

Currently, they’re about 90% finished with a rebuild of the software, where they’ve taken what we have and built it onto a new platform with a new language. The team identified enhancements and it will also have a different look and feel.

What is the team composition?

We work with three people from their team.

How did you come to work with Gyroscopic?

They were a referral from a colleague.

How much have you invested with them?

We spend under $10,000 per month.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in September 2019, and our work is ongoing.

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

For us, it’s all about responsiveness for our end clients. If there are any issues with the software, the metrics for us are how quickly Gyroscopic responds. The second piece is their ability to improve on our previous model. They’ve improved how we’re hosted, and how we can streamline processes with greater affordability.

How did Gyroscopic perform from a project management standpoint?

They use an agile development project management tool and made it accessible to us. Beyond that, they keep us in touch with what’s going on. We have weekly standups where we touch base so that we can talk about coming launches or issues and enhancements. Overall, they’re quite communicative.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their qualifications really stand out. The principal that we deal with as well as the other customer service representatives are very solid. We have a lot of trust and confidence in them and their ability to resolve our issues.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They’re in a relative incubation phase and aren’t a fully mature organization yet, so they’re still figuring out which structures work for them to satisfy their client base. That being said, their responsiveness and willingness help them get through that.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

My advice is to do your due diligence and research. No matter how good a company seems, it’s important to make sure they’re good at what you need them to do.