Intellias

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the product manager of an information services company that provides locational data of different retailers and points of interest around the world.

What challenge were you trying to address with Intellias?

We were trying to add additional data to our datasets such as store size and other attributions.

What was the scope of their involvement? 

Intellias is helping us expand and manage our dataset. Using their own proprietary technology and the UI that we’ve built, they’ve helped us incorporate Google Maps into our product. They now research specific locations to attribute them with store sizes and other information. They send over the metadata via Google Sheets, input it directly into our UI, and do additional QA services.

What is the team composition? 

They’ve assigned an overall project lead who manages 12 senior members and 20–25 non-senior members.

How did you come to work with Intellias?

We first came across Intellias while searching for companies that specialized in geographic information system (GIS) mapping for Google and other search engines. They really sold us on their sales pitch presentation. The team put together a comprehensive PowerPoint PDF, breaking down the deliverables and coming up with several great questions about the scope of work. That just went to show how much attention to detail they were giving us.

How much have you invested with them?

Our run rate is about $18,000 per month.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project started in October 2020 and is still ongoing.

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

We’ve worked with about 4–5 companies in the same capacity, and Intellias has gone above and beyond. Every week, we have two meetings with them on edge cases and specific scenarios that we want to review. It’s clear that they do the best job at being accurate in terms of what we’re looking for, and they really feel like part of the team.

How did Intellias perform from a project management standpoint?

We’re able to automatically see their throughput throughout the day since they’re inputting data directly into our UI. As for communication, it’s been very fluid. They mostly use GoToMeeting or Zoom to screen share. We have daily updates, biweekly meetings, and monthly reviews.

What did you find most impressive about them?

A lot of our data has to do with American retail. Even though a lot of their team is not from America, they’ve come up to speed very quickly and have acquired a knowledge of the sector that many Americans would not have. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

They’re the best company we’ve worked with in this capacity, but there’s still a degree of human error that we’re continually trying to improve. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

You should facilitate a level and cadence of communication like we have because that’s what’s given us the best results.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m an engineering director with Omio, which is a travel aggregator.

What challenge were you trying to address with Intellias?

We’re using their services to extend our software development capacity for projects related to maintaining existing systems. When we have an immediate business need to scale beyond our momentary engineering capacity, we also leverage Intellias’s services.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Intellias mostly maintains our systems in the Java infrastructure. Their team makes sure that our systems work as expected and address additional requirements originating from our business partners. For example, they help integrate travel suppliers into our system.

Based on commercial needs and business opportunities, we occasionally need to quickly scale up the support for our engineering team. Intellias’s software engineers then quickly create data integrations to engage business partners in those opportunities. Their team works either independently or collaboratively with our in-house teams to develop and launch those projects.

What is the team composition?

We usually work with software engineers and team leaders. On average, we work with about 15 people, including a delivery manager.

How did you come to work with Intellias?

I wasn’t with the company when they selected Intellias.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Intellias in January 2017, and our collaboration’s ongoing. We extended it into next year.

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

We’re satisfied with the quality of service that Intellias provides. They’re able to deliver against the expected quality metrics — basically no bugs or production incidents. We’re happy with their flexibility, which allows us to scale up or down when it’s necessary. In most cases, we received qualified contractors with a few exceptions. Overall, we’re satisfied.

How did Intellias perform from a project management standpoint?

We usually have a project manager on our end who touches base with Intellias’s team daily. We follow an Agile methodology, which sets up a communication schedule. There rarely are problems

We use English documentation language. Their communication and knowledge are great. We haven’t had any problems with clarity or commitment.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I most appreciate their ability to quickly scale up or down the resources provided to us. That flexibility provides value. They’re a stable team working on projects that span multiple quarters. There isn’t often a change in the team’s set up or composition, which minimizes the cost of training and onboarding.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Most of the time, we’re satisfied with the service.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Know what you want to achieve and what specific skills you require. Intellias is flexible and will try to find the best solution for you. It helps to have a conversation about your expectations.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

My organization is called PTV Group. We’re a software company based in Germany. We’re specialists in software for traffic simulation, traffic management, and logistics applications for trucking companies. I’m the director of engineering and logistics application.

What challenge were you trying to address with Intellias?

We have some experience in development and we were lacking the next step, going onto the cloud. We decided to integrate all of our services into one new service holding. We needed some external help to speed up the development. We needed more knowledge for technologies our development team were unfamiliar with. We brought on Intellias to educate our team and help build up the platform.  

What was the scope of their involvement?

We’re a Microsoft partner, so we needed to use Agile as a base for this new product. We were also thinking about Docker. We asked specifically for people with background in that area. We had some workshops in the beginning, going back and forth on ideas with them, just to see if it was suitable. Their deliverables were focused primarily on training our team.

What is the team composition?

Then they brought in two people, one developer, and one cloud architect

How did you come to work with Intellias?

We held an RFP process and several companies made us an offer. If the offer was fine, we decided to have a workshop and test things out with them. Intellias was recommended by another company that we work with.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent about $300,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project started in April 2018 and we finished at the end of June 2020.

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

Our primary goal was getting our team up to speed, which we’ve achieved, so now we can continue on our own. By all means, it was successful. Now our team has the skillset we need.

How did Intellias perform from a project management standpoint?

They were attending our daily stand-ups, so it was very easy to measure the steps they were taking. They worked very closely with our team and communication was great because they talked several times daily. If something needed to be discussed, one of us would just pick up the phone and call. They even came and visited us a couple of times. Every two weeks we discussed progress, data, financial stuff, which helped everything work out well. They were very prepared and organized. It was a painless process.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We’ve worked with different external teams before, and in comparison, Intellias excels when it comes to management. They assigned us a personal manager that dealt with our account.

The second thing that impressed me was their enthusiasm. They really wanted to help us and bring us farther. It was extraordinary. They’re not only proficient in the services we needed for this project, but we were able to bring them on for other projects as well. They have a team with a broad skill set so we can bring them on quickly.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t really name everything. It was a really good collaboration.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Generally, try to find out what each party really needs so you can understand each other. You want them to be invested in your project.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the head of product at Onogo, an e-commerce platform that sells a range of different goods.

What challenge were you trying to address with Intellias?

We needed additional development help because we only had one developer working on our system.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We have one mid-level Java developer whose output and working style Intellias helps to manage. They give us weekly and bi-weekly updates on how he’s doing. They’re always looking at different ways they can help and offer suggestions.

What is the team composition?

There’s one point of contact and one team member. We are looking to potentially expand to another Java developer and a QA teammate.

How did you come to work with Intellias?

I researched 15 companies around the world and chose Intellias because they had the best offering.

How much have you invested with them?

We spend $5,000–$6,000 per month.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in January 2020 and the work is ongoing.

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

They bring in a fresh and modern approach that we don’t have. It comes down to process. Intellias asks the right questions, and if there’s a delay or any issues, they communicate right away. There haven’t been any issues, and they’re top-notch.

How did Intellias perform from a project management standpoint?

We use Jira for project management and Slack for communication. So far, communication is as needed and frequent. They review the requirements, ask any questions, provide an estimate, and based on the estimate, we have a due date. It’s been a good experience.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re a very good, professional company, and they have different positions. For example, if we wanted to do some short-term projects based on AI, we know we could use them.  

Are there any areas they could improve?

There’s nothing that stands out that I’d have them improve.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be very upfront about what you want. Asking a lot of questions will really help them in deciding who they bring on for you and will inform them of how they can help you going forward.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

"I’m a technical product owner for an electrical technology firm.

What challenge were you trying to address with Intellias?

We needed developers to help build our IoT product.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Intellias handled the front- and backend development of our IoT solution using JavaScript and a bit of Java. We collaborated on creating wireframes and mockups, but they provided their own UX designer. A highlight of the development process was their microservice architecture on the backend.

In addition to that, their team provided mobile app development and web presentation services. The apps were built using React Native and they serve as the content of our IoT product. The website was developed using React. Intellias also established a few of our continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD) processes.

What is the team composition?

The delivery manager was our main point of contact. There were two people on the mobile app team and two on the website team. We had 8–9 people working on the front- and backend team. Also, there were 1–2 UX designers depending on the project phase.

How did you come to work with Intellias?

The initiation occurred before my time here at the company, but there was a public RFP and they won the competition.

How much have you invested with them?

We invested $300,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project lasted from April–December 2019.

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

Intellias was very good at handling scope and short-term changes. At the end of the year, we had a lot of last-minute changes related to our company going through a restructuring process. Intellias was extremely flexible throughout all of this. What’s more, they did a fine job on the front- and backend of the website. The mobile app team, however, was still in the learning phase. Overall, the best parts about them were their flexibility and professional UX designers.

How did Intellias perform from a project management standpoint?

They worked with an agile scrum methodology. We mainly used Jira and communication went through the delivery manager. Throughout the process, we held standups and meetings with their whole team.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their flexibility and UX designers were very good. The rest was okay.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The mobile app developers were okay but they still have a lot to learn. In my opinion, they have room for improvement. Some of the developers did a lot of proactive implementation and communication, which was very good. However, there were some who struggled with the language barrier. This is often an issue with remote teams, but they’re still on an overall high level.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Make an effort to filter through and hand-select the people you want to work with. In other words, make it clear that you aren’t taking the B or C team members. We conducted interviews in order to do this and had a pretty good team in the end.

Please describe your company and your position there.

One of the big players and most innovative in the agrochemical industry. About 30.000 thousands employees worldwide. My position was Digital Delivery Manager, in charge to setup a dream team in Kiev to support the digital strategy of the company.

For what projects/services did your company hire Intellias?

A layer of transformative digital products and services for the farmers. It went from proof of concepts, tech spikes, integrations and extensions with other applications, mobile apps and a SaaS.

What were your goals for this project?

Build a core team in Kiev, part of a bigger network of digital product engineering teams.

How did you select this vendor?

A request of proposal was sent to different companies. Intellias was the most responsive and thorough in their answers.

Describe the project in detail.

We were a special client of Intellias in the sense that the team members we hired were working in our offices in Unit City (Innovative Business Center at the heart of Kiev). Intellias adapted their management style to accommodate to our demands. I was in contact of different representatives that had specific roles (HR, Delivery/Account manager, etc.). However I was in contact with my counterpart that was basically like a member of the company. The hiring process was transparent and it didn't feel like a process from a separate company.

What was the team composition?

We started with an agile team from Business Analysts, UX/UI Designers, Backend and Front End Developers (Java and React), QAs, Tech lead and one Devops at the end. (the team was around 30 people)

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

While I cannot share the product we developed, I can measure the success on how fast we setup a team of 10 and later augmented it to more than 30 members. The skills and maturity of the team has been recognised from the first weeks of activity.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Well, almost all 'my' team in Kiev was coming from Intellias. They worked with another dev team in The UK and other developers from US and India. It was challenging at times but their professionalism and pragmatism made the team very flexible. I cannot criticise much since they passed my hiring process and we had great time working together. I never considered them as part of another company.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

When they tell that they care about their staff, they don't only say it, they do it almost on a daily basis. Intellias was like an extension of our HR office but specialised for IT. Hiring and keeping developers or any staff in IT can be challenging to say the least. They helped us to get a great team! Another thing that impressed me is the way they are using JIRA. A showcase for any company.

Are there any areas for improvement?

I loved discovering their center of expertise. They need to get better in advertising what they do. They deserve to be known by more companies and create more synergies. The presentation of their CVs was top notch but sometimes the content was incomplete. The rush of hiring was the cause but these details could matter for other companies. At the end of the day the most important was that we built a trustable and fruitful collaboration.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

My relationship with Intellias started when I was the VP and CTO of a location platform. 

What challenge were you trying to address with Intellias?

We had opex pressure as well as a talent shortage. I wanted to free up the talent we had in-house and shift some of the development operations of mapping cloud systems over to a lower-cost location, where I could still have engineering skills but at a fraction of the cost.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Intellias mainly worked with us in the Geographic Information System (GIS) space. They helped us develop mapping and data compilers for GIS systems.

What is the team composition?

We worked with around 20 people from Intellias. They were an extended partner for us, and we concentrated on building a process that was scalable and would render high quality. I believe that the rest of the company took that model and expanded upon it. I can’t speak for the other parts of the business at the time, but I think it grew to about 800 people.

Where did you find Intellias and why were they the best fit for this particular project?

We were looking for a partner rather than a subcontractor or supplier of human resources, and we did a very broad survey that lasted about eight months and included practical development. 

Of the companies we shortlisted, Intellias was the one that came out on top. There was a good compromise of price and skills. Company culture helped a lot, since we wanted engineers that were motivated to work with us; we’d had cases of partner companies with internal cultures that weren’t as good. We needed to have that extra motivation, and Intellias proved to have a very good internal culture. They still cultivate that, bringing high value for whomever they work with, internally and externally.

It was a bit of a gamble, since we’d never worked with them before, but the results we got from the survey were very accurate. I think they’re a very trustworthy partner.

How many companies did you look at on this shortlist?

We shortlisted six companies.

Were you the main person involved in choosing them for this project?

I was the executive in charge of the process. I was the main sponsor, and I was on top of the process very actively. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started discussions in 2014 and commenced the project in 2015. The work is ongoing.  

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

They took on an internal work package that was being done by highly skilled people, and they were able to produce the same output quality as our internal organization in a very timely manner. We helped them and went through the process together.

We successfully transferred and lowered the cost of a key operational piece of the company, and we were able to free up talent. Secondly, we started a pattern that could be leveraged by other elements of the company to outsource operational elements.

How did Intellias perform from a project management standpoint?

They followed very good industry-standard practices and were very much on the ball most of the time. Any issues we had were due to things on our side rather than theirs.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We wanted to have people who were dedicated to working on our projects, and that could only happen if they were motivated to work for the company. Intellias has a culture that renders results; their people are motivated, and I believe this is their key strength.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They’ve grown very quickly, and it’s not always easy to keep the same level of quality. I think they need to be a bit more selective as they grow. It’s more something for them to watch out for, rather than correct.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the co-founder, CTO, and R&D director of Snappy Gifts. We sell B2B employee engagement software, and I lead development. We have a development center in Israel and a remote team in Lviv, Ukraine.

What challenge were you trying to address with Intellias?

We wanted to expand our development team, and it was hard to source developers in Israel based on the numbers we were looking for.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Intellias augments our development team. They’ve provided frontend React developers and backend Node.js developers. We work with AWS.

What is the team composition?

They’ve provided around six developers to our team.

How did you come to work with Intellias?

I had personal experience working with them. I got in touch with at least three companies and, after some consideration, found that Intellias was the best fit for us.

First of all, we were looking for a team that we could be in easy contact with, and Lviv is in the same time zone as Israel. Secondly, Ukrainian people are similar in culture to Israelis, which was another point in Intellias’ favor. Their cost worked for us, and it wasn’t easy to find people with the same skills as our team in Israel, so their technology stack was also a factor.

How much have you invested with them?

The cost mostly depends on the number and type of engineers we’re hiring. One engineer will cost $3,000–$5,000, depending on whether they’re junior or senior, and this includes Intellias’ fee. What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Intellias in December 2018, and it’s ongoing.

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

We’re very pleased with Intellias in terms of quality, responsiveness, communication, and flexibility. It’s easy for us to determine the process with them, which is another thing we like about them. We’re very satisfied internally.

How did Intellias perform from a project management standpoint?

We work in a particular way with the engineers, and we don’t fully outsource projects. We use a model called “team extensions,” meaning we manage the team members directly. My company handles project management, but we have a delivery manager on their side who helps us solve other challenges and define processes.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re very adjustable to our needs, and this was something we looked for in the beginning. We didn’t want to work with a company that was too big with inflexible processes, nor with a small company, where the quality and other assets would be missing. Intellias is the right size, and they’re flexible to our needs. That’s very important to us.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Lately, their recruitment cycle could be faster. From what I understand, this is more or less related to Lviv and the demand for engineers there. Still, it’s something we’d like to see improved.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the head of infrastructure optimization at Philip Morris International, a tobacco company.

What challenge were you trying to address with Intellias?

I needed a company for staff augmentation.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Intellias provide staff augmentation for our engineering capabilities. Our first project was with a team of 3–4 people for the development of a custom application, and it expanded to additional services.

What is the team composition?

We worked with up to 35 people at a certain point. There are currently 15 people working for us.

How did you come to work with Intellias?

I found them online and looked at the services they provided and their references. We started with a small project that went well, and then I scaled up to a bigger number.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in June 2017, and the partnership is ongoing.

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

Intellias does a great job of providing the best options. We reviewed and selected the candidates with a formal interview. We are responsible for the people working for us, but Intellias helps us find, maintain, and expand their competencies. They’ve been very flexible in all discussions, both commercial and operational. The management has always been supportive to help us to achieve our goals.

How did Intellias perform from a project management standpoint?

Intellias provided the facility, support, compensation, motivation, and training so that the team operates according to our requirements. The management of the project is on our side.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I’m impressed with Intellias’ ability to attract talent and keep the talent up to date. Their flexibility and attention to our satisfaction also stand out. They’re always persistent in explaining a situation we might not be able to see because we’re not in the office with the team members. 

There were a few times when people were leaving or not performing well. Intellias has compensated us with additional resources at no charge.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The process of finding resources in the beginning was not optimal. It’s improved over time.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the product manager at a digital banking platform.

What challenge were you trying to address with Intellias?

We needed assistance with the backend web development for a white-label banking solution.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Their team developed our banking platform using CMS, HTML, Ruby on Rails, and Ruby. Within the platform, there was ApplePay, a bonus system for customers, a new overdraft loan, and a couple of other features.

What is the team composition?

One half of our team is in-house while the other is Intellias. There are 2–8 developers, a scrum master, and another remote team.

How did you come to work with Intellias?

They had been here a year when I onboarded.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent €350 (approximately $388 USD) per manday.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in 2017. The project was ongoing for around two or so years.

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

Their team had a fast development cycle. Some of the more extensive features were a bit of challenge, but they have a good working attitude. Compared to other vendors, their team works extremely hard. Intellias employs great talent. They’re smart people that are quick at hiring.

How did Intellias perform from a project management standpoint?

Intellias always meets timelines and estimates. Communication throughout was great. We used Jira and Confluence.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I was impressed with their positive attitude and professionalism.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The skillset of the developers varied. Some were outpacing others, but on average, it was good quality. I’d hope for a bit more of a balance between the team.