SPARK Business Works

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the owner of Epic Property Management, which services residential, multi-family, and commercial real estate in southeast Michigan and northern Ohio. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with SPARK Business Works?

We wanted to combine our calendar and list systems into one company-wide system. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

SPARK developed a software product that organizes my company's calendar and listings into one system. At the beginning of the partnership, we had a sit-down meeting with the SPARK team to develop our vision for the software. From there, SPARK created an initial structure with designs and functionalities that we tested over the course of a year before the rollout.  

What is the team composition?

I've worked with several project managers from SPARK who manage their development teams. 

How did you come to work with SPARK Business Works?

We found SPARK via a referral through a business network called Entrepreneur Organization. I interviewed 2–3 companies, but I liked SPARK because they had the most professional approach and had a good portfolio. 

How much have you invested with them?

We invested $200,000–$250,000 with SPARK. 

What is the status of this engagement?

Our partnership with SPARK began in April 2019, and it's ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The software SPARK developed has brought our operations together — the software is now a part of our day-to-day functionality and every employee uses it daily. I'd estimate that the software improved our efficiency by 10%–15% at minimum. 

How did SPARK Business Works perform from a project management standpoint?

We've worked with a lot of good project managers from SPARK. They communicate well and stick to timelines as best they can, regardless of unexpected delays. The current project manager is excellent to work with.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Overall, SPARK's overall professionalism and high-quality work have exceeded my initial expectations. My company's future is very bright because of where we can take the system SPARK built us. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

My only issue has been around project cost estimates. SPARK doesn't have a great system to ensure our projects come in on budget.  

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Customers need to know what they want from a software system before starting a partnership with SPARK. Giving SPARK a clear, detailed description of the project is the best way to save a lot of time and money. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm one of the owners of Prestige Distribution, a distribution and contracting company. We sell commercial specialty products and install them all over the country.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with SPARK Business Works?

We wanted to put all of the different softwares that we use to do different tasks into one suite, so we hired SPARK.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

SPARK initially came in and learned about our business. They tried to understand all of the things that we do as well as all of the tools that we were using. They then provided us with several sample software that we could test, and we underwent a sort of trial-and-error experience to find what solution would best address our needs and what could be improved about it. We also deployed certain test software to our project managers to capture their feedback, such as which features they liked and found useful for their day-to-day work. 

After that phase, the SPARK team went on to develop a custom software with all of the needed features. The software operates on AWS. 

What is the team composition?

We probably worked with 7–8 people from their team. 

How did you come to work with SPARK Business Works?

They were recommended to us by a consultant.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested around $250,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with SPARK around April 2017, and we are still engaged with them.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

It’s difficult to quantify how successful the program has been because it touches so many parts of our business, but we’ve measured its usability and we’ve seen that it has definitely reduced our internal errors and mistakes. Tracking and the execution of warehouse functions have also become a lot easier. 

SPARK has done a good job of understanding our business and all of its little nuances. This has ultimately enabled them to get us going in the right direction. 

How did SPARK Business Works perform from a project management standpoint?

There was definitely a learning curve in the beginning as it took a while for the SPARK team to easily exchange updates and requirements with us. However, big changes finally took place after they started using Basecamp, which has been helpful for our communications and progress tracking. 

Our workflow also got smoother when we started working more closely with Amanda (Product Manager). She understands exactly what we need when we explain it, and she provides estimates as well as results. Getting the right project manager has definitely benefitted our process. 

Apart from Basecamp, we also communicate over Zoom, email, text messages, and phone calls. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

One truly remarkable quality of SPARK is how they care about their customer and how they care about the quality of their work. They’re also just very nice people who are easy to work with. It’s always a pleasure to speak with them on the phone or over Zoom, and this is helped along by the fact that they’re very technically knowledgeable and are good at managing their developers. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

I’ve mentioned this to them before, but it’s a bit frustrating how they charge us to fix bugs on the program, especially given that these were not borne of our mistakes. They worked with us on that, though, and they've given us discounted rates. It has been a much smoother experience since.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be open and tell them everything that you want. I would advise you to include as much detail as you can at the very beginning so that SPARK has the best chance of succeeding.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am a Project Manager for a software company that provides software as a service to asset management companies.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire SPARK Business Works, and what were your goals?

We hired SPARK to help us build out a time entry system that would suit our unique needs as a company. The system SPARK built for us was to replace our legacy time entry system that was becoming outdated.

SOLUTION

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

We selected to work with SPARK because they have the capabilities to customize their software to suit our business needs.

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

The scope of work was to customize SPARK's existing base software program for our company's needs. The project included kick-off and requirements in partnership with the SPARK team, before moving forward with development of our time entry system and UAT testing. The primary deliverable of the project was the time entry system, including a number of customizations. The project required extensive coordination with the SPARK team to ensure the application met our business needs, and was setup properly in our Production environment.

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

I primarily worked with 3 people from SPARK's team, including a Project Manager, Software Developer, and their VP.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The project provided us with a replacement time entry system and we were able to successfully retire our existing time system. SPARK delivered a quality product that we continue to use for our time tracking needs.

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

Email was the primary communication tool, and they used Slack for some project tracking/updates. While we tried to use our Jira instance for tracking, it ended up working better with their Project Management style to use a shared Excel document to track progress on the project.

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

I had consistent lines of communication with their Project Manager, and their team was always very friendly and eager to help. There wasn't a single thing we threw their way that they couldn't provide a solution for. I appreciate that they are a solution-oriented company and work closely with their clients to meet their needs.

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

SPARK is a great partner to work with and provided us with a solid solution to our time tracking needs. While we were able to find a way to effectively track items for the project, I think an area for improvement would be understanding and adopting their client's project management tools as needed to facilitate project work. There could also be better communication as sometimes it takes more than a couple days for them to respond to emails.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the President of CSM Group, which is a national construction management and professional services firm.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire SPARK Business Works, and what were your goals?

We were developing a new process across the business and needed a tool to manage the data and create workflows to drive efficiencies and effectiveness. The process needed to be simple for all users.

SOLUTION

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

The team at spark is business minded and ensured that the tool would not only fit the need but they brought ideas and solutions to the problems we were trying to solve.

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

See above. Developed a system that includes a database for key project information as well as a workflow tool to manage the process. We were able to go from a simple excel spreadsheet to a robust management system that interfaces with key aspects of the business.

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

The key members varied based on the stage of the project.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

This system has allowed us not only to drive efficiencies in the business, but also manage risk.

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

The team listens to the clients needs and comes to the table with solutions. As a client, you are always informed on progress and appreciated the weekly updates. It was a great communication tool. We felt like my project was important to the team.

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

Fun to work with.

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

No

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the CFO of a insurance services company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire SPARK Business Works, and what were your goals?

To migrate our website to a new hosting platform. Clean up code for security.

SOLUTION

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

Introduced through our IT partner.

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

Analyze website code, "fix" security issues, migrate to new hosting.

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

President of Convergent 1. Director at web development level. Staff at web development level.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Achieved desired outcome.

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

Very professional, forthright, responsive and completed timely.

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

We were impressed with their timely delivery.

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

No.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm project director for custom development tools, BIM Manangement and consulting. Overseeing on average 5-10 projects / month

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire SPARK Business Works, and what were your goals?

Out previous developer was unable to communicate clearly, align to our deadlines and respond positively to client needs

SOLUTION

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

We needed a team approach, willing to speak to the client's knowledge-base as well as explain goals and obstacles clearly. SPARK hit all these points nicely.

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

They leveraged Figma for presenting to the team which was very effective for the client. They were willing to work in phases for specific application needs and provide testing as well as solid PROD environment

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

ranged from 3-4 people plus some back-end developers as needed. We had a UI/UX designer, project manager as well as the code team

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have hit the deadlines and the client has been happy as they are no longer seeing delays, cost overruns and they appreciate the quick responses to minor break/fixes as well as the positive team attitude

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

They're very responsive and willing to use our communication platform without hesitation.

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

completeness and great communication

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

Not at this time