MAK IT

Please describe your company and your position there.

JSC GASO is a natural gas distribution system operator in Latvia, I am the Head of the Business Support Systems Development Department

For what projects/services did your company hire MAK IT?

We hired MAK IT to develop the internal business process system of the gas supply service department and to create a brand new UI and UX for the GASO website and internal systems

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

We chose the supplier in the public procurement. MAK IT was the best supplier by the qualification points of the procurement they showed their professionalism during the interviews and submitted the most appropriate system development plan

Describe the project in detail and walk through their service package.

In the beginning, MAK IT business analyst interviewed our business key persons, and in close cooperation, we came to the most suitable vision of GAIS system. It was developed and regularly updated using a design prototype. System development was organised according to Agile methodology. New functionality is being delivered by iterations every two weeks. The system was developed from scratch and launched in less than 9 months, it included integrations with 3 other internal business systems.

At the moment, we have started the next stage of system development. Used technologies in the project: React JS, Ruby, Zero-API data layer, Blitz.js, PostgreSQL, Redis, Sidekiq, Github, CircleCI, Sentry.io and JIRA

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

We had 1 business analyst (Product owner), 1 project manager (Scrum Master), 3 backend developers, 1 system architect and 1 UI/UX specialist.

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

Automated import of client applications from 2 different systems, user-friendly UI, and better streamline of business processes has allowed us to significantly optimise time spent on application processing. From the beginning of the GAIS system launch, we have processed 7 000 + applications. This is a large increase in the number of applications processed compared to the same period a year earlier

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

This is one of our most successful IT projects in the company's history. Excellent cooperation based on Agile principles between us and MAK IT allowed us to successfully, dynamically, and in a relatively short period of time develop the most appropriate solution for business needs. Short iterations and successful communication in JIRA made it very easy to follow the development process and dynamically adjust the priorities of the business processes to be developed and specify their functionality

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

MAK IT was able to provide excellent full-service IT system development services. From business process analysis, UI and UX prototyping to server infrastructure design and system development. All employees are high-level professionals in their fields and highly motivated to achieve good results.

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

Nothing that would come to my mind. If we encountered any misunderstandings in communication or understanding of the system's functionality, it could easily be resolved during the next iteration

Please describe your company and your position there.

We are a leading insurance company providing a wide range of insurance options for both corporate and private clients. I’m Head of E-commerce and digital development, in the scope of our cooperation with MAK IT I was a project lead of Mobile application development.

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

As our customers are becoming more and more mobile, one of our core digital services - the indemnity application process had to be improved. We were looking for a vendor to create us native iOS and Android applications, as well as develop the UX and UI.

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

Our main metric was companies competence in developing mobile applications and modern, easy to understand user interfaces. We had a procurement process during which MAK IT showed their vast IT competence and perfect understanding of our business needs.

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

During the initial project phase we have created the application that allows customers to view the current information of policies, such as the contract, invoices, as well as pay bills, apply for compensation, follow the status of the application and receive notifications regarding the claim replies.

During the second phase we have implemented the Digital health card, which eliminates the need to present physical cards at our partners' locations. Currently our product is in the maintenance phase and we are constantly improving it.

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

The team was:

1. iOS engineer (also acting as project manager)
2. Android engineer
3. UI/UX engineer

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

In the first three months of the app's operation, 17% of customers have chosen a mobile app solution as the fastest and most convenient way to file their health insurance claim instead of applying for a WEB claim. 10k downloads so far #1 in app stores for 3 weeks

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

MAK IT has developed our product according to agile methodology. Core focus was on communication and discipline built on collaboration, teamwork and process transparency. Jira was used as a core tool, where all the statuses and sprints were planned, day to day communication happened in Slack.

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

MAK IT is much more than just a development agency. They are always thinking out of the box — orientated to build a great product that our customers would love.

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

As any relationship, our was not an exception, we definitely had ups and downs, however team was always professional in solving any challenges that occurred, so I don't see anything that could be fundamentally done differently.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am CEO of Ripo International - one of the leading Latvian companies that provides custom-made design, manufacturing and installation of sectional doors, gates, insect screens, rollershutters, sun protectors etc. Our range of products are suitable for anyone building or improving their home, office or industrial space.

For what projects/services did your company hire MAK IT?

We were looking for a software to digitize our business processes - sales management, production management, assembly planning, product development etc. Before that all of the planning was handled either by many different Excel files or systems that could not be integrated with other software. We saw an opportunity to increase efficiency of our business processes by implementing an ERP system that would allow us to plan our resources in a single IT solution.

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

We were checking many ready solutions, but either those were handling only part of our business processes or in some cases we could not find a ready made solution that would fulfill our business needs. Then we found out about MAK IT, and we loved that they could understand our business needs and provide us with optimal solutions - either by developing software or just by changing our business processes where they had to be changed.

Describe the project in detail and walk through their service package.

Before the implementation phase started we conducted a feasibility study - within one month we had a lot of interviews to go through all of our processes. This was done to reassure that both sides have done the best they could to get a unified understanding of project scope and our requirements.

After the feasibility study we were absolutely confident that MAK IT team understands our needs, and we proceeded with project implementation. It was handled in an agile way - we met with the development team every two weeks to talk about progress and plan next tasks. During these iterations we marked a goal, when certain parts of the system are ready to be used and we set a GO LIVE date.

After the first modules of the system were launched we continued to add modules and features as our business has grown. Our system is a web based system and we love that we can access it from anywhere, and any device, as it can be used with mobile devices, tablets and laptops. We placed the system in cloud based infrastructure, so we should not have to worry about keeping the system up and running and up to date with all of the technology advancements.

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

There were three persons working with us - one was a business analyst/project manager - with him we had the most contact regarding project planning and specifications of our requirements. And two were software developers that were included in our bi-weekly meetings so they would have a good understanding of our business needs as well and nothing would be lost in translation.

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

Not all benefits can be precisely measured that easily but there are some that I could mention:

1. Sales team capacity - as we are making custom made products for our clients - it used to be hard to get necessary calculations for each project. It meant that managers were more busy with internal coordination than with sales activities. Currently all calculations are automated, and our sales team has 2-3 extra hours per person to do the actual sales activities instead of internal communication.
2. Webshop - our customers can place their orders on our website and place orders online.
3. Reduced complaint amount from customers - as processes are more streamlined and every step can be followed through the system - it means less mistakes. And less mistakes means - less costs and more satisfied customers.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

We liked that it was flexible - there was no huge technical specification that was written at the beginning of the project that would be used as a “set in stone” truth of implementation scope and sequence. We had a specification, but during our 2 week cycles we could switch between modules and features that were being developed.

And if after several months we see that our processes have changed - we developed what was needed at the moment, not what was on the paper. We used project management tool JIRA, to follow all of our tasks, and planned two week sprints there to see which features will be priorities and which ones will have to wait. By using this tool we could see which tasks were done, and which ones might not go according to the plan, and could act accordingly as fast as possible if it was necessary

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

One thing that caught my attention right from the beginning was - we thought we were getting a software development company that would listen to us and create a system that we have envisioned. In reality - not only they listened, but they questioned our assumptions, went through our business processes and the project turned out to be not only a software implementation project but a business process review project as well.

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

As always we could find some other solutions afterwords but generally speaking we are satisfied.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the founder and CTO of RoboEatz, a company that develops a fully robotic foodservice system - an innovative solution to solve problems caused by a shortage of workforce and more demanding ingredient transparency and quality conformity standards

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

The goal of RoboEatz collaboration with MAK IT is the development of the “brain” of the robotic kitchen which ensures fully autonomous scheduling and preparation of the incoming orders. As a result we have developed an admin panel for the kitchen staff to manage the ingredients and their stock, easily create and store a countless number of various recipes. These recipes are then converted into procedures that are performed by a robotic arm to prepare the meal.

Additionally, our goal was to solve a number of scheduling problems to produce an efficient algorithm minimizing robot idle time. The solution also produces an array of different reports for the management team to overview and analyze processes. MAK IT has also developed an app for the end customers to provide a full purchase cycle of the meal: from choosing from the menu to picking it up from the parcel section of the kitchen. Several functions using AI are also being worked on at the moment.

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

We chose MAK IT because of their vast IT competence, their determination to do in-depth research on business matters and their enthusiasm to explore new affairs.

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

The project is still in the active development phase, as for any innovative product new ideas and requirements arise on the go. What we have developed so far:

• Ingredient library and stock control system;
• Recipe constructor and storage;
• End-user app for ordering a meal;
• Order management and reports;
• AI solution attending stock management and facilitating the human labor necessary for stock refilling;
• An app for the above-mentioned technical staff.

Technologies used: Ruby on Rails, React Native

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

We have collaborated with quite a few MAK IT team members and the number of them involved may change according to the tasks that have to be worked on, however the team constantly working on the project includes 2-3 engineers, a UX/UI specialist and a project manager.

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

The most tangible result is that we have already launched an up-and-running robotic kitchen already available to the customers. We are grateful to MAK IT who made it possible, delivering a solution on time, that allowed us to gain trust of our investors, as a result we were able to expand into the next stages of the project.

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

MAK IT practices agile development, so project management is all about communication discipline built on collaboration, teamwork and process transparency. The project management tool of their choice is Jira, where all the statuses and work-in-progress are convenient to be overviewed.

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

MAK IT's team not only consists of achievement-driven professionals, but they're also a fun bunch to work with. They are adventurous and supportive of our over-the-top ideas, always giving honest and experience-based feedback at the same time.

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

There are always things that you see you can do differently when you look at the past - but it is the responsibility of both sides and at that particular moments the choices were made mindfully.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am Managing Director in Instantic Ltd and Steero Ltd - platforms that connect fuel and vignettes retailers, parking, and truck wash service providers to their clients.

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

We have hired MAK IT for developing two platforms - Instantic and Steero. Instantic is a platform for fuel and vignettes retailers and its clients, and Steero is for parking and truck wash service providers and their clients.

Our main goals were: ·

• To create a user-friendly platform both for retailers and clients. Retailers can manage prices and discounts for each client, manage each location, provide base services and products and additional services.
• Maximize fuel management efficiency.
• To create a “cardless” payment system that minimizes the possibility of fraud to a minor level for us.

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

During our first meeting with MAK IT, they showed their professional attitude and passion for what they are doing, demonstrating some of their already finished projects. I felt that MAK IT would be a truly reliable IT partner for Instantic, and we have been partnering with them already for eight years since then.

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

We have been developing both platforms in agile methodology. At the beginning of our project, we did not know how big the final scope of work would be. We just approached MAK IT with new ideas for business processes, and their business analyst proposed the most suitable solution for us, which was discussed and updated.

We then agreed together of the following deliverables and implemented an array of products:

• Instantic web platform - for Partner and Clients administrators, where all the prices/discounts are managed, all transactions are shown in real time.
• Instantic mobile application for drivers.
• Instantic POS mobile application for site admins.
• Steero web platform - for Partner and clients administrators, where all the prices/discounts are managed, all transactions and bookings are shown in real time.
• Steero mobile application for drivers.
• Steero POS mobile application for site admins.

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

We had 1 business analyst, 3 backend developers, 2 mobile developers and 1 UI/UX specialist.

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

Clients and Partners of Instatic and Steero now can see real-time deals and be sure of secure money transactions without managing plastic fleet cards. Partners have maximized their profit by using Instantic and Steero.

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

For me and my business - MAK IT is a reliable IT partner. I will definitely approach them for digital collaboration when I have a new business idea. MAK IT is a very flexible partner who can quickly adapt to changing priorities from my side but still work very effectively and deliver on time, which I value the most.

They are accessible, easy to communicate with and take on the complete project management while suggesting its scope on our bi-weekly meetings. You come up with the idea, and MAK IT will help you make it real.

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

MAK IT always maintained personal relationships both inside the company and within their clients. In each project, MAK IT employees were very engaged, hardworking, and focused on the results.

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

No

Please describe your company and your position there.

Sigulda municipality Development agency director

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

MAK IT developed an app to connect Sigulda citizens with the Municipality, in order to provide a convenient communication channel between the two parties. The app also promotes local tourism and businesses, as well as allows to apply for a citizen ID card or pay for catering services for children at school.

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

MAK IT had the best offer for the public procurement we announced. They grasped the requirements perfectly and presented themselves as a trustworthy partner, aiming for a long-term collaboration.

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

It was a pretty significant project for the Municipality, and several innovations were introduced with this. The project had three main stages:

1. Implementation of the base functionality, such as News timeline, Event calendar, Tourism sections, and Special offers from the local businesses;
2. Implementation of the citizen ID cards;
3. Implementation of the School catering services on the app, meaning that the parents of schoolchildren would be able to pay for the meals online.

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

We had 5 MAK IT specialists on the project:

• Project manager
• iOS developer
• Android developer
• React Native developer
• UX/UI designer

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

The app is popular among Sigulda citizens, these days it has on average 5k users per month (Sigulda population is app. 12k).

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

MAK IT used an agile project management methodology. The team was easy to communicate with, the deadlines were met.

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

We had an overall excellent experience with MAK IT, and they still collaborate with the Municipality. MAK IT now maintain and evolves the app, and they proactively come up with new ideas on their part on a regular basis. It was great to work with a team so dedicated, friendly, and professional.

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

We are pretty satisfied with the results and cooperation.

Please describe your company and your position there.

LMT is a telecommunications operator and market leader in Latvia, currently amongst the most efficient and innovative mobile data networks in the world.

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

Our product LMT Viedtelevīzija (or Straume) is a streaming platform that allows customers to watch TV channels (Live stream, broadcast archive, and NPVR), Video On Demand (Movies, TV Series, TV Shows, Original content) content. We have contracted MAK IT to develop Smart TV application (Android TV, WebOS, Tizrn), mobile applications (iOS and Android).

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

MAK IT is our reliable partner and industry leader in Smart TV and mobile application development. During initial negotiations MAK IT has shown their great competence in understanding the specifics of the project and it's technical implementation, therefore our choice was to proceed with MAK IT.

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

All platform application were developed using agile. So far we have implemented:

• Android TV application written navely in Kotlin
• Android mobile application written navely in Kotlin
• iOS mobile application written navely in Swift Currently in the works is Tizen and WebOS applications that are being written in React js.

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

• 2 iOS developers
• 3 Android TV and Android Mobile developes
• 3 WebOS/Tizen developers
• 1 Project Manager

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

MAK IT has provided us with a powerful foundation that allowed us to become and industry leaders as a streaming service providers.

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

Time milestones were also in accordance with the agreed budget. Project was managed in a very transparent manner. We had our greatest pleasure to work with such an experienced team. Enough of flexibility was provided to change priorities based on current market situation, that definitely was a game changer.

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

We have built tremendous understanding and trust between our companies to successfully implement described solutions and this definitely won't be the last ones.

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

No, there not.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm Head of Business development office at Food Union Europe, that is one of the largest dairy and ice cream producing companies in Europe.

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

One of the services we provide in Norway and Denmark is ice cream delivery to customer's doorsteps. Our goal of the project was to improve customer service through all digital channels and increase number of repeated purchases, and on the operations side improve delivery slot availability, trip efficiency and automate planning processes.

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

We had multiple rounds of negotiations with different suppliers, amongst which MAK IT definitely wasn't the cheapest option, however their performance at proof of concept stage and overall attitude to details, investment in research phase and extensive experience convinced us.

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

First of all we had to research the current situation and form the business requirements. Then we plotted the technical solution for new route planning solution, designed UI&UX and started working on the implementation.

MAK IT offered to develop this solution in an agile style that was the most suitable for us. With many iterations we have created:

• Advanced route planning solution
• Depot administration solution
• End-client ordering web application
• Mobile application with turn-by-turn navigation for couriers

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

We had 1 business analyst, 2 backend developers, 1 mobile developer and 1 UI/UX specialist.

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

By improving performance of routes we have noticeably increased ice cream sales (number of customers and avg order size), additionally saving my hours of manual planning and un-needed km driven.

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

The project was led in a very clear and transparent manner, meeting both time milestones within the agreed budget. It was a pleasure to work with such an experienced team, being there for any consultations and brainstorming sessions. Enough of flexibility was included, sometimes allowing us to change priorities based on current market situation, that definitely was a game changer.

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

MAK IT is not just a solution enabler — they are a true digital partner. This is definitely something that I am grateful for. We see even more successful projects ahead built together.

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

As any relationship it requires both parties to build a successful one. Both parties definitely made some mistakes down the line, but I don't see anything that could be done fundamentally differently.

Please describe your company and your position there.

LMT is one of the largest ICT companies in Latvia. I'm a senior product manager working with business customers developing SaaS and custom IT solutions.

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

We formed a cooperation with MAK IT as our technology partner to build a high quality time tracking service. In the initial phase of the project it was crucial for our partner to be agile and flexible in order to bring a working prototype to the market as soon as possible.

How did you select MAK IT and what were the deciding factors?

One of the key factors for our choice was our previous experience with MAK IT during which they proved to be a flexible, goal-oriented, friendly and incredibly skillful team. However, the previous cooperation wasn't the sole reason we chose MAK IT - their pricing and portfolio were very competitive among other vendors.

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

The project was split in 3 parts: Initial prototype - web admin panel, API and Android/iOS mobile application development and getting the product to the market ASAP. Redesign - complete rewrite of the mobile application and admin panel according to freshly developed design.  Further development and maintenance - new feature implementation (both small and large ones), and the tweaking of existing features.

Key deliverables included iOS and Android mobile application, full stack web application with admin panel for managing and analyzing data, API for the mobile applications, integrations with third party devices - fingerprint and NFC readers. As for the technologies used, in web development (API, admin panel) Ruby on Rails, PostgreSQL and React were used. React Native was used for the mobile application.

How many people from the MAK IT team worked with you, and what were their positions?

The team's size varied throughout the project's phases from 2 to 7 people: lead developer and project manager - we never had a need for dedicated project manager, as that role was split across product manager and lead developer. software developers • 1 QA specialist • 2 designers during the redesign phase and on request throughout the project's lifetime.

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

The developed system is the leading time tracking application that complies with construction law in place in Latvia. Actively used and appreciated by the largest construction companies (and also companies from other industries) in the country.

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

The project was led in a flexible, yet coordinated and orderly manner based on the best SCRUM practices. The developers are self organized and follow all the best practices when it comes to working in a team, which eliminates the need for a dedicated project manager, which in turn, leads to less management overhead, closer cooperation between devs and business, thus better understanding of the product.

In daily communication we use Slack, MS Teams, JIRA, Github and e-mails.

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

How involved and responsible each person in the team is, how much the company's leadership cares not only for its employees, but also for the customers. We've had several team building events which helped to build closer relationships, and I think it's very important to have good relationships between the team - both for the project's success and also it's a lot more fun if you can have casual chats and joke around with everyone in your daily tasks.

In addition to that, the team is professional and able to come up with robust technical solutions for the wildest ideas and problems.

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

Nothing to add.