Ravn

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Sr. Engineering Manager of Homie

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Homie uses technology to make Real Estate affordable and accessible for everyone.

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Ravn to accomplish?

• Augment the Mobile development team
• Accelerate the rate of production of our development teams
• Bring senior talent to drive complex initiatives

How did you find Ravn?

Referral

Why did you select Ravn over others?

High ratings, Close to my geographic location, Pricing first our budget, Great culture fit, Good value for cost, Company values aligned

What was the size of Ravn’s team?

2-5 Employees

What was your primary form of communication with Ravn?

Virtual Meeting, Email or Messaging App

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

• Redesign the search experience in both, iOS and Android.
• Provide iOS and Android support to our cross-functional teams
• Support the android team working on modularization

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

• The portion of the search redesign assigned to the Ravn team was completed on time
• Above expected progress made in the modularization project of the Android codebase
• Ravn's technical lead spearheaded testing initiatives on iOS and Android.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Ravn's team was very professional and easy to work with. They not only delivered on time the objectives but once they became embedded in the codebase, they provided feedback and helped pushed forward initiatives that increased agility, quality, and testability across the project.

They were easy to communicate with and I'll be happy to work with them again.

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

They have great talent. I was impressed by their recruitment process. The developers that we onboarded on our teams did so promptly, became very familiar with our patterns, and understood where we wanted to be.

Soon enough, they were comfortable taking on refactoring tasks and leaving the codebase cleaner than before they touched it. It's hard to find that level of engineer and more challenging to do so as consistently as they've done.

Are there any areas for improvement or something {provider_name} could have done differently?

They're growing, and the word is getting out there about the quality of their work. Sometimes there's a waiting list to get additional engineers. I know they're doing what they can to grow responsibly, so I'm not too concerned about it.

Please describe your company and your position there.

Applications Product Manager for Skullcandy, a global headphone manufacturer.

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

For a new Skullcandy GAMING headset line, we wanted to create a desktop application for product owners to have more granular control of their audio and gaming headset configurations.

The companion app we desired would need to be built lock-step with product being developed and refined across hardware and firmware, and our software counterpart needed to be live one week after firmware locked and went to mass production.

Additionally it needed to be an extension of the Skullcandy brand and reiterate the gaming headset ethos, so a tough net-new build with high complexity, dependencies, and on top of that a firm deadline and nailed branding to match the category launch.

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

Ravn came highly recommended from a previous design/development agency - whose team and business were acquired just months after kicking off this project. Suddenly our project timelines and a development team transition seemed impossible, designs were not final, and now we were facing an entire team change.

Talking with management at Ravn, it was clear they were eager to dive into a tough challenge, they were experienced in new builds and picking up from previous developer work, had versatile skill sets across a deep near-shore team.

We believed (and were right) that they would walk with us in the face of challenges to produce an amazing final product, together with transparency, openness to discover, a good does of positivity, and confidence.

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

After a couple days of on-boarding the Ravn team to the Skullcandy brand, new category line, project mission and requirements we identified major risks and prioritized some key milestones to tackle and de-risk the project; get to design complete ASAP (i.e. lock requirements) and deliver an alpha build of the desktop application in the first 3rd of the project timeline to prove our building blocks and critical app feature/functionality.

We agreed the Windows app would be built in Electron, Node Addon API, C++, and ReactJS to meet requirements of third party technology integrations, and the companion app functions across Skullcandy's new gaming products (hardware x firmware x software integrations).

Since the software development was in parallel to hardware and firmware engineering, we had to devise a system for firmware upgrades to be delivered to consumers as part of their app on-boarding, to ensure the best product and software experience was available to Skullcandy consumers from the start.

Additionally the desktop app needed to be build with future evolution in mind, so it's designed and developed with a foundation to support product in the next 12 months with very little dev work.

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

There were three full time developers at any given time, but as phases of the project completed we were able to bring in different supporting teammates to match the phases skill requirements across development and design.

We had 1 senior developer who served as the solutions architect and connective tissue across the design/dev team throughout the project, he several hats including dev project manager.

We had one FT back end developer on the whole project and then we had specialists for design sprints, design integration cycles and finally someone highly skilled across both front and back end design to bring all together with most complexity always the back end work and third party integrations.

We had support from one of the founding partners and could call them in whenever needed to strategize, solve sticky challenges and to celebrate some wins along the way!

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

We were elate to meet our alpha build deliverable which proved out the technologies with flying colors in the first third of the project. Thereafter pressure was reduced and we could focus on feature refinement(in lock-step with firmware cycles), design and optimizations.

We met the remaining 3 schedule milestones and impressed the company with an on-budget, on-time, and awesome CX in the launch of the Skull-HQ App.

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

We communicated over Slack and with 2-3x weekly meetings. Ravn teammates were always transparent with status, risks and challenges, which allowed to pivot quickly as needed or re-calibrate skills if we moved through tasks slower or faster than anticipated.

They are service oriented, continually calling out their desire to work in a way that would be most productive for our integrated team to reach project goals. They are friendly developers :) and their passion for the work showed in our ongoing communications - it was a motivating work environment to be a part of.

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

1. Access to the developers to bounce ideas off of, to talk through risks openly and honestly. And access to the management team who stayed highly involved to ensure success but stay out enough that teams could keep charging with autonomy.
2. Passion and dedication the team members brought to the project (even those who had short (2 month) stints with us)!
3. Their ability to scale and evolve seamlessly as project needs changed (unexpectedly or per plan).

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

When we started working together we were accustomed to having an account manager leading all of the developers and project team from the partner agency. Ravn did things differently and we changed the way we were working to make up some of the difference of previous dev team project arrangements to bridge that resource gap.

While it took a little to find our stride with this arrangement I see Ravn is most effective as designers and engineers who should lean into clients for project management. Area of improvement would be project organization, as they did not prove to be the most structured group, but we could achieve what we needed more organically due to exceptional accountability of each teammate.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the Founder and CEO of GUIDEcx

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

I initially hired Ravn to help launch my MVP. They assisted me for the first 12 months as my outsourced engineering department... Now i have a team of over 20 engineers internally and we still use Ravn for their expertise.

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

I was looking for a team that was collaborative, smart, with strong startup background in building MVPs.

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

I initially presented the Ravn team with my MVP. We cut that MVP down to 20% it's original scope based on their feedback and experience in bringing products to market. Their collaborative process and amazing expertise helped me launch a valuable product without wasting time and money.

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

4 initially (Ravn founding team). I have since worked with over 20 people within their organization. I think the world of everyone that i have interacted with.

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

We have since grown GUIDEcx to a post series B company, with over 100 employees, double figures ARR, and over 200K users across the world.

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

Caring, collaborative, problem solvers, competent.

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

They care!!!!

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

I wish there were more of them :). As they've grown and scaled, they've done an incredible job of keeping Quality up to standard.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the VP of Engineering for Luxul which is a brand of Legrand AV.

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

As a small team within a large company we needed outside help to create a mobile App that would allow for setup/configuration of our networking products.

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

Ravn was referred by friend of our VP of Business Development. Ravn was selected because they met our criteria. Basically they were willing and able to create the App we needed when we needed it without any BS.

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

The App is used by Custom Integrators to get supported Luxul networking equipment setup/configured quickly without needing a PC. The App uses WiFi or BT to setup/configure the product. In order to do this Ravn developed a 2D and 3D bar code scanner to gather product information and then direct the user to the correct setup flow. Ravn also provided App UX based on the required steps for each product type. The App supports iOS and Android which provided unique challenges depending on the platform because the App has to deal with external hardware, WiFi permissions, BT, etc. The App currently supports 3 products and with the next 3 products starting development in Q4 2021.

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

We were assigned a developer who was primarily responsible for the App but it was truly a team effort from Ravn. Other members of the Ravn team worked on the bar code scanner, connection issues with the hardware, QA and code quality, and App builds. Ravn is a full service shop.

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

As a utility App, the key factor is how useful it is to the user. Comments from users such as "Seriously, I'm not sure there is an easier setup on the market", "Great App for initial setup", and "super easy".

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

The main developer Jose and Micah were very communicative and on top of their game. Slack and on site meetings were used to move the project forward. Both methods were effective and usefully.

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

Their ability to get the job done is impressive. At the time this was somewhat of a new area for their App development, dealing with external hardware. They were able to adapt and excel in delivering a useful App.

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

Nothing really jumps out as an area for improvement.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the CTO of a health care company focused on connecting patients and caregivers to information and community.

For what projects/services did your company hire Ravn?

We wished to stabilize and build upon our initial app, which included video features and dedicated roles.

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

We found Ravn through word of mouth. Ex-Pinterest engineers had used Ravn for another startup and spoke highly of their abilities. Other deciding factors: Ravn leads behaved with high integrity, and appeared to be engineers *first.*

Describe the project in detail and walk through the stages of the project.

We worked on the following:

1. Backend in Python straddling GCP, with container based deployments.
2. CI/CD based on CircleCI
3. Data structures in an RDBMS system (PostgresQL) also on GCP
4. NextJS middleware for SSR/SSG
5. A ReactNative front end

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

We currently use 2 ReactNative/FE and Python/BE engineers. They are senior. We have also used iOS eng (2) who were quite senior, but we only used them for 1 month.

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

see https://app.roon.care/

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Quite effective. We use our own internal systems.

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

The motivation and drive of the engineers, who interact with us as if we are one team.

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

We think invoicing should be more intuitive.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the CTO of a company that provides software that enables companies hire and pay employees globally in a compliant manner.

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

To build a new employer of record SaaS platform, hireborderless.com

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

Level of engineering skill. Ease of contracting and working relationship.

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

Embedded engineering staff delivered features as part of the larger team developing the product.

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

5:

• frontend software engineer
• backend software engineer
• mobile software engineer

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

We've launched the product on time, and a big part of it is due to the contributions of the vendor's team members.

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

Slack and video calls. Very responsive. Flexible on working hours.

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

The flexibility in working with us was very helpful. Their contractor agreement was client friendly.

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

1 new team member improved after going through some internal Ravn training. If I were to do it again I would have waited to have the person start for a week or 2 until they had completed that internal training.

Please describe your company and your position there.

Co-founder / CEO of a mobile app startup

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

Ravn was hired to develop an MVP of the mobile platform and prepare it for launch on the iOS App Store.

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

We interviewed 10-15 app development companies and chose Ravn for several reasons: the rapport with Micah (project lead), Ravn's pedigree and track record, their flexibility with respect to the development process, and overall pricing for the project.

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

Social platform built as a native mobile application on iOS.

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

Micah was the project lead and leveraged an extensive team of local off-shore developers to coordinate and complete the work.

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

Successful completion of the project.

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

Micah was very thorough and thoughtful with both the manner in which he approached the project and communicated throughout the duration that we worked together.

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

They have a great mix of high-quality design, experience, team, and thoughtfulness

Please describe your company and your position there.

I own a music production company and am responsible for operations.

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

We hired Ravn as full stack developers for the front and backend of our website.

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

Micah and the team were selected largely based on their interpersonal and communication skills, and their previous dev work. We like working with people we like and that like us. Ravn and we made friends immediately.

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

We had a bunch of kickoff meetings where we discussed how best to collaborate (apps to keep us on task, etc). Once we kicked things off, Ravn took the reigns. Ravn walked us through each step of the process with and they were good on their benchmarks and deadlines.

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

Micah, the founder and CEO, was our main point of contact.

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

We repeatedly receive positive client feedback. As we're in the entertainment sector we're less concerned with data/analytics and more about personal perception. Ravn nailed it here and our clients rave (pun?) about the site.

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

Slack & Trello were used to keep us in lockstep. Communication is timely and professional.

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

Micah is diplomatic, responsive, creative and levelheaded. They were the perfect entrepreneur with both people and know-how skills.

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

Buy 10 websites get 1 free? ;)