Pillar Technology

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m an engineering project manager for an industrial and agricultural equipment manufacturer. I help facilitate progress on the application development projects for the computers that the equipment utilizes.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Pillar Technology?

We were trying to build a bore planning tool.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They’re working in an agile development framework to build this solution. Bore planning is related to our horizontal directional tools, which are used to dig underground when installing utility infrastructure. The tool will allow for planning the drill’s path before actually digging.

What is the team composition?

I worked with Aaron (Delivery Lead/Consultant). He was the product owner and would talk to us to gather the requirements for the solution. I also worked with several members of their development team.

How did you come to work with Pillar Technology?

We were looking for a local firm with geometry-based app development experience. They fit the bill exactly.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent between $1,000,000–$9,999,999 on the project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve worked together since January 2019. I’m no longer involved with the project, though.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

When I was involved with the project, we were mostly concerned with meeting dates for the various tasks within the scope of the engagement. They delivered everything on time and asked questions as needed to make sure they were meeting our needs. Their agile experience made it easy for their team to mesh with ours from the beginning. They had smart people on their team who took the time to understand the machine that the app would work in conjunction with when building the solution.

How did Pillar Technology perform from a project management standpoint?

They were communicative and delivered what they said they would. We used Jira for project management and documentation purposes. We communicated via WebEx, Microsoft Teams, and Basecamp.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re a personable, professional team who really cared about the solution we were building.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I didn’t spend enough time on the project to find anything for them to improve.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I don’t have any advice. They were great from day one.