NextStack

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the founder of a startup called Dongguo.

What challenge were you trying to address with NextStack?

We wanted to develop a mobile app. We had a developer on our team, but she didn’t do her job well. At the last minute, we had to find someone reliable who also provided value for money.

What was the scope of their involvement?

NextStack developed an iOS app that is a social game. They developed both the front- and backend, and they even developed an admin panel for us so that we can handle the content of our application.

What is the team composition?

We work with their founder and project manager on a regular basis, and then there are a few developers as well. I am in contact with at least three of them regularly.

How did you come to work with NextStack?

We found them online and spoke with other development companies as well. We ultimately decided to work with NextStack. We needed someone who could be available fast and was flexible and agile so that they could work in our style. 

We also needed someone who could offer something in the price range that we as a startup could afford. We really liked the kind of strategy they proposed and how we could develop the app together. 

I am a UI/UX designer, and I am doing the designs and everything for the app, so it was very important to have a good structure in how I would be working with them as well. It was a big plus for me that we had similar expectations and working styles.

How much have you invested in them?

We’ve spent between $10,000–$50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

I began working with NextStack around January 2020. We are still in beta, and we’re working on getting the app into the App Store.

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

We can already say that they did a good job, and they always implement the feedback that we give them. It is really nice that they are very agile and flexible. We tested the app with different people and gave them feedback, and again, they implemented everything quickly. Their work is of good quality.

How did NextStack perform from a project management standpoint?

The project management is really good because the manager is always available. He put up a channel that we use to talk all the time. Even if there were some delays or problems, he would let us know what exactly was happening and what kind of process was happening. 

NextStack would even let us see their processes. The whole process is really transparent, and we are satisfied because we know exactly what is happening.

What did you find most impressive about them?

NextStack is a flexible, agile, young team. They are very understanding and creative, and they also bring in their own ideas as well.

For example, when I did some bad usability UX things that I sent to them, they let me know it would be more user-friendly to do it another way. They didn’t pressure us, but they gave us their tips and were proactive.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Flexibility and agility always come with a flipside as well. On one hand, you have the opportunity to always implement stuff and change things around, but on the other hand, sometimes it can get a little bit messy or maybe unclear when it comes to communication. 

Even though it’s been clear and we stay in touch, sometimes we needed things done in a different way and quickly, and at the last minute, the team changed things around. Maybe it wasn’t clearly communicated due to the flexibility.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

From the beginning, have clear communication about the requirements and about the features you want to develop.

Stick to regular updates because they provide those, but from our side sometimes we didn’t have the time to get updates from them. They continued doing things without us giving the okay. Stick to regular meetings and communicate clearly.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the founder of a startup called Humbly. I handle the product from concept, to design, to managing the execution.

For what projects/services did your company hire NextStack?

NextStack was hired to execute on the actual app development. This also includes some backend work.

What were your goals for this project?

To launch a solid v.0 version of the app.

How did you select this vendor?

Previous contract work together showed me that there's real firepower here. My experience was great, and it only got better.

Describe the project in detail.

We're setup with regular face to face sync-ups using Zoom, additionally coordinating with tools like Jira, Slack, Bitbucket, and Zeplin to execute on production of the app.

What was the team composition?

Engineering manager (also occasionally an IC) iOS developer (also touching on the backend) Me project managing

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

This project is still in progress - but I will say that I am impressed with this team. They're nothing short of knowledgable, attentive, helpful, rapid, and friendly. They wrote the first lines of code for this fairly complex application, now, just months later, I have a functioning, near-production ready. Looking at launching soon.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

It is above average. Their attentiveness, friendliness, and responsiveness makes for a very smooth project. I'm fortunate.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The value per person. There's just a lot of capability there. Not to mention flexibility.

Are there any areas for improvement?

The only thing that would be better is if we are in the same time zone :)

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the CEO and founder of Aimtech LLC, a small IT company. 

What challenge were you trying to address with NextStack?

As a small company, I needed help taking on larger projects. I reached out to NextStack to fill staff augmentation roles, working on various development projects for different clients.

What was the scope of their involvement?

NextStack has collaborated with us on 8–10 different client projects thus far, developing native mobile and web apps. They've utilized Swift and JavaScript for iOS and Android Studio for Android mobile apps; nothing has been built on a hybrid of cross-platform. They've also worked on custom Wordpress and PHP sites as needed. 

What is the team composition? 

I interact directly with their CEO, but others work on our projects as needed. 

How did you come to work with NextStack?

I found them through an online search and met with several companies, some of which were too large and overpriced for our needs. NextStack, however, was smaller at the time, yet offered high-quality development support. After working with them on some smaller projects, I kept going back to them and we continue to be very happy with the relationship. 

How much have you invested with them?

We've worked on projects of all sizes and probably invested between $50,000–$200,000 in total. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We've been working with them since 2016.

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

NextStack consistently provides high-quality development support that's helped us expand our client base. Due to the satisfaction with the work we're able to provide, clients have both recommended us to others and come back to work with us again, enabling our company to expand.

How did NextStack perform from a project management standpoint?

We're very happy with the way they manage their work overall, which is why the relationship is ongoing. At first, we mostly worked through phone, Slack, and Trello; we've recently relocated and share an office space with them, so we're able to work face-to-face on a daily basis. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their team is very responsible and takes ownership of each project. They've been great about providing top-notch resources to support us and ensuring they're able to meet our clients' deadlines. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

Not really. We're still learning together, but overall we're very happy. Sometimes we face challenges during the requirements gathering process of certain projects, but that's more of an issue on the client side. 

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m an owner and director of Reliance Health Care Services, a healthcare provider.

What challenge were you trying to address with NextStack?

We wanted to centralize information and create a native and web-based application with an admin interface. We want our partners and practitioners to more easily engage in our services and hopefully drive our business up.

What was the scope of their involvement?

NextStack created an iOS and Android application with a variety of modules as well as a web-based admin panel to manage our website. It’s a multilayered, complicated site with user logins. All of these items share a common database and update automatically in a cloud base. We handed over our UI/UX designs for NextStack to develop.
 
What is the team composition?

We interacted with their project manager and a second person in charge. It was my preference to keep it small.
 
How did you come to work with NextStack?

I believe we found them through a referral. We had a startup relationship, looked at some of their previous work, and arrived at NextStack as our next vendor.
  
What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together for 12 months from 2017–2018.

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

Because of the tools NextStack has developed for us, we can collect, store, and evaluate data more centrally and make more informed decisions. They’ve helped us plan our purchasing from costs to predictions. Our company profile received a boost because we have a native app specifically designed for us to address our issues—a rare thing in our industry. We were able to better engage with our customer base—especially the younger demographic.
 
How did NextStack perform from a project management standpoint?

Software development isn’t the most accurate industry, in terms of time assessments, but we’re happy overall with their management. NextStack communicated well in a small, centralized manner and offered accurate timelines. The team was very savvy with project management tools. They used Trello to track progress and Google Suite to share documents. Both proved to be modern and efficient. 
 
What did you find most impressive about them?

Reliable and technically skilled, NextStack produced consistently excellent work at great value. Their testing team worked well and left only a small number of bugs in the final product. We’ve seen fewer surprises from NextStack’s work compared to previous developers.
 
Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I can’t think of anything.
 
Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Customers can rest assured that NextStack provides very good value. They produce high-quality work comparable to that of larger, more prominent firms spearheading the industry. The team kept everyone accountable; we never felt lost in their management process.