NextStack

BACKGROUND

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.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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.

SOLUTION

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

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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 :)

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

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

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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.

SOLUTION

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.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

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

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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.

SOLUTION

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.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the owner of healthcare company. We provide assistive devices.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

Our company is a startup, so we didn't have a website, and this company made one for us.

SOLUTION

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

We were referred to this company by their customers, and after searching for online reviews we chose them.

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

We had couple of meetings to discuss our objectives. After that they designed and developed our site.

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

We were mainly in contact with the project manager

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

After launching a site we started getting more calls.

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

We had regular conversations with the project manager over the phone or over email.

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

The team works transparent, giving all the information needed for the user

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

So far, we haven't noticed any problems or mistakes.