Rocket Code

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the general director of a technology-based company. We've leveraged technology to develop a software platform so that our customers can get payroll money in advance. Basically, we work with companies to help them get their employees early access to their funds. We easily calculate the amount of money an employee has earned since the last payment, give employees access to that money, and get that money back from the employers.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Rocket Code?

When we initially had the idea for this service, we conducted a fundraising process with a private equity firm and presented our idea. Our idea started as a business service where employees could reach their HR departments and ask for a payroll advance. We would help those HR departments with the manual work behind, including the calculations.

For the second phase of our business, we wanted to achieve 100% automation of these processes. At the time, I didn't have an idea of how much involvement a development company could have in these types of projects. Therefore, we started this second phase of the project with an internal development process.

I worked with my team and a product designer to define all the requirements, including user stories and features, so that the platform could do everything we wanted. However, we didn't have the technical expertise or tool knowledge required. That process lasted for about a month. In the end, we had designed and defined the entire platform, including all the different modules we thought were important to have. After that, we brought the Rocekt Code to the table.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Rocket Code helped us develop our app. The development process, which the team divided into phases, lasted about nine months. For the first phase, we ensured that the discovery process matched what we required. They were also very clear about the different types of technologies available to create the solution.

One of our requirements was having this solution developed within our own IT infrastructure and environment, which uses AWS. After that, we went into the design process to create the visual identity of our platform. For the second phase of our project, Rocket Code developed an MVP of our platform and tried it with a couple of our internal customers to validate our ideas, its usability, and user acceptance.

As part of this project, I had to ensure data security because we had to comply with the law. By law, we have to take care of third-party data when offering these services. To ensure our platform was compliant with the law, Rocket Code performed white-box and black-box testing to assess our platform's cybersecurity.

Although they didn't find vulnerabilities, we did request minor adjustments to better take care of our customer's information. Ultimately, we launched the platform to the market. In addition to AWS, the team used MongoDB as part of the tech stack.

Our platform works 24/7. For example, if an employee is at a bar at 1 a.m. and has to pay a bill for which they don't have enough money left, they can access our app and get a payroll advance within minutes—it's immediate. In fact, my company started with the idea of using the money access for emergencies.

What is the team composition?

Our team included a customer support representative, who actually was one of Rocket Code's directors and handled all the business side of our engagement; a team of scrum masters, who led and managed the project; and a technology lead, who participated in all our sessions and helped us translate our ideas into technical requirements.

How did you come to work with Rocket Code?

When I had the chance to meet with Rocket Code, I understood a part of their process that I really liked: the presales process. After a discovery session during which I told them my ideas, explained my model, and showed them all the designs, they came back with a development proposal.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $800,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in March 2022 and launched the platform in January 2023. Then, we had a small consulting period with them that lasted about two and a half months, from March–June 2023.

Although we wanted to work on a second project with Rocket Code to add more features to the platform to allow loans, our stakeholders decided to stop that project because they already had a loaning company in their portfolio. Currently, an internal team provides maintenance to the platform. Still, if we need important changes, I'll definitely contact them again.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

During the peak usage of our platform, we had 500 companies registered and 25,000 active users per month. One of the things I liked a lot about Rocket Code's work was their cybersecurity compliance work. Our platform has been in the market for two years now, and fortunately, we've never had a security breach or complaint. Moreover, the infrastructure and database that Rocket Code developed for our product were functional and well-built. 

How did Rocket Code perform from a project management standpoint?

One of the things I really liked about Rocket Code's development methodology was the involvement of the scrum masters, which was something I hadn't seen before with other development companies. I usually have great ideas and know what I want, but I'm not organized. Therefore, the scrum masters ensured that the project didn't get out of hand.

The most complex part of the project was the proposal stage. When we started this project, some of us didn't know what was like to work with an external team and let them in to help us build this product. Initially, we weren't very comfortable with the proposal, especially regarding the project timeline and deliverables, not so much with the price.

Therefore, we made the mistake of forcing Rocket Code to meet certain timelines and deliverables. Eventually, we understood why their team had provided different timelines; throughout the project, we started changing our requirements. Still, what I really liked about Rocket Code's approach was that they helped us realize that there were better ways to get the same result; we just had to listen to them.

As for communication, we used Notion a lot for project management. We also had an important number of meetings via Zoom. Moreover, every two weeks, we met with the team of scrum masters in our office to discuss progress in-person. We also had a monthly kick-off meeting to release new features, and we used Zendesk as our ticketing tool.

Are there any employees from the service provider's team that you would like to give a shout-out to in this review?

Although the entire Rocket Code team was great, the project would have been more complex without the scrum masters. Based on my experience on other projects, developing a technology solution based on someone's ideas needs someone who can tell what can and can't be done.

Rocket Code had experience working with companies similar to ours, so we were able to leverage the fact that their previous clients had made mistakes. They provided us with recommendations based on their past experiences. That was why we wanted to hire an external development team in the first place. We didn't want to go through that learning curve ourselves.

It would have been hard for us to do this project internally with the same speed and quality as someone who has done these kinds of projects 20 times.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Rocket Code's biggest strength was that they helped us understand what we wanted and bring it to reality, even when what they delivered wasn't what we originally thought we wanted. Their team helped us understand a lot of technicalities and identify which of our requirements weren't good practices from a UX standpoint.

During the conception stages, we realized that we originally wanted a very complex UX. We hadn't realized that the last thing a user wanted was to spend a lot of time on our platform. Once we understood that, the usability results were much better because we were now creating a product the user wanted.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Everyone has room for improvement. Although Rocket Code had almost nothing to improve, I would have liked more support during the product takeover. We're not very technical people, so one of our challenges was hiring internal people knowledgeable in the technology used by Rocket Code to handle the platform.

It would have been great if we could have hired someone from Rocket Code internally after the product was delivered, but I understand that that wouldn't have been possible. I would also have liked it if they offered some sort of training for the platform's usage, even if it had an additional cost, or some help in hiring someone to be part of our team after the project finished. However, they didn't say no because we didn't ask.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Don't make the same mistakes as we did. We didn't listen to Rocket Code initially, and we believed we had the secret recipe for this product. Although Rocket Code might seem expensive, you're not paying only for their work but also their experience.

If you're thinking about hiring them, involve them from the very beginning. Very likely, your idea about the product you want will change because they'll be able to provide you with more market insight. Ultimately, you'll have a product you'll be satisfied with, which will make it easier to market.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CPO of a fintech company. We provide loans to users who want to put solar energy solutions on the roofs of households in Latin America. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Rocket Code?

We engaged Rocket Code to build our MVP. It was a piece of software we wanted to put in front of our customers to get their feedback.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We had multiple contracts with Rocket Code. The first one was to create the MVP, and the second was to increase the reach of the software that we made. The software should allow us to interact with customers. This way, we could improve our customer acquisition process. 

Rocket Code also built a software management tool for our installers. This tool allowed us to manage installation projects beyond the placement of solar panels on customers’ roofs. We used it to get the approval of utility companies. For technologies, we used AWS as our cloud service provider, MongoDB and Node.js on the backend, and React on the frontend. 

What is the team composition?

At the start of the engagement, we worked with a frontend developer and a full stack developer. However, we also collaborated with part-time teammates such as Alan (Technical Lead), Montserrat (Product Designer), and a Scrum master.

How did you come to work with Rocket Code?

We initially searched for companies that provided all the services required to create an MVP. However, most of the companies we found in Colombia specialized more in staff augmentation instead of serving as a software factory. As a result, my wife — who also had a software company — referred me to Rocket Code. 

From there, we had our initial conversations and explored more of their services with Bernardo (CEO). Our team learned that Rocket Code had the experience we needed, especially for the fintech market. That was why we decided to engage with them. 

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $130,000 for the whole project.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project lasted from November 2022–December 2023. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Since this was a software development project, our success metrics weren’t entirely focused on Rocket Code’s delivery times. However, they were accurate in defining the project’s reach. 

Anecdotally, they were great. We faced some problems in our AWS infrastructure, and their teammates — especially Alan — stayed with us for over four additional hours to help us. We solved the problem in the end. 

How did Rocket Code perform from a project management standpoint?

They delivered on time 90% of the time. For tools, we initially worked using Google Drive, where we shared documents with them. By the third project, we started using Jira to get better control over the project. 

Are there any employees from the service provider's team that you would like to give a shout-out to in this review?

Alan and Montserrat were great. Alan was a crucial part of the project — he determined solutions to technical issues highlighted during the project’s execution.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I was impressed with their willingness to help us. They weren’t afraid to go the extra mile to deliver what we needed. We greatly valued this quality because we were creating a new piece of software. 

For instance, when we closed a deal for a month, they knew we weren’t ready for deployment. As a result, they wanted to extend their work for two more weeks to deliver a piece of software that we could actually bring to the market. They were truly dedicated to fulfilling their value proposition. Their team gave us the support we needed instead of only managing the project in terms of time and money.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They could be clearer on what services they could provide as a software factory as opposed to a staff augmentation company. A deeper understanding of this would be helpful to our engagement, especially when deciding to use full-time employees.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

The more information you provide to Rocket Code, the more they can help you. Define the technologies and software you need. If you can’t do that, you can still go to them and speak openly about what you want. They’ll help you discover your true objectives. 

For instance, we didn’t have documentation of our goals. However, the team helped us discover what we were truly trying to create. They didn’t just wait for us to define what we wanted to achieve. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the co-founder and CEO of a fintech company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenges were you trying to address with Rocket Code?

We wanted to create a software platform as a customized solution for our local market because we had an international one.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Rocket Code has helped us with development. We initially provided them with a clear understanding of our users’ needs so they could design an experience to solve them. Afterward, we moved on to the execution of the technology, including infrastructure development and analytics.

They’ve been involved in every phase of the project, from product ideation to design, prototyping, and development. Rocket Code has used Miro and Figma. We started off with C# for development, but now we have a React version.

Additionally, Rocket Code is also in charge of maintaining the platform.

What was the team composition? 

We’ve worked with scrum masters, product owners, product designers, product engineers, QA engineers, tech leads, front- and backend developers, integration developers, and more. Additionally, they have a customer service area, which is our main point of contact.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them around January 2017 and launched the first version after three months. From then on, we’ve kept on improving the platform.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our greatest success measure is that about 6 million users have used the platform and taken value out of it. We’ve also opened about 150 products on the platform in the last couple of years. Recently, we did an analysis and realized that our flow rates performed 26% above the rest of the industry.

How did Rocket Code perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re excellent at project management. Rocket Code has a methodology we even adopted for other processes because we really liked it. We’ve had an effective process since we mapped our needs, and they’ve created good roadmaps to plan the project and accomplish everything in time. In general, they’ve done a great job in terms of quality and delivery, which is why we’ve worked with them for so long.

We communicate via Slack and use Trello, Figma, Miro, Notion, Stack Overflow, and more platforms for project management.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They take the project’s goals as their own and go beyond coding. They understand where we want to go as a business and help us with the technology and products they create.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We’d like to get more pushback every once in a while. The team has a great attitude, but we’d like to hear when something we propose might not be effective.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be open to listening to their proposals in terms of methodology. They have a clear mindset of what they want to use but can also adapt to what works best for you.