Robosoft Technologies

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the head of technology at Room to Read. We’re an international NGO focused on early-grade literacy and gender equality in education. We work in about 16 countries around the globe and have business offices in about 10 countries.

What challenge were you trying to address with Robosoft Technologies?

Robosoft has been helping us through the digital transformation of our literacy program. This has manifested through the development of a new digital platform called Literacy Cloud. We use that platform to distribute our children’s books across multiple languages and to train teachers on how to correctly use storybooks in the pathway of how a child learns to read.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They built the platform using Ruby, React, and AWS. Their main focus has been this solution, but they’ve also provided us with guidance and recommendations on cloud architecture. This has helped us distribute our cloud infrastructure around the world to support communities in different geographic locations. They’ve been advisers on devices, device access, internet access in low bandwidth communities and countries, and so on.

What is the team composition?

We work primarily through our project manager and funnel most communication through him. Depending on the question or challenge, we’ll often be routed directly to that team member who’s the expert in that space.

How did you come to work with Robosoft Technologies?

We have a procurement process and policy that requires we seek out at least three vendors for any project over certain funding and budget levels. We found Robosoft through a Google search and invited them to respond to the RFP. There were five candidates who submitted final proposals.

Ultimately, we selected Robosoft because they responded to the specific needs very thoughtfully and completely. They had demonstrated the ability to do work on this type of scale in the past. It also seemed like they were going to be the strongest partner in terms of where we were technologically.

How much have you invested with them?

Our total cost to date is about $440,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our ongoing engagement started in July 2018.

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

The impact of the platform they developed has been incredible. We’ve been able to train thousands of teachers and have about 15,000 monthly users.

We’ve been thrilled to have Robosoft as a partner. They’ve been understanding and very patient. Their CEO is passionate about supporting nonprofits and investing in early-grade education. It’s clear he wants to make sure his company is helping enable that for millions of more users and children. All of their team members have been absolutely fantastic to work with as well as professional and solution-oriented.

They’ve been a responsive partner as we’ve built up our internal capacity because we’re a fairly undisciplined organization from a technology and software development perspective. The Robosoft team has been attentive to our needs, even with last-minute and urgent matters. They’ve been a fantastic partner throughout this process.

How did Robosoft Technologies perform from a project management standpoint?

Our project management experience has been a bit variable. We’re on our third project manager at this point, and our current project manager is excellent. He gets it and is on top of everything that comes in. Our prior project managers were good but not to the degree that the current one brings. Our first project manager rolled off the project and our second one moved into a different role at Robosoft as well, we had longstanding relationships with each of them.

We use Asana for our shared workspace, and they use Jira internally. They translate our user stories into the Jira system separately.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I’m most impressed with their affability. Anything we take to them, they’re happy to entertain and provide us with a thoughtful answer. They always respond with a lot of joy; it’s always a positive experience working with them. We’ve never been told that something is not doable or that it’s going to be hard. We value their transparency and thoughtful partnership.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The consistency of project management experience is the one thing we’d flag. When we did our due diligence of doing reference calls, that was something we were made aware of even at the vendor selection process, that it was critical to get a strong project manager on our project. That seemed like a through-line for me.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Set up a good line of communication and understand what tools you’re going to use for that project management experience. It’ll be beneficial to get clarification on the frequency and style of communication, as well as the channels for that and who to go to for what. Having a good map for all of that upfront is very helpful.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We have a software product that allows iOS users to turn virtual photos into photo books, calendars, or cards. We deliver the software that lets users design their product, place an order, and have their order directly fulfilled by our team. 

I’m the director of UX design, the product owner, the global program manager, and the IT director. We’re a small startup company, so I wear many hats. My work includes execution, implementation, and delivery as well as where our product sits in the marketplace.

What challenge were you trying to address with Robosoft Technologies?

We needed to replace a past development firm that we were not happy with.

What was the scope of their involvement?

I have two of their team working with me: one team handles the Mac OS native app and the other is responsible for the iOS native app. They work together on the overall architecture.  

What is the team composition?

On each of the two teams, I have two Swift software developers and a dedicated QA resource. There are also some project managers on the account, one offshore and the other onshore. Our team size has been consistent at about 8–11. 

How did you come to work with Robosoft Technologies?

I’m not sure how our business lead found them at the time, however, it could have been through a referral. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working together since 2018.

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

Across all ratings and reviews environments, we have very high ratings of 4.2 stars or above. The customers are satisfied both with the app experience and printed books. We’re at about 300,000 downloads on the Mac OS app and about 150,000 downloads on the iOS app. 

They’ve been a fantastic change from our old development partners. Their coding and QA abilities are very strong. The attention to detail, commitment to quality, and follow-through are extremely high. Sometimes, they’ve had to work on weekends or longer hours to address a bug or problem within the product, and they’ve always dug in without complaint. They’ve always stepped up to the plate, which has been wonderful.    

How did Robosoft Technologies perform from a project management standpoint?

Through our scrum process, we’ve maintained a very structured, regimented system with two-week sprints. They were great at managing a project that’s specifically aimed at a software company.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They are skilled developers that are flexible and friendly to work with. Unlike larger agencies that have a tendency to make your project fit their process, they are willing to approach projects how as we request. There hasn’t been much turnover, but when someone does leave their company, they’re able to quickly find skilled replacements for the project. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I can’t think of anything.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

The only challenge is coordinating with them as an offshore team, especially during lockdowns. That pain point isn’t an issue with their company, though.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the director of global information technology for United Wheels Ltd. We sell various bicycles brands produced by our subsidiaries—the Huffy Corporation, Niner, Royce Union, and Badge Bicycle, alongside other items with wheels.

What challenge were you trying to address with Robosoft Technologies?

We hired Robosoft Technologies to develop an app that would encourage biking by creating a social experience and giving them easy access to several digital resources. We wanted riders to use our app to find nearby trails, register their bike, and locate bike shops. It was also important that the app includes a social media aspect so people could invite other riders on trips, track where they are, and create group challenges.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We developed internal wireframes and had a few ideas of what we wanted the app to do. Their developers then built on that framework and created the app’s overall design and function. The app includes an API, giving it the ability to find trails. They also constructed the CMS and set up our servers. The app is now available for iOS and Android.

How did you come to work with Robosoft Technologies?

I was searching for a company that had done similar, highly-rated work. Robosoft Technologies consistently was listed as one of the most reliable organizations in the industry both online and at various events that I attended. Although I was considering a few other companies, I scheduled a couple of meetings with Robosoft Technologies and decided that they were the best fit.

How much have you invested with them?

We have spent between $125,000 - $130,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We collaborated from July 2018 – March 2019.  

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

Robosoft Technologies delivered a product with tremendous value for our company. They were helpful and detail-oriented throughout the project. While we are really happy with the app, we haven’t developed a consumer outreach plan quite yet. First, we want to consult people within our industry and improve UX by changing the API that currently allows the app to locate trails.

How did Robosoft Technologies perform from a project management standpoint?

Overall, their project management was strong, and I really enjoyed working with them. Although we needed to clarify a few things during the project, they were really responsive and would repeat what they said to improve our understanding. We communicated through weekly stats meetings and utilized a project management tool that helped ensure we were all on the same page.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They are very prompt and would immediately fix any issue that we brought to their attention.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Simply because there was a language barrier, communication could be clearer. That being said, it wasn’t a huge issue because they worked with us to make sure the project ran smoothly.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Listen intently and they will be easy to work with.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the head of content and customer marketing at Fortinet. Fortinet is a global leader in network security. Our security fabric extends to the edges of the network while providing integration across each of the security elements that unlocks automation, enabling organizations to improve their risk postures while driving efficiencies.

What challenge were you trying to address with Robosoft Technologies?

We wanted to target a specific persona—chief information security officers—with a thought leadership hub where they could find all the information related to their job. As part of this, we needed to integrate APIs to connect the hub to a content curation engine called Curata and to extend the web interface to a mobile app for both iOS and Android.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Robosoft Technologies architected and built the site and mobile apps. This included building an API with Curata, our curation engine, and WordPress, our front-end publishing engine. These integrations allow us to curate content directly from Curata into our WordPress site, which we then publish to our website and mobile apps. The latter are native apps, and thus they have dynamic scrolling, resized graphics, and other features that are optimized for mobile performance.

In addition to providing project management assistance, Robosoft provides ongoing maintenance and works with us to plan additional features.

What is the team composition?

We work with around six employees, including a project manager, designers, and developers.

How did you come to work with Robosoft Technologies?

We looked at a couple of different options. We wanted to work with a vendor we could trust and could work within a short time frame. Robosoft Technologies had the experience and a competitive price we wanted.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started in February 2018 and phase 1 was deployed in May. Currently, we’re looking to evolve the site and apps further with capabilities such as artificial intelligence and machine learning .

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

The CISO Collective allows us to seamlessly curate, create, and publish content. It serves as a top-of-the-funnel channel, which generates brand awareness and engagement and ultimately leads. This ties back to brand advocacy and revenue growth.

The mobile apps have received great feedback from users, with the reviews overwhelmingly positive in the Apple iTunes and Google Play stores.

How did Robosoft Technologies perform from a project management standpoint?

Their team conducted regular meetings with key internal stakeholders. At one point as we neared project completion, we initiated daily meetings. Their primary project manager is outstanding and is available almost 24/7. The time difference with India is virtually irrelevant, as the team answers our calls and emails—even in the middle of the night. And when necessary, the team worked weekends and a holiday to ensure the successful resolution of logistical challenges.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their mobile app experience is their core strength, and their developers always understand exactly what we want. They also keep the client’s success in the foreground and strive to achieve those targets within the specified timeframes.

Are there any areas they could improve?

If they used some project management tools, it would improve the development experience and process.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm head of product for a mobile app called Epocrates. Healthcare professionals use the app to look up drug and disease information at the point of care.

What challenge were you trying to address with Robosoft Technologies?

When I joined the company last year, the app had gone into disrepair after 20 years without substantial updates. We had an outmoded UX and an annual 5% user attrition rate. Consequently, we hired Robosoft Technologies to jumpstart the revitalization and generate product growth in a quick turnaround for an efficient relaunch.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Robosoft Technologies did user research exercises with various stakeholders to understand our business and metrics for different initiatives. Next, the team recommended a host of tactics, such as adding a newsfeed product to our offering. We approved this feature because it would modernize the app’s interactive functionalities. We then collaborated on design and development for its video and photo content, as well as the like, share, and comment functions. Subsequently, Robosoft Technologies tied the news product to a new streamlined content publishing pipeline. Since we didn’t have analytics in place, the team also set up tracking for most of the products interactions.

What is the team composition?

I worked with digital strategists, UX designers, about 10 engineers, and a technical project manager.

How did you come to work with Robosoft Technologies?

I had worked with them at a different job. The team competently did product enhancement and I hoped to replicate that success for Epocrates. Moreover, Robosoft Technologies had a great reputation for mobile development expertise and rich experience revitalizing consumer apps. We wanted to leverage their ability to execute growth strategies and tactics by stemming the steady annual loss of users.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent over $1 million.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with them from May–December 2017.

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

Robosoft Technologies delivered the app within six weeks. The improvements expanded the range of functionalities and increased value; product analytics helped us measure performance. The new pipelines made content publishing immediate, as opposed to the previous two-week period. They stabilized the attrition rate and increased the length of the news product user sessions from 30 seconds to two minutes. They were also much cheaper than in-house or other outside agencies; we estimated a 500% cost savings.

How did Robosoft Technologies perform from a project management standpoint?

The project manager was diligent from the very beginning. We tracked progress with weekly status calls and a dashboard that outlined milestones, timelines, and potential risks for delays.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They handled concurrent responsibilities and successfully executed the deliverables. Their follow-through helped because we approached the engagement with only goals and one-liner ideas. Robosoft Technologies dedicated a considerable amount of time to guide us throughout the project, providing a different approach from other vendors that we greatly appreciated.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They could have expanded their digital strategy offerings by interrogating our problem statements and business model to a greater extent. Their problem-solving skills were very useful and valuable.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the CEO of an ecommerce marketplace that operates in the Middle East. The app that we were creating with Robosoft is i12WRK, a maps-based, Google-based platform that connects job seekers with unique opportunities.

What challenge were you trying to address with Robosoft?

We had a general idea of what we were looking to create and were looking for a company to help us with execution. We needed a full suite of services including UX/UI design, web app/native mobile app development, and testing/deployment.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They managed all aspects of development and worked collaboratively to create a simple, robust, and intuitive platform. They built a web app and native mobile apps for iOS and Android to support it, which were created according to best industry practices to optimize user flow.

They worked hard to understand our business goals and the challenges we were seeking to address, and they were very accommodating when the scope expanded during various aspects of the project. Compared to other development companies I’ve worked with, Robosoft had a very comprehensive understanding of commercialization, and they applied that knowledge to all the work they did for us.

What is the team composition?

We had a project manager and project group leader that we worked with regularly, and the VP was also heavily involved. We had up to 45 developers working at any given time, and the senior management played an active role in the development process. They have a very efficient internal process and were able to add or remove team members based on our needs.

How did you come to work with Robosoft?

It was a challenge for us to find companies with physical locations in the region, as many agencies are only comprised of offshore freelancers. We researched a number of options on Clutch and limited our search down to seven companies.

After issuing an RFP, Robosoft was the only company that responded in a way that showed a commitment to the value of our product. Other companies seemed to be interested in getting a contract with us, but Robosoft made it clear that they were looking to understand our business and create a product that maximized value for our consumers.

How much have you invested with them?

We have them on retainer and have spent over $100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We first met with them in September 2017 and started development in the following April. We launched the web app and mobile apps in December.

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

It’s too early to provide statistics on acceptance and usage, but we’ve seen 600-700 downloads since February 1. We have over 4,000 users already, and from our perspective, it’s been extremely successful.

In terms of functionality, the speed is great, and users seem very comfortable with using the platform. Robosoft has had a great attitude throughout the process and are still open to addressing any questions or issues that come up. Everyone there has a great approach to their work.

How did Robosoft perform from a project management standpoint?

They have a system to keep us updated on various aspects of the development process, and there was an effective balance of formal and informal communication. They have a very open approach and were completely transparent throughout the project.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Robosoft’s leadership is absolutely remarkable in their understanding of both technology and the consumer. This is a combination I haven’t seen in any development company, and it’s brilliant. They never give up and always find the right solutions. These characteristics combined with their transparency and communication makes it difficult for other businesses to compete.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They have the skills set and the attitude to grow tremendously, but it seems that they may be holding themselves back.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm a consultant and I work for a number of different startups, offering either part-time CPOs or more general technical advice.

What challenge were you trying to address with Robosoft?

I had a client who had paid another agency to complete a project, but it was 100% over budget and eight months past the original completion deadline with less than half the work done. Based on my previous experience working with Robosoft, I recommended them to my client so they could take over the project and get it finished.

What was the scope of their involvement?

The client was an app-based business, so Robosoft took over maintaining a mobile app. The app they worked on is a communication tool that allows video and chat between businesses and employees. It's massively scalable and requires back-end administration. They handle the admin system, as well as the iOS and Android development. The project went so well that it's turned into a long-term relationship.

What is the team composition?

We primarily worked with our project manager, who handled the rest of his team. It was the first time I'd worked with him, but I knew one of the other team members from previous projects I'd done with them.

How did you come to work with Robosoft?

I first learned of them via a referral from a previous client, and I've stayed in touch with them ever since. This project was a perfect fit for their abilities, so I reached out to them when it became apparent that my client needed someone new.

How much have you invested with them?

Since they took over a partially-completed project, it ended up costing around $50,000 for them to finish the work.

What is the status of this engagement?

I first worked with them about three years ago, but we started working on this project in August 2017 and it’s on the verge of wrapping up.

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

The initial project had been badly delayed and was incomplete, and we had a deadline coming up for a conference where we wanted to have the app ready. Robosoft was able to come in and complete the whole project within 12 weeks, whereas the original company had said they needed five months with no guarantee of meeting that deadline. Robosoft offered vastly superior delivery, even with changes that had to be made, and we were able to meet our deadline and go to the conference with our app released. My client is 100% satisfied with their performance.

How did Robosoft perform from a project management standpoint?

We use Slack for day-to-day correspondence. The project manager's very on top of things and we're constantly in touch. If we have any questions, they'll find out the answers without charging us for it. They also respond quickly to Skype calls or emails and take care of any issues that arise. The fact that they use interactive communication tools means we can respond pretty quickly to problems or bugs, which has been really helpful as a startup.

What did you find most impressive about them?

First of all, we've gone from a client who's been very anxious and lost a lot of money to a client who's been able to deliver a project and meet a deadline after a year's worth of pain. That’s been a great relief for me. Working with them takes a lot of the difficulty out of managing projects of a certain size because they're always available and they manage their projects really well.

Additionally,  smaller agencies tend to have limited in-house skillsets, but Robosoft has a large, diversely-skilled staff and there’s always somebody to meet your needs. They're not the cheapest, considering they're based in India, but they're cost-effective in that they assign their teams efficiently and deliver quality results.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Sometimes it can be tricky to follow a conference call due to the diversity of accents, but that's just something to be mindful of, not really a problem.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

You need to stay in contact. Maintaining your communication is key. Keep making sure things have been updated and follow up on your project management stuff. It's no different from any other agency.

Please describe your organization.

Softura is an IT services company which has been in business for 20 years focusing on multiple verticals, including automotive, healthcare, and legal. We also undertake research projects for universities, but our primary skill is within Microsoft stack and mobile.

What is your position?

I am one of the company's principals, playing the role of solutions engineering VP. My job is to provide the right guidance for the sales team to put together proper proposals and technologies.

What business challenge were you trying to address with Robosoft?

We have partnered with Robosoft for mobile development projects. We have some bandwidth on this area, but for larger scopes of work which need to be executed in a short period, Robosoft can supply a much larger team than ours as well as provide services as partners and go after new opportunities.

Please describe the scope of their involvement in greater detail.

One of the projects we're working on with Robosoft involves the integration of calendar functions into people's everyday lives. Robosoft has helped us through the sales and execution process of the cross-platform mobile app. Robosoft is also good at mobile UI/UX design.

Robosoft will also be assisting us with a research project involving an iOS or Android app, which will be used within a 30-day study for HIV risks. At-risk patients will use the app to report their daily activity, especially as it relates to substance abuse and nutrition. One of the functionalities is an eligibility screener looking at a number of conditions. The information is sent to a central SQL server database, where the analytics part will happen. We will only be delivering raw data to researchers, who will be the ones slicing-and-dicing.

We have partnered with Robosoft for joint-bidding projects with decent-sized RFPs. They've made sure that we came through as being one entity and had good knowledge of what we were proposing in terms of solutions and projects. Robosoft's principal has helped me on the mobile side a lot.

We work jointly with internal project managers in charge of the partnership. Robosoft assigns its own project managers for the development resources.

How did you come to work with Robosoft?

Robosoft is located in my native city in India. They're quite a popular company locally, having won some awards and been featured in the news. When I needed more mobile work, I decided to reach out to Robosoft. They don't have a large presence in the US, with most of Robosoft's work taking place in India. Because of that, I was able to leverage some cost savings and extra bandwidth. Robosoft has been able to deliver a one-year project in four months by allocating more people to it.

The vetting process was easy for us since Robosoft's reputation is out there, and I have personally used apps developed by them. One example is a popular news app from India for a company called NDTV. I use it for reading news and streaming videos and find it to be great. A few of our partners had worked with Robosoft, and we consulted with them about the company.

We have much better sales and marketing in the US compared to Robosoft, so we've been able to leverage each other's strengths.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

The cost of Robosoft's work has been between $300,000 and $400,000 in total. We haven't started any large, multimillion-dollar projects with Robosoft yet.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Robosoft in early 2015.

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

Robosoft's main advantage is the bandwidth they can provide. They're not afraid to assign a lot of people to a single project and make it work. Robosoft is committed to the work, and they understand what our expectations are. Robosoft has been available when we needed problem-solving and having any sort of escalation done. If I'm not happy with a certain resource, the issue will reach the right people, who will take corrective actions. In the end, we are accountable for the projects we take on in the US, but Robosoft has been very collaborative in this respect.

How did Robosoft perform from a project management standpoint?

We don't let Robosoft handle much of the project management. In order to mitigate risks for ourselves, we use our own managers, but Robosoft has some internal escalation, team leadership, and management channels. Any escalations were responded to quickly, but we deal with our own clients, with few exceptions.

What distinguishes Robosoft from other providers?

Not having the right know-how within the mobile domain, I've leaned on Robosoft's experience for multiple projects. Our work has involved GPS tracking, interfacing with RFID devices, video functionalities, and so on. Robosoft has experience with things that would prove challenging to us, since they've worked on similar tasks across multiple projects. That has been their strength, and we've leveraged it whenever we could.

When I receive some first questions from a customer, I need to make sure that Robosoft's team can participate in the call, as they can speak about their previous engagements. If this isn't possible, we've often let the clients go, since we didn't want to take the risk. I've leaned on Robosoft, and they've been transparent in mentioning areas where they lack experience.

Is there anything Robosoft could have improved or done differently?

There have been some communication issues related to cultural differences, but they exist even within my own organization. I've given feedback to Robosoft about the team's use of language, grammar, and attention to detail.

Robosoft is able to fly resources to the US, but they don't have a great local presence, and they also don't work 24/7. Having a contact during off-hours in India would be an improvement. Overall, Robosoft has very good performance.

Do you have any recommendations for others considering working with Robosoft?

Robosoft has highly skilled members and a very good overall experience, especially on the creative side. If the customer is looking for good creative work for a lower cost factor, Robosoft is a good choice. They've typically given us fixed prices, which is rare to see today.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Whil is the only digital wellbeing training solution for professionals, by professionals. Employees access 200+ programs and over 1,250 sessions on-demand to reduce stress, increase resilience, and improve their sleep and performance. Whil's programs are based on science, mindfulness, and positive psychology, created to address the largest stress and healthcare cost-drivers for companies. Whil works with the world's top brands and integrates with the leading corporate wellness platforms to train happier, healthier, and more engaged employees. I am the director of product, responsible for the successful development and delivery of all our products to market. We're based in San Francisco.

What challenge were you trying to address with Robosoft Technologies?

Whil just released a major update to its award-winning digital wellbeing training platform, available on mobile and desktop. For our soft launch, it was essential to provide an iOS and Android apps to support our responsive website.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Robosoft quickly and seamlessly wrapped our responsive website into iOS and Android apps. They worked with minimal effort on our part and delivered on time and on budget.

How did you come to work with Robosoft Technologies?

We interviewed a dozen companies for this work. We did a technical screen and business interview with most of these companies. Robosoft provided exactly the technical approach we needed, and the customer service and business acumen to make us comfortable to proceed.

How much have you invested with Robosoft Technologies?

Sorry, this is confidential.

What is the status of this engagement?

The engagement with Robosoft is complete.

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

We had to change and redirect immediately after launch, which Robosoft resolved quickly. Since then, we have been in production for nearly two months without issue.

How did Robosoft Technologies perform in terms of project management?

Robosoft did perfectly. They delivered on time and on budget.

What did you find most impressive about Robosoft Technologies?

Robosoft's team is highly responsive and easy to work with. Robosoft had a clear understanding of what had to be done and were sensitive to our needs at a critical time in development.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the CTO [chief technology officer] of Dubber, which is a cloud-based SaaS [software-as-a-service] providing call recording and audio asset management.

The Playback engine is Dubber’s proprietary technology powering this innovative service. Once Playback is activated on a user's phone service through their providers, their calls are processed through a stream for up to 3 days. When the user decides to keep a call after it's finished or browsing through 3 days of calls, then a secure audio file is generated that is only available to them.

What challenge were you trying to address with Robosoft Technologies?

We needed help developing the Dubber app, which is available on iOS, Android, and on the web; it can be accessed to securely manage a user’s personal archive of kept calls. A history of calls can be seen for up to 3 days and kept to be played back at any time. The Dubber app has the flexibility to be reimagined to fit a service provider's branding and also serves as a gateway to other Dubber services available today and in the future.

The Playback service by Dubber is available through service providers and carriers. It can be deployed on any major UC [unified communications] platform such as BroadSoft within days and rolled out across the entire network. It is a true native and cloud-based call recording for service providers. Built from the ground up using the power of Amazon Web Services, Dubber call recording with BroadSoft and other UC platforms can achieve unlimited scalability, matched by no other solution.

What was the scope of their involvement?

The challenge for the combined Scrum team from both organizations was to deliver an iOS and Android app at the same time the Dubber Platform was being enhanced to ensure the overall solution came together. Through strong communications and collaboration, this was easily managed. The Robosoft project members just became part of the Dubber development team.

Project requirements did change significantly throughout the project lifecycle, but this was just managed as part of the Agile/Scrum processes, and adjustments were made sprint by sprint.

How did you come to work with Robosoft Technologies?

Robosoft was recommended by Prueba India Pvt Ltd, a fellow Manipal/Udupi Outsourcing organization currently employed by Dubber for QA & DevOps.

Robosoft had developed over 1,400 mobile apps, and we had no real mobile app development experience within our Dubber development team. It was important for us to find an organization that could develop our Playback mobile app and lead us with appropriate architecture and UX [user experience] from a mobile perspective. Dubber uses Agile development processes and practices, so Robosoft's willingness to work with us this way, including our tools, daily stand-ups, etc. was an important factor in them being chosen.

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

The app developed with Robosoft Technologies is a key piece of the Dubber platform. It allows Dubber to provide an innovative service for our Telco partners looking for additional income streams and drive significant income opportunities for both parties. It is a “game changer” for Dubber.

What did you find the most impressive about Robosoft Technologies?

Robosoft was chosen for their portfolio of app development and associated experience in this domain. This was confirmed during the project and extension; Robosoft definitely knows their stuff. For example, the architect/iOS development lead directed us toward the best solution, and her thoroughness on design and implementation was outstanding.

Are there any areas where Robosoft Technologies could improve?

Overseas collaboration or onshore/offshore projects are always a challenge, especially in an agile project where communication between team members is paramount to success.  Initially, there were “teething problems,” but Robosoft’s project team was keen to make it work and implemented our suggestions to make us one team. Through daily standups via Google Hangouts and constant messaging via Slack, the dynamics quickly evolved and communication become a non-issue.

There is always room for improvement: following agile processes around the correct management of epics/stories (via PivotalTracker in our case) proved challenging for them throughout the project, particularly managing the backlog correctly; prioritization, estimation, and delivery of stories definitely needs more work. Dubber insisted on having both unit and functional testing deliverables from Robosoft on this project, despite not being a “normal requirement” for mobile development. This proved to be a challenge, but as they became more experienced with Appium for both iOS and Android, the quality improved over the duration of the project.

What tips or recommendations could you share that might increase the likelihood of success with Robosoft Technologies?

Ensure you have a “one team” mentality from the outset from both sides and make sure Robosoft fully understands how you expect them to work in “your” agile world.  If this is done, you’ll have no issues, as they’ll work with you to deliver a great app for your business.