nao.design

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of an automated retail startup.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with notAnotherOne?

As a startup, launching hardware into the market for consumer use, we needed the expertise to make sure we had quality, reliability, and supply chain cost-efficiency in our business model.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Starting with the design context and industrial design, which includes mechanical design, we considered both the software and hardware components and how they operate. From there, we worked with notAnotherOne to conduct due diligence of potential vendors in the market that can support our business. They conducted an RFP as part of that process to identify the best partners for us.

What is the team composition?

We worked with 5-6 members of their team.

How did you come to work with notAnotherOne?

I’d heard of their work and conducted my own due diligence, including looking at their process and understanding their process.

How much have you invested with them?    

We’ve invested $60,000 USD.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in May 2018 and wrapped up July 2018.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They applied rigor and discipline to the process.

How did notAnotherOne perform from a project management standpoint?

Project management was a strong point. They were very compliant and helped to bring together multiple people in the projects around an aggressive timeline.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re uniquely positioned in the market for their powerful expertise in the software, hardware, user experience, design, testing, market due diligence, and contract management capabilities. They’re a very strong partner.

What makes them different is their multi-faceted go-to-market strategy where on one hand they provide consulting services to clients like myself, and on the other hand, they design, develop, and launch their own products;  they’re continuously applying their own skillsets. They’re able to empathize with where we are and our challenges as we launch our business.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

When I collaborated with notAnotherOne, I was the former director of innovation and IoT development at Megafon. It’s the largest mobile carrier in Russia.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with notAnotherOne?

They were the first professionals in Russia to launch international products like YotaPhone, a dual-screen smartphone with features that no one else in the world had. I asked notAnotherOne to develop a full solution for the smart home IoT ecosystem.

My company had no expertise in this field at the time. We had no designers or developers to code the front- and backends of the solution. notAnotherOne had experience in the international market and could bring a good product to the worldwide market.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

notAnotherOne developed the whole project for us, as an outsourced company. The development involved software and hardware technologies. On the software side, the product used the internal secure databases of the company. On the frontend, they developed a mobile application and firmware for the hardware solution.

They designed the hub for the smart home kit as well as produced the specifications and developed the software. notAnotherOne worked with our team on a part of the backend.

From a hardware point of view, they handled the full product development cycle from scratch, for 11 types of devices. The first one was a central device, or in other words, a hub for a smart home kit. It has nine sensors, including water, fire, motion, and even plants when they need to be watered. They also developed a device that was a smartwatch with GPS tracking and a video camera.

notAnotherOne created specifications for what the devices would look like, what the use cases would be, and the usability tests themselves. They started development after we approved it. We researched what the cost to the end-users should be, and they recommended manufacturers based on that.

Our team made an agreement with them after that, with three stages. notAnotherOne provided mockups and engineering samples at the second stage, and the third stage was production.

What is the team composition?

Vera (CEO) was the key contact person on their side. She was responsible for the whole project and all the terms. Igor (Co-Founder) was responsible for design and usability, in terms of what the product should look like from a customer’s point of view. Dmitry (CTO) was in charge of technical issues. The level-down employees were responsible for all the rest. There was also a product owner.

How did you come to work with notAnotherOne?

The community of design houses in Russia isn’t very big. What’s more, I previously collaborated with notAnotherOne while I was the business development director at Yota. I knew how they worked, so I asked them to participate in this project.

Yota projects were very famous from 2010–2014. The product was announced worldwide and it received good feedback. Releases of this type became well-known in the IT community.

How much have you invested with them?

The cost of the development project was $1.2 million.

What is the status of this engagement?

This project ran from July 2014–August 2017.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We made one modification to the product during development. It was successful from a market point of view and was the first product of this type in our countries.

How did notAnotherOne perform from a project management standpoint?

Our teams had multiple communication channels. We held face-to-face meetings once or twice a month before kicking off the project. Then, we worked remotely using email, Skype, and phone calls. My team and I were responsible for project management. We used a technical project management style.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their experience is the most impressive thing about them. I still use notAnotherOne for design help on new products. Their team is very good as a design house. They’re not number one in software but, from a design point of view, they’re top-level. notAnotherOne thinks about what can be done to make a product successful.

I remember two devices we developed with them in China — a smart home hub and power plug. Those devices were so good-looking and multifunctional that different Chinese companies stole their designs. If someone is copying a product, it means it’s a very good product.