Saritasa

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the EVP for Nationwide Rail Services, Inc., a transportation company in the Chicago area that moves loads to and from intermodal or railroad facilities for transportation and logistics companies. We pick up inbound and outbound loads from the railroad and bring them back to the customer or the other way around.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Saritasa?

We needed a customized software solution to track our loads coming in and out of the railroad for our customers in a time-sensitive manner. Our goal was to streamline the process and put information into a database where we could track loads and stay on top of things better.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Saritasa has built a customized software solution for us to track our loads coming in and out of the railroad. They’ve also built tools for invoicing tied to the dispatching solution so that we can tie loads in as soon as they move instead of inputting information manually, which all of our dispatch operations implement. The team has also built a driver-tracking solution for us. 

The dispatch solution lays out all our loads and highlights loads ready for us to pick up in one color and uses another color for loads coming in that day. Currently, Saritasa offers maintenance and hosting. 

What is the team composition?

I’ve mainly worked with three teammates from Saritasa, including a project manager and Peter (Technical Project Manager). 

How did you come to work with Saritasa?

I found them on Google looking for software development companies in the Chicago area. I called a few different companies, and when I called Saritasa, I felt comfortable with the conversation and the rapport we established over the phone. Therefore, I felt confident they were the right company for us. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $350,000. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in September 2020 on the dispatch program, and then we re-engaged them in February 2021 for the invoicing and driver-tracking solutions. Our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Saritasa's work has helped streamline our process. We were looking to save time, cut manual hours, and utilize our teammates' time elsewhere, and that's exactly what we've gotten. Before this engagement, we were inputting our dispatch manually on an Excel spreadsheet and using an outdated manual to track loads coming in. Saritasa has turned that process digital, and now we can just log in and immediately see where everything is.

Moreover, we've cut our invoicing time from 10 to 3–4 hours a day. As a result, teammates who were doing all those tasks can now use their time on different tasks. This result saves us money, making our company more profitable. 

How did Saritasa perform from a project management standpoint?

They're great at project management; they deliver everything on time and respond to every email. They take care of everything we ask for and enact any change we want in a timely manner. We primarily communicate through Zoom calls, and we've also used email. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Saritasa's communication skills are impressive. They're on top of everything and ask many questions to get to know us really well. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don't think they need to improve anything; they've done everything well. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Saritasa has taught me a lot, so my advice is to listen to what they say.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m an executive at an insurance agency.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Saritasa?

We wanted to update our outward-facing website.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Saritasa redesigned and rebuilt our website from scratch. We started with a design session, which involved designing wireframes, the flow, and all the different capabilities we wanted so we could define the look of the screens. Consequently, we initiated the implementation and testing phase to solve any bugs that could arise, and after that, we went to the platform’s production.

Regarding features, the site is an information platform about our company and products. It also allows users to submit information for new businesses, which enables us to send them back a quick quote. Moreover, it allows our customers to look up billing and policy information and submit endorsements or cancelations.

Currently, they’re providing maintenance to the site.

What is the team composition?

We’ve been working with 5–6 members of their team.

How did you come to work with Saritasa?

We found them through online research.

How much money have you invested in this partnership?

So far, we’ve spent around $100,000 with them.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in April 2021, and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve increased our website’s security compared to our previous site — we’re now up to the standards we need to be, thanks to Saritasa. Overall, it’s been a great partnership.

How did Saritasa perform from a project management standpoint?

They’ve been able to overcome and resolve the issues we’ve had regarding processes and timelines. In addition, their team has stayed within budget. Regarding communication and tools, we use Jira, Confluence, and Slack.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The quality of their developers and testers is outstanding. They’re committed to understanding our business and issues to move the process a lot faster and with better quality to help us achieve our goals.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They could scope and plan the project better from the beginning.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Establish the specs and requirements of the product you want upfront, which will help move the process easier.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the area supervisor and COO of Allstar Consulting Group. We provide consulting and inspection services for elevators and escalators within New York City and across the country.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Saritasa?

We had been using a SaaS product from another company for the past 5–6 years, but we hadn’t seen any improvement in the software itself. Thus, we decided that it was time to create our own software with the help of a development company.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Saritasa has helped us develop a custom software system based on AWS from scratch. Among its core features are automatic checks and balances of redundancy in information, as well as other automation features, such as one for sending email notifications. Although the main system is now complete, Saritasa continuously helps us add new features.

What is the team composition?

A sales representative from Saritasa is my main point of contact. He introduced me to the rest of the company initially, and he still checks on me constantly. I also work with a project manager, and there is a team of developers working behind the scenes. Additionally, there’s another person who fills in whenever the project manager is out.

How did you come to work with Saritasa?

I found them on Clutch. Initially, we were researching companies on Google, but we then started looking into review sites like Glassdoor and Clutch because we wanted to find a smaller company, and all the large ones kept appearing on Google. Although we do a decent amount of consulting work and inspections, we operate as a boutique agency, so we were looking for a partner with whom we could have a great connection.

Other people might go with a larger company and get a good MVP and then have another developer work on it, but we wanted to go with the right company from the beginning, which is why we focused on reading reviews. After our research, we had meetings with Saritasa and 2–3 other companies. When we finally met Saritasa, they matched our company’s core values exactly — a smaller corporation that can handle large projects.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $150,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working together since Q1 2021, and our engagement is ongoing. There’s no other company we would go to.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The software system that Saritasa has helped us build is now complete. However, we’re not using it because it didn’t make sense for us to implement it in the middle of the year. Still, we see ourselves operating completely off this tool in 2023. Additionally, we will soon be sending proposals through this system. We have close to 3,000 clients, and we’re confident that this software will help us go through that process.

Before having this tool, we had to double-check information and enter the same data into different forms, but now these information checks will be automatically done. It will also allow us to automate many of our processes, like sending automatic email notifications, which will protect us against any liability related to not filling out the forms correctly.

The feedback from our staff on the product has been very positive overall, and whenever we haven’t liked something, Saritasa has made changes and fixes very quickly. Their team has even helped us fix some of the issues we’ve caused. On occasions, we’ve made the decision to change something that then our officer doesn’t like, so they’ve helped us correct it.

How did Saritasa perform from a project management standpoint?

Although I’m in a management position, I also do field work, so I’m constantly on the move. Thus, I’m hardly ever in the office, and I have a short amount of time to oversee our development project. If it wasn’t for Saritasa’s project management, we would be two years behind on this project.

He constantly pushes me in a courteous manner to get my feedback and get things moving forward, which is very good. I can also communicate with him whenever I want — we’ve even had discussions at nighttime because he’s very accommodating to my schedule.

Moreover, everyone from Saritasa is very responsive; whenever I think of a new feature, I simply reach out to them, and they implement it. They also always answer quickly to our emails. Our sales representative is very courteous and constantly checks up on me to see if everything is going well.

Regarding the cost, Saritasa isn’t one of the most affordable companies, but they aren’t overly expensive either. Additionally, we’ve felt that our money has been well spent, and we’ve got more value for the money with them than others.

We haven’t needed any sophisticated project management tools. Initially, we simply shared a Dropbox file with our requirements, and they got them done. Still, I believe that Saritasa offers the usage of collaboration tools for their projects. As for communication, we have meetings on Google Meet and chat via Google Chat. We also communicate via text messages.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Saritasa’s biggest strength is their customer service level — nothing compares to it. The company behind the SaaS product I used before changed sales representatives every four months, and I would have to explain my company all over again whenever a new one joined. However, My relationship with Saritasa now is very intimate, and we’re in constant communication whenever we want; I couldn’t ask for anything better.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, they’re very upfront about everything. Even when we had a price increase, they let me know in advance.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Take the time upfront to meet with their designers and developers and leverage their expertise during those early discussions because they’re very good. Doing so will help you save time and money.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a former software manager for a sports medicine company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Saritasa?

We contacted Saritasa for software development on a project we were working on.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We collaborated with Saritasa on a 3D pre-surgical planning software using Unity. 

What is the team composition?

We worked with about 15 people to start with, but that team was narrowed down to about 3–4 as the project went on. 

How did you come to work with Saritasa?

They were recommended to us by a former colleague. We initiated an RFP process, and then decided to move forward with them. 

How much have you invested with them?

We spent more than $1 million with Saritasa. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Saritasa in April 2020. I no longer work for the company, but I believe that they are still working together.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The project was considered a massive success, and the work Saritasa provided was invaluable. The software is being used quite often and has had a huge impact. 

How did Saritasa perform from a project management standpoint?

They provided really great work. Everything was turned in on time and stayed within budget. There were a few things that we hadn’t planned for, but for the amount of work that they provided, we were very satisfied. 

Early on there was a lot of communication back and forth because there was a lot to figure out, but our project manager was very knowledgeable and helped to answer any questions. We considered the communication pretty successful overall. 

Their team worked in a different time zone and there was a language barrier, but we mainly communicated with the project manager. We met a few times a week and they would share their Springboard board with us. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They are perfectionists, so they focused on building something high-quality with a good foundation that could be built on in the future. They were incredibly thorough with their process. They had strong technical expertise, and wanted to make the software as close to perfect as possible. 

They were one of the best companies that we worked with.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Some of their team is located in Ukraine and has been impacted by the Russian Invasion of Ukraine, so it would be beneficial if they diversified their team’s locales.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the president and CEO of YGM. We provide consulting services for chambers of commerce.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Saritasa?

We have a web-based system that our chambers use to trust their products. However, it was very old, so we needed help to enhance and update it.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Saritasa first took our system and enhanced it. We’re currently in the project’s second phase, where they’re rebuilding it from scratch. Additionally, they handle its ongoing maintenance and troubleshooting. It is a multi-faceted system that includes a database for chambers of commerce.

What is the team composition?

I work directly with a project manager from Saritasa, who manages the entire team working on the project behind the scenes.

How did you come to work with Saritasa?

We found them on Google.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent over $100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in the spring of 2021, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The system that Saritasa supports works beautifully, and our users really like the enhancements they’ve made. I hired them because they’re the experts, and they know what they’re doing.

How did Saritasa perform from a project management standpoint?

Saritasa has met our deadlines and stayed on budget. We typically communicate via Zoom.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Saritasa delivers the products they promise with stellar customer service.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, not that I’m aware of.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Work with them and do what they say.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the global product line director at Industrial Physics, a physical testing equipment manufacturer that serves a wide range of manufacturing companies.

We sell testing equipment for QC to markets ranging from food and beverage to advanced composites and defense industries and everything in between. Our company has American and European divisions. As part of my role, I have a team of line-specific product managers that report to me, each of whom manages anywhere from 1–3 different brands and the products that lie within them.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Saritasa?

The challenge involved one product brand of our company that specializes in testing equipment referred to as universal testing machines. We acquired the brand in late 2017 and recognized that their existing control, electronics, and software packages for equipment were commercially obsolete, if not functionally obsolete. The software had been developed for a DOS system and patched to work in Windows, which was a competitive disadvantage. 

Initially, we thought we might be able to solve the issue through another acquisition. Still, when that was unsuccessful, we had to return to first principles and introduce a new software and electronics platform. We had the competency in-house to develop the control electronics and the firmware. Still, we lacked the number of engineers with the competency to manage both those things internally. We decided to partner with an outsource provider to develop the PC-based interface, including the graphic UI and the code to drive the instruments and the firmware.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Saritasa has developed a Windows-based custom software platform for us. We had already done our initial scope of work internally to determine the requirements from a deliverables standpoint. Our team decided what the product needed to look like, its primary functionalities, and the boxes it would need to check to meet the expectations of the market and our customer base. 

The team started by focusing on the graphic UI. They determined the user flow and mapped it out with the screens for the users. They also built an if-else diagram to show what would happen when users choose each option. As for development, we requested that Saritasa develop the code using commercially available and relatively off-the-shelf tools. We wanted the option to either bring the product in-house or move to a different partner. The team has built features for data acquisition, manipulation, export, and reporting using a typical SQL database architecture. 

There are three primary areas of functionality within the software product. The first area involves a graphic UI that enables users to input instructions for a piece of equipment. Our in-house embedded software and firmware control the command requirement. However, laboratory technicians or managers need a user-friendly graphic UI residing on a Windows PC, where they can input the commands in a way that makes sense to them, which is what Saritasa has built. These commands go down to the electronics and are converted into actionable instructions. 

Companies use our sizeable testing equipment to test the physical properties of raw materials of finished components. For example, we make testing frames that can weigh up to a ton to test large sections of underground pipe for crushing performance. The program tells the equipment how much force to apply and how rapidly and then measures the resulting responses of the materials. 

Once the commands are initiated, the second function involves moving to a data acquisition and analysis mode. The software solution takes signals from our testing equipment to measure resulting displacements, displacement rates, forces, and stresses. The signals come back into the software, which then databases them. 

The third feature is between the first two areas: a real-time graphic presentation and analysis of the data. The program shows a real-time display that shows results as they occur and provides some functionality to analyze or quantify them. Their software doesn’t directly control our instrument; it works through an intermediate USB controller and provides the instructions to our electronics, which are the machine code they’ve translated into actionable language. 

Although we’ve already launched the product to market, we have continued development with Saritasa. They continuously add features and expand the capability of the product. 

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with different teams from Saritasa according to the project phases. In the beginning, when they were focused on the graphic UI, the team had about 5–6 engineers. Of them, 2–3 teammates have continued to phase two, and we’ve had another 2–3 people come in and out depending on their expertise and the project’s demands. Throughout the development, we’ve mostly worked with 3–4 people at a time and 5–6 people at most. Within this team, we’ve worked with Konstantin (Managing Director) and Stan (Client Engagement Manager). 

How did you come to work with Saritasa?

Our team shopped around for a partner and looked at over half a dozen potential providers over a 6–8 month period while we developed the scope. We learned about Saritasa through referrals from other vendors we’ve worked with. 

How much have you invested with them?

By the end of this fiscal year, we’ll have spent $435,000–$450,000. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together around August 2020, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The quality of the product is fantastic and has exceeded our expectations. Saritasa has been exceptionally good and is often ahead of us. Although we've struggled to hit deadlines, these aren't Saritasa-specific metrics because the delays have been due to supply chain issues. We've struggled to scale prototypes when it comes to buying enough components to build beta units; this is something the industry at large has dealt with for the past 12–18 months. Any time there's a hold-up in the part we control, the whole project runs late, no matter how well Saritasa is on target. 

How did Saritasa perform from a project management standpoint?

They're excellent to work with from a project management standpoint. The lead project manager is superb; they're extremely organized and has a well-developed process. They use boards on Jira to chart the process and development, and that's been great. Even thorough we'd been using our own tools, we've adopted theirs for this project because we like them so well. 

Since we have product groups and factories in the US, Germany, the Netherlands, and the UK, and because we've grown through acquisition, everyone within our company has their own culture and internal engineering and product management tools. We've been trying to create some standardization, so we're also using monday.com. 

Additionally, Stan has been fantastic to work with. He's managed and smoothed things over when Saritasa is ahead of us, and we've struggled to keep them busy. We couldn't have asked for a more professional, understanding, and collaborative partner. Moreover, their turnaround times are very fast. As for communication, we meet with the team once a week at a minimum. Overall, I would highly recommend the way they run their projects. Our exposure to their higher-level project management has been excellent. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

I've been really impressed with Saritasa's ability to listen to the information we give them to educate them about our product, customers, and vision. They had never built software like ours before and had no previous background in its end applications. We gave them a lot of competitive examples to provide them with a flavor of what a customer would expect, then gave them our ideas of how we could do better than that. Still, our project was very conceptual, and they've been able to take these abstract discussions and create concrete examples.

In most cases, what they've built has been exactly what we imagined, and in some instances, even better. Saritasa is very good at anticipating other ways to approach something. The team excels at relating to the graphic UI, and they've also helped us a lot in this respect. With this project, we've gone straight from DOS software to the coolest-looking Windows app in a relatively short time, which is remarkable. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

We've had to work through a few things with them, which is natural when working with two groups of engineers and programmers coming from different ends of the spectrum and age groups. While Saritasa has seasoned teammates, they're on the younger end of the spectrum, and our engineering team isn't. Therefore, we've had to work through our cultural differences. 

Additionally, we've struggled with their internal testing. When they release a new version, it's been relatively buggy, and we've done a lot more debugging than we'd like. However, this is due to us watching our spending after blowing our budget during the project's first phase. For our second phase, we've co-managed our spending well, and more testing on their side would mean more hours we'd pay for. Therefore, the testing issues are an artifact of Saritasa trying to help us be budget-conscious. Still, when we find the bugs, they're responsive and fix them instantly, so that's the other side of the coin.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the CEO of Sports Thread Inc. I oversee all aspects of the company including software development.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

Saritasa has been our development partner since we launched our company 7 years ago. We came to Saritasa with a vision to create a platform for the youth sports market with integrated social media applications, Software as a Service and advertising network.

Our goals were to become a market leader by getting hundreds of clients to use our Software-as-a-Service and advertising network and millions of people to use our consumer software (apps and websites). Through Saritasa's partnership with us and excellent development we have achieved those goals.

SOLUTION

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

We selected Saritasa based on a variety of criteria including:

• Breadth and depth of skillsets (coding languages, front end, back end, dev ops, etc).
• Leadership
• Similar projects to our initial vision
• Testimonials from other clients
• Completeness of cost estimates for feature development

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

As Saritasa is our ongoing development partner, we use the same process with each development initiative:

1. Create user stories that define the end-product, its features, and how they must work for end-users. (These are used as acceptance criteria)
2. Saritasa team estimates the cost and timeline for feature development and breaks development into sprints
3. We sign off on the estimates
4. Saritasa begins the project and sends us features to test after they have conducted initial QA
5. We produce reporting back on UX/UI changes needed, bugs, and other for iterative refinement until completion of the feature. This collaborative agile methodology lead by the excellent management team and development team at Saritasa has produced hundreds of feature releases and our success to date.

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

We have worked with many of teams of people at Saritasa in 7 years through a single point person (project manager). The project managers at Saritasa are truly excellent at what they do and truly care about their clients success. One of the key items that makes a relationship with Saritasa so powerful is the many developers they have with different skillsets.

This has allowed Saritasa to respond to our need with skilled developers for any project whether it be front end, back end, dev ops, mobile development or other projects. Teams working on projects tend to be 4-8 people lead by the Project Manger who works with our team and manages the 4-8 developers. At this point the number of individuals at Saritasa we have worked with have to be well over 20-30. Each of them is excellent at whatever their part of the project is.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Sports Thread's mobile application is one of the top 200 most used sports apps in the world (apple app store rankings) Sports Thread's ad network reaches over 2 million people per year Sports Thread's Software-as-a-Service has 100+ clients using its product including many of the largest companies in our market We have become a market leader in our industry. All of our software has been developed by Saritasa.

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

We have weekly meetings with our project manager to review sprint projects. The project manager handles the communication between our team and the development staff at Saritasa. Our project manager is always available for meetings and conversations in between our weekly standing meeting. Our team provides final QA and testing. All feedback is done through email and through ongoing spreadsheet tracking of bugs. Sartisa also uses JIRA for task tracking for billing purposes.

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

Saritasa is unique, impressive, and an incredible partner in many ways, however 3 things stand out most to me:

1. Saritasa is honest. Software development is full of companies who will lie to you about what a project will take in terms of time and cost to get you sunk into working with them. Saritasa NEVER does this. Their estimates are always +/- 10% of both delivery time and cost.
2. Saritasa does excellent work. Our results with them becoming a leader in many categories in our market speak for themselves, Saritasa has delivered the technology to enable it all.
3. Most importantly, the people at Saritasa truly care about their clients. Our company is constantly impressed and thankful for how clear it is that everyone in the Saritasa organization from leadership, to project mangers, to marketing/design staff to engineers are clearly invested in our success and are willing to go above and beyond to get us there.

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

None. Saritasa is a fantastic partner. Anyone who chooses to work with them will find a trusted longterm development partner.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and president of Scripta LLC. Our objective is to provide a fully searchable, subscription-based, web-accessed database of unclaimed property rules, regulations, and laws for businesses.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Saritasa?

We needed to create a user-friendly and organized way to search through the data I had put together, so we sought Saritasa’s help.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Saritasa helped us build our entire system. I first provided them with the Excel spreadsheets containing the data I had gathered, and they designed and developed a web-based UI so that users could access that information. Additionally, they built a backend administrative side for me to provide updates and keep the data current once the system was live.

Additionally, Saritasa helped me develop a website for marketing purposes, integrating legislative tracking abilities. They added that feature in a different section of the site with a different layout. However, it has the same purpose: to be a place where I can input information and users can access and interact with it. As for the technology stack, they used Python to develop the platform.

Users can access our platform by using their address and a password. Once in it, they can search for unclaimed property law information organized by property code and by jurisdiction.

Additionally, the legislative tracking function allows me to put in different bills and link them to the results of said searches. Thanks to this feature, if the law changes as a result of pending legislation, users can compare side by side the current and future states.

Although the main development project has already ended, Saritasa recently helped me add an enhancement that allows users to search for updates that have occurred between a certain date range. Additionally, they take care of ongoing maintenance.

What is the team composition?

The project manager was my main point of contact, and he worked with a team of developers. I also communicated directly with the lead developer from that team on one or two occasions.

How did you come to work with Saritasa?

I put together and launched an RFP to various companies, and I interviewed around six different firms. After meeting with each of them, I really liked the approach Saritasa took, which included having a single dedicated project manager and laying out everything upfront to develop the quotes from there. Their proposal was very appealing to me, so I hired them.

How much have you invested with them?

We spend over $100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in July 2021, and the main project ended in March 2022.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Thanks to our platform, it’s much easier for user companies to have their reporting obligation and see the law respective to their particular property. In every demo I’ve given, I’ve received very positive feedback about how well the platform works and how well its UX is structured.

How did Saritasa perform from a project management standpoint?

I was very happy with Saritasa’s project management; they did a great job. Additionally, they were mindful of my budget and presented me with various solutions to choose from.

I had a weekly Google Meet standing call with the project manager to review the work done in the past week. Additionally, we communicated via email and phone calls, and we shared Google Docs.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Saritasa’s strength was how easy it was to work with them. Their communication was very smooth, and they demonstrated an outstanding ability to take my non-technical requests and create technical solutions to meet them.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No. This was my first experience working with a development company, and I was very happy with it.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Understand your project and lay out what you want before starting the project; it will help you go faster and make it easier to define the functionality.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the co-founder of Versus Poker, a website that replicates the live poker experience as if people are playing in their houses with friends and family. My dad and I started it during the pandemic when we couldn’t play with our regular partners.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Saritasa?

We didn’t have any experience in web development or the nitty gritty details of coding. We needed help to build our website from the ground up.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Saritasa developed our website from scratch. We initially met with them to go over the art and flow of the website. From there, we met with the engineering team to hash out bugs and specific tools. All in all, we told them what we wanted, and they brought it to life.

The main feature they built was the poker engine, which allows users to play Texas Hold’Em. At the table, Saritasa implemented an integrated video and audio chat, a statistics tracker, and the ability to customize settings. Users could tweak the different dollar amounts, time settings, and everything in a usual poker table. Additionally, they created the regular flows and menus of the website.

What is the team composition?

We worked with an account executive, the CEO, the CTO, a designer, an engineering team, and a project manager.

How did you come to work with Saritasa?

We were vetting a couple of companies. We were first introduced to an account executive; then, we met regularly with the CEO and the CTO. They walked us through how they typically went about projects and their general workflow. We clicked well with them, so we decided to move forward. 

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $100,000–$250,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in June 2020 and launched the site in August 2022. We don’t have any development projects going on, but we still touch base with them to squash any details we’re dealing with.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Everything works well. It took a lot of time of fixing, problem-solving, and work with the engineering team, but the navigation aspects, the video and audio chat, and the poker game were seamless. We’re actively trying to get feedback, so it’s still a work in progress. However, we have between 200–300 people signed up so far, so we couldn’t be happier with Saritasa’s work. They understood our vision and spent a lot of time working on it. 

How did Saritasa perform from a project management standpoint?

They were great all throughout the project. They were responsive and attentive; Saritasa was always quick to come up with ideas and suggestions we didn’t think of in the beginning, and their ideas made it to the final product. Moreover, everyone we worked with was fantastic, and they definitely cared about the project. When we started, we gave them the scope and vision; they proposed a budget and stuck to it even when we went overtime. Overall, it was an excellent experience.

We communicated through emails about the little things. We also touched base at least 3–4 times a week on Zoom and about 1–2 times a week with the project manager. Additionally, we used Jira to organize everything we were working on.

What did you find most impressive about them?

In the beginning, we vetted many companies trying to find someone who could do this project for us. One of the things that originally stood out about Saritasa was the way they chronicled their code and kept it organized to make it easily transferable; it was attractive to us because if we ever decided to part ways with them, we could take it elsewhere.

They also had an office nearby, but overall, our conversations with the team were outstanding. We got along well, and they understood what we were trying to do pretty quickly.

Are there any areas they could improve?

At the time, the engineering team was out in Russia, so there was a bit of a language barrier. Also, poker isn’t an intuitive game, so they had to learn about it. We definitely had moments where we explained the rules and had to iron out some things. However, it was just a tiny blip; everything else went well.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Stay active with the communication. They’re readily available, so if you need to ask a question, just pick up the phone and give them a call. Overall, they’re great to work with.