JetRockets

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm Co-founder and CPO of Revshopp. We help the retail industry understand how body shape can impact conversion, returns and sustainability. For consumers we educate them and curate shoppable catalogs. For retailers we filter the eCommerce experience to show items of clothing that work for a shoppers body shape. For Merchandisers and Designers we provide the valuable data required to understand body shape distribution as it applies to assortments and inventory.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We are an early stage startup evolving out of the prototype phase into a functional production ready stage for our Body Shape Intelligence™ platform. We have yet to hire internal technical staff and needed a full team to support our growth.

SOLUTION

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

JetRockets, and Natalie were recommended to us by our platform architect who built our prototype and had worked with them in the past. From the beginning, the team led with confidence letting us know that they would work with us as true partners. They were incredibly agile on this project, getting to know the intricacies or our algorithm and defining how we might manage our complex platform with an administrative console.

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

The scope of work was to refactor an existing code base to get it ready for scalable and maintainable production on a large retail ecommerce site. Our prototype had the majority of the logic embedded in code and JetRockets was able to make the system completely dynamic though the use of a configurable admin console.

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

Project Manager Front End Back End Design System Architect

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We are thrilled to have a platform that can take the complexities and layered multi-step process and make it usable by a subject matter expert and not just an engineer. We can't wait to take it for a test drive with our first client!

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

Communication was prompt, thoughtful and most of all respectful of our need to explore during the process. The team provided timelines, communication channels and issue tracking software to monitor project goals.

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

This team despite major challenges in their living situation, were wonderful people to engage with. The work quality was never once questioned. They seem to have an internal spidey sense that helped us better understand our own platform. From the get-go, we felt supported and well taken care of. Not to mention it's always impressive to work with an incredible female CEO as we are also a female founded company.

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

This is likely on us for not asking but I would have liked to track one-off and new tasks in Asana. The team with their incredible bias for action and honoring agile principles of working sotware over documentation. There's always a balancing act there!

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We are a technology startup working to establish greater ease of use, improved accuracy across systems and foster community building around virtual events. We do this with a combination of robust integrations to popular tools for ease of management, and simple, accessible engagement tools. I am a non-technical founder and idea person.

Though I have spent many years in the software and SaaS space, I am not a coder, designer or developer. My experience is in working directly with software users to promote their success. I founded and am developing a platform to fill the gaps that have persisted in the virtual events industry throughout the years.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

JetRockets was selected to build our MVP from scratch providing complete project management, front- back-end developers and QA engineers to the project. Design and wireframes are in collaboration with another vendor recommended to us by JetRockets.

SOLUTION

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

I conducted a rather extensive vetting process to determine what team we would work with on this project and Clutch.co was a big help in that. I started by reviewing the Clutch list of female founded and LGBTQ+ founded organizations. A diversity mindset with a focus on maximizing accessibility is core to our project from the outset. After conducting interviews with BDRs and customers for several organizations, I settled on two outstanding groups because I felt best recognized by them. JetRockets won out because Natalie showed a no-nonsense approach and great care for the quality of work and support for the JetRockets Team.

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

JetRockets, with the oversight of their amazing Project Manager, Alla have provided support in the following areas: Project tracking AWS deployment Mailchimp integration for system email API development to Google, Facebook, LinkedIn, Zoom and more... Custom full-stack development including Ruby and Jscript I know there's more...

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

There are several team members on the project from JetRockets. The team is rather dynamic. They appropriately balance their team to their various projects without negative impact on the work.

Alla is PM and Alex is the Tech Lead. Roman and Vladimir are our primary engineers and other team members fill out the group. Our slack channel has 17 members currently (3 from my team).

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our MVP is due to launch this Summer, 2022. Though the project is not complete, we came to JetRockets expecting their support to a V3 build and look forward to continuing our work with them. Understanding that, I can offer the following feedback: I continue to be impressed by the team's attention to detail and determination to create the best possible, user-focused solution in all cases.

Tasks are conducted and delivered on consistently, on time and with very low error occurrence on a 2 week sprint cycle. Deliverables have consistently matched our design completely and worked as intended in semi-weekly demos.

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

It's just super easy to follow progress and work with JetRockets. Alla Valulenko, JetRockets Project Manager is truly a crucial asset to our project. She has an investigative spirit to her work which helps us to focus on making the user experience simple and elegant. We communicate daily during the week via Slack, Figma comments and Asana task tracking. We meet weekly with the core team to discuss the development of the platform and semi-weekly for Sprint demos of completed work.

Alla is very clear and accurate in her communication and will not hesitate to seek clarification or kindly present an alternative when needed. Alla must be the key reason that our project can be developed at an extremely high pace.

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

They bring a lot of passion to creating great software. From the jump, Natalie approached our idea with enthusiasm and curiosity. She offered a lot of her time to me in discussing the goals and even attended our user persona workshop for a few hours prior to signing a contract with us. Her input and feedback set us on a great trajectory to work with JetRockets. The team came on with the same enthusiasm for the project and a clear eagerness to do great work.

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

I'm sure there are, but I don't know about them because they are that good at their jobs. Let me be straight with you. Natalie and her team have worked with me through the Russian War and Invasion of Ukraine. There has been no impact to the pace or quality of work because of it, despite team members in the region having to relocate. Natalie continues to work very hard to provide safety and opportunity to the JetRockets team.

I want to be like Natalie when I grow up. No joke! The only changes necessary to the project road map have been on me as we've really worked in collaboration with JetRockets and our designers to build out this MVP (which is definitely more of a V1). This has presented no challenges to the JetRockets team and we anticipate finishing earlier than initially anticipated by 1 month currently.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m an IT manager of a real estate company. We oversee and manage a large portfolio of high-end apartments, residences, and condos.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with JetRockets?

We were trying to create a centralized database of information regarding our buildings. The end goal was to be able to create a customized report of all of our buildings regarding various fields of information. Through these reports, we’d get more insight into how these buildings run and find trends and patterns to better assist in how they operate.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

JetRockets built a database for us. The solution is operated from a website that we log into. Users are set up on the backend through AWS, and JetRockets implemented two-factor authentication using Microsoft Authenticator. From a frontend user perspective, the platform is a data entry site. We have ground users who input and get the information from the database. 

The team included a tab through which we can run customized reports, where we can pick and choose the fields we want to filter based on the types of building we want reports for. We can also sort information based on the part of our company that manages the property; we have a corporate entity and a residential entity. The platform then provides us with a report that we can export to an Excel spreadsheet. 

What is the team composition?

We were in direct contact with a project manager, and the team also included a frontend developer, a backend developer, and a QA tester.

How did you come to work with JetRockets?

We found them through our managed service provider when we were looking for a development team. Our provider had used JetRockets in the past and had seen success with them, so they contacted Natalie (Co-Founder & CEO). 

JetRockets then reached out to us with a proposal, we checked it, and it looked like it would be a good fit for us. After a bit of budgeting to make it happen, we reached back out to Natalie, and our partnership went from there.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent between $25,000–$50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from September 2021–March 2022.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The quality of JetRockets’ work was great. We’re still early in the product’s rollout, so we don’t have a lot in terms of metrics. Although we’re still entering a lot of the data, the site is working as intended based on the initial reports I’ve tried to pull. They did a great job in the initial phase, delivering what we asked them to. 

Visually, the platform looks great and very modern. As we slowly roll out the solution, we’d love to work with JetRockets again in the future to help us expand on this project. There will be more data points we’ll be able to run reports on. 

How did JetRockets perform from a project management standpoint?

In terms of communication, they were really open and vocal about having us provide feedback. We use Microsoft Teams internally, so when the project started, we set up an open channel for us all to communicate. Their responsiveness was always good. They provided insight into the development phase and how they could improve on certain aspects of the database.

We had regular meetings every Wednesday to go over the progress. The project manager would explain the features they’d added and how to move forward. On our end, we had a team of five people who used the site in the development phase and provided feedback to the project manager, who relayed any issues to the JetRockets team to see how they could improve the site.

Things can get a little hectic in the current climate, and we got delayed a little bit, which was to be expected. While we were 2–3 weeks late in completing the project, I wouldn’t necessarily hold it to the JetRockets team, considering we had a little bit of delay on our side as well. In the end, they were able to complete the project.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I was impressed by the way JetRockets responded to feedback. We did come up with issues of bugs in the development phase, and addressing them was as simple as reaching out to them through Microsoft Teams — they were quick to respond. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

From my perspective as someone in IT, they could improve their explanation of the site’s logic to give a little more insight into how it runs. That way, I could look at the site from a different angle other than as a frontend user. I don’t know that I would consider that a weakness per se, but that would be my feedback to them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

My advice would be to make sure there’s enough communication during the development phase and that your team is focused on it because of how important it is for the end goal. With JetRockets or any development company, you should have clear lines of communication, stay focused on the development being rolled out week by week, and use every aspect of the program. In the end, you’ll provide the feedback JetRockets needs to make sure your project succeeds.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and CEO of a golf-based social platform. Our app enables users to track their games and share results with friends.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with JetRockets?

We needed someone to increase our velocity in building and developing a mobile app.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We brought in JetRockets to help develop the backend of our cross-platform app, so our team can focus on building the frontend.

We initially started with a four-week sprint and from there, we moved to a trial period where started building the specific features for the product.

They’re close to wrapping up most of the backend functionalities so over the next 6–8 weeks, they’ll be transitioning into a maintenance and support role.

What is the team composition?

Throughout the course of the engagement, we’ve worked with two developers from their team.

How did you come to work with JetRockets?

I was looking for developers based in New York and came across JetRockets on Clutch. I then reached out to them after going through the positive reviews on their services.

How much have you invested with them?

So far, we’ve invested about $40,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our partnership started in October 2021 and we’ll continue to work with them in the foreseeable future.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

JetRockets has met all of our requirements from our original scope in a timely manner — they’ve even delivered some of them ahead of schedule. We’re also able to stay on top of the frontend aspect of the development thanks to their testing capabilities.

In addition, experiencing bugs and crashes is expected since we’re building something from scratch, but the code that they implement is very strong.

How did JetRockets perform from a project management standpoint?

I handle the project management, but they always make it a point to not miss every meeting. We use Confluence and JIRA as our primary management tools, and we typically communicate through email, phone, Slack, and Google Hangouts.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We like that they take pride in the work that they do. They try hard to understand what they’re building and deliver they can be proud of.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I would say to have clear documentation on what you’re building to identify what the challenges and timelines are before engaging with them.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the COO of a social media app company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We are a start-up that needed a new website as we had rapidly outgrown the functionality of our original WordPress site. We wanted to use the website to engage with members and potential members, share interesting content, and offer a means of subscribing to the network.

SOLUTION

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

We search online for web developers and our CEO found them on Clutch. JetRockets were the stand-out candidate from the teams we interviewed. Being a women-led business was an added benefit for us.

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

JetRockets took our brand outline and developed a design concept for the website that is also mobile-friendly. They built the site for us. They integrated the site into our CRM, customer support, and payments system. The initial project was started in May 2021 and completed in August, within the cost element, and we were delighted with the output. We continue to work with them as we evolve our needs for the website. They are fantastic, responsive, and impactful partners.

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

We worked predominantly with the CEO and founder Natalie, Irina, their lead developer, and designer Claudia.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The Website is straightforward for us to use and supports our weekly newsletter and marketing campaigns. We have received exclusively positive feedback on the design. Our user base has increased significantly since the site went live.

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

We had a regular constructive dialogue with our key contacts. Everything from the initiation of the design phase to ongoing support is excellent. They are responsive and hard-working. The project continuously moved forward, and they worked very hard to resolve technical hitches, including meeting with us on the weekend. They are invested in our success.

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

They had an excellent design concept and implemented it beautifully. They are invested in our success and work hard to support us, as I said above.

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

We have occasionally had minor communication challenges, but these have not impacted the project delivery. It can be a bit intimidating handing over development to an outside team. But JetRockets were great. Engage with them. Natalie works hard with you to take concepts and goals and turn them into technical deliverables. Claudia is a genius. She took our basic design ideas and brought them to life, and the development team executed that vision beautifully. Trust them and be open about what you are trying to achieve and your challenges as much as possible they are great partners. Be as clear as you can about the details as early on in the process as you can be to make sure everyone is on the same page.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the managing director of a fund administration firm.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with JetRockets?

We were looking for a new software solution that could handle our processes, which included investor processing and financial reporting for our clients. Our previous version was just frustrating to use.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement? 

JetRockets helped us create a game plan and a roadmap for our accounting software and then developed it for us. They suggested the tech stack for us — it was built on Ruby using AWS to host — in addition to the additional tools that we used for email relaying services, cybersecurity, and more. From there, they did a lot of testing. 

One key component that they helped us do is see the bigger picture. That allowed us to develop the MVP so that we could start using it right away while still keeping in mind our larger goals so that we could continue to build everything we needed.

They now continue to work with us on an as-needed basis.

What is the team composition? 

During the peak development phase, there were about six developers.

How did you come to work with JetRockets?

I’d used a software solution that JetRockets had previously developed, so I knew what they could build.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started back in May 2016, and the relationship is still ongoing.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of a FinTech and software development company.  

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with JetRockets?

We needed help with UI design and integration for our payment platform.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

JetRockets created our UI on the consumer-facing and business-facing sides of our web app. It’s also mobile-friendly on Android and iOS. They integrated that UI into our banking platform to facilitate electronic payments. The app allows users to pay merchants and vendors with real-time payments.

What is the team composition?                       

We worked with three people from their team, including Natalie (Co-founder & CEO).

How did you come to work with JetRockets?

Our CTO has worked with them in the past.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent upwards of $150,000–$175,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in September 2020, and our work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

All of my business clients love the new UI. It’s definitely an update from what we had prior. We’ll launch the consumer-facing side of the app soon.

How did JetRockets perform from a project management standpoint?

JetRockets did very well, and all of the deliverables were executed on time. We communicated via Microsoft Teams as well as phone and email.

What did you find most impressive about them?

It’s a huge benefit that they were able to deliver functional UI on time.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, nothing comes to mind.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of a SaaS company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with JetRockets?

I was looking for a development team that would function as our tech partner. They’re helping us build a mobile-friendly website from scratch.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They put together a development team to build our custom software systems. Based on the designs we provide, they’re building a platform that we can use as an itinerary builder, authoring tool, and CMS. They’ve added simple functionalities designed specifically for the travel industry.

What is the team composition?

We work with Natalie (Co-Founder & CEO) and Anna (Project Manager).

How did you come to work with JetRockets?

They were referred to me by somebody that I knew. Natalie gave me a list of former clients to speak to, and they all had very positive experiences working with JetRockets. Several companies provided a couple of different estimates. They weren’t the cheapest option, but they were reasonable and had great reviews.

How much have you invested with them?

We have invested over $200,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in October 2020 and the project is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They’ve made considerable progress on it. The system is functioning and now we have users.

How did JetRockets perform from a project management standpoint?

I’m in touch with my project manager every day. My experience with them has been fabulous. We have a standing call with my project manager and design team every day. We’ve found their communication to be very strong, which has been necessary to keep the project moving forward.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re very hard-working and dedicated to the project. They’re clearly invested in our success.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, they’re doing great.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I highly recommend Jetrockets. It can be scary trying to choose a developer but they are honest, hardworking, knowledgeable, and extremely capable. Selecting them as our tech partner was one of the best decisions I have made.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the digital project manager of a jewelry organization. My organization is an association for jewelers to validate their participation in the jewelry market. In my role, I manage all the digital services initiatives for the organization.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with JetRockets?

We brought on JetRockets to oversee our website redesign initiative.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The objective was to enhance our brand image and website functionality. We tasked JetRockets to deliver an editorial website that was engaging, stylish, and responsive in order to better engage our audience. Their team assisted us in crafting our image.

What is the team composition?

We worked directly with 5–6 individuals. Natalie (Co-Founder & CEO) was my main point of contact. There was also a platform developer and functionality developer.

How did you come to work with JetRockets?

Their creative director’s approach was phenomenal. Her vision for our site was by far the best visual display we saw. It captured the real essence of where we wanted to go.

How much have you invested with them?

We invested about $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our project was from October 2020–March 2021.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

As an organization, we’re 100% satisfied with the direction, development, timeframe, and execution of the site. We leveraged the latest technologies for our vision of the site, and the creative director successfully captured that vision. We leveraged CSS to incorporate the vision and a CMS to guide the direction of it.

The site just launched so we’re going to see how users respond through feedback. We’ll measure success by the growth of our website and how reliable our users find our content. Time will tell how successful this initiative is based on a visual aspect. However, the overall design and functionality are excellent.

How did JetRockets perform from a project management standpoint?

They did a great job of meeting deadlines and delivering what was necessary in a timely fashion. Everything was fine. Having Natalie as the main contact helped to facilitate the initiative more effectively.

Our only hiccup was the articulation of information. It was difficult at times because we were dealing with offshore resources. However, Natalie stepped in and addressed any challenges we expressed. She bridged that gap really well.

Are there any areas they could improve?

It’d be beneficial for them to have more US-based project managers that are fluent in English, especially when dealing with US-based clients.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be honest and direct. Natalie is a great facilitator between the brand's technical concepts to deliver what they need. Their creative director is a visionary and a great aspect of their organization. She will help you draft or create your vision.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Co-Founder & CTO of Orbit. We are a SaaS solution for community management.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We hired JetRockets to help us develop our core technology, which is a Ruby on Rails application.

SOLUTION

How did you select JetRockets and what were the deciding factors?

JetRockets was referred to us by an engineer that had worked with their team before at another company.

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

The JetRockets team works in our primary product backlog, completing new features, enhancements, and bugs. We collaborate closely.

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

We've had 3 people from the JetRockets team work with us so far, 2 senior Rails/full-stack engineers and one Node.js engineer.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The JetRockets team completes the stories reliably with good code quality. I don't have metrics since it's not a standalone project, but I can comfortably say they're helping us build our main application faster than we could alone.

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

Once a week we have a call to discuss any open technology questions and the backlog. Otherwise we communicate async in Slack, on GitHub via issues and PRs, and on Trello.

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

They bring a lot of deep Rails and architecture experience to the table. They are able to help us identity patterns that we are not using or could improve, all the way at the foundation. They also have a great blog and create open source software. One of their open source projects, metka, we are already using in production.

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

No big areas for improvement. I will say that anytime we've had a question or concern, their team has addressed it in a manner of hours.