Red Foundry

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of an application called skillin’, a gig economy platform. We encourage people to share their skills and new hobbies and find other people interested in learning about their craft.

What challenge were you trying to address with Red Foundry?

I needed their expertise in app development.

What was the scope of their involvement?

I initially engaged Red Foundry to collaborate with me in building our MVP. We fleshed out all the necessary components and solutions needed to build the prototype. Their team then designed and developed an iOS- and Android-friendly app within our requirements.

After building our core product, Red Foundry built our marketing website, which we now show to potential costumes who express interest in our application. Their team used Squarespace to build the one-page website and integrated MailChimp for a seamless mode of contact. They also integrated OneSignal API to enable app notifications.

We’ve already had a soft launch for the product, but we still rely on Red Foundry to handle our Facebook advertising efforts.

What is the team composition?

Ron (Partner & CTO) is my main point of contact, and I also work with Kerri (Partner, Client Delivery), Sarah (Product Manager), Niko (Software Engineer), Kate (UX Designer)

How did you come to work with Red Foundry?

I found a link to their Clutch profile through a Google search. I reached out to them after reading rave reviews. I gladly hired Red Foundry after they presented a quote, which was surprisingly affordable for their experience.

How much have you invested with them?

I’ve spent $172,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our engagement started in December 2020, and it’s ongoing.

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

It’s hard to give definitive metrics at this stage because we’ve only recently had our soft launch — however, I can confirm that Red Foundry has done an awesome job in building our app and helping me flesh out strategic and substantial solutions to improve its quality. At this point, the success of my business already depends on my team’s effort because Red Foundry has exceptionally done their part.

How did Red Foundry perform from a project management standpoint?

We mainly communicate via Skype and email. Red Foundry is an adaptable partner that accommodated my work schedule despite our time zone differences — their cooperative nature is one of the hallmarks of our engagement.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’ve helped me come up with impactful ideas and worked with me towards meeting my development goals. Additionally, they’ve been very transparent in relaying which deliverables meet my budget and which don’t. Overall, it’s been a joy to work with Red Foundry’s team, and they’ve given me a seamless working experience.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We’ve slightly gone over the original budget and timeline — however, this circumstance has been handled well by their team because they’ve kept me updated with transparent reports.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be open-minded and receptive to their helpful suggestions. Red Foundry is really good at what they do, and they go above and beyond to see their client succeed.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a lawyer, and I teach the law school admissions test (LSAT) to people that want to get into law school and get a scholarship.

What challenge were you trying to address with Red Foundry?

I wanted to improve the quality of the tutoring that I provide and scale it up, so I hired Red Foundry to build an application for me.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Red Foundry has been developing an iOS and Android app that helps me teach my current and future students. It has a multiple-choice questions database, and it can notify and present assignments to the students containing compilations of those questions.

They also built a web-based platform where I can assign the questions to the students and review their submissions. The app also notifies me when students need additional assignments and helps me categorize, sort, and filter the library of questions.

What is the team composition?

Rich (Partner) is my main point of contact. I’ve also had contact with two project managers throughout the project. We started working with Kerri (Partner & Client Delivery), and Sarah (Product Manager) has been our project manager towards the end. They, of course, have developers and engineers working on the project as well.

How did you come to work with Red Foundry?

I found them on Clutch and contacted them. Rich was very responsive. He responded quickly and was very helpful and communicative. He helped me think about what kind of project I needed because the direction I wanted to go wasn’t clear to me. All this was a signal of his willingness to help and service his clients.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together around March 2020, and the engagement is ongoing.

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

The app has been completed. It was a complicated project in terms of database management, but it works well, and dozens of students use it. Before having this app, I was limited to working with 20–25 students at a time, and I got really busy doing it. Now, the app has streamlined my work, and I’m teaching around 45 students at the same time.

The app’s technical capabilities have allowed me to create group courses that are still of very high quality. Before, I didn’t offer group tutoring because it wasn’t possible to do so with high quality.

The efficiency of the app allows me to operate at scale, and, in the future, the app is going to be more and more automated until we reach full automation — we’ve laid the groundwork for that already.

How did Red Foundry perform from a project management standpoint?

We have scheduled Zoom meetings and communicate via email and texts. Red Foundry always keeps detailed metrics of budgets and timelines, which is helpful for an organization their size.

I brought in my own independent developer, and they’ve been really helpful in onboarding them.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Red Foundry is very flexible. I had some misunderstandings at the beginning of the project after I had already signed the contract, and they were easy to work with to make the arrangements and accommodate what I had misunderstood.

They were able to design and concept the work to help me refine my idea, and they instilled thinking in me about tech projects and the prioritization of various features.

Their engineers are very talented, communicative, and willing to help — they’re invested in the success of the project and the execution of it.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t think there’s anything they could improve on — everything has been pretty good.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

If you have a project, try to define the goal and functionalities. If you can’t fully conceptualize it and need help, Red Foundry can help you with that. Just reach out to them, and they’ll be more than willing to help you. 

After they flesh out the details in the design phase, it's a pretty smooth process, and you don’t have to do anything. They update you and ask you questions, but it's a pretty hands-off process. In the end, just enjoy what they made for you.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the VP of operations for a payment processing company.

What challenge were you trying to address with Red Foundry?

We had a new loyalty program and needed a mobile app for customers to access the program and promotions.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Red Foundry developed another mobile app for us for iOS and Android. Their team worked with our loyalty provider to establish API connections to display our loyalty program’s offers on the product. They integrated the platform with our locations to provide customers with specific discounts and points that can be displayed on the app. Their team used a bit of the code from their other mobile app, and the platforms have some crossover functionalities such as a store locater.

We completed the build and rolled it out to beta-locations. Based on customer and store feedback, they’re making a couple of enhancements to the app.

What is the team composition?

Account managers set up the deal and then handed it to a project manager who worked with the head of development. In addition to the head of development, we worked with a development lead and a junior developer.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent just over $100,000 on their services.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started this project around May 2020, and it’s an ongoing project.

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

Their team produced an app that met the requirements we established at the beginning of the project. They delivered exactly what we sought. It's successful because all of the features work. Beyond a few enhancements, the initial feedback’s that the app works well.

How did Red Foundry perform from a project management standpoint?

We communicate via email, and that works well for us. We went through the entire process with Red Foundry, including testing and revising. That all worked well, so they delivered a finished product.

I’m happy with their project manager who greatly contributed to the success of this project. Their project manager has kept us informed about their progress throughout the project and managed all of the details, timelines, and budgets. They've stayed on the scope and on budget, which is important to us.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I’m impressed by their organization. Their team has been even more organized throughout this project thanks to the addition of a project manager. They keep me up to date with the budget, so I know where we stand. If there has been any kind of creep, their team was able to share its effect on the budget, and we could make decisions on the fly without adding to the cost.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There’s always room for improvement with testing and catching bugs. You can say that about everybody.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Spend the time and money up front to work with Red Foundry on building your requirements and user stories. They’re great at it, and it reduces creep.

This review was published on March, 1st 2019.

Randy Naylor

VP of Operations, Clark Brands LLC

Oil & Energy

11-50 Employees

Lisle, Illinois

$50,000 to $199,999

June - Nov. 2018

Project summary: 

Red Foundry designed and built a cross-platform app for iOS and Android and integrated it with Stripe. The app supports geolocation services, a customer loyalty program, and in-store purchases.

Feedback summary: 

The in-house team is happy with the quality of the code and the customer support they received. Red Foundry went above and beyond to meet all needs, while their ability to answer questions and quickly address any issues helped them establish a smooth and effective process.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the VP of operations at Clark Brands. We provide payment processing solutions and an opportunity to license one of our brands to gas stations. I manage three teams– the client service team, the IT department, and the product development team.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Red Foundry?

We wanted to create a mobile app and we needed a vendor to help us.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

First, Red Foundry helped us think through all the core functionalities of our MVP. Then, they designed and developed a cross-platform app for iOS and Android. They used React Native for development and integrated the app with Stripe, which is a third-party payment system. The purpose of the app is to provide a store locator to our customers and enable in-store purchases. The app also allows us to market to our customers directly, give away gift cards, and add products and services in the mobile space. Red Foundry did all the testing and helped us launch the app in the App Store and on Google Play.

What is the team composition?

We mostly worked with our account manager and a head developer, so we had one contact on the business side and one contact on the technical side. We also had access to their CTO.

How did you come to work with Red Foundry?

We interviewed some different companies. It was the first time we were developing an app, and Red Foundry was willing to work with us, helping us build out our ideas. We selected them because of their customer support and their expertise in mobile development.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent $65,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with them from June 2018–November 2018.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We now have a functioning app that we can use. We haven't fully marketed the app, so we didn't expect to have too many downloads. It's just a foundation that we're planning to develop further to get more business.

How did Red Foundry perform from a project management standpoint?

We had face-to-face meetings as we were working on the design and the initial development. Then, we moved to weekly calls where we discussed the progress of the project. They were very responsive. If there were any issues, they found solutions very quickly. We were very happy with the process.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They were very flexible, open to questions, and willing to explain the process to us. We were looking for someone who would take our idea and run with it. Red Foundry delivered exactly what we were looking for and met our tight deadlines.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No. I don't have any complaints.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

They provide top-notch service, and their pricing is very good. I'd definitely recommend them.

Star Ratings:

Overall rating: 5

Quality: 5

Schedule: 5

Cost: 5

Willing to refer: 5

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of SkillCO.

What challenge were you trying to address with Red Foundry?

We’re currently working with Red Foundry to build a peer-to-peer marketplace app. 

What was the scope of their involvement?

Red Foundry is helping us build our mobile app for iOS and Android. We’ve gone through the research and development (R&D) phase and design process so far. They did an industry analysis of competitors who had potentially similar applications, and that was really helpful. Then, we started from square one and determined what the app would do and who the app’s target users would be. The team created wireframes. 

Our app is very broad and based on the concept that everyone is a teacher and also a student. Users can create a profile and login via password. They can view and edit their profile, create listings, request lessons, and message other users. They also have the ability to time lessons, tip instructors, reschedule or cancel lessons, enable push notifications, and leave reviews. We just added an ambassador program, so users are incentivized to invite friends to the app. Red Foundry also integrated Stripe and Plaid.

We hope to launch the first version of the app at the beginning of May 2021. Red Foundry will also be building a version one website for me.

What is the team composition?

I’ve worked with three people, including Ron (Partner), one of the initial founders; Kerri (VP, Client Delivery), who acts as a program manager; and Kate (UX Designer), who has a really talented eye for design and color schemes.

How did you come to work with Red Foundry?

I did a decent amount of research and saw that Red Foundry was highly ranked on Clutch. I reached out to them and a couple of other companies. Red Foundry provided an estimate that was within our budget. They were very honest and upfront with me in our initial email discussions, which I appreciated. They told me that I could find less expensive providers out there, but that they’d do all of the work and programming in the US. I’m very happy with their work so far.

How much have you invested with them?

The R&D portion cost about $35,000. In total, I’ve invested close to $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our work together began in December 2020. They completed the initial R&D phase as well as the wireframes. The work is ongoing.

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

The quality of their team stands out to me. They didn’t build exactly what I initially had in my head — instead, they ran with my idea and recommended more. They created something that was better than what I’d originally planned. The real value comes from their team leadership and the recommendations they provide. They ultimately build what the customer wants, but they provide a lot of extra input to build a better product. 

How did Red Foundry perform from a project management standpoint?

We mainly communicate through email. I work full-time, so that is definitely my preferred method. They’ve also been amazing at adjusting their time schedule to accommodate my busy schedule; they meet with me before I go to work and even after, which is pretty incredible. They’re good about sending us timelines and letting us know about the schedule they’re working to keep.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The team that I’ve worked with has a lot of experience. However, in addition to their experience developing and designing excellent apps, they also have a lot of business expertise, which I've been really impressed by. As an entrepreneur myself, they’ve been able to give me a lot of good advice and steer me in the right direction to make money and keep the application alive. 

They go above and beyond what the customer initially wants to help create something even better. I initially wanted the product done my way, but they unanimously agreed that a small pivot could be to my benefit, and I totally support that now.

Are there any areas they could improve?

It’s an expensive product, but that’s expected, given that they’re US-based. 

Any advice for potential customers?

Don’t be afraid to start working with Red Foundry, even if you don’t have all of the answers to your product. They have a great team, and they’re going to help you along the process. The discovery phase will help you pull out the true nature of your application, so it’s okay if you don’t have everything worked out.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m VP of technology for a recruiting firm.

What challenge were you trying to address with Red Foundry?

We engaged Red Foundry to help us build UI wireframes and a UI strategy for a mobile experience. We wanted to build a responsive and native product for our associates and customers.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Red Foundry conducted primary research into how our competitors showed up in the mobile space. Their team also researched the challenges that our associates and customers faced when engaging with our platform. They then utilized that information to produce associate and customer personas as well as wireframes based in pseudocode. This gave us a foundation of requirements that our development team now uses to build a mobile experience and product.

What is the team composition?

I worked with about seven people from Red Foundry including their CTO, graphic designers, UI designers, and developers.

How did you come to work with Red Foundry?

I had a long-standing relationship with Red Foundry’s principles. I heard about their capabilities from them and felt that what they provided fit with our needs.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent about $80,000 on their services.

What is the status of this engagement?

We collaborated on this project between May–September 2020.

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

We hired them to build wireframes that we would utilize to undertake software development. This project was a success because we utilize their deliverables. Their team created detailed, semi-interactive wireframes. The wireframes gave us a sense of the design’s interactive qualities.

We didn’t execute every requirement in their wireframes. However, that’s typical and understandable. What they built for us was extremely useful.

How did Red Foundry perform from a project management standpoint?

We communicated via email. They were transparent and communicative without being overly communicative. It was a well-organized engagement. Red Foundry communicated timelines for deliverables and followed through on them. I was pleased with their project management and communication skills.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They made good use of my time. Our initial meeting was efficient and crisp. I received more than I expected from them considering the amount of time we spent together. They asked the right questions and capitalized on our answers to provide high-quality deliverables.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I was happy.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

We had a mix of account managers, UI/UX experts, and the CTO. Those three elements were a great combination. Make sure to have that mixed team from Red Foundry because it contributed to the success of our engagement with them.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of digital at College of American Pathologists, an association for board-certified pathologists.

What challenge were you trying to address with Red Foundry?

We needed help with a discovery project for a mobile app.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Red Foundry provided the planning and coordination for a discovery project to identify the purpose, features, and functionality of a baseline mobile app. This also included an implementation rollout plan and high-level wireframes for what the mobile app could look like. 

It’s a member-only app that keeps the members of our organization informed, makes them aware of upcoming legislative opportunities, and provides member-generated content. 

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with roughly six teammates.

How did you come to work with Red Foundry?

I met the founder and owner of Red Foundry at a mobile development meetup a couple of years ago. We remained in contact, so when we had an opportunity to consider what we wanted to do in the mobile space, I reached out.

We then did an evaluation of the organization, their area of focus, their size, and what we were looking to do.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in June 2020, and the engagement is somewhat ongoing. We’ve completed the discovery portion of the project, but we’re considering what we want to do from here within our organization.

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

The feedback on their deliverables was extremely positive. We received positive feedback both from our internal staff, as well as our members with whom we shared some of that work. Overall we were extremely pleased with the deliverables. 

How did Red Foundry perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management is excellent. We have weekly meetings and communicate via email.

What did you find most impressive about them?

It’s been a positive experience working with them. Red Foundry’s team is well-educated and experienced in the mobile app development space. They were extremely responsive and active in collaborating with us through the process. 

The team shared their expertise, thoughts, alternatives, and solutions as we were going through the discovery process, and they were very easy to work with. They positioned themselves very well as a potential longterm partner.

Red Foundry is a great size for an organization that focuses on mobile development. All of those components were extremely valuable for us. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, not that I can think of.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

It’s helpful to know what you think you want to do with your mobile app or within the mobile space, and Red Foundry can help you to further deepen that. Have a good sense of what you’re trying to accomplish.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of Whatifwe World. We provide a mobile platform to solve the problem of paper-based mail.

What challenge were you trying to address with Red Foundry?

We needed to design and develop our mobile product.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Red Foundry and I spent a couple of months on the discovery and design processes, working on the initial problem that I identified. We conducted interviews with consumers and businesses. Once we formulated the solution, Red Foundry put together all the pieces and started to develop the mobile app. It works on iOS and Android.

What is the team composition?

We worked with about six people from Red Foundry. Their team included a couple of business development people, the CTO, a UX designer, and a project manager.

How did you come to work with Red Foundry?

I gathered recommendations through my network and interviewed 3–4 developers. I had a good feeling about Red Foundry’s team. I also liked their discovery and design processes as this was my first time building a mobile app.

How much have you invested with them?

In the end, I spent $73,000 on the MVP.

What is the status of this engagement?

The development started in May 2020 and finished in August.

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

The app's available on Google Play and the Apple App Store. Their work and communication were excellent. They were efficient too.

How did Red Foundry perform from a project management standpoint?

In the beginning, they laid out the project week by week and sprint by sprint. It was a straightforward process. Their team never missed a deadline or a meeting.

We had a call every Thursday. During meetings, they took notes and sent them afterward to ensure everyone was on the same page. Their team was proactive.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Project management’s one of the strongest pieces of their program. They always followed through. Their team was also clear about what they needed from us at different times.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We were a little over budget, so that’s the only area for improvement. It’s partly because we changed or added elements that we collectively didn’t think through. They could’ve also done things differently.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be open to their process. Ensure that you’re ready to build a product. Do your homework and research before moving orward in the process.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the manager of a startup that’s created an app that allows tennis plays to gather stats. 

What challenge were you trying to address with Red Foundry?

As a professional tennis player back in the 1980s, there was a man that designed a laptop to gather statistics. Prior to building my product, there wasn’t anything in the market that was intuitive and easy to use. I thought of that old system and wanted to create a modern product that emulated its capabilities.

What was the scope of their involvement?

One of the problems in tennis is that there aren’t statistics easily available to the average player. With baseball, kids can track their progress through statistics. Tennis is historically more subjective, and people don’t know what the statistics should be. This app will open us a foundation for all tennis players around the world.  

I drew up some initial plans that indicated how screens would look and various statistics that should be included. My goal was to create an app that a beginner could use with no knowledge of tennis. Gradually, we sorted our priorities out through their development department. It was an educational journey for me, and they guided me through it. The final app allows users to collect tennis statistics in the same way that they could have using the previous machinery. However, users no longer had to pay for expensive machinery or follow complicated steps.

The final app is available for iOS and Android. While its UX is simple, there is a beginner app and one that’s more sophisticated. The first app provides about 11 statistics, while the advanced product offers about 30. 

What is the team composition?

I’ve worked with Rich (Partner), Ron (Partner & CTO), Kerry (Co-Founder), and Dianna (Junior Application Developer). 

How did you come to work with Red Foundry?

I sent 52 letters to development shops around the United States. Once I spoke with Red Foundry, I discovered that their president happens to be in a tennis family. From that moment, we really hit it off. We decided that we wanted to revive the old system of gathering tennis stats, so we got permission from the creator of that product and got started.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent between $100,000–$250,000 on their services. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in October 2018, and our relationship is ongoing. The app is waiting for approval at the moment.

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

They took a complicated concept and made it work within the boundaries of a smartphone app. At every step of the process, they were eager to make the product even simpler than it was before. They often made great suggestions to do that. I gave them the concept, but they truly perfected it.  

How did Red Foundry perform from a project management standpoint?

They were thorough in their presentations, always leaving time to answer our questions. Their team was timely and completed tasks according to schedule. We’ve been on target each week for over a year. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They brought an incredible level of creativity to a complicated issue. It was quite a feat to make such a complex piece of technology as simple as possible for the final user.  

Are there any areas they could improve?

I couldn’t have picked a better partner. When aspects need to be changed in the testing stage, they fixed issues within hours.  

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Bring a strong concept into your initial discussions. They asked helpful questions and created a strong UX. I fully intend to continue our contract into the future because they’ve been so helpful to my business.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the senior director of enterprise applications for Cooper’s Hawk Winery and Restaurant.

What challenge were you trying to address with Red Foundry?

We have an external-facing application for our wine club members. We have the world’s largest wine club membership with about 450,000 members. We wanted to move our application from Salesforce Community to React because we plan to create a mobile app in the near future.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Red Foundry managed the entire project including design and development. Their team all of the code. They analyzed the existing system and then worked with a small internal team to replicate it. Their team also implemented process improvements such as mobile responsiveness. They also built an external authentication component into the frontend to verify our wine club members, which used to occur through Salesforce Community.

They built the website for wine club members to self-service. For example, users can sign-up, update profile information, view their orders and order history. It’s also our loyalty platform, so members can see the number of points they earned.

After rolling out the platform, Red Foundry provided additional enhancements. They continue to maintain the platform, helping us to fix bugs and make minor enhancements. In the next 2–3 months, we’ll probably kick-off the mobile development project.

What is the team composition?

We worked with approximately four people from Red Foundry including a project manager and an architect.

How did you come to work with Red Foundry?

As I’m involved in our local tech community, I’ve known one of Red Foundry’s founders for a while. When we wanted to create an RFP, we included them in the process. Their team came in and had a conversation with us. Then, they bid on the project. They came in with reasonable pricing and seemed to be able to meet our needs. We felt that Red Foundry would be a good partner.

What is the status of this engagement?

Their team started working on the project in October 2019 and completed the initial phase in January 2020. We’re now in phase two of the project. Then, we’ll continue with a flexible statement of work with Red Foundry.

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

We rolled out the platform quickly. Based on the rollout cost, we saved over 200%. As well, this project will cost 10% of our previous application over a three-year period. Red Foundry built a platform that reduces the cost and effort for us to move to a mobile app. The platform also provides a better customer experience. It loads faster and is more mobile responsive. We’ve found that more people use the product and come back to it.

How did Red Foundry perform from a project management standpoint?

We held conference calls three times a week. If we had to dig into a task, we set up an additional call. I stayed connected with an executive from Red Foundry through bi-weekly calls. As well, everyone who worked on the project received a weekly status report.

Red Foundry set up a good process to work with my team. Their team was flexible and used our control repository. They utilized a website that we use internally to track requirements and tasks. Their team communicated progress and escalated any concerns quickly. A member of my team managed the project but if Red Foundry needed to, they escalated quickly. That allowed us to deliver on time and within the budget.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Red Foundry fits well into our culture, which is collaborative, open, and people-focused. Their team worked with our preferred tools and met with members of our team to ensure that we were comfortable with the project’s direction. They moved quickly to address any changes that we wanted, which helped us to move forward.

Are there any areas they could improve?

At this point, I don’t have any constructive criticism. Our requirements weren’t as clearly defined upfront, which led to changes throughout the process. The product’s complex, so it was impressive that their team completed the project in three months.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

With any project, make sure to define the requirements upfront. Understand Red Foundry’s strengths and what technologies they use. However, their team jumps into any technologies enthusiastically.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the co-founder of Gearflow.com, an online marketplace for construction equipment and parts as well as wholesale rentals.

What challenge were you trying to address with Red Foundry?

We just launched in October 2018. An outsourced company had built our MVP using a LAMP stack, primarily PHP. We hired Red Foundry to serve as a fractional CTO and create a more scalable environment. We needed to develop and streamline our site’s backend so that we could transition to an in-house team here in Chicago.

What was the scope of their involvement?

The first phase was to scope out all of the things that we needed to develop on the site’s backend and what we needed to optimize to get us to a scalable environment. Red Foundry overhauled a lot of the backend, which took about 3–4 months.

Since then, Red Foundry has rebuilt and optimized various functionalities on a project-by-project basis. They work on a lot of things simultaneously. The team helped us develop a hybrid Android app, but the majority of their work has been web-based. They migrated our platform to AWS and continue to deploy various AWS tools.

What is the team composition?

We primarily work with Ron (Partner & CTO, Red Foundry) and Kerri (VP of Client Delivery, Red Foundry). Ron road mapped the first phase of our work together. Kerri serves as the project manager and keeps everything organized. Several developers have worked on our project, following Ron’s roadmap and Kerri’s direction.

How did you come to work with Red Foundry?

My company needed to bridge the gap between outsourcing development and creating an in-house team, so we did some due diligence of different firms in the Chicago area that could fill this fractional CTO role.

We came across Red Foundry through a referral who’d worked with them on a mobile project, and we chose them because they were willing to work with our existing technology stack and environment. My company initially hired Red Foundry for mobile development, but the engagement transformed as our needs changed.

How much have you invested with them?

At this point, we’ve likely surpassed $100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our work together began in March 2019, and it’s ongoing.

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

Red Foundry fulfills a critical role. They’re helping us take ownership of our whole tech stack. They’ve been flexible to working with external resources to scale development, even though this means less billable hours for them. They look out for what’s best for our business.

The work that they’ve done has allowed us to see regular incoming orders. We continue to improve the site’s experience from optimization, speed, and functionality standpoints. Having ownership over everything translates to increased revenue, and we’re at the point where we can start thinking about additional resources to continue building our business.

How did Red Foundry perform from a project management standpoint?

Red Foundry does product management via Jira, where they’ve given us access to our project’s workspace. We trust what they’re doing, but having full transparency into their progress across different sprints has been super helpful.

They make themselves available for calls and meetings with my team as well as external resources. We primarily communicate through the Slack channel that they set up. Everything flows through Ron and Kerri. Ron even comes to whiteboarding sessions with our UI/UX designer.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Red Foundry is really flexible to our needs, and they’ve been an awesome partner. They’ve taken it upon themselves to garner a good understanding of our business, industry, and customers. Even if it means less billable hours for them, they’re willing to work with us in order to create a long-term partnership. We value this a lot since many contracting companies out there use the consulting model of billable hours in a way that can be contradictory to business needs.

I’ve also been impressed by their ability to adapt to our business. For instance, my partner and I like to move very quickly, and they’ve adjusted the way their work to what we need.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They could be more transparent about whether they’re resource-constrained or not. Also, their team members have different rates; we’d appreciate flexibility as to what resources we can use, since we need some more than others. For the most part, though, they’ve been good. They understand that we can’t 100% rely on them; otherwise, we wouldn’t be able to sustain ourselves.

Any advice for potential customers?

Make sure you have the financial resources to hire them since you’re paying a premium for value. Red Foundry is tech-focused, meaning they’re more conservative and risk-averse than your typical entrepreneur. If you want to move faster, you’ll have to manage to find a happy medium between risk aversion and delivery speed.

Also, communication should come from one direction; if you have multiple people from your organization contacting them, communication will become scattered and fragmented, which will slow the whole process down.