RIKSOF

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and director of a transport networking company. We provide day-to-day transport services for schools, colleges, and universities.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with RIKSOF?

We needed help with mobile app development and support.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We’ve worked with RIKSOF to make the skeleton of our mobile application. Initially, we told them what we wanted, and they came up with different solutions. They’ve developed the app, done the UX/UI, and are now maintaining it. If problems arise, they find solutions.

The app is available for iOS and Android. It uses Google Maps, and everything is story-based. Users can find transporting services to go to the office, school, college, and so on. People download the app and select a time; the app shows the vehicle for their desired group with the rates. The service is for daily users, but we’re doing monthly subscriptions.

What is the team composition?

We have a project engineer and two other people on the project.

How did you come to work with RIKSOF?

A friend used to work with RIKSOF and recommended them to me. I heard great things about them. We analyzed their team and liked the timelines they promised.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent $25,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in February 2020, and our relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We launched the app in August 2020, and it runs pretty smoothly. It’s very seldom that we have any crashes. The rating in the Google Play store is above 3, and it’s around 4 in the Apple Store.

How did RIKSOF perform from a project management standpoint?

They respond promptly and are highly cooperative. The team delivers within the timeline. Also, we’re in continuous discussion with them. During development, they shared a chart with us where we could see how many hours they spent on a specific job. We were constantly updated.

What did you find most impressive about them?

One thing that stands out is their commitment. They’re open to discussion and straightforward about issues. If they’re lagging behind deadlines, they let us know beforehand.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, they’re excellent. They deliver what we ask for.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be clear about what you want.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of a ride-hailing application.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with RIKSOF?

We needed help with software development.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

RIKSOF has been developing our app’s software using hybrid technology. The purpose of this project was to launch our business into the market and offer our services. First, they took the time to understand our requirements, and they created the documentation and designs. Then, they started working on the development phase.

The app has a Google Maps integration and SMS services that we use to chat with the clients and drivers. There’s also a payment method for the merchants, and from the drivers' side, they implemented an earrings system. For this development, RIKSOF made their own hybrid framework using Angular.

What is the team composition?

RIKSOF provides us with a dedicated team of nine people. We work with a business development manager, a project officer, and a UI frontend designer. The rest of the team is composed of backend developers.

How did you come to work with RIKSOF?

I did a Google search for software development companies, and they appeared in sixth place in the results.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $30,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in June 2018, and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

RIKSOF completed my project within the timeframe we agreed upon. The quality of their work is very good — 98%–99% of the coding is perfect. They’ve had very few mistakes, errors, and bugs.

How did RIKSOF perform from a project management standpoint?

RIKSOF’s project management is great. They’re responsive, and their communication is very good. We use email, chat, phone, Google Meets, Skype, and Slack to communicate. For development, they use their own framework, which is a very good thing — it’s easy to control.

What did you find most impressive about them?

RIKSOF’s strength is their communication. They’re really good at user stories and their documentation is perfect — they document each user story and task they do.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Their weakest point was understanding the project at the beginning. They changed one of their team members because this person wasn’t capable of understanding me — I talked to them about it, and they fixed it. Once they changed that person, everything was good.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

You should have a minimum budget of around $25,000–$30,000 if you want to go with them to make a website, an admin panel, and an app.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of a tech telecommunications firm.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with RIKSOF?

We have some resources but sometimes we need additional resources on a project-by-project basis.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

RIKSOF helped us develop a CRM solution from scratch. They used Angular and Node.js. It’s a MEAN technology stack. We have MongoDB as the database.

What is the team composition?

There are around five people working on this project including a senior network engineer, project manager, developer, designer, and QA.

How did you come to work with RIKSOF?

Seven or eight years back, I worked on a small project with them. I initially found them online. They did a good job on that project and we stayed in touch with them. When we had this project, we asked them to help.

How much have you invested with them?

We have invested $500,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in June 2018 and it's ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have had no issues working with them and we're happy with the project. When there are issues, there are always available, and try to fix them as soon as possible.

How did RIKSOF perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re an offshore team. We have a time difference but they’re always available around the clock. Our teams collaborate using Asana. They’re open to using whatever project management software we want.

There have been three project managers since we started. The latest project manager has been with us for almost 1 ½ years. We have a really good experience with them. We had some issues with the past project managers but we’re happy with the current one. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Whatever work we give them, they are able to do it.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Sometimes they’ll allocate a developer on a different project when we think the developer should stay with the project. Their developers want to learn different technologies though. If they stay on the same project, they get bored, and then there’s the chance that they’ll quit.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I’m happy with them and recommend working with them.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the principal and founder of a software technology consulting group. We’ve been around since 2001, servicing clients on web and mobile apps.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with RIKSOF?

We needed resources to help us quickly scale our development capabilities depending on the project. Using RIKSOF allowed us to decide if we wanted to take on a project fully in-house or if we should augment our team with outsourced developers. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement? 

RIKSOF has been our outsourced development partner for several projects. They predominately work in NODE.js along with TypeScript.

One of the first projects that they’d worked on was an iOS and Android mobile app for national parks — much like a guidebook. They were able to do a lot of our rapid prototyping, which we would rewrite parts of for production code. This helped us quickly see if a solution was feasible or not before we refined it further.

The second project they’ve helped us with was a web- and mobile-based medical training solution. It was a simulation-type game that helped first responders identify which equipment they needed to use and in what order for a range of medical issues. 

What is the team composition? 

Khurram (CEO) is our primary contact, but we’ll also interact with the rest of their project team at times. I’ve worked with 2–3 project managers and a business analyst.

How did you come to work with RIKSOF?

A colleague of mine had worked with RIKSOF in the past and introduced me to them. At the time, we were looking for a way to quickly augment a project that was ramping up, so we needed someone fast.

We interviewed RIKSOF alongside two other companies and ended up choosing them because of the recommendation. In talking with them, they seemed to have a good understanding of what our client needs were, where our project needs might go in the future, and how they could adjust to our rapid prototyping schedule. 

What is the status of this engagement?

The partnership began in June 2015 and is still ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They’ve done a fantastic job on their projects, especially around helping with estimates. A lot of companies will essentially underestimate the timeline and project costs to secure the deal, but RIKSOF is good at setting expectations. As long as the scope doesn’t change, they stick to the estimates that they provide.

Likewise, our clients might come back to us expecting a project done in a very limited amount of time. Instead of taking on the task and never making it, RIKSOF knows when to say that they can’t do something because the requirements are unreasonable.

How did RIKSOF perform from a project management standpoint?

The communication is great. We use a commercially available tool to interface with our clients, and they have their own tool that was written in-house, too. As a result, we use a hybrid of the two. Their system sends us automatic notifications as they work as well as billing reminders, hour logs, and reports.

If I were to name a downside, it’s the time zone difference. Our day here is almost the exact opposite of theirs, so it takes at least a day in the development cycle to get a turnaround. This isn’t their fault but rather a function of working with a team across the globe.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The most impressive aspect about them is that they don’t overpromise and then underdeliver. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

It might be helpful if they considered having shifts during our day so that we could hit a faster turnaround for certain tasks. Although, that would depend on if the developer staffed during those shifts had the right skill set for our needs.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

As you’re looking at your options for service providers, know that if someone is bidding at a much lower cost, then it’s probably too good to be true. You should go with a team that has good referrals and that you have confidence in. RIKSOF actually can do what they promise, and you’ll save time and money with them in the long run.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the owner of a medical diagnosis company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with RIKSOF?

I hired RIKSOF to develop a web and mobile application.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Since I have some technical expertise, I’m able to speak with the development lead and give them requirements. PHP was used for the development, along with React, Android Ionic, and AWS for the server management.

What is the team composition?

We have a project manager, development lead, and a QA.

How did you come to work with RIKSOF?

A friend who previously used RIKSOF recommended them to me. They had all the skill sets that I needed.

How much have you invested in them?

I’ve spent around $35,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our engagement with RIKSOF began in 2016.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The support RIKSOF provides is great. They’re on time and met all of our expectations. Our style of development is more rapid and agile, and it is continuous integration to the system. Due to the agile nature of the project, things are sometimes expected to be up and down. If any issues come up, their team fixes them as soon as possible.

How did RIKSOF perform from a project management standpoint?

RIKSOF is a one-stop shop, allowing me to manage my time. The project manager makes sure everything is taken care of. We have weekly meetings, and depending on the requirements, there is sometimes a need for daily meetings. They’ve provided support in the middle of the night when needed. We use Trello for requirements.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Everything about them is great. I’m getting impressive results for the price I’m paying.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There’s always room for improvement. It would be good if there could be a little more communication with the client directly, and perhaps they could introduce more technology.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the head of the business intelligence department a data analytics company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with RIKSOF?

Our in-house web developers had left the company. We needed a team that could assist us in developing web portals and websites for our customers.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We started the project by having RIKSOF develop a web portal for one of our customers. Our WordPress platform is mainly content-based and processes a lot of information in the B2C content.  

Using PHP, the team built special features like a location map for vendors and customers. This was especially crucial for the customer version of the digital portal.

After we achieved success with the initial web portal, we continued working together to develop an e-commerce platform for customers to sell their products using different payment methods. RIKSOF used .NET technology to build integrations for PayPal, Visa, and Mastercard.

What is the team composition? 

The team included a project manager, one developer, and one QA tester for the web portal. A developer from our company collaborated with RIKSOF. 

For the e-commerce platform, they assigned us a project manager and a developer. I was the project manager from our side for both projects.

How did you come to work with RIKSOF?

We shortlisted three companies and interviewed a set of people from each one. Ultimately, we selected RIKSOF based on their experience, prices, and ability to fulfill the requirements from our customers.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent $25,000-$50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from April 2016–August 2017.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our customers really appreciated the web portal RIKSOF created. Due to the success of these projects, we have been receiving more business from consumers. 

How did RIKSOF perform from a project management standpoint?

RIKSOF did a wonderful job. They exceeded our expectations. The project manager was always in touch with me in terms of strategy or resolving any issues. 

Their response times were very fast. Whenever we had a challenge, we could easily pick up the phone and call them. Within minutes or a few hours at most, they’d have a team resolving the issues of the customer. 

We used Trello as a collaboration tool and RIKSOF used Jira internally. They were up to speed with the latest technology and used up-to-date collaborative tools.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We were using a payment method based in Saudi Arabia that is different than Visa, Mastercard, or PayPal. As soon as we shared our customer’s requirements and the feature set for the payment method, RIKSOF implemented it in no time.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There’s nothing I’d ask them to improve.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

As long as clients provide clear requirements, RIKSOF’s developers are capable of quickly getting up to speed with virtually any technology.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the founder of a company that produces, markets, and build mobile apps.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with RIKSOF?

We needed a vendor to help us build a flyer creation app and assist with other development projects.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

RIKSOF helped us develop and deploy Flyerly, which is an app that allows users to create and share visual flyers on their social networks and via email or text. It's an iOS app, and RIKSOF did third-party SDK integrations with our partners to enable printing and mailing of the actual flyers. They also helped maintain and update the app year over year.

What is the team composition?

I worked with 4–6 members of their team, including their CEO and a project manager.

How did you come to work with RIKSOF?

I conducted dozens of interviews and looked at many different portfolios. RIKSOF stood out because of their communication skills and their quick response times. We were confident they'd do a great job, so we hired them.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent over $100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

I worked with them between 2010–2015.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The number of downloads increased from 30,000 to 300,000 as a result of RIKSOF's involvement in the refresh and rebrand campaigns and their UX/UI work. Some of the integrations they did, such as monetization strategies, in-app purchases, and app advertising helped us generate revenue without doing any paid marketing.

How did RIKSOF perform from a project management standpoint?

Over the years, we used a variety of tools to communicate, including Trello, Skype, Google Hangouts, video chat, and email.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They really cared about the project and were invested in our success. Also, they're very personable, unlike some other companies that create a cold business environment.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They're growing rapidly and hiring more project managers and developers. The scaling is always a challenge, so I hope they'll maintain their personal touch as they're getting more customers. It's not their weakness, but rather a challenge that many companies face when they start to grow.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of a healthcare software company. We have software for doctors to submit their claims to Medi-Cal.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with RIKSOF?

We needed help with software development.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They provided software development services and cloud management services, moving our entire infrastructure to AWS. Our platform is based on PHP, Opensource, and MySQL. They also were our solution architect in putting together the overall design and solution.

What is the team composition?

There was a project manager, two to five software developers, and a solution architect.

How did you come to work with RIKSOF?

I knew the owner from school.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent $200,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in 2012, and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The fact we’ve been engaged with them for so long speaks for itself. Their quality of work is super. They meet all their timelines and have helped us push the boundaries. The move to AWS wasn’t something we were looking for, but they convinced us that it was a good decision for us and it was. It saved us a lot of costs and set us on a path to success. We’re really happy with the results.

How did RIKSOF perform from a project management standpoint?

We use Trello as well as some other project management tools and didn’t have any issues. We always have a project manager who's available. The work is done overnight, and they provide a daily status update email to me and the rest of our team members. There are no issues with communication.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re flexible. We’re a startup company, so whenever we need more resources, they provide them, and equally, they ramp down if needed. If we had a contract with them for a certain number of hours in a year and we were under, they would allow us to use those hours in the next year. They’ve been far more flexible than what was officially contracted with them.

Are there any areas they could improve?

When we started in 2012, they had resources that would leave. What we worked out with them is that if there were a resource with us, they’d have another resource shadow him so that no knowledge is lost internally in their company. That has diminished the problem of resources leaving over time.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

No, I can't name anything.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the CEO and founder of Curi. We're a social networking application.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with RIKSOF?

We found that most social networking platforms and apps had lost their social component, so we were looking to build a tool that allowed users to bond and connect based on common interests. We needed a company to help us build a native iOS app.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They built a native iOS application that is hosted on AWS. We're now exploring an SQA model, so we can get a native app in a wrapper for both iOS and Android.

What is the team composition?

I work with 3–4 members of their team.

How did you come to work with RIKSOF?

The cost was a huge factor for us since we were on a budget ourselves. We were looking for an offshore company that had good English-speaking skills and could offer competitive rates. RIKSOF was recommended to us, so we chose them.

How much have you invested with them?

We've spent between $80,000–$100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in November 2016 and the relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

It's work in progress and we've recently finished redeveloping the application from ground up. We actually pulled the app from the App Store as were going through phase 2 of the buildout. RIKSOF did a lot of research and provided guidance to us in terms of the industry's best practices, which was very helpful as we were growing our business.

How did RIKSOF perform from a project management standpoint?

They mainly use Trello for managing the workflow. There are some language barriers, but we've been very satisfied with what we got for the money we spent.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their CEO is very hands-on and interested in our project, which gives us confidence.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They've grown a lot over the years and they're doing a consultative aspect a lot better now. But at the beginning, we felt they could be more open and forthcoming about the industry's best practices since that was something we were not familiar with.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Dublin Web Designers handles everything from mobile app development, to websites, graphic design, and print media. We manage many different areas, both offline and online. I am the owner and the lead developer of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with RIKSOF?

We have a large client in the financial sector that was offering two products to their customers. This required a lot of back-and-forth paperwork, so we came up with the solution of developing an app for each product.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

RIKSOF helped us develop the apps for our client and link them to a massive secured database.

At the time of development, RIKSOF's role was to handle development work. I was in charge of design, wire-framing, layouts, functionalities, etc. RIKSOF built it from the ground up, using MongoDB, AngularJS, CSS, HTML, and SQL. RIKSOF has also created .NET versions of both apps, linking them to a separate .NET system which I'm designing for the customer.

We had a tight schedule, so RIKSOF started what would be called a hackathon, working from Monday to Sunday, 12 hours a day. There were between 10-12 developers working every day on both apps.

How did you come to work with RIKSOF?

Before starting my own company, I'd worked for another agency. RIKSOF developed a mobile app for that company, which is still being updated.

How much have you invested with RIKSOF?

The development for each of our 2 apps had a cost of $60,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with RIKSOF in 2015. We have an ongoing collaboration for support. Both apps were developed within 4 months instead of 6, from start to finish.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

Both of the apps built by RIKSOF have been a big success. The client never had direct involvement with RIKSOF, always working through me. My own impression is that RIKSOF is good at what it does, and provided high quality. If there's ever a problem, we can get a hold of them and fix it. There were never any issues at all.

How did RIKSOF perform from a project management standpoint?

RIKSOF performed well in terms of project management. There was a bit of a mix-up on time zones, but that was about it.

Are there any areas RIKSOF could improve?

I appreciated RIKSOF's work attitude. I've outsourced many projects to companies in the far East, and found RIKSOF to be one of the more reliable and trustworthy ones. If we agree on a timeframe, RIKSOF will deliver to the day, without issues. This was hard to find within other companies.

Are there any areas RIKSOF could improve?

RIKSOF can be an expensive company in certain areas, but we get what we pay for.