Software Solved

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the IT manager of Guideline, a lift installation and maintenance company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Software Solved?

We were looking to rebuild our old backend administration system.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We started our partnership by analyzing our current manual processes and turning them into use case scenarios to design and develop the new system. From there, they delivered an internal mobile app for engineers to use in the field — this app was developed for the PDA 16 years ago, so we were the market leaders in that sense.

This app enables our engineers to do their jobs, and we’ve been making updates and improvements to the model, which brings us to its current form; a Native Android app. We’re currently redeveloping the PDA, adding functionalities and features such as a reporting system.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with the sales director, business analysts, project managers, technical consultants, and software developers over the years.

How did you come to work with Software Solved?

We were vetting three different companies for this project, and we chose Software Solved because of their professionalism and credentials — I knew from how they spoke to us that they were the perfect vendor to partner with.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested £250,000 (approximately $300,600 USD) on this project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working together since January 2007.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The feedback from our clients has been consistently positive, as Software Solved’s engineers helped optimize our processes by making our operations digital. Because of their team, we’ve grown into a financially successful company. 

How did Software Solved perform from a project management standpoint?

They’ve performed well from a project management standpoint, as they consistently deliver their tasks on schedule and adjust to our budget. We typically communicate through email and in-person meetings. Moreover, they’re highly responsive regarding issues or requests, and we’ve felt supported throughout our partnership.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their biggest strength is their ability to understand and translate our business requirements into an excellent software solution. Their team is dependable and transparent when it comes to project costs and timelines.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything they need to improve on at the moment.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I’d advise you to invest in the analysis of the business from the start, so they can efficiently produce the scope of the work and deliver your needs.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the VP of IT delivery for risk consulting at AXA XL. The risk consulting team surveys large buildings and complexes and provides clients with summaries and reports on their property. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Software Solved?

We engaged Software Solved for their development services.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Software Solved has built an app that supports our work. It’s a customer portal where clients can come and get surveys, recommendations, and similar things. They’ve used custom developers to build this software. 

Currently, I use them for additional enhancements to the app. We’ve had plenty of meetings regarding our requirements. We’ve done workshops in the US and the UK and documented everything as needed. The key technologies they use include .NET and C#. 

What is the team composition?

Over the past year, I’ve worked with 4–5 developers. Right now, we’re down to one developer — we’re winding down as there are only a couple of things that need to be cleaned up before we release the products. 

How did you come to work with Software Solved?

Software Solved was recommended to us by someone that worked with them previously. We went through the interview process and eventually hired them.

How much have you invested with them?

Our investment has been anywhere between $200,000–$500,000. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in January 2021, and the engagement is ongoing. I have them on the books until the end of January 2023. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Software Solved has been great. The team is good at spinning meetings up quickly and getting people together to present their solutions. 

For instance, in September 2022, we had external client issues with our site. Software Solved met with me, my business partners, and external clients to devise a solution. For context, we had issues with different screens and wanted to make them better. Ultimately, we met our external clients’ needs. 

How did Software Solved perform from a project management standpoint?

Everything has been delivered on time and within budget. On top of that, the team has been highly communicative. We have weekly calls with them. If we have add-on goals, they arrange stand-up calls to discuss them. In other words, they’re adaptable. Their developers join calls and interact with business representatives, BA, and other teammates. To communicate, we use Teams and emails. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Software Solved’s developers are strong and good. We have specific requirements for our business group, and their developers come to the table to ask questions. They probe and stick their hands up in meetings. Then, they challenge us, telling us when they think things aren’t going to work and showing us their reasons. Put another way, they’re intelligent and great at what they do — I like their interaction with us. 

Further, they’ve been extremely flexible with our needs. As an example of their flexibility, we previously had to do a change order on our statement of work (SOW). While I was working on having the change order process signed by the procurement team, the Software Solved team flexibly worked on some items for me. 

Not a lot of vendors do that. Most of them don’t start working unless they have the signed change order request in front of them. We’ve had a great relationship with Software Solved for some time now, and they’ve been truly amendable for this part of the engagement — our procurement team drags their feet sometimes. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, there aren’t any. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

You should work with Software Solved. They seem to supply their developers with a lot of training. We’ve had junior developers working alongside their senior developers to get people up to speed, and they’re quite good at doing that. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Program Manager of Triland Metals

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Specialist in Base, Precious and Ferrous DerivativesTrading

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Software Solved to accomplish?

• Deliver Bespoke Software Trading Platform

SOLUTION

How did you find Software Solved?

Clutch Site

Why did you select Software Solved over others?

Good value for cost

What was the size of Software Solved’s team?

6-10 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

To upgrade and refresh an existing Trading Derivatives platform and provide application support.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

• Enriched new Trading platform handling transactions with a notional value of millions

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

The Software Solved team was highly skilled, attentive, and knowledgeable. Work was delivered on time using an Agile approach and delivered to a very high standard which exceeded expectations. Their team included:

• Solution Architecture, Business Analysis
• Project Management,
• Development and Testing experts.

What was your primary form of communication with Software Solved?

• In-Person Meeting
• Virtual Meeting
• Email
• Messaging App

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

Their blend of a capable team, and their collaborative approach through every stage of the process from initial discussion through to project implementation.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Head of Operations & Service Delivery

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We needed software development support for one of our online services that aggregates news from multiple publishers and distributes it to customers

SOLUTION

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

Software Solved had a great track record of taking on systems, performing a health check and then supporting their development going forward

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

Support a Dot Net, MS SQL based online service. Continue to support, patch and upgrade the code base.

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

There were probably 4-6 people including the project manager, lead architect, developers and test team

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We were able to migrate the code base from the current provider, manage source control, apply relevant upgrades to the service and continue to seamlessly server our customers

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

We used the ticketing system of Software Solved. The process was semi Agile, with requirements written upfront, potential solutions and approach discussed, before starting on development. There were a couple of iterations towards the end, if needed, depending on QA feedback

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

Their engagement and ability to offer creative and effective solutions are impressive.

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

Probably not