Magora

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am a developer at a small travel company located in Norway and is the project owner of the project. Our company has 10 employees and sells trips to beautiful locations in Norway.

For what projects/services did your company hire Magora?

Norway is a complex geographic country, with a lot of fjords and mountains. A lot of trips offered by the company is therefore complicated with a lot of train, bus and boat connections.

To be able to offer the best experience for the customers of the company, we wanted to develop a virtual guide, to make the trip easier and more delightful for the tourist.

As the internal developers of the company did not have the capacity to do this work an external company was needed to help out with the development of the application.

What were your goals for this project?

Create a mobile application to engage travellers and diversify their experience when booking a trip at our company

How did you select Magora?

We found Magora by searching online. We contacted a few different companies, but Magora seemed to be the most professional and easiest to communicate with.

Describe the project in detail.

We started off the project with a lot of initials meetings. Discussing the scope and mapping all the ideas. The result of this was a detailed BPMN and user stories that could be estimated and evaluated by the developers.

By creating this, the scope of the project was clear and ready to start the development. After each development phase both our company and Magora did a QA on the current work. When the QA was completed the project was deployed and released.

What was the team composition?

We were assigned a project manager to support us and serve as the main point of contact throughout the project. We also had a business analyst as well as a designer that came up with the initial design of the application. The company also provided a QA team.

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

The app was launched early june 2020. It is still yet hard to see if the app was a success or not because of the impact of the Covid-19 situation affecting the world at this time. Resulting in very few, if any, travellers. The app with expected content was delivered in time, and we are pleased with the result that was delivered. Hopefully we will be able to test the app in more detail 2021.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The project manager that we were assigned was easy to communicate with and provided us with detailed updated. We had regular meetings to ensure we all were on the same page. Overall impressed with the people we worked with.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Their planning skills and business analyzing skills have been extraordinary and detailed. The common understanding on what should be delivered or not was perfectly clear during the entire corporation.

Are there any areas for improvement?

The development process slowed pretty heavily when bugs were found in their own QA process. But they always delivered in the end. Overall pleased with the process.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of a company that supplies software to car leasing brokers.

What challenge were you trying to address with Magora?

My team is composed of product managers and designers, without any development skills in-house. They helped us on the development front.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They handled all of the backend and frontend development for the project. We were looking to build a web platform along with a backend CMS and CRM tool. 

What is the team composition?

I work directly with a project manager.

How did you come to work with Magora?

One of my co-workers had worked with them before in a successful partnership, so they were one of three companies that we asked for proposals from. Their proposal was by far the best in terms of what we were aiming to achieve and showed strong attention to detail.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent about $40,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in September 2019, and our teams are still collaborating. The project will likely be complete by July 2020.

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

We’re still mid-way through the project, so I can’t comment much on the quality of the code. However, they show attention to detail in their work and have been hitting milestones at the general pace we’re looking for.  

How did Magora perform from a project management standpoint?

We set very detailed requirements from the beginning and documented milestones. In the end, we’re doing more than initially expected, so sometimes there was a bit of scope creep. We communicate via Slack and have a very skilled project manager. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Broader than just the code itself, the team strived to understand the entire project. Their attention to detail impressed us. They’ve proven to be understanding of some pretty complex code requirements and data sets. The breadth of their skills and processes is very impressive. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

We’ve addressed how we’re going to work around issues with scope creep, and they’ve adapted to our needs. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Share as much about our needed deliverables and context early. That way, you’ll get the most out of their services. They’ve been a great team overall for us.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am a lawyer, and the company I represent is a startup that works in education.

What challenge were you trying to address with Magora?

We developed an application for iOS and iPad that allows users to write in Altai, a language in a region of southern Russia, using a downloadable custom keyboard.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Our team is not very familiar with the process of developing an application, so the Magora team worked with us from the beginning to the end to help scope out the technical requirements of the project and then to build out the entire thing.

What was the team composition?

They provided a project manager as well as a couple developers, so 2–3 people in total.

How did you come to work with Magora?

From our first meetings with them, they were friendly and incredibly helpful, so we knew that we wanted to move forward with them.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent a total of a little over $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project ran from around July–December 2019.

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

The application that they helped us to develop is incredibly useful. We have people using it every day already, and many of them often thank us for much the app has improved their ability to type in Altai. We are totally satisfied with the usability that Magora enabled, and it goes a long way in helping to save our culture and language for a little while longer.

How did Magora perform from a project management standpoint?

We were not a particularly easy customer to work with, because we were often guilty of procrastinating and causing delays, but they were always tolerant and helpful to us. I learned to communicate more effectively because of the professionalism with which their team operated.

We primarily used email, WhatsApp, and phone calls to interact with their team. They were very adaptable to the means of communication that was easiest for us to use, which we appreciated.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their whole team is highly professional, from their project managers to the implementation of all the technical requirements. They worked hard to ensure we were satisfied with every aspect of their work with us, and it really paid off.

Are there any areas they could improve?

If anything, I could have improved with my communication and meeting deadlines, so I certainly don’t think there was anything that they needed to do differently.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

It is easy to work with them because they are eager to communicate and find a way to help no matter what you do.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the president and co-founder of a tech company that was created to transform the way that products are developed by pharmaceutical companies and activate sites that allow patients to participate in research wherever they receive care.  

What challenge were you trying to address with Magora?

We wanted to develop apps on our platform to support the management of our research network. It was intended to bring research sites and positions together to support the conduct of clinical trials while increasing access to investigational products for patients in need.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They were responsible for creating the functionality to support a network environment for participants in the clinical research process. It was essential that they put together a clean UI for effective communication with various stakeholders in the clinical research process. They built the product from scratch, using Microsoft Azure. 

What is the team composition?

We were working with project managers. Once the project was initiated, we were handed over to the business development department and had a single lead project manager that coordinated with the development and analyst teams. 

How did you come to work with Magora?

I was referred to them by someone who had worked with them previously. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent about $250,000. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in May 2018, and our teams are still collaborating.

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

They’ve improved our client volume and engagement across the industry. Our plan has remained flexible enough to allow us to change requirements as need through the development process. Their work is consistently high-quality. 

How did Magora perform from a project management standpoint?

Communication and reporting have been frequent in our weekly calls and progress reports and priorities discussions. That allowed us to get the key functionality that we needed. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their flexibility and ability to move through processes quickly were impressive.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We were one of the first clients in our industry to partner with them. While that would have made me nervous, they were easily able to pick up on our requirements and regulations.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and CEO of easyGuide. We enable locals and tourists alike to discover and book tickets to over 1,000 attractions, activities, experiences, tours, and theatre shows in cities around the world.

What challenge were you trying to address with Magora?

We needed to produce a mobile-optimized e-commerce website that connected with multiple APIs.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They have been in charge of building our e-commerce website, basically from scratch. It’s a custom-built platform connected with APIs. They do full-stack development; frontend and backend. They also manage the entire project.

What is the team composition?

There are 4–6 people working, depending on the scope of the project, including a project manager and account manager.

How did you come to work with Magora?

I found Magora after conducting extensive research online. After meeting in person and discussing the project further, they spent time putting together a compelling pitch with great concepts and ideas for us to see.

How much have you invested with them?

We've spent $150,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in August 2019, and it’s ongoing.

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

We have seen an increase in site speed, leading to better bounce rates and higher conversion rates. The site looks good and functions properly.

How did Magora perform from a project management standpoint?

Their communication is always on point. We use various technologies to keep track of things. The sprints are defined in detail before starting. They are responsive, and always on time. We speak daily via Skype and have weekly, or bi-weekly calls scheduled as well. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They are friendly, yet professional. They have good planning and execution of sprints. They are quick to assemble the team and produce what we need, when we need it.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, nothing really comes to mind. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be sure you have time to work with them and identify what you’re looking for.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a part-time advisor of a technology startup. We have several products, one of which is a data marketplace.

What challenge were you trying to address with Magora?

Magora’s task was to build our MVP. The main challenge was that the idea for the project was just in our heads, and we wanted them to do pretty much everything.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Magora provided design and full-stack web app development services. One of the challenges was connecting different APIs to our marketplace from different data sources. Their team defined the scope and determined which data sources we could start with. They combined all of those in one place and gave us a nice UI.

We gave them flexibility but defined what coding languages and technologies to use. Some suggestions came from them and some from us, such as using React on the frontend. The first phase of our project was research and development. Now, they're working on the development phase.

What is the team composition?

I communicate with one of their salespeople and a project manager. Sometimes, two developers join our conversations.

How did you come to work with Magora?

I googled some companies and found their landing page. Magora had a promising expertise level, and we were looking for a London-based company. They have development teams in other countries, but their headquarters are in London. We also picked them because of their price.

How much have you invested with them?

We've invested around £70,000 (approximately $85,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Magora in January 2020, and the work is ongoing. They’re finishing our MVP development, and we’ll decide whether to continue our collaboration after we’ve worked on sales and marketing.

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

We’re still working on customer engagement so I don’t have any metrics so far. Magora’s work looks good overall. We had some issues with design in the beginning, but they sorted those out. A highlight is that they did a good job of understanding the market and gave us a lot of suggestions and options on the data process.

How did Magora perform from a project management standpoint?

This is one of their strongest points. They have everything in a well-structured manner. We use Trello to outline the project scope, provide timelines, and track feedback from my side.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The way they structure sprints within their project management is their most impressive skill. This has given me a good feeling about them.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I can’t think of anything. I’m pretty happy.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

I don’t have any specific advice. They’re flexible and immediately change anything we don’t like.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the owner of a restaurant app startup. 

What challenge were you trying to address with Magora?

I needed to develop a mobile app.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Magora did full stack development of the mobile app. Built for iOS and Android, the app is for consumers to use to improve their experience, increasing comfort in any bar or restaurant they visit. There are several complex features, including maps and reviews. 

What is the team composition?

We worked with Alex (iOS Developer) and a project manager.

How did you come to work with Magora?

I searched for vendors that spoke Russian, as this is my native language. I’m very comfortable with their team, and we communicated easily with each other.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in February 2020. We have taken a break due to the pandemic situation, but plan to resume the project once things reopen. 

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

The app hasn’t launched yet. We only worked together a few weeks prior to COVID-19 causing restaurants to close everywhere.

How did Magora perform from a project management standpoint?

The project manager is productive and professional. We communicate mostly via phone and email. We spoke often, discussing each point of the project. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

The team is professional. They communicate well, understanding our vision for the app. Magora are like partners, or a part of the team, rather than a hired vendor. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, but it would always be nice to have it done cheaper.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Respondent 1: I’m the founder of Ayadi, a mental health application startup.

What challenge were you trying to address with Magora?

R1: My target audience was people in the Gulf region that have mental health problems. The app was supposed to be a platform that connected clinicians with patients. I wanted to provide a professional service for the region because there’s a lack of therapists there.

Because reputation is a big thing there, people didn’t really want to go to clinics. I felt like having an app would be a great idea. I’m monetizing the app by taking a percentage from each session cost. I need to do that in order to keep the service going.

What was the scope of their involvement?

R1: They first gave me a price, then put me in touch with the Managing Director and we had a meeting. I just wanted to close the deal, but he seemed to be going back and forth. As someone who’d never done this before, I didn’t know the process. Of course, I needed an in-depth explanation, and I feel like they just wanted to close the deal, and didn’t really care about what I was trying to do. 

I wanted to build the app for iOS, Android, and the web. The mobile versions were native.

What is the team dynamic?

R1: I worked with a project manager and a business analyst.

How did you come to work with Magora?

R1: I found them on Clutch, where they had really good reviews. I reviewed three companies in total, and I felt I wanted to go with Magora. At the end of the day, my background is in psychology, and I wouldn’t say I’m amazing on the business side.

What is the status of this engagement?

R1: The project started in late-November 2018. They kept telling me that we’re going to launch, and, at the end, I told them we’re not going to do this anymore. I think I reached my limit and moved by October 2019.

Describe the impact this engagement has had on your business.

R1: They told us that the app was done and we should do UAT testing. During that time, if the core functionalities of the app were not working, then they’d revaluate UAT testing. The two core functionalities of the app were video and tests, and they weren’t working during UAT testing. When we told them this, they said that it was working, and we should try it another way. I remember going crazy at the time, thinking that I was doing it wrong. I just didn’t understand what was going on.

I’m not a techie; I just have a passion for mental health, psychology, and helping people. I don’t really know these things, and I doubted myself. I told them to just be honest with me and tell me if they’re having issues. I used that approach more than anything, and I think that that’s why they felt it was okay to continue this. They told us that it was because of our devices, and I kind of believed that.

R2: We got a very bad deal from Magora. Right from the beginning, the verbal agreements were never executed properly. For example, we were never told that it would be a bunch of freelancers working on our projects, and not Magora’s staff. Basically, Magora was doing nothing but subcontracting the whole project to a bunch of freelancers, which wasn’t good for us in any way.

R1: They were charging us something like $60 or £60 per hour. I remember that the name of one of the freelance developers came up during a conference call. I looked him up, and he was charging $20 per hour. I asked them why they were charging us this much and asked for a discount, given that the quality was so low, but they told us that that was the usual price of development. I told him I looked him up on Upwork and he was $20, and he told me he had nothing to say about that.

R2: The core problem was that we were promised a lot and nothing was delivered they committed to deliver. I don’t know how, but they have a very good reputation and reviews, and we were carried away by that. It was a very bad experience. An app that should’ve taken around six months to complete took more than a year and still wasn’t completed. We’ve had to rework a lot of functionalities.

The architecture was a mess because, since it was made by freelancers, they weren’t coordinating between themselves very well. Different pieces of code were written by different people in different ways.

How was project management handled?

R1: Sometimes, people who are in higher positions, especially men, tend to pressure you in a way, when you’re younger and you don’t understand. It’s been two years and a half, and I feel I understand the business better, and I’ve learned a lot of things.

I just felt like they took advantage of the situation. They saw me as someone that’s vulnerable, and they took advantage of that.

It’s been two years, and I’m still kind of traumatized. I just moved to another application company, and they’re great. Comparing the two of them, I think everyone should have the same kind of experience I’m having with the new application company.

Is there anything that the vendor did well or that you would consider a strength?

R1: Valentine (Senior Product Manager) was the only person I really liked, and who I felt was suffering with us and didn’t know what to do.

In what specific areas can they improve?

R2: The freelancer structure was the root cause of all our problems. Neither did the quality come out well, nor were our requirements plotted out and executed in a fashion that we wanted. Everything went haywire because they weren’t committed to delivering what was promised. Everything was a mess.

What advice do you have for clients with similar needs to yours?

R2: We also took proactive measures in finding solutions, rather than breaking off. What happened was that many of the issues happened toward the end of the project, and the time and cost for fixing them went beyond any acceptable means.

We were running out of time, and each change request would increase the cost. We were trying our best from our side to proactively help out, but it really didn’t work. The last six months was just trying to work out things, but it never happened.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the lead front- and backend developer for a financial education company.

What challenge were you trying to address with Magora?

We wanted to modernize our software but our older developer didn't produce scalable or up-to-date products. We didn’t have a team to maintain good development practices.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Magora delivered an overarching program to house all of our individual applications. They also built an application for us including the frontend, which has charting capabilities for all of our recommendations for users. The charts display notifications for when users should act. Their team also built features for recommendations to display in a table format. There’s backend logic to determine a good or bad trade based on rural sets.

What is the team composition?

We work with a main point of contact who liaises between teams and communicates fluently.

How did you come to work with Magora?

We searched Upwork for companies and picked between 3–4 to complete a basic project for us, which gave us an idea of their teams’ skill sets. The project was a basic charting application because that was a big feature of the final application. Magora won out of the top three choices.

How much have you invested with them?

So far, we’ve spent between $50,000–$100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

 We started the project in July 2019 and have an ongoing collaboration.

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

We wanted clean, well-documented code to read easily. I reviewed their code firsthand to make sure that they used the correct development standards. They do a good job of keeping clean, standard code, which makes us happy. We’re happy with the application their team built.

How did Magora perform from a project management standpoint?

We use a program called Mattermost. I also talk with the individual developers, a project manager, and the liaison. We communicate with Trello regarding specific questions about the development. Their team’s good with deadlines, completing assignments when needed to be completed. This helps my bosses who want to leverage the products quickly.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The cleanliness of their code stands out. When we compared the top three candidates for this project, Magora provided the cleanest code. Their team gets back to us quickly, which is important. When their team sets deadlines, they make them. And when they can’t make a deadline, their team explains the reasons for it.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The only challenge we face is that Magora’s too in demand. We wanted to start the development of another product in February, but their team was too busy to get it started. It’s a good situation for them but their plate was too full to work on our development request.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be as descriptive as possible for them. Their team asked questions and tried to understand our project well. They do a good job on the communication front, so answer their questions in a timely manner.

Please describe your company and your position there.

We founded our company in late 2018 with a simple idea: we want to tell people personal, powerful and positive stories that you won't find elsewhere. Since then, we've worked to build a growing team of writers, cameramen, editors, animators and designers.

How we work is also simple. We find stories through an expanding network of contacts and work to find the best way to tell them, or we make them up if they are fiction! In order to keep telling quality stories and investing in talent we ask members to pay to see them.

For what projects/services did your company hire Magora?

Mobile Application

What were your goals for this project?

Increase our number of subscriptions and distribute our content to a wider audience.

How did you select this vendor?

Sent via a colleague / friend.

Describe the project in detail.

Application to distribute our content.

What was the team composition?

Size of team the team was around 5 including a efficient project manager.

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

Magora understands the entrepreneurial vision. They can strategize about what will be successful in the market, which is invaluable. They are recommended for all types of projects.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Amazing - flawless.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Super efficient and reliable with deadlines.

Are there any areas for improvement?

A deeper understanding about issues that may arise as the project goes ahead.