Lateral Inc.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the chief technology officer for a company called Microf. We provide financing for consumers who want to replace their residential heating or air conditioning systems.

What challenge were you trying to address with Lateral Inc.?

We used a US-based firm to build out a custom origination platform. I had a high burn rate with the US firm. I needed to cut costs but also have a dedicated development group to continue the platform’s enhancement.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Lateral works as an extension of our development team. Their team works on the software architecture and engineering approaches. They also design the platform, which runs on Linux, Apache, and Tomcat servers. They leverage Java with Spring Hibernate as well as open-source technologies and MariaDB for the backend.

They help us to understand the best approach to design solutions based on our business needs. Their team keeps the software nimble as we continue to grow and change.

Originally, the solution was an origination platform for dealers to submit rent to own leases. Their team helped to turn the product into a lending tree for residential heating and air conditioning replacement.

What is the team composition?

I work with a senior Java developer and a few other Java developers. There are a QA software tester and a project manager on the team too.

How did you come to work with Lateral Inc.?

One of the members of our board of directors owns a power company in the Atlanta area. He exclusively engaged Lateral for all of his software development needs. He recommended that I interview them to see if they could meet our needs and cut costs. I called them and elected to change over to them.

How much have you invested with them?

Since starting our work with them, we’ve spent about $1.5 million.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Lateral around November 2014, and we’re in the process of adding five new lenders into the platform as we speak.

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

When we switched from the US development firm to Lateral, defects in the code almost completely went away. Throughout my career, I’ve worked with a lot of different offshore companies, and quality was always an issue. I’ve never had an issue with Lateral's work. The quality of their work’s exceptional. I consider them part of our competitive advantage as a company.

How did Lateral Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

We use JIRA. We manage all of our sprints and testing activities within the platform. I meet with them daily for at least 30 minutes. Their team understands and accommodates our schedule, so the challenges of an offshore team aren’t there.

What did you find most impressive about them?

A little over a year ago, we needed to change our UX/UI to React because we needed more flexibility. Lateral, being such good team members, took it upon themselves to fully educate and train the development staff on React to make the transition quickly. Their team was up to speed almost overnight. They truly are an extension of my team. I’m not sure how we could manage our velocity of change without them.

Are there any areas they could improve?

A few years ago, the time difference was a challenge. As they’re in Romania, there’s a six-hour time difference between us. When we had a release, we needed to investigate hiccups and anomalies, which was difficult with the time difference. We talked about it and put a game plan in place. Now, every time we have a release, they switch to our time zone.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I wanted a company to become my offshore development group. Just as I would with any other group that I manage as CTO, I meet with them regularly. You get that which you put into an organization. Set clear expectations and goals. It’s important to jointly measure and manage those goals.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the co-founder and CEO of Anjuna, which is a global airline representation company. We represent airlines in international markets. We’re headquartered in Singapore and have 14 offices around the world.

What challenge were you trying to address with Lateral Inc.?

We needed a partner to help us with software development solutions.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Lateral Inc. has built many white-label solutions for us involving hotel offerings and online travel agencies. Their team has utilized booking engines from large travel distributors in their solutions. They've also provided UX/UI services and marketed solutions using SEO and SEM strategies.

When we have a new project, I first discuss it with them. They then let me know if they’ve done similar work for another client.

For example, we needed to create cloud-based call center and email integrations. We also needed to provide this platform around the world. I told Lateral what I needed and asked them about their past experiences. Their team adapted an existing solution for us.

We’ve branched out into many different verticals with them. For example, their team’s currently working with AI technologies. These solutions are also for the travel industry.

What is the team composition?

Primarily, I interact with people from their head office in Romania. In the US, we’ve interfaced with a handful of their teammates in the Bay area and New York. I’ve had greater exposure to their various studios in Romania.

How did you come to work with Lateral Inc.?

I’ve been involved with Lateral throughout the past 10—15 years with various other businesses. My intersection with Lateral has been within the travel technology and consulting spaces.

With my current company, I tried to take technologies off the shelf to conserve costs. I learned quickly that it was more important to get the solutions right. Lateral was our first call. We did our due diligence but came back to Lateral because of their fresh approach.

They strategize in these open forums. They have an inclusive environment where they share ideas unlike other IT providers, which tend to have either a conservative approach or a dictatorial approach.

How much have you invested in them?

We’ve spent around $200,000–$250,000 on 6–7projects.

What is the status of this engagement?

I’ve worked with them for over 10 years. At my current company, we started working together in March 2016, and our partnership’s ongoing.

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

They’ve delivered every time that I’ve reached out and thrown a challenge at them. I’ve been absolutely blown away by their work. Their team doesn’t provide shrink-wrapped pieces of software from the shelf.

Lateral addresses every task, no matter how complex or simple, with the same level of professionalism. It doesn’t matter if the project’s an AI solution or a simple design Their team approaches every project with the same level of seriousness, which is incredibly refreshing.

I can essentially send Lateral a five-line email of what I want for a project. Within a day, they not only provide a solution but also the road map for the design journey. Their team describes their thoughts, which is incredibly refreshing.

How did Lateral Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

Their ability to provide transparency in the development process through their own in-house tools is quite remarkable. My entire business functions remotely and Lateral shares that work ethos. They fit perfectly within our business. I haven’t found their level flexibility in other providers.

Through their tools, they’re accessible 24/7. Lateral has mastered the art of consistency, which I attribute to their hiring and internal tools.  

What did you find most impressive about them?

I’ve been impressed with not only their solutions but also their approach to my requests. They never take a cookie-cutter approach to challenges.

They address challenges from a blank canvas perspective. As you evolve through the process, they ask questions about whether or not a previous approach would be advantageous to our business. Their collaborative culture permeates to the client.

They’re creative all the way through, applying creativity to technical solutions. There’s also complete transparency in with their work.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I haven’t had a negative experience with them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Our success with Lateral comes from a shared culture of openness, transparency, and collaboration. It’s wrong to dictate what you believe the outcome needs to be.

A key to our success is that they provide suggestions. Try to have that mindset of openness, flexibility, and willingness to share the problem as opposed to dictating the problem and outcome.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of a live-event ticketing and packaging company that works with some of the largest retailers, from travel to restaurant companies. We utilize multiple platforms with activities through APIs with live-event partners, from Broadway to Las Vegas shows to sports teams to nonprofits. We service 80 cities nationwide.

What challenge were you trying to address with Lateral Inc.?

I started my business about eight years ago. I was working within other people’s extranets and intranets in building out their e-commerce for live events. Even though I was doing a very large volume of business, I was working off of spreadsheets and didn’t have my own platform. We were relying on the technology of the companies that I was working with.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Lateral Inc. created an e-commerce platform for us that we could offer as both a white-label version as well as a version that can be picked up in an API, so we can seamlessly transfer information from one system to another. They also designed good architecture for our partners to write to for an API, and for us to facilitate our own to make it very easy for our employees. They were able to adapt some of the technology they already had to fit into the business of live entertainment.

What is the team composition?

The great thing about Lateral Inc. is that we have a dedicated team of 1–2 individuals, but if we have a larger project, they’re able to shift priorities to bring on other resources to hit deadlines. They’ve probably used up to ten people on one project. We work with a few of them on a daily basis since we’re constantly expanding off of things.

How did you come to work with Lateral Inc.?

I met Ciprian (Founder & CEO) when we both worked at a travel company. I was expanding the company’s business and live entertainment, and Ciprian was brought on to do the local deals voucher business. He had a great bit of knowledge in travel and developing what were the GroupOns and the LivingSocials of that time.

Before we signed on with Lateral Inc., we talked to some bigger companies with platforms that were already in the marketplace we were trying to create and had systems that could be used by multiple types of distribution. However, Lateral Inc. was able to fit our needs in a more practical manner, being more cost-effective and able to create a quality, responsive platform for us to use. I also liked the personal nature of them. I consider them a part of our business. 

How much have you invested with them?

Over the past five years, we’ve probably spent slightly more than $250,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our work together began in March 2015, and it’s ongoing. We’ve had a contract with them since we began working together, and there have been no interruptions.

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

We’re not technology people in the sense of how things can look, but we’re very much leaders in innovation of how you can sell tickets. Lateral Inc. was able to translate it better than other companies that are much larger and in our space. We’ve expanded from one to about 16 employees over the last seven years, and Lateral Inc. has made it very easy for us to expand our business. 

We’re using one of their technologies to service our e-commerce platform, and it’s a world-class system. Our system has never been down, so I think that speaks volumes. We send hundreds of thousands of people onto a page from time-to-time, like when we push out email campaigns across millions of people. The quality of the work is standing firm to what we’re looking to achieve. 

How did Lateral Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

I don’t think they’ve ever missed a deadline. They also come back to us and propose alternatives to challenges we’ve had. They don’t just give us what we ask for; they think everything through to ensure the coding they’re doing matches up to the business needs that we have. Even though we’re in much different time zones, they fit to our schedule in terms of doing work and communicating.

We use Persona, and it’s very efficient; it allows multiple people to speak to each other, prioritize tasks, and get things done. I come up with a lot of different ideas and then ask for them to be prioritized quickly, and I’m constantly surprised by how quickly some things can be changed. My team enjoys working with them. If there’s something we need help on, they’re there for us; they answer our requests at all different parts of the day. They’re very passionate about helping our small business to succeed. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They do high-quality, world-class architecture and design. Their systems are responsive, and they do their work at a personal level so that we can enjoy them as part of our team. At the same time, they’re looking to grow our company for us in ways we hadn’t thought of. The other thing is that they’re affordable. Those three factors fit our needs, and it should fit most companies going forward.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I wish they were in our time zone, but I don’t find that is a problem in today’s business world. They adjust to us, and it works out well. They often get their work done while I sleep, so I like knowing that our business is constantly going.

Any advice for potential customers?

I have already given leads to Lateral Inc. for a number of projects that have turned into long-term relationships for them. My advice is to take the time to find their approach to getting your work done. This is a company you can trust. Know that they will not only take care of the tech side of your business, but also understand the constraints that your own employees might be under. Coming from someone who has worked with them and then also referred them and only gotten great feedback, I don’t have any bad things to say about Lateral Inc.