Offshore Custom Software Made Easy
If you’re looking for a cheap offshore production shop, that’s not us. If a long-term partnership with a highly-efficient, easy-to-work-with global leader is more your style, you’ve landed in the right place. By enrolling the best and brightest minds in Bulgaria, we deliver innovative custom software solutions with a personalized touch.
We recognized the potential of Bulgaria back in 2001 and helped it grow into the tech hub it is today. Along the way, we built long-term relationships with global clients, scaling with them as their technology needs grew. Employees in our five Bulgarian offices are 100% fluent in English and work noon–8pm local time (4am–noon CST). This makes communication a breeze and gives us four hours of daily overlap in working hours for meetings and exchanging ideas. We conduct daily standups that keep everyone on the same page even if they’re not in the same office, city, or even country.
Technology is constantly evolving, making it daunting to navigate. We pride ourselves on our ability to demystify digital trends and cut through the jargon. We’ll guide you through the best options to fulfill your business needs in the most efficient way possible.
Our company’s flat structure allows the opportunity to work directly with your development team as well as our senior leadership team. You’ll work, learn, and celebrate successes together while connecting on a personal level. Swap music recommendations, geek out about movies, and discuss weekend plans as you would with someone in your own office.
headquarters
other locations
Focus
Portfolio
AstraZeneca, Cambria, DTN, Edmentum, Foss Swim School, Graco, Jostens, Junior Achievement, Land O'Lakes, Royal Bank of Canada, Societe Generale, Trane, Unitedhealth Group, World Marrow Donor Association
POPS! Diabetes Care
GOAL: Develop a mobile app that empowers people to manage their diabetes on their own terms
SIMPLIFY HIPAA-COMPLIANT DATA SHARING: Our solution syncs the user's smartphone to a glucose meter through a mobile app interface. User data is shared with healthcare professionals through a cloud-based, HIPAA-compliant network. Users may choose to share their data with family members to reinforce the management of healthy habits in a holistic way.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: Mobile, Web, UX/UI, iOS
FOSS Swim School
GOAL: Ease class registration, survey completion, and enable a deeper engagement with customers with a new digital platform.
TOOLS THAT REDUCE BARRIERS TO LEARNING: Our experts collaborated with FOSS to design and deliver a robust web experience that supports communications between customers and staff. iPad-based questionnaires provide outlets for parents to share comments and concerns in real time.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: backend, database, strategic consulting, UX/UI, iOS, AngularJS, .NET, SQL Server
DoApp
A leading technology provider for the global media industry needed to scale. Development by MentorMate helped them grow to 599 apps per platform in 200+ markets for over 90 clients. Learn more about how MentorMate helped the business build a team, create a strategy and set up the business for success.
Mobile App Development for Building Brave
GOAL: Creagte a digital platform for women to connect with mentors and grow both professionally and personally.
TAILORED ADVICE MEETS ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT: MentorMate partnered with Building Brave to develop the second iteration of their mobile app. The team incorporated two unique features that set Building Brave apart from other mentoring apps. Based on their interests, Building Brave users join mentorship circles that consist of several mentors of whom they can ask questions — anonymously if they wish. Secondly, the app gives businesses the ability to create private communities within the Building Brave platform to support the career development of women in their organization.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: iOS, Android, UX/UI, QA
E-commerce Development for SafetyNet
GOAL: Give customers peace of mind by creating an insurance platform that pays out should a policyholder suddenly lose their employment.
INSURANCE REIMAGINED: MentorMate worked with SafetyNet to determine how best to bring this new insurance platform to life. The team built a Stripe-integrated, responsive website that could easily take secure monthly payments from customers. The website also has a built-in rules engine, the ability to create customized insurance documents in real-time, and an admin portal that SafetyNet’s customer service teams use to evaluate and payout claims.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: iOS, Android, Web Development, UX/UI, QA
Web Development for World Marrow Donor Association
GOAL: Give doctors around the world the means to quickly and more efficiently match patients with life-saving bone marrow donors.
MODERN MEDICINE: MentoMate modernized WMDA’s database architecture and built a system that easily handles multiple data sets for their network of over thirty-three million donors spanning fifty-five countries. The data is housed in a web portal that doctors from around the world can access. A doctor simply inputs pertinent details about their patient and the portal returns any potential matches.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: Cloud, Web Development, SQL, PHP, UX/UI, QA, Strategic Consulting
Homes for Heroes®
GOAL: Streamline payment processing and serve a growing user base with a modern digital platform.
SCALE PLATFORM AND IMPROVE PAYMENT PROCESSING: We built a custom responsive web application that combines content management, customer management, workflows, and a new payment system. The application securely increases engagement and improves the buying and lending experience for Homes for Heroes' real estate agents, lenders, home buyers, and home sellers.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: Web, UX/UI, QA, PHP, Project Management
The Great Northern
GOAL: Promote cultural programming on a dynamic a digital platform that flexes with a growing organization’s needs.
EVOLVE STRATEGIC MISSION WITH A FLEXIBLE PLATFORM: Administrators using The Great Northern’s new responsive web application benefit from a CMS that supports a high degree of customization and control so its digital presence remains fresh and engaging throughout the year. The Great Northern has the polished and flexible platform that can reliably support its evolving mission
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: UX/UI, QA, Cloud, Frontend, Backend, Web Development, Strategic Consulting
Kaviva
GOAL: Create a platform solution that improves health management, benefits awareness and enrollment by connecting insurance companies, providers and employers with members.
TARGETED CONTENT USERS NEED: The app allows employers, benefits companies and health plans the ability to deliver curated content users seek; with push notifications, banner ads, SMS or email. After a brief questionnaire, Kaviva automatically promotes well-being through gentle guidance, education and feedback.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: Android, Backend, Database, iOS, Mobile, Software Testing, Java, Web
Adventium Labs
GOAL: Leverage technology to increase student-to-student collaboration and information retention in the classroom.
TECHNOLOGY INSPIRES COLLABORATIVE LEARNING: iNeuron, a collaborative app for iPads, offers expertly-designed, self-paced lessons in neuroscientific concepts via an interactive, learning-oriented game.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: Mobile, iOS, Backend
Spok
GOAL: Create a customized HIPAA-compliant messaging system for providers and their teams.
COORDINATING CARE THROUGH INTEGRATED COMMUNICATIONS: We designed software that allows teams to customize their communication preferences so messages reach them on their preferred devices. Smartphones or tablets can be used to receive secure code alerts, view patient updates, check lab results, prioritized two-way administrator messaging and more.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: Android, iOS, Microsoft .NET, Software Testing, UX/UI, Web
WeVest
GOAL: Put the computing and predictive power of a financial planner into the hands of consumers
PERSONALIZING INVESTMENT GUIDANCE: We partnered with WeVest to build a responsive web app and proprietary algorithms that provide recommendations to save against short and long-term goals.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: Backend, Database, Financial, LAMP, Marketing, Software Testing, Strategy, UX/UI, Web
Twin City Outdoor Services
GOAL: Build a centralized, cloud-based solution to help property managers catalogue and maintain their investments.
MANAGING WORK VISUALLY: We built an app and desktop tools allowing property managers to view a map of a given building and log Points of Interest, or problem areas, by touching the screen of their smartphone.
STREAMLINE COMMUNICATIONS: 1Spot is also designed to eliminate wasted time and simplify workflows. Using geolocation, site layouts and issues can be viewed at any given time.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: Backend, Database, Microsoft .NET, Mobile, Software Testing, Web
OperaDDS
GOAL: Give dentistry professionals access to a communication dashboard they can access from a smartphone or a computer.
RAPID ON-DEMAND CARE: OperaDDS allows users to send HIPAA-compliant messages to their team members. The platform includes several components. The online collaboration portal, Chorus, enables secure email communication, patient progress tracking and lab data review. Chorus ensures team cases and conversations are always efficient and always available.
SINGLE-TOUCH MESSAGING: The Pager functionality gives teams the ability to send single-touch messages. Members can customize their communication preferences and even select messages from preset options.
blackriver
GOAL: Create a tool to bring the data-driven and social elements of the cycling experience together
A PLATFORM TO ENHANCE EXPERIENCE: We worked with blackriver to design an app that helps users find, track and curate social cycling experiences. blackriver is as much a place to share photos and find cycling inspiration as it is a tool that facilitates connections between riders and the local shops they support.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: Android, iOS, Microsoft .NET, Mobile, UX/UI, Web
Venture Solutions
GOAL: Increase digital relevancy with a white label SaaS solution.
A DIGITAL SOLUTION TO SUSTAIN PROFIT: We helped Venture Solutions modernize its business by developing a mobile compatible and web responsive software concept that gives end users access to financial planning features.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: UX/UI, Web
InboxDollars
GOAL: Build upon internal developers' capabilities to satisfy mpre users via mobile screens.
ENGAGE MOBILE USERS: Leading the technical strategy behind the InboxDollars mobile applications, our developers built and continue to refine application layout and design, security recommendations, SDK integrations, and their positioning on app stores.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: Dedicated team, frontend, iOS, Android
EVINE Live
Goal: Integrate the streaming broadcast with online access for viewers seeking a complete shopping experience.
MULTI-SCREEN CONTENT ENGAGEMENT REALIZED: EVINE Live, wanted to facilitate multi-screen content consumption enabling viewers to watch, shop, chat about and share their purchases without jarring or distracting their customers. To do this we designed an interactive shopping portal that combined streaming and online media to create an integrated user experience.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: Android, iOS, Software Testing, Strategy
NativeX
GOAL: Engage new users on mobile devices with a better platform.
CAPTIVATING IN-APP ADVERTISING: We designed a new advertising platform, several websites and apps with predictive analytics capabilities, helping NativeX make an impact and crack the mobile advertising market.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: Android, JAVA, Microsoft .NET, Mobile, Web
Early Learning Labs
GOAL: Build a digital tool to optimize early childhood assessments and supports kindergarten readiness.
HARNESSING DATA TO SUPPORT STUDENT ABILITY: We developed a technology suite that improves student performance monitoring and helps educators and administrators can make more data-based decisions for classrooms and districts. Long term progress goals can be met and education practices can be better understood.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: LAMP, Mobile, Strategy, Testing, UX/UI, Web
Trane
GOAL: Building operators need to respond quickly to customer calls.
EVOLVING TO SATISFY TODAY’S CUSTOMERS: The Trane Tracer BAS Operator Suite mobile app we built transforms HVAC system management providing a platform for data-driven services for monitoring and high-performance buildings.
FULL-ACCESS REMOTE CONTROL: The Trane Tracer Building Automation System Operator Suite mobile app places the controls in the hands of building operators, allowing for quick and efficient adjustments, from monitoring equipment and temperatures to managing alarms.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: Android, Java, iOS, Mobile
U of M IGDILab
GOAL: Use software to track literacy development and facilitate research initiatives therein.
CAPTURE DATA TO IMPROVE LITERACY: We worked with U of M researchers to build an application that measures young children’s literacy levels and language skills more effectively, but also equips teachers with data that can inform more effective lesson plans and assessment strategies. The software makes the work of research more efficient, as it supports more rapid and less costly testing of hypotheses.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: Backend, iOS, Bluetooth, Mobile
Venture Solutions
GOAL: Design software solutions so consumers can easily manage multiple finances.
CONCEPTUALIZE, ARCHITECT A WHITE LABEL, MULTI-TENANT SAAS SOLUTION: We designed software to give users the ability to see and interact with mortgage statements. This solution allows users the ability to pay statements on a month-by-month basis or set up a recurring payment schedule. Users can also manage multiple mortgages at once, view their current month and historic months along with viewing escrow and tax payments.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: Strategy, UX, Web
Little Peanut on the Go
GOAL: Create an app to organize childcare information and streamline parents’ ability to share it.
FULL-STACK MOBILE DEVELOPMENT: Little Peanut on the Go, available in Google Play and the Apple Store, allows parents to create profiles for each child including medication emergency contacts and necessary instructions. Parents can create packing lists and care schedules, then share those with caregivers as many times as they need. While parents are away, they can check the app to view status posts caregivers have left cataloging progress throughout the day.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: Android, Backend, Database, iOS, Microsoft .NET Mobile, Software Testing, UX/UI, Web, Xamarin
Jostens SchoolWay™
GOAL: Simplifying school-to-home communications by transforming the smartphone into an updates and resource hub.
RELAYING SPECIFIC UPDATES OR CRITICAL FACTS: The Jostens SchoolWay™ app features real-time push notifications sent by administrators and a feed that gathers customized news for users. The statuses can be text-based but also support the distribution of multimedia content including photo galleries and documents.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: Android, Marketing, Mobile, Software Testing, Strategy, UX/UI
Agile Frameworks
GOAL: Help multi-disciplinary engineering firms realize the benefits of the MetaField software program.
IMPROVE PROCESS & QUALITY: Agile Frameworks saw an opportunity to use smartphones on job sites to help reduce time and errors.
REAL-TIME DATA INTEGRATION: The app needed to interface with a variety of client systems, including accounting, CRM and project management. MentorMate teamed with Agile’s internal development staff and provided supplementary resources. Components of the solution included experience mapping, mobile application design, mobile application development, mobile app infrastructure integration, platform applications and back-end web platform development.
Escali SmartConnect™
GOAL: Integrate kitchen and bathroom management into holistic health regimens while keeping track of recipes and nutrition.
WELLNESS MANAGMENT: Escali saw an opportunity to combine the proactive awareness of a smart kitchen scale with the ability to track results on a smart body weight scale in an app.
TRACKING + ANALYSIS: The Escali SmartConnect™ Body Scale allows you to track weight and BMI (Body Mass Index) with the same simple app. It also sends weight measurements to the Escali SmartConnect™ app, which analyzes 35 nutrients from a selection of more than 8,000 food items. Users can create a food journal along with viewing measurements conversions to better proactively manage health.
MyMeds
GOAL: Help patients remember, track and understand their prescriptions.
TRACKING PATIENT PRESCRIPTION INFORMATION CAN BE COMPLICATED: Patients are often hospitalized because they fail to follow medication instructions properly. This care and cost can be prevented.
IMPROVING DOSAGE ACCURACY WITH MHEALTH: The MyMeds patient medication manager available for iOS and Android devices with added web functionality allows a user to make up to ten profiles for themselves and family with customized medication reminders. All records are stored on a HIPAA-compliant server.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: Android, iOS, Mobile Software Testing
France 44
GOAL: Customer loyalty is critical to liquor and charcuterie distributor France 44. The challenge is mirroring an artfully crafted customer experience in a mobile app.
BUILDING AN APP AND BRAND LOYALTY: We created an app that allows customers to explore the wines, spirits and beers available at France 44, mark their favorites, write tasting notes and find recommendations based on personal tastes and preferred selections. Customers can create shopping and wish lists or organize their favorite drinks by style, mood or occasion.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: Android, Backend, Database, iOS, Mobile, LAMP, UX/UI, Web
MobCon
GOAL: MobCon US, a top mobile and strategy conference, needed a next-generation digital campaign and app to build community.
A MOBILE EXPERIENCE BUILT FOR INTERACTION: By selecting from a list of breakout sessions, users can create a personalized agenda and view the full list of available activities, sponsors, speaker bios and session description.
CONNECTING THROUGH NETWORKING: The app also includes a lead retrieval feature. Users can also connect their Twitter account and tweet directly from the app.
TECHNOLOGIES/SERVICES: Android, Java, Lamp, Mobile, Software Testing, Strategy, UX/UI
NASA Quick Analysis Tools©
GOAL: Allow thermal engineers working for NASA and other technical staff to run numerical simulations without being confined to desktop applications.
IMPLEMENTING AN EFFICIENT PROCESS: To approve any changes to the design, the plan must be sent to the thermal engineer. Then the engineer must update the model and run simulations to evaluate impact on performance. They needed a more cohesive process.
TECH-SUPPORTED ANALYSIS: Features built into the app include rapid, web-based thermal system evaluation tools, high-resolution spacecraft modeling—from component to bus level and thermal optimization algorithms. Now users can produce and analyze meaningful results from anywhere with an Internet connection. Engineers can also use the tool to chart and compare the sensitivities of various output parameters.
Reviews
the project
DevOps Tool Evaluation for Sports Entity
“The quality of their output was exactly what we were looking for.”
the reviewer
the review
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Introduce your business and what you do there.
I’m the SVP of a sports organization that organizes and displays live sporting events, specifically in the media operations and technology group. My team is responsible for broadcast operations and engineering all the way through to digital products. The latter applies to software and development for our owned and operated direct-to-consumer products.
What challenge were you trying to address with MentorMate?
As part of a new initiative, we’d signed a partnership with Microsoft to rebuild our owned and operated platforms. The project would help us refocus on our direct-to-consumer side with the end goal of better supporting and enhancing our customer base. Ultimately, we wanted to have a direct relationship with our customers.
MentorMate helped us reevaluate the DevOps processes, tools, and services that Microsoft had to offer as part of their cloud environment while we transitioned from an open-sourced methodology to a more Azure-centric experience. They acted as an independent voice in the project, sharing the pros and cons of a Microsoft toolset versus other tools in the market.
What was the scope of their involvement?
For this analysis project, MentorMate compared the Microsoft Azure DevOps tool that we had in place against other competitors, both open-source and commercial.
The first step was to understand our requirements and needs from an internal standpoint. There was a lot of greenfield in what we wanted to do going forward, so they needed to know that what we were doing at the time shouldn’t necessarily govern what we’d do in the future. Frankly, this was an opportunity to reinvent our processes.
From there, MentorMate evaluated various tools across 4¬–5 DevOps toolchain components, including repositories, pipelines, artifacts, agile boards, and test plans. They created a weighted Pugh Analysis Matrix across each item based on the features and functions that we deemed important. Then, they did the hands-on work of going through the tools to see if they did what they said they did and how well they met our division’s specifications.
MentorMate’s final presentation covered the results of the Pugh Matrix along with a set of recommendations that showed us where Microsoft’s DevOps tool stood among others in the market.
What is the team composition?
We worked with 4–5 resources depending on the project cycle. An on-shore executive oversaw the program, and there were 3–4 domain experts from their Bulgaria office. The combination of on- and off-shore teams allowed us to have a little bit more cost containment.
How did you come to work with MentorMate?
MentorMate had done some fantastic work for one of our member teams, so their name came up a couple of times during our discussions. It was an easy decision because they were a preferred Microsoft partner, provided end-to-end software delivery, and had the experience and capabilities to deliver this project.
What is the status of this engagement?
The project lasted from May–August 2020. The hand-on work ended in July, but the final presentation didn’t come until later.
What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
The quality of their output was exactly what we were looking for, from the methodology to the groundwork and final output. In many ways, they’d approached the evaluation from angles that we wouldn’t have thought of ourselves. That’s why we brought them in as consultants — to fill out the gaps where we didn’t have that internal expertise.
How did MentorMate perform from a project management standpoint?
They performed very well. The executive touchpoints were once a week, and we had direct Slack channels with the engineering team. That allowed for constant communication between our questions and answers. We also used Confluence for the more formal deliverables. Because they had an off-shore team, they accommodated us by shifting some of their work times to better match ours on the East Coast.
What did you find most impressive about them?
It was the quality of the output. They were professional throughout, and, quite frankly, we received exactly what we asked for (with a bit more than anticipated) on time and within budget.
Are there any areas they could improve?
Had we had the foresight of what MentorMate’s approach would be, we might have included a few more things earlier on. We would’ve expanded the scope to include cybersecurity tooling, looking at how it relates to our DevOps pipeline.
Do you have any advice for potential customers?
Let them share their full capabilities and describe what they have to offer. They’re a full-service organization that can tackle anything from design all the way through to deployment support. Even though we only did a short-term project for one particular discipline, I suspect that they’d be equally competent in all of the services they offer based on the success we had with them.
the project
Order Entry System for Manufacturing Company
"They have a great staffing model and were able to understand our issues."
the reviewer
the review
The client submitted this review online.
Please describe your company and your position there.
CIO for a manufacturing company that manufactures custom products for homes and businesses.
For what projects/services did your company hire MentorMate, and what were your goals?
To develop an solution that would allow our customers to easily order our customized products, plus be easy to maintain and provide real-time visibility of orders.
How did you select MentorMate and what were the deciding factors?
We wanted to use modern web-based technology with a current and fresh look and interface. We did not have the internal staffing and expertise to build this, so we developed our requirements and met with several companies. MentorMate had the expertise, the available staffing, and were able to show us other solutions they had developed for other clients that were very impressive.
Describe the scope of work in detail, including the project steps, key deliverables, and technologies used.
We had ancient existing systems that handled some of this, but they were limited in their functionality and expensive to maintain. We wanted to replace our internal system and that of a 3rd party vendor with a single system, which would reduce our complexity as well as maintenance.
We followed the agile methodology, with daily stand up meetings, two-week duration sprints with reviews of the application, requirements gathering and review meetings, and user involvement. The key deliverable was a single web application that provided all the functionality and could handle different user roles as well. Main technology was C# with a SQL Server database, plus integration of Azure AD to provide integrated single sign on.
How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?
About 10. We had a Project Manager, Architect (early in the project), Senior .NET lead, several .NET developers (back end and front end), a QA lead plus another QA person when needed, plus a business analyst.
Can you share any measurable outcomes of the project or general feedback about the deliverables?
We were able to completely sunset our old order entry system plus not renew a contract with a 3rd party that was giving us headaches. Our customers were able to quickly learn the new application, and we have received numerous accolades.
Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timelines.
We used Jira to track all tasks, timelines, and deliverables. A sprint planning meeting was held every two weeks as well as a backlog review. We were able to know what was being worked on each week, plus we had the opportunity to suggest changes based on our observation and testing of each release of the application. The PM we had kept everything on track, and challenged the team to get key components done when we ran into some challenges.
What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?
They have a great staffing model and were able to understand our issues. They were able to provide excellent staff members (developers, PMs, analysts) and not just bodies lacking key skills. When we had to replace a person they found just as good of a candidate to replace the person leaving.
The PM did an excellent job understanding what we were looking for in a solution, and asked a number of hard questions and gave his input. We ended up changing our approach on a number of items after hearing and thinking about his input and ideas.
Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?
We had some issues with our requirements not being captured and organized, and we had to scramble to find our copy and resupply them. Once we paid more attention to make sure we were providing everything we stopped having this issue.
the project
Custom Software Dev for Supplemental Education Nonprofit
“If there’s an issue and we need a resolution, they’re always calm and roll up their sleeves to solve any issues.”
the reviewer
the review
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Introduce your business and what you do there.
I’m the VP of education delivery and technology solutions for an education nonprofit. We’re focused on supplemental education for k-12. We help students own their own economic success by providing course on financial literacy, work and career readiness, and entrepreneurship. We build programming and solutions for hundreds of nonprofits across the country. We use a unique volunteer model, in which volunteers come in to create content that enriches the learning experience.
What challenge were you trying to address with MentorMate?
We were redeveloping a virtual program from what used to be an onsite program. The program helps students learn about what they need to be an adult, such as budgeting, spending, and balancing budgets on a monthly basis.
What was the scope of their involvement?
We’ve also done some technology architecture with them. They helped us figure out what our long-term technology infrastructure would look like to help us evolve and meet future goals.
They’ve also built an evaluation engine that allows us to do real-time, data-driven, evaluations through student assessments and surveys to measure impact. Now they’re helping us with virtual volunteering to help us through the COVID-19 crisis.
Our infrastructure is based on Azure and .NET.
What is the team composition?
Lucille has always been the project manager and Clint is the account manager. The team changes things based on the sprint cadence and what we’ve needed. So we’ve also worked with some QA people, engineers, and designers.
How did you come to work with MentorMate?
We went through an RFP process and MentorMate was th3 best company we came across.
How much have you invested with them?
We’ve spent about $1.5 million.
What is the status of this engagement?
We started working together in March 2019 and the work is ongoing.
What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
They finished up delivery, but we’re beginning continuation engineering as we roll that product out. They’re a great organization. They listen well and have helped us figure out the best solution. They’re intent is really to guide their partners and foster a good relationship. They’ve bought into our mission and have engaged in our success.
How did MentorMate perform from a project management standpoint?
They followed an agile project management process. They’re constantly looking at how we’re building out our technology. We’ve had multiple projects with them in which they really stepped up to be the partner we needed.
If there’s an issue and we need a resolution, they’re always calm and roll up their sleeves to solve any issues.
They use a lot of project management tools. I particularly liked Jira to track stories. They have daily stand-ups that we’re invited to, and they have monthly management meetings. If I raise a flag when there’s an issue, they respond right away. The cadence of our communication is great.
What did you find most impressive about them?
The most successful vendors are willing to spend the time with their clients and are really engaged. MentorMate really listens and focuses on our mission and shows how they can help. For example, they adjusted our project to incorporate a new design that would improve the engineering and help us meet our goals.
Are there any areas they could improve?
We did face some challenges with a few resources. With any organization, I think there may be some communication issues. They do outsource some of their stuff, and communicating across language barriers was tough sometimes. I think we could get ahead of some of those things. Whenever we raise an issue, they deal with it quickly.
the project
Web Development for Social Benefit Corporation
“They’re truly invested in our project, so we call them our partners. They believe in what we’re trying to accomplish.”
the reviewer
the review
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Introduce your business and what you do there.
I’m the COO of a social benefit corporation that helps people with their processes and system failures. We have a methodology that can help identify where the system is failing and work on quality improvement, categorize and work on quality improvement projects in healthcare. We’ve recently started expanding into other industries.
What challenge were you trying to address with MentorMate?
We needed a piece of technology to build a product that would record and capture the process and, over time, help learn from failures. We worked with another vendor first, but it didn’t meet our expectations. So we asked MentorMate to help us make the product what we needed it to be.
What was the scope of their involvement?
The product itself was developed on Ruby on Rails. It’s a cloud-based product hosted on AWS. Now the project has been extended to understand compliance rules and regulation around health data privacy and move the platform to a government cloud environment.
The platform has high-security access, and entire system administration and the tool for the end-user supports workflow management and case management. In addition to that, it has analytics, reporting, some bells and whistles for communication amongst users, and some document storage for learning.
What is the team composition?
We’ve had about five people on the team. Some come and go depending on the expertise we need. We’ve worked with a project manager, a system architect, programmers, and information security expert.
How did you come to work with MentorMate?
We initially reached out to them for this project, and they declined to work with us because we were a startup. After working with the other vendor, we went back to MentorMate to ask them to reconsider.
How much have you invested with them?
We’ve spent about $750,000.
What is the status of this engagement?
We started working with them in 2018 and it’s ongoing.
What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
The project is ongoing, but we’ve been able to see the value of their output in a quick and iterative way.
How did MentorMate perform from a project management standpoint?
We follow an agile methodology. We needed a very flexible project management in that we needed a project manager that could ebb and flow, but yet keep track of all of that change. And so I think from a standpoint of doing change, management is an absolutely phenomenal. They’re flexible when we make changes, and they’re still able to stay organized and keep going.
What did you find most impressive about them?
I appreciate that they stay current in our space. They’re always presenting me with options and they do challenge me. Sometimes I think I have the right solution, but they’re able to help me if there’s a more modern solution.
They’re truly invested in our project, so we call them our partners. They believe in what we’re trying to accomplish. We’re in a challenging industry during COVID-19, and they’re always there to work with us.
Are there any areas they could improve?
There isn’t a whole lot. They continue to improve their understanding of security features.
Do you have any advice for potential customers?
They don’t just dump into the technical. We always explain our thought process, which has made it a seamless relationship. They’re willing to listen, and that prevents thing from going wrong.
the project
Mobile App & Web Devs for Digital Cycling Platform
"MentorMate’s been able to quote work accurately from the beginning."
the reviewer
the review
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Introduce your business and what you do there.
I’m the founder and CEO of blackriver.cc. It’s a digital cycling platform aimed at riders, bicycle retailers, bicycle suppliers, and corporate partners.
What challenge were you trying to address with MentorMate?
I’ve worked with MentorMate on a variety of engagements.
What was the scope of their involvement?
MentorMate worked on the first major version of our web application. They also created both iOS and Android mobile applications, which are native. We also used their services on a couple of longer engagements to produce the core of all our technology.
They’re currently working in an ongoing engineering capacity. Their team does maintenance, upkeep, and small projects in between these larger sprints. They work with .NET and Java primarily. Their team does soup to nuts technology for us.
What is the team composition?
During our first engagement, our team included about 15 people. The next engagement involved a smaller team of 10–12 people. Our current engagement involves five people in total.
How did you come to work with MentorMate?
A colleague recommended MentorMate.
What is the status of this engagement?
We started our engagement in 2017. In between our larger engagements, we had a 4–5-month gap when we weren’t working on anything. After the second engagement, we’ve stayed working together through their continuation engineering program.
What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
I essentially license the software to the bicycle industry. If we say success is the ability to continue growing your business and adding high-value clients, then it’s been a successful partnership. We’re a strong, growing platform. We’re continuing to grow users and customers.
How did MentorMate perform from a project management standpoint?
Project management’s one of MentorMate's strengths. At the beginning of the engagement, they said that we could be as involved as we wanted to be. They prefer the customer to be involved with their team directly.
I’m a hands-on person, so I’m on the phone with the project manager and the team a couple of times a week. I also communicate with the project manager one-on-one.
My project manager has always been based in the U.S. and the development team’s in Bulgaria. That communication chain has been strong. The projects have run on time and on budget.
What did you find most impressive about them?
MentorMate’s been able to quote work accurately from the beginning. They built a team to make sure that we got the expected work done. I worked with another provider that gave estimates that weren’t realistic and overly aggressive. Ultimately, we had a hard time getting tasks done within the budget. It’s not common to have the kind of success that I’ve had getting complicated projects done on time and on budget with MentorMate.
Are there any areas they could improve?
To be honest, I don’t have anything substantial for them to improve.
Do you have any advice for potential customers?
Make sure that they have a chance to dig in on the project management structure to make sure that it’s comfortable for them. I describe success with them and a large part of that is because I’ve been engaged with their team. It’s important for whoever’s making the decisions to understand the time requirements and commitments MentorMate asks them to make. Stick with the project and work as a team.
the project
Mobile App Dev for Agricultural Technology Company
"MentorMate provides better communication than other agencies."
the reviewer
the review
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Introduce your business and what you do there.
I’m the CEO of a company that develops a flexible module for automation of farm equipment.
What challenge were you trying to address with MentorMate?
We hired MentorMate to assist us in the development of a mobile app for iOS and Android.
What was the scope of their involvement?
MentorMate works closely with our onsite development team to build the product. Their team helped to develop the app’s UI and functions. They created an interface with our cloud backend and linked the product with our electromechanical controller. Their team also provided assistance with the development of our website’s UI.
What is the team composition?
The number of teammates from MentorMate who support us varies. We’ve worked with up to 15 people. Lately, around 5–6 people from MentorMate are assigned to our project.
How did you come to work with MentorMate?
We found MentorMate through a referral. We liked their thoughts on the app’s direction and UI. We engaged them with a longer-term development contract.
How much have you invested with them?
In total, we’ve spent probably $700,000 with MentorMate.
What is the status of this engagement?
Our collaboration started in 2017, and it’s ongoing.
What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
We track sales and user feedback to measure their team’s success. So far, the user feedback’s positive. Sales continue to go up month over month.
How did MentorMate perform from a project management standpoint?
MentorMate works following Agile methodology. Their team uses tools that allow them to collaborate with our onsite team successfully. They document and communicate the scope well. They interacted with our team effectively to define an executable schedule. They look forward, so the engagement’s fantastic overall.
What did you find most impressive about them?
MentorMate provides better communication than other agencies. As well, they’re more flexible when working with an integrated team. Other providers prefer to have a completely separate scope rather than working with our engineers.
Are there any areas they could improve?
They could increase their team’s skill sets. We would expand our use if they had engineers with more backend infrastructure capabilities or regional support.
Do you have any advice for potential customers?
Go through their ideation session and define their requirements upfront. The more time that you put in to bring the MentorMate team up to speed and set the sprints forward, the faster their team will work and the better the outcome will be.
the project
Development and QA for Online Education Company
“The quality of their team members has really impressed us.”
the reviewer
the review
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Introduce your business and what you do there.
We’re an online education provider that caters primarily to the K-12 market. We provide a variety of educational products for the use of schools as well as a fully accredited online academy. I’m the VP of development services, so I work closely with our software development teams. My group is responsible for QA, product continuation, Scrum Masters, and everything that supports the direct development of the product.
What challenge were you trying to address with MentorMate?
Primarily, we used them for software development and QA purposes.
What was the scope of their involvement?
We embed them directly on our existing sprint teams rather than packaging work that specifically for them. They’re participating directly with our team members. We’re dabbling in using their skills for product ownership as well. They’re mostly handling custom software development.
What is the team composition?
We’re working with a group of 13 developers and QA teammates.
How did you come to work with MentorMate?
Our current CEO worked with them previously in a prior role of his. We had worked with them on a one-off project several years ago as well, but they had really expanded their abilities with custom offshore development. We started off with just a couple of developers to see how our collaboration would work, and our team was impressed. We decided to keep them on and work them into our sprints.
How much have you invested with them?
We’ve invested about $2,000,000 on their services.
What is the status of this engagement?
We started working together at the start of 2018 and are continuing our collaboration.
What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
Our internal team has always been very impressed with the work that they do. They’re closely tied to their operations and have consistently favorable responses to it.
How did MentorMate perform from a project management standpoint?
Because we have them embedded in our workflow and operations, we’re handling much of the project management. However, the team member have performed well and up to our standards.
What did you find most impressive about them?
The quality of their team members has really impressed us. They’re technically proficient, creative, and able to work both independently and on teams. We would hire any of them on a permanent capacity based on their skill level.
Are there any areas they could improve?
The demand in this market is very high, so it can be difficult to find people when we need them. But, they bent over backward to help us find the right people.
Do you have any advice for potential customers?
Embed them directly into your team and treat them as such. They’re great at working both independently and on teams. They can take your requirements and figure out solutions.
the project
Web Development for Media Services Company
“MentorMate has done such a great job that I can’t imagine working with another software vendor at this point.”
the reviewer
the review
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Introduce your business and what you do there.
I am the president of Modulist, a media service company. We specialize in processing paid content for local media, including obituaries, weddings, engagement notices, birthdays, and more. The client builds the ad themselves and we process it and send it out to our various newspaper and digital clients.
What challenge were you trying to address with MentorMate?
Our online portion of our business was a piece of our accounting software and didn’t have the functionality we needed. We needed someone to build us a new digital portal.
What was the scope of their involvement?
MentorMate developed the software for an online portal from scratch. After our first initial meeting, we spent two days scoping out what the project would be. They gave us a projection of what the infrastructure would look like and what the cost would be. Their team was responsible for front- and backend development.
The client can create an account, choose from different templates, and create an app. MentorMate ensured that clients could customize their add, including uploading photos, adding graphics, and editing text. Once the ad is created, it is submitted to our team for proofreading and we then pass it to local media.
What is the team composition?
The team we work with is varied in size depending on the stage of the project. Initially, there were seven people we worked with, including a project manager and four developers. Periodically the upper administration of MentorMate might sit in on a stand-up or reach out to me directly to see how things were going. Within the last six or seven months, we scaled down to four members of the team.
How did you come to work with MentorMate?
We found MentorMate through mutual business contacts.
What is the status of this engagement?
Our ongoing engagement with MentorMate began in January 2018.
What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
The time it takes for us to process our orders from the old system to the new system has been cut in half. We used to estimate it would take us around 10 minutes to process an order. Now we do it in five. Our volume on our team has increased.
Our fixed clients tell us that it’s the best paid content software on the market that they’ve used, so we take that as a good sign. MentorMate has done such a great job that I can’t imagine working with another software vendor at this point. From the beginning of the project, they’ve invested themselves, not just their resources but their talents.
How did MentorMate perform from a project management standpoint?
We meet with their team on a daily basis through Google Hangouts, usually for around 15 minutes. In addition to these daily stand-ups, the project manager would meet with me one on one a couple of times a week.
What did you find most impressive about them?
MentorMate takes their project’s personally in a good way. They take ownership of the product. From early on, they bought into the concept of what we were trying to do and wanted us to be successful. It feels like every person on their team is invested in us. To see the knowledge they’ve gained about our specific niche business has been really assuring. It’s not just another project for them.
Are there any areas they could improve?
Nothing off the top of my head. It’s been a great relationship.
Do you have any advice for potential customers?
One of the things that has made us extremely successful is that we trusted their developers. We would come to them with a new issue or feature and our teams would talk about it out loud. They would come back to us with a couple of ways to achieve it and give their recommendation.
MentorMate is very upfront and honest. They would present the cost of each option but tell us when it was worth it to spend more. Their team is good at spending your resources wisely. Trust them and their process.
the project
Web Development for Insurance Startup
"They did an outstanding job."
the reviewer
the review
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Introduce your business and what you do there.
I’m the COO of a subsidiary of an insurance and financial services company. I run an innovation lab that creates brand new products and builds new businesses.
What challenge were you trying to address with MentorMate?
We wanted to execute a rapid launch for our first web product—a tough goal for the insurance industry. We hired MentorMate to function as part of our lean startup team.
What was the scope of their involvement?
MentorMate developed the website. They built the marketing side, UI, purchase flow, and backend data repository. The team also designed the site.
This build enabled us to present the product to the consumer, have them purchase it, and then set up the policy documents in our system. Our team would then service the policy and pay claims.
What is the team composition?
The 10-person team included one architect and nine developers. One of our resources was a liaison between the business and development teams.
How did you come to work with MentorMate?
An employee in our main company referred MentorMate after they had worked with the team.
How much have you invested with them?
We spent roughly $500,000.
What is the status of this engagement?
We started working together in January 2016 and the website launched that June. MentorMate continues to do maintenance and make changes. They’re also helping us build other products.
What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
Our team assessed progress on existing functionalities and the consumer’s reaction to them. We built the minimum functionality and got continual input from consumers while tracking acceptance testing. In an iterative process, MentorMate capably revised the app based on user feedback and achieved a working system.
How did MentorMate perform from a project management standpoint?
They did an outstanding job.
What did you find most impressive about them?
Since a corporate entity owns us, most providers didn’t know how to approach us as a startup. Several couldn’t prove their capacity to follow our preference for collaboration and iterative workflows. But MentorMate embraced our startup team and adjusted to our specific approach.
Are there any areas they could improve?
No, I can’t think of anything.
Do you have any advice for potential customers?
Be communicative and provide specific guidelines at the start. MentorMate has their own methodology, but readily followed ours. Likewise, clients should decide what kind of partnership they want. The relationship can be collaborative, or MentorMate can execute the work independently with their preferred workflows. Either way, everyone needs to understand their role and expectations clearly.
the project
Web Dev & Design for Creative Arts Festival
"MentorMate never lost focus of our business objectives and found creative solutions to keep us on schedule."
the reviewer
the review
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Introduce your business and what you do there.
I am the acting executive director of the Great Northern, a winter celebration in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota that began in 2017.
What challenge were you trying to address with MentorMate?
We launched our original website very quickly on Squarespace, but we needed to really expand our functionality. We bring together several different partners throughout the Twin Cities area and really wanted to find a more compelling and visual way to showcase all our different events.
What was the scope of their involvement?
MentorMate planned, designed, built, tested, and launched a custom responsive website for us. When we originally went into conversations with MentorMate we were pretty focused on building a mobile app, but after conversations and reflection, we decided to focus our investment on a responsive website. They used a scrum development process that allowed us the flexibility we needed to make course corrections and build a platform that we could grow for years to come.
We worked with a creative design partner here in Minneapolis that helped identify the look and feel of the site based on our brand guidelines, and MentorMate then made all the wireframes. The site showcases the schedule of events in a visually compelling and easy to navigate way that allows users to discover and share with family and friends. They also created a custom CMS system allowing for internal administrative control of our content, including a system that puts a spotlight on signature events on our home page.
What is the team composition?
We had around 10 people working on the project divided between the main team here and a development team in Sofia, Bulgaria.
How did you come to work with MentorMate?
We had originally approached a bigger agency in Minneapolis but found they were cost prohibitive for us to work with. This agency really felt passionate about what we were doing, so they recommended MentorMate as an alternative. At the same time, one of our board members was involved in his own personal technology business that had worked with MentorMate and had a really great experience with them.
How much have you invested with them?
We have spent $50,000–$100,000.
What is the status of the engagement?
The entire project lasted from October 2017–January 2018.
What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
Before we began working with MentorMate, our Squarespace site generated just over 31,000-page views for the entirety of 2017. Then, in January and February 2018 alone we had over 53,000-page views. That is a 68% increase in just two months.
Overall the website is easy to use and has great visuals. MentorMate was very professional and thorough in debugging the site. As far as I know, we never had a crash, and they really thought through worst-case scenarios to have plans to address any issues in advance.
How did MentorMate perform from a project management standpoint?
They were great. We had daily stand up meetings on Google Hangouts and used Jiro to keep track of each sprint.
What did you find most impressive about them?
I really felt that MentorMate never lost focus of our business objectives and found creative solutions to keep us on schedule and on budget. We took a very long time to make a decision about whether we were going do a mobile app or a responsive website, and that put a lot of pressure on MentorMate. We did this project in less than three months, and to be able to develop this custom build in that timeframe was unbelievable. I think it speaks to the passion and dedication of their team. Originally I had some reservations about having a split team here in Minneapolis and overseas, but I was so pleased with how connected the team was. Plus, it actually helped us expand the workday because the team in Bulgaria had already started work before we were even awake.
They also had a really creative approach in tackling something that seems as simple as a schedule of events, but quite honestly was very challenging due to all of the variables. They were very clever about doing a two-phased approach that allowed us to spotlight different partners at different times all on the backend so that I wasn't worried about switching over content manually. It was a huge timesaver and a very positive experience.
Are there any areas they could improve?
No, they were wonderful and I have nothing negative to say about the experience.
MentorMate presented their findings and recommendations in a Pugh matrix, giving weight to higher-priority requirements. The team also impressed with the quality of their work. Professional and experienced, they took helpful approaches that the internal staff wouldn’t have thought of.