KnackForge

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the president and founder of an education technology company. We mainly focus on K-12 education.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with KnackForge?

We had been working with another software development partner before engaging KnackForge, but our company was scaling pretty rapidly, and our former partner wasn’t able to keep up with the growth. We needed a more sophisticated partner that could scale products alongside us as we continued to expand.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

When we first engaged KnackForge, we had an existing platform with one product line, which they inherited. The product is a custom music solution. We provided them documentation, and they maintained the functionality of that platform while learning about our company, needs, and customer base. Then, they started building a more robust, scalable platform for us. They started redeveloping the platform using third-party plug-ins, which didn’t function as intended, so they rebuilt the platform from scratch. 

About halfway into our engagement, we added a second product line for an online K-12 curriculum, which is entirely different from our first product. We provided KnackForge with initial guidance and documentation, and they essentially started from scratch again to build the second platform. Most of the software is custom-built to fit our unique needs. 

The platforms are subscription-based, and as soon as we receive a new customer, they can log in and access the products they purchased. Our platforms have customer-facing and internal components, each tied to a different product category. KnackForge built functionality for our team to access accounts in customer view and manage accounts behind the scenes. They’ve also connected the platforms to streamline the internal UX and built commonalities to make them more cohesive.

What is the team composition?

We work with two KnackForge teams, and a product owner and program manager oversee both teams. The first team includes a technical product lead, three developers, and a QA specialist. The second team consists of a technical product lead, two developers, and two QA specialists. 

How did you come to work with KnackForge?

Our program manager is one of my good friends, who started working with KnackForge about five years ago. He introduced us to the team, and we had a lot of shared professional contacts with the CEO since we’re located in the same area. Our meeting went well, and KnackForge did a fantastic job identifying our needs and brainstorming how we could improve the product, so we moved forward.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested roughly $1 million in the engagement.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working with KnackForge in January 2018, and the partnership is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

KnackForge has done a phenomenal job building the platforms, and they continue to improve them over time. They’re invested in learning how customers use our products and continue to customize functionality for maximum engagement.

Our initial product was very limited in the number of subscribers we could support. KnackForge rebuilt the platform, which functions perfectly, and gave us infinite scalability, leading to a quadrupling in our customer base since working together. We could barely take any more customers on our previous platform, and with KnackForge, we can continue to grow and expand seamlessly. 

The second platform they built for us has grown by 1,000% in the last 12 months and shows no signs of slowing down. KnackForge has created exactly what we needed from scratch and did a fantastic job. There’s no comparison between our initial working model and what KnackForge has produced for us. They’ve done a tremendous job, and our platforms today are far superior to what we started with. 

How did KnackForge perform from a project management standpoint?

KnackForge is fantastic from a project management standpoint. Our product and program managers oversee everything, and we have daily stand-up calls for 20–30 minutes. KnackForge also has an incredible team of developers who have been valuable partners.

They give us realistic timelines when we present goals and let us know if our requests are unreasonable. We’ve developed a successful work style; they always deliver within budget and are fantastic at managing communications. They provide daily progress updates and immediately communicate if there are any project delays. We communicate via Teams, Google Meet, RingCentral, and email, and we use Jira to manage the project.

KnackForge is local to us, which is nice. We needed a partner that could take care of us at the size we were initially and continue to grow with us, which they’ve done. They’ve been a fantastic match.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I am most impressed by their approach and their communication. KnackForge approaches our relationship as a partnership, much more so than prior development partners, which is invaluable. They’re extremely efficient communicators, and we’re never left wondering if progress is being made on particular projects because they consistently maintain daily contact. 

We feel they are true partners, which we haven’t experienced with other service providers. Their excellent communication and investment in our partnership set them apart. KnackForge is by far the best third-party partnership we engage in.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I have nothing KnackForge could improve on. They always ask for ways to improve, and we have none.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I advise listening to KnackForge during the evaluation stage because they’re very experienced and good at what they do. They were very transparent about our product’s weak points, and I wouldn’t say I liked hearing that, but they’ve been 100% right about everything. 

They want to establish a partnership and help you get the most out of your software, so try to be objective and open when they’re transparent with you because that will allow them to do a fantastic job.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the product director at a startup consumer technology company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with KnackForge?

We were dealing with a consumer problem regarding the management of streaming services. We devised a product plan to help consumers address these issues and engaged KnackForge to help us build a platform and client software.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We KnackForge soon after we built a product prototype and had a decent amount of initial data to get started on our product plan. They took our prototype and helped us develop our initial MVP solution from scratch using React Native, MongoDB, and Node.js. 

Their developers and engineers worked with our data architects to define and execute the architecture spec. They worked with us to test the MVP with alpha and beta testers. They also helped us with production design and UX exploration. 

They built the app for Android and iOS. The app takes three different data sources and combines them to support the consumer. The first data source is a content metadata library with movies and TV shows available for streaming. The second data source is a service provider database that showcases streaming platforms and their packages and pricing. The third data source is a social graph that tracks user interaction with family and friends and maps that data. The final product is a confluence of the data sources that support customers in finding shows to watch, engaging with friends, and managing subscriptions.

They continued to assist us in producing our market launch product and still provide ongoing support. 

What is the team composition?

They provided us with a flexible team structure, and we had anywhere from 12–15 KnackForge employees working on the project at any given time.

How did you come to work with KnackForge?

We found KnackForge through a referral from a former colleague.

How much have you invested with them?

We have invested roughly $500,000 in the partnership. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working with KnackForge in July 2021, and the partnership is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The product is relatively young, so I think it would be best to measure KnackForge’s accomplishments by their cadence in delivering new releases. KnackForge has delivered 40 client and server releases over roughly 50 weeks. 

We’ve received lots of user feedback, both positive and constructive. The product isn’t perfect, and we’re still beta testing, but we are exactly where we need to be at this stage in the project. Our early user engagement and retention metrics indicate that we’re moving in the right direction for our class of applications for potential future investment.

How did KnackForge perform from a project management standpoint?

KnackForge is a vital part of our project. We used the agile development approach early on, so KnackForge addressed defects as they arose. We typically caught defects in the testing stage. However, if any bugs made it to public release, KnackForge addressed those quickly according to priority against other items in the roadmap. They were tested and launched within our typical cadence of every two weeks. 

We never uncovered high-priority issues in public, those were all found through testing, and KnackForge addressed them prior to release. Any additional issues were of medium priority, and they addressed those in the normal course of development.

Our project team includes a product owner/scrum master. We met with the project manager for daily stand-ups and had readouts on the daily utilization. They were very aware of our budget constraints and closely tracked the budget regarding new tools or testing requirements.

They manage the project, execute the plan alongside us, and keep us abreast of budget and quality concerns. We use Jira to manage tickets. We use confluence to describe requirements, publish issue discussions, and define design specifications and architecture documentation. We also use BitBucket and Github. We communicate via Microsoft Teams, email, and phone calls. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their most significant strength is their commitment to our project. Once they were familiar with the product strategy, they felt empowered to make design and development decisions, which we encouraged. Their confidence makes them efficient with the development process and our budget. They are a very cost-effective and efficient team because they are empowered to make those execution decisions.

Are there any areas they could improve?

It would be beneficial if they could provide more production design support staff. They recognized the skills gap during the project and provided us with a new design-focused team member. For future engagements, I think it would best serve them to attach the design element to the team at the beginning of the process. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

My advice is to really understand your strategy and requirements up front. It seems obvious, but a lot of times, execution teams are required to make strategic decisions, and that's very difficult for a vendor to do on behalf of their client. 

One reason the project has been successful is that we knew what we wanted and communicated that to the KnackForge team at the start. Give them explicit requirements and share your long-term vision, so they can understand what you want to build. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the owner of a software development company and am a creative engineer.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We wanted to develop a mobile app targeted at the parents and families of kids in youth sports. The app isn't live yet so I don't want to share more, but KnackForge showcased from the get-go that they were the team for the job. Our goals were to bring this project to market quickly and KnackForge has so far exceeded every expectation.

SOLUTION

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

I've known Jeff for 25 years and when this project started taking shape I reached out to him and two meetings later we were formulating an agreement. It's didn't take long to see they shared our commitment to excellence.

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

So this is a native mobile app to be delivered on both Apple and Google platforms. It would also consist of a web-based administrative back-end where we could manage various aspects of the app and experience for our customers. Although we had our own ideas about technology we recognized right away our best option would be to lean on KnackForge to "forge" the way, if you will. ;)

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

So far we have I think a 6 or so person team, and every single one of them have been top notch. Developers, architects, project managers, UI/UX. I don't know how the split lays out, but all these skills are represented.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Can't just yet, we just got started.

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

KnackForge has a people first approach, which is my business philosophy as well. Organized, skilled, and on the ball. We have so far used Zoom, Teams, Adobe XD, email, and Jira to communicate and it has been smooth as silk. The team has an incredibly well-oiled machine.

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

I guess so far it would be the impressiveness of the collective skill-sets represented. This team can tackle any challenge handed to it.

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

Not so far!

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

Our company is Bodeboca SL, a leading online wine retail market in Spain. Our business model is based on private sales.

What is your position?

I'm one of the two co-founders of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with KnackForge Soft Solutions?

We are looking for a web developer that was an expert in Drupal development and incorporating e-commerce functionalities to a Drupal website, as that is the content-management framework we used to develop our website. We had a comprehensive website, but we needed a partner to maintain our website and develop new features. Although we have internal capacities, we needed external sources to complete the project in a short timeframe. That's why we partnered with KnackForge.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.

KnackForge has been an instrumental asset to our development team. Working with KnackForge, we have added a very comprehensive, cataloged online store to our flash sales site. They developed a great user interface and filtered search functionality that helps our users find the products they are looking for.

KnackForge also collaborated with us to develop an ascription business sign. We have added the possibility for our users to subscribe to a monthly wine box. They have also helped us make our website more international. We have implemented the management of different tax rates, different languages and price synchronizations between the different international versions of Bodeboca.

How did you come to work with KnackForge Soft Solutions?

I did some basic searches on Google and found that KnackForge is a very active member of the Drupal Community. We reached out to them, and they were a good fit for us in terms of their skill set.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

The size of the project is in the $50,000 to $200,000 price range.

What is the status of this engagement?

We've been working with them for three years [as of September 2015]. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

Not really. Our sales have increased and our site is more user-friendly and international than before, but it's hard to tell how much of that is directly attributed to KnackForge.

How did KnackForge Soft Solutions perform from a project management standpoint?

There is some room for improvement in their project management. There have been times when they have not been able to deliver what they said they would deliver. They tend to miss deadlines. It's alright because three years later we're still with them. Quality-wise, the KnackForge team is very strong in Drupal knowledge and discipline. They are definitely worth keeping around.

What distinguishes KnackForge Soft Solutions from other providers?

KnackForge Soft Solutions has 360-degree capabilities, meaning that they are very strong in back-end cutting, but also at the front-end development. That's rare.

Is there anything KnackForge Soft Solutions could have improved or done differently?

Nothing I haven't already mentioned. Otherwise, I'm very satisfied with KnackForge.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

My organization is an e-learning company. We have an online platform that helps users learn foreign languages through interactive exercises.

What is your position?

I am the owner of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with KnackForge Soft Solutions?

The goal was to develop the e-learning platform on which to base my business from scratch. I wanted to provide users with a platform on which they could complete their interactive tasks and exercises as well as learn grammar and pronunciation.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.

KnackForge was involved in the development of the website and platform. I provided the design, and HTML and CSS files, in prototype form. At the time, there was no interactivity because I'm not familiar with JavaScript, PHP, and Drupal. I relied on KnackForge to connect the files and develop the missing elements of the site. They also added an e-commerce functionality and an e-learning platform that contains multiple interactive exercises of different types. Our platform is free at the moment but, in the future, we are going to use a PayWall to provide some paid content and functionalities. KnackForge is also responsible for the development of this functionality.

How did you come to work with KnackForge Soft Solutions?

I decided to develop the website using Drupal. I started to research the Drupal system, and I found a big community behind it, with many developers who actually write different modules for different functionalities. I found that KnackForge writes many of those modules. I decided to get in contact with [Vannia Rajan, director of operations for KnackForge Soft Solutions] directly.

He answered very quickly. He asked me in detail about my project, and we agreed on a price. I hesitated because I previously thought that their offer was too good in terms of price. I was not sure whether they were as good as they are, but I decided to try.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

The cost of the project was less than $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in May 2014, and they had finished everything by October 2014. They still maintain the Drupal website and platform. They always inform us when it is necessary to upgrade to the newest version of Drupal, so it's very convenient. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

I am not ready to provide metrics at the moment. For now, I am working on the content. I think that I will use metrics after I finalize uploading all the content. We are still in the testing phase and have a limited number of users. I've already received a lot of positive feedback from our test users. I am very satisfied with KnackForge's work and the results of the project.

How did KnackForge perform from a project management standpoint?

KnackForge performed very well. When I first asked them to review my designs and the CSS [cascading style sheets] files that I had, they looked through everything very attentively and prepared a proposal. They always met all the deadlines that were in our proposal. When I had questions, I asked a developer who was responsible for my project, and they were always ready to answer my questions. Their communication and performance were very good as well.

What distinguishes KnackForge Soft Solutions from other providers?

I was very pleased when KnackForge Soft Solutions helped me with the initial design and CSS that I had developed. They didn't have any obligation to do that, but when I asked them how to improve, their advice was very helpful. They went beyond the specifications of my initial proposal.

Is there anything KnackForge Soft Solutions could have improved or done differently?

No. I can't think of anything they could do better. I see that they have always been improving their services.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

My company provides online learning services, learning management systems, customized learning portals, and we create content for online delivery to companies in the United States and all around the world.

What are your position and responsibilities?

I am the president of my company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with KnackForge Soft Solutions?

We were looking to rebrand our company and create a new website. We partnered with KnackForge to help us with the new rebranded site.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.

We provided KnackForge with a general design of the website. They took that general design and applied it to the site perfectly. They were fully responsible for bringing the site to life. They also adapted the original design we gave them to design other pages on our site. KnackForge then added additional functionalities, as we needed them. They used Drupal to develop the site.

How did you come to work with KnackForge Soft Solutions?

We did some online research, looking at Drupal developers. KnackForge had worked on online learning sites before, which gave us the confidence to partner with them for this project.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

The cost of the website was less than $5,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

I first approached KnackForge In June 2015. We started the project two weeks later, and took two weeks to complete. It was a very quick project. They still provide support for ongoing website work as I need it.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

The project just wrapped, so it's too early to share track-able results, but we were very impressed with them. Their performance was excellent.

What distinguishes KnackForge Soft Solutions from other providers?

KnackForge Soft Solutions provides excellent work and is an expert in its industry. They were very forthcoming, flexible, their responsiveness is great.

Is there anything KnackForge Soft Solutions could have improved or done differently?

I cannot think of anything at this time.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

We are an Internet marketing company. I work together with several other companies to provide leads for other businesses. 

What is your position?

I'm the managing director.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with KnackForge Soft Solutions?

First, we wanted to build out cashback sites. We also have a big database of around a half million people which we need to email quite often. We tried using MailChimp at first, which was very costly in our case. We then decided to make something similar from scratch. We needed a developer to create the software for us. That's why we partnered with KnackForge.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.

For the cashback site, KnackForge was responsible for front end coding. We gave them the design we wanted, and they created it implementing Drupal and HTML.

For the software, they developed a sophisticated, scalable platform that allows us to send thousands of emails per hour. They incorporated various functionalities that allow us to manage various mailing lists, create enewsletters, schedule the delivery and see reports on the subscribers and each individual email we send out. The platform is powered by Drupal 7.

How did you come to work with KnackForge Soft Solutions?

I found one of KnackForge's founders four years ago in a Drupal forum. They seemed to be quite active in the community, and that's why we chose them.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

The project was in the $15,000 to $25,000 price range.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them about three years ago [2012], and we have since stopped working with them. Our business has changed since we first engaged them, and we no longer need the support and maintenance we once needed.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

The mailing project was a success. We used to spend around $1,500 on MailChimp each month. Using the software that KnackForge developed for us, the cost for mailing is around $200, and we tripled our database size. That's quite impressive in terms of cost savings.

How did KnackForge Soft Solutions perform from a project management standpoint?

When we started working with them, they were growing. They also had some junior coders working for them. Sometimes, the quality was  good, and other times it was not good. It really depended on the people that were assigned to us. It was very hit and miss. I think they are good on the technical side of things. They are up to speed with the best practices and new technologies. But, they sometimes miss the gut feeling of what's usable and what's not. That would be my biggest complaint and my biggest compliment, too.

What distinguishes KnackForge Soft Solutions from other providers?

One of the founders is very involved in the projects, and he's a smart guy. In terms of technical knowledge, KnackForge Soft Solutions is good. They are very understanding when something is going wrong to compensate it on their own cost.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

Our company is BetterStudy. We are an e-learning company that specializes in teaching accounting and preparing for accounting exams.

What is your position?

I am the founder and CEO of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with KnackForge Soft Solutions?

The goal was to create an e-learning platform from scratch on which to base our business.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.

I had the concept and a basic design for the platform. I presented those to the KnackForge team, and they ran with it. KnackForge was fully responsible for building the platform. KnackForge developed a Drupal 7 and HTML5 website for the application. The application includes an e-commerce functionality and a customizable module. This module allows users to create different questions types, tests, training exercises, an admin dashboard, and PDF viewing. KnackForge set up a database within the application abd did some SEO [search engine optimization] work for us. They still provide support when we want to add new functionalities to the application.

How did you come to work with KnackForge Soft Solutions?

A friend of mine recommended KnackForge to me. I reached out to them, and we chose to do a trial project with them. It worked out well, so we kept working together.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

The size of the project is confidential.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in March 2013. Our partnership is ongoing. The development part of the project is completed, but I still consult with them about the project. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

We have about 1,100 subscribers. It's a very specific field, and the market I'm targeting is very small, so those are great numbers for us. The platform has generated significant sales for us. Overall, it is a great project.

How did KnackForge Soft Solutions perform from a project management standpoint?

KnackForge worked very well. They integrated us into their project management system. I could check the status of the development process at any time. I could see exactly how the project was broken down, and how fast they completed the different tasks. I could also give feedback and make comments about the different tasks. They were very responsive, and there was a good communication between us.

Is there anything KnackForge Soft Solutions could have improved or done differently?

KnackForge is an extremely good software development firm, but they should focus more on the front-end design and the overall user experience. The platform does everything I want it to do, but it could have a better user interface.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

We develop e-learning solutions. This includes a learning management system (LMS) as well as content, mainly educational videos and questions that are relation to the videos. We help corporate companies and training agencies improve the way they teach sales and management skills.

What is your position?

I'm a business manager. I'm also responsible for daily operations.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with KnackForge Soft Solutions?

We needed a technology partner to help us develop the LMS that is the basis of our business.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.

KnackForge was responsible for developing our learning management system. We developed our LMS in projects or releases. Each new release comes with different functionalities. This can be functional changes to the LMS, but lately we've been working on a design change. KnackForge is responsible for developing those updates and additions.

How did you come to work with KnackForge Soft Solutions?

Our CTO has a background in Drupal development. He has a broad network of people he knows that are in Drupal. He met the KnackForge team through a Drupal network. After a few conversations on the concept of the LMS, they started collaborating on the development aspect of the project.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

We work on a monthly fee with them. The average amount is $1,500 to $2,000 per month.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started two years ago [as of August 2015].

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

I don't have numbers because we are still in the startup stages. I think it's been a very successful project.

How did KnackForge Soft Solutions perform from a project management standpoint?

KnackForge does a very good job from a project management perspective. They are very responsive and quick. Approximately 80 percent to 90 percent of the prototypes that they build for us are good enough to be part of the final project.

What distinguishes KnackForge Soft Solutions from other providers?

KnackForge is a great group of smart and proactive professionals. They set a high bar for their work, and they always follow through.

Is there anything KnackForge Soft Solutions could have improved or done differently?

In general, I'm happy with the way things are going. There are always some improvements to be made. That's partly because of the language barrier. English is not my native language, and it's not KnackForge's either. Everything has to be translated twice so that adds more time. Overall, I can't complain.