Kenility

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Founder & CEO of Storylands EdTech SaaS Company HQ in Toronto, Canada.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

I hired Kenility to build the MVP for Storylands from scratch to validate that our target users will pay for learning heritage languages through storybooks with a very limited budget.

Kenility was tasked to build an app compatible with Apple and Android tablets for young children (0-10 YO) to listen & read picture storybooks in their heritage language with a core learning feature to highlight the word being pronounced by the audio.

SOLUTION

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

I shortlisted 5 vendors by referral from other founders. Kenility is one of the 2 vendors who are able to build the core learning feature within our budget. Kenility is chosen because they showed up as a partner instead of an executor.

Being a non-technical founder, I needed a vendor who can provide technical advice to achieve my goal while maximizing the value of the budget and resources I have. I needed a vendor who can build the solution and I don't need to project manage for progress.

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

We had 2 discovery meetings to understand the goal and scope followed by 1 meeting on the proposed solution. Once we agreed on the scope and deliverables, we signed a contract. Then, a team is assigned within a week and we had a kick-off meeting. We have weekly sync-up for progress updates.

Then, a product demos a month into the 2 months project to showcase the agreed milestones. Then, we wrapped up the project in 2 months with a product demo followed by a 1 months warranty period which is used toward limited bug fixing. The project used Flutter, Node JS, Angular, MongoDB, AWS Cloud, Google Speech To Text, Google Cloud.

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

The project was 2 months long, and we mainly worked with a front-end developer, backend developer, development architects, UI/UX designer, and a project manager.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The app is intended to be an MVP to validate the intention of purchase and a starting point to identify the features/values needed to be delivered to go to market. With such a limited budget and time, Kenlity built a complete app allowing us to launch our beta test with 300 of our waitlist users.

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

Project management and communication were top-notch from sales, project management, and dev team, to after-sales services. I have worked with global MNC and many IT/dev vendors, Kenility is one of the best that I have worked with from a communication standpoint.

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

Kenility showed up as a true partner instead of an executor. We collaborated in building the final solution. They really think from the shoes of the founder and are committed to building a solution to the problem the best they can.

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

UI/UX can be stronger to make them a well-rounded one-stop shop.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the Director of Product for a multifamily property technology company. We are a completely remote organization with employees all across the globe.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We needed to grow our development team in several ways for several reasons. We had been using a development firm based out of Ukraine, but we wanted to find a firm in a time zone closer to the east coast to allow for more collaboration. We also had some turnover on our team and weren't happy with the new team members that the other firm had brought on. Lastly, we have a very aggressive roadmap due to a sizable investment, and we needed to ramp up our development on a few major projects.

SOLUTION

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

I worked with Pablo in the past and always thought very highly of him. I've kept up with him on LinkedIn and watched him grow this company from nothing to one of the top development firms in South America. I figured if he's bringing on people that are as talented as himself, we can't go wrong.

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

We utilize LUIS AI to automate lead nurturing for sales & marketing departments. In addition to that, our web application is built with the MEAN stack. The teams were brought on a few at a time and integrated into our existing product teams. It quickly became clear that Kenility gave us some VERY talented developers who became team leads.

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

We have roughly 8 developers from Kenility, all software developers.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have seen MRR jump in recent months due to the work these teams are doing to close trials through new feature development and bug fixes. We are also about to expand into two new markets thanks to a couple of major projects the teams have been working on.

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

Communication with the team has been excellent. They are always available via Slack or Google Meet. They help us architect solutions to problems, not just build off a spec. They are really part of our team.

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

These guys are smart! So smart! And extremely friendly. I always enjoy our conversations, and I'm constantly impressed with the quality of their solutions.

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

No not at all. Everyone is very responsive and available. The quality and speed are great. And everyone's personality has been enjoyable.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and CEO of a garden club membership for food growers.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Kenility?

We had developed a mobile app, but it wasn’t performing at the level we needed it to. Our technical co-founder who built the app had also parted ways with the company, so we needed to work with a third party to rebuild the product from scratch.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Pablo (CEO & Co-Founder) and Adrian (Marketing Director) tried to get us started as quickly as possible since we met some initial delays. They then brought in Augustin (Software Engineer), who acted as the development lead, and got everything sorted out pretty quickly. 

We spent a couple of weeks on the app’s architecture, going back and forth to make sure we were setting ourselves up for success. The Kenility team really tried to understand the product, our goals, and the different apps that were similar to ours. We even went through difficult technical conversations that we’d never had with our previous technical co-founder, which I appreciated. 

Once everything was ready, we started building the app from scratch the following month. We worked with Kenility to get the new app to the same initial functionality as its predecessor and planned to build out and scale from there. Our main goal was to have an app where new gardeners could provide and receive helpful recommendations on what to grow in their area. 

The first version of the MVP was delivered less than two months following development, and we’re now populating the app with plant data. 

What is the team composition?

Apart from Pablo, Adrian, and Augustin, we’ve also worked with Nicolas (Software Developer) and a bunch of other people who’ve stepped in recently to help with backend and content issues. We have a core team of four people, but we’ve interacted with 6–7 people altogether.

How did you come to work with Kenility?

They were referred by a friend who had worked with them before. We talked to about 4–5 different agencies, but Kenility was the one to provide a pricepoint that we could work with. They were also among the friendliest we had talked to during that process.

How much have you invested with them?

Thus far, we’ve spent at least $60,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project is ongoing. We wanted to start in December 2021, but due to delays, we were only able to begin working in January 2022. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our strongest success metric is the fact that the app itself is being built the way we want it to be and that there’s acceleration on the development roadmap. The design and functionality are exactly what we wanted, and the new features Kenility is introducing are way more than what we thought we would be able to achieve. 

How did Kenility perform from a project management standpoint?

Kenility is performing very well on this front. They’re very clear and structured when it comes to the timeline and roadmap, and though they can manage my expectations well, they still overdeliver at times. 

We have a weekly meeting via Google Meet, and we communicate frequently through Slack. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

There are several things that make Kenility stand out. For one, they’re very professional and are really enjoyable to work with. Often, when working with third-party developers, missing one detail derails the whole project, but with Kenility, we benefit from having set a clear direction from the get-go. They fill in all the gaps, and they always find a workaround to any roadblock. I appreciate that very much seeing as I already have much on my plate as founder and CEO. 

It’s definitely that independence and their contribution to the vision that has driven the project this far. They’ve provided valuable feedback and suggestions, and they will even bring in resources every now and then to help us with specific issues. I enjoy having that flexibility and range of skills.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I can’t point anything out. In every place where they could do something wrong, they usually do the right thing instead. Kenility always finds a way to save us time or money without compromising the end result. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

It’s important to have a clear vision of where you want your product to go and to have a skilled designer on board. Those two combined will allow you to operate much more quickly and efficiently. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the CTO of a communications software company based out of Boston, USA.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We had an MVP software product that needed to be re-architected so that it would scale for the number of new customers we were bringing on. We also relied on old technology that needed to be replaced.

SOLUTION

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

We listed a small project. They came across as one of the more professional options and after a small trial project we engaged them fulltime.

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

Kenility designed a quick replacement for our MVP, using Java, Angular and RDS. They are now performing phase 2. Phase 2 consists of moving the platform to micro services using AWS, Lambda, RDS, Redshift etc.. Kenility are also introducing ML and AI into our core platform using the Google stack as well as Amazon Lex.

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

We have 30 staff members and we continue to expand. From project managers to junior developers.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

No specific measurables. Our user support requests did reduce by around 60%.

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

Daily meetings, heavy use of Jira and Github.

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

Their developers are so engaged with us and their company culture is amazing.

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

Gain more experience with experimental or leading edge technologies. Most companies never have the ability to experiment with new tech.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the co-founder and IT manager at an agricultural forecasting platform.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenges were you trying to address with Kenility?

We have collaborated with them on different projects, including front- and backend solutions and branding services.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They have developed mobile apps for Android and iOS, using plotter, among others. They have also used Amazon Web Services for web development.

What is the team composition?

We worked with about 8 people.

How did you come to work with Kenility?

They found us and came with a proposal. Their portfolio looked very sharp and was visually attractive so we decided to start working with them on small projects. We gradually increased our collaboration, due to their good results. Another thing that is very convenient for us is that they are in a very close time zone. We can also communicate with them in both Spanish and English.

How much have you invested in them?

It’s different depending on the project, but we’ve probably invested about $60,000 in total.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them around November last year and are continuing our collaboration.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The results have been very positive. We’ve heard great comments about our website; our clients and investors are very happy with it. Kenility was able to materialize what we had imagined and even improve it. We also had a great experience with the creation of our logo.

As for software development, everything has worked perfectly. We’ve met all the development sprints that we defined. The impact has been great, and this is an ongoing collaboration so we have more projects to come.

How did Kenility perform from a project management standpoint?

We used Jira and Slack for communication and Github for code storage. We also used Google Meet for meetings.

What did you find most impressive about them?

All their work has been excellent. They prioritize client satisfaction all the time and are willing to do make any improvements or adjustments for the benefit of the client. Their communications have also been great and transparent.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Everything has been great so far, although they could improve their billing process.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there

I am the CIO at a legal services firm.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenges were you trying to address with Kenility ?

We needed help developing a legal management tool.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Kenility is helping us develop a multichannel cloud-based product. They’re using Java, Angular, SQL, AWS, Firebase, ElasticSearch and Kibana.

 What is the team composition?

We work with about 9 people.

How did you come to work with Kenility?

I knew the company’s CEO personally. We did some research and analyzed about 6 different service providers, Kenility included and ended up deciding they were the best choice for this project.

How much have you invested in them?

We’ve spent about $150,000.  

What is the status of this engagement?

We started in July 2019 and our work is ongoing. We expect the project to be finished around July 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The project has been developed very smoothly and they’ve met every deadline on time. The project’s scope changed over time and that didn’t affect their performance. Everything has been clear, transparent, and it all worked perfectly.

How did Kenility perform from a project management standpoint?

We have led the project management ourselves, using Jira, Atlassian, among other tools. They have worked on everything under our accounts.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They adapt very well and are very flexible. They always put the client’s needs before their own.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Maybe they could deliver a report after every sprint.  We always checked, but if they could incorporate printed reports, for example, it would be interesting.