Startup House

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the economy and technology lead at a company with a digital platform for health workers in the public sector in Norway.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Startup Development House?

We hired Startup Development House for their custom software development services. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Startup Development House helped us build a digital product. During the discovery phase, we interviewed users and people influencing the decision to buy our product. The team organized these meetings and obtained information from end clients. We've finished the product development and have done some tests and adjustments. 

Since then, we’ve engaged Startup Development House in several projects. We want to make a scalable product, and technology shouldn’t be a limiting factor for us in the future. Given that, their team also helps us decide on the best technologies to use. 

What is the team composition?

We work with about six teammates from Startup Development House: a project manager, a product manager, a backend developer, a QA specialist, and a finance person. 

How did you come to work with Startup Development House?

One of our programmers recommended them. He worked with them when they were first starting and had great feedback on their work. 

How much have you invested with them?

Our budget was between $200,000–$1 million. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started the engagement in June 2020, and it’s ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve been signing contracts with customers, and they understand the product we deliver. They say it’s intuitive and easy to use. Overall, the product is truly scalable. 

How did Startup Development House perform from a project management standpoint?

Startup Development House delivers tasks on time. The quality of their work is great, and we have few adjustments to it. Overall, we’re getting quality for what we pay. On top of that, their communication has been great. We use Slack to talk and Figma for designs. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

We work in different fields, but they’ve been good at learning about ours. There’s been a learning curve, but they’ve delivered as expected, so we continue working with them. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, there aren’t any. They’ve been great so far. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the founder and ceo of lily

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

We’re aiming to radically modernize how our generation donates to charity. Lily is a mobile app that curates the world’s most cost-effective, evidence-based charities and lets users track their donation results in real-time in a personalized dashboard

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Startup Development House to accomplish?

• Launch mobile app

SOLUTION

How did you find Startup Development House?

Online Search

Why did you select Startup Development House over others?

High ratings, Good value for cost, Company values aligned

What was the size of Startup Development House’s team?

2-5 Employees

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

Lily hired Startup Development House to define the vision for the first iteration of the product and create a proof of concept to get some traction with the project. My goals were to prioritize the product scope and quickly develop a PoC to test and validate the concept with real users. It’s also a starting point in conversations with investors and stakeholders.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

• MVP launch
• Feature quality

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

Startup Development House has designed a structured process for delivering products, which consists of two parts: the product-oriented phase and the delivery phase. When working on the product concept we worked on prioritizing the product scope and used Miro to visualize the features and organize the content. Figma was used to create the designs and align on feedback. For the development phase, we used Jira and Google Drive tools.

The team was working according to the SCRUM methodology. The delivery/development was divided into 3 sprints. The communication was smooth, we mostly used Slack. The time difference wasn’t a big issue. The project team was supported by the Account Manager as well as the SDH co-founder. (Tools: Google Drive tools, Miro, Jira, Figma, Slack, AppCenter)

What was your primary form of communication with Startup Development House?

Virtual Meeting, Email or Messaging App

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

Speed. Learning curve. Style. Communication

Are there any areas for improvement or something Startup Development House could have done differently?

No

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the frontend team lead, UIUX designer, and project manager at Aiforsite, a Swiss company founded in 2016 and headquartered in Finland. Our company's mission is to tackle productivity issues in the construction industry, so we improve productivity using different AI tools, IoT, and other productivity solutions.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Startup Development House?

They helped us develop a mobile application. Our main challenge was that our engineers had to do everything manually. They had to go to the construction site, take a GoPro camera, record there, bring the camera back, put the SD card on their computers, access the material, and upload it. This process was hectic and time-consuming, so we wanted to build a mobile app to optimize it.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Startup Development House helped us develop a mobile app that allows our engineers to record on-site easier. This app does three things; it records, transfers, and uploads data onto the cloud. Additionally, it is compatible with Insta360 devices.

Initially, we provided Startup Development House with documentation detailing all our specifications, including designs, prototypes, and other assets we already had. Then, they developed the software behind the app using React Native. We created the Android version of this app to start with, but we’ll collaborate with Startup Development House to build the iOS version in the future.

What is the team composition?

We worked with two people from Startup Development House: a lead developer and a senior developer.

How did you come to work with Startup Development House?

We found their profile on Google when searching for software development agencies in the Baltic region.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around €72,000–€80,000 (approximately $77,000–$86,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

This project started in January 2022 and ended in January 2023.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Thanks to the mobile app that Startup Development House helped us build, our engineers can now record and upload content onto the cloud seamlessly, so the documentation happens faster. In the last month, we have done internal testing in Finland and London, and two things have stood out.

Firstly, the app has improved our business process, reducing the waste of time for our engineers. This improvement has contributed to our company’s carbon footprint, reducing carbon emissions because the engineers use less fuel.

Secondly, the app has given us a competitive advantage. There are many competitors with different solutions to document construction work. Still, this mobile app has given us a more competitive edge.

How did Startup Development House perform from a project management standpoint?

Startup Development House’s communication was awesome, and they delivered everything on time. Throughout the project, the project manager constantly asked for feedback on how the developers were performing. Additionally, we asked for many revisions, and they didn't hesitate to do them. As for collaboration tools, we used Slack for communication, as well as Jira for project management, ticketing, and backlog management.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Startup Development House understood our requirements brilliantly, and the delivery was flawless.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There was nothing they could have improved on.

Any advice for potential customers?

I highly recommend working with Startup Development House because they're professional, and the way they handle projects is top-notch.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m an executive at a startup that uses blockchain technology around authentication for inventory items.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Startup Development House?

We were getting to a point where we wanted to bring a working prototype, answers regarding user testing, and technical recommendations to investors.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Startup Development House developed a working prototype of our iOS mobile app. The purpose was to demonstrate our core business attributes around use case scenarios. The prototype also demonstrated user workflows, how the app would display inventory, and how those inventories could be transferred between users. The team used Figma to build the prototype. 

What is the team composition?

We worked directly with a project manager, a product designer, a product manager, and a mobile app developer. In total, 10–12 teammates from Startup Development House were involved in our project. 

How did you come to work with Startup Development House?

I was at a conference in Austin, Texas, and Startup Development House had a booth there. At the time, I was searching for a development company, and a relative had suggested I look at Eastern European options because we were trying to manage the cost factor. Although we entertained some other development companies, Startup Development House’s approach to the solution was a deciding factor.  

How much have you invested with them?

We spent just under $30,000. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from June–September 2022. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Startup Development House had a great approach to the process and communication. Ours was a very unique project that was hard to translate and understand using existing technologies. I appreciated the team’s way of uncovering the solution, breaking it down to its core elements, and translating them. They helped us clarify our goals by forcing us to articulate our user workflows and what the product does and doesn’t do. Moreover, they over-delivered for the cost. 

How did Startup Development House perform from a project management standpoint?

They stayed 100% on budget and met their deadlines. We never had any issues with their time management; I was more worried about our side staying on track. The team was always there for meetings and on top of scheduling. We mostly communicated through Google Meet and phone calls. We also used Google Drive, Miro, Slack, and email. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

I was impressed with Startup Development House’s collaborative tools and communication. Every member of their team added and participated in understanding what we were trying to do. This was the first time we presented our idea to that large of an audience, and I had concerns because of the distance, timeframe, and possible language barrier. However, we had no communication issues at all. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

The only thing they could have improved was understanding our boundaries of what they were asking us for to avoid mission creep. Sometimes, their team got off task figuring out those boundaries. However, I circled back with them, and we resolved the issue. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

What we found helpful was not holding back feedback, questions, or hesitations. The earlier you get those aspects in front of them, the quicker their response. Early on, we second-guessed guessing ourselves and didn’t say things as early as we should have. Once we shifted that approach, we had no issues with Startup Development House. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the VP of operations of a cyber risk analytics firm. I’m in charge of all the aspects of running our business and market strategy.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Startup Development House?

We were selling a solution that required manual processing to deliver. We needed to take what we had in the market and transform it into a scalable SaaS application.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Startup Development House has transformed our offering into a SaaS application. The app can understand cyber risks and how to reduce them. They’ve designed and developed it using JavaScript and Figma. 

Initially, we had a working prototype. We started the process by doing workshops to work through what we wanted to build. They took our concept and modernized it. Once we completed that process, we started the actual development.

What is the team composition?

We have about nine people on the team, including project managers, frontend and backend developers, QA people, and designers.

How did you come to work with Startup Development House?

We researched a lot and interviewed about a dozen outsourcing companies worldwide. Startup Development House was well-rounded, and they instilled in us the confidence that they could achieve what we needed.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent between $300,000–$750,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in August 2020, and our relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We measure success with the marketplace’s response. Since we released their product version, we’ve tripled our sales pace.

On the other hand, the software performs spectacularly. We had complex proprietary algorithms, and they’ve converted them into a high-performing application. Our customers are always impressed by its clean and modern presentation; we always get comments. Also, Startup Development House is good at taking feedback and constructive advice to improve continually. We have a responsive and engaged relationship.

How did Startup Development House perform from a project management standpoint?

They do well; they’re an extension of our team. They’ve broken up the complex project into segments, and everything has been transparent. Initially, they were uncertain about their projections, but they were very open about it. Now, their estimations and deliverables are very high quality.

We use Jira as a tool and always communicate through Teams and Google Meet. Additionally, we chat and send emails.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their strength is their ability to understand our strategy as a business so they can anticipate our needs.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They weren’t documenting everything in the beginning, so some things slipped. However, they responded and improved a lot in their processes and project management. We’ve gotten to a point where nothing is left hanging.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

If you engage with them and something’s not going well, communicate it transparently. If you provide candid feedback, they’ll address it and get to where you need.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of Proptly, a Norwegian tech startup. I started the company with a former colleague in Oslo; we both had a background in data science.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Startup Development House?

We intended to create a software platform for the construction industry, but we didn’t have the required development competencies.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Startup Development House has built the platform from scratch. Initially, my colleague and I spent 7–8 months doing wireframes in Figma. We did 7–8 iterations on how the application would look, and Startup Development House has brought it to life. They’ve given us liberty on the color palettes and design elements, but they’ve helped us find the best solution. We use several technologies, but the main ones are React for the frontend and Node.js for the backend.

Additionally, they provide maintenance and hosting services.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with six people: three developers, one designer, one QA engineer, and a project manager.

How did you come to work with Startup Development House?

We searched on Clutch, spent time reading the page on different vendors, and interviewed 12 companies. Startup Development House had a good rating and was the best company we talked to, so we chose them.

How much have you invested with them?

So far, we’ve instead $55,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in April 2021, and our relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Delivering on the deadline we’ve communicated to our investors is crucial for us. We’re aiming to have the pilot ready on October 1st.

How did Startup Development House perform from a project management standpoint?

We’ve set up sprints since the beginning, and they have transparent pricing. We know what resources we get and how much capacity they’re assigned. On the other hand, we use Jira for the development and project management phases. Our chief product officer constantly communicates with their project manager. Also, we use Slack as our main tool to discuss minor issues.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We have a designated team working with us. Several other vendors presented options where they’d do the final product in-house. However, we have a team that works as an integrated part of our project. So far, it’s been a pleasant experience — having a complete team has been really reassuring.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We thought they’d spend more time communicating with us. Maybe they could have a customer success person to check in constantly and ensure everything is alright.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be clear on your expectations. They communicate directly and are able to deliver.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the founder of NegotiateNow, a platform which helps people get better deals on products and services they want for themselves and their friends (social commerce) through matching these people with professional negotiators.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Startup Development House, and what were your goals?

Product discovery iteration and process, as well as website development.

SOLUTION

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

Referral. Very impressed by the team as I compared and met with potential vendors.

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

Startup Development House provided a full Product Discovery, Design and Delivery service to understand, research, challenge and build my business idea. During Product Discovery, they helped me to understand the lean start-up way of product development with initial research, discovery workshops and many hours of discussion and iteration. After Discovery workshops they helped me to build a high-level user flow, prioritized product roadmap and created production ready Hi-Fi designs which is our guideline in the ongoing rapid MVP development. We choose a no-code / low-code technology for delivery as this provides us the maximum speed and efficiency.

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

Product discovery phase:

• 2 Product Manager
• 1 Product Designer Product

Delivery phase:

• 1 No-code / Low-code developer // Product Manager
• 1 Front-end Developer
• 1 Project Manager
• 1 Quality Assurance engineer

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We aimed for a rapid MVP process which gave us the possibility to deliver the desired MVP in less than 4 months in which we also did a full Product Discovery, Scoping and Design.

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

For Product Discovery we used: Google Drive tools, Miro, Loom For Delivery: Google Drive tools, Miro, Loom, Jira For Communication: email, Slack, Google Meet and phone

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

The quality of the team and their thinking were superior. They are thought/strategic partners. Very experienced. Very easy to work with. Very efficient.

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

No, I have been truly happy and pleased with the work and quality.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and CEO of an independent marketplace for global migration.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Startup Development House?

We wanted to partner with a software development firm from the very early stages of our company to build out and conceptualize a prototype of our platform. Eventually, our goal was to develop an MVP product.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Initially, we worked with Startup Development House on very intense workshops. We met for two weeks, three days a week, for eight-hour product workshops to figure out how to develop the MVP and define the main aspects of the product. Their team was instrumental during these early stages in defining the value proposition of our company and our product.

During these workshops, Startup Development House also helped us map out the phases of the development process. Then, they built a prototype of our platform, marking the end of our initial engagement.

After the initial engagement, we decided to work with Startup Development House on the actual development of our site, so they’ve been custom coding our platform since then. Although we already have a working product, the more complex stages of this process are yet to come. As for the technology stack, we use Strapi as the CMS and SendGrid for email automation.

Our product is a marketplace capable of hosting an indefinite number of members, and it has several dynamic features. For example, members can reach out and connect with other members individually. It also has a main page for easily filtering our several destinations and a dynamic content creation and display feature for showing migration-related articles where we need them to appear.

What is the team composition?

At any given time, six people from Startup Development House are working on the project. Their team includes a UX designer, frontend developers, and backend engineers.

How did you come to work with Startup Development House?

We found them on Clutch. I did my due diligence and called and compared different engineering firms from around the world. In these comparisons, the cost, the reviews, and the firm’s areas of expertise were my main focus points. I had an idea, a concept, and a vision on a Word document, and I was looking at who was in the best position to transform that input into something real.

How much have you invested in them?

We’ve spent around $100,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them around April 2021, and it is an ongoing engagement.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The platform that Startup Development House has developed speaks about their quality work by itself. It is custom-coded, and the source code is of high quality. We now have exactly what we need from a basic product, and its design is incredible because the platform integrates our brand seamlessly on its frontend.

After we launched the working product, we were able to activate members immediately, which has helped us build upon our membership base and grow our marketplace model. Additionally, we will retain the intellectual property after the project is done, which is very valuable.

How did Startup Development House perform from a project management standpoint?

Startup Development House has delivered on all fronts within the timelines they’ve set. From the start, they were very diligent in creating a development roadmap, being very clear and upfront about the hours they would dedicate to each phase of the project and defining each phase’s deliverables. We use Slack for communication.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Startup Development House’s dedication and commitment to the project are impressive. They’re very professional, but it is remarkable how genuinely committed they are to the project, offering a custom-tailored approach.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Get to know them and see if they’re the right fit for you. What they lay out in an engagement proposal is what they stick to, so be sure that there will be no surprises.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a department head at a SaaS company that delivers a platform for cinemas and concert venues to organize their operations.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Startup Development House?

We were building a new platform with modern technology for cinemas specifically, and we hired Startup Development House to help us with the discovery phase.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Startup Development House is helping us with product discovery regarding what cinemas need and want from their websites. The team collaborates with two of our product managers for this project. The goal is to help us get from the MVP to the product market and to integrate their work into a larger platform that we’re building.

They’ve helped us organize user personas by doing interviews with both our B2B customers and ticket buyers. The team has created mock-ups and prototypes to use for testing during the interviews. From there, they compile the information into reports, Miro boards, and sketches. 

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with 4–5 people from Startup Development House, including a product manager, a designer who creates mock-ups, and a developer who makes prototypes. 

How did you come to work with Startup Development House?

We’d had a collaboration with Startup Development House right before the COVID-19 pandemic started, and we were very happy with the results. When this project came up, we reached out to them again.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around €50,000 (approximately $54,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

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

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We appreciate Startup Development House’s process; they have strong project leadership and good product managers. Overall, the team is really good at project research. Thanks to their work, we’ve discovered possible new features we can implement to make it easier for consumers to buy tickets, specifically for groups. We’ve also reinforced some assumptions we had beforehand. With data to back up our ideas, we can confidently move forward.

How did Startup Development House perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re way better than us at meeting deadlines. If they can’t meet a deadline, they’re very upfront about it and have conversations well in advance. Their communication is great; we’ve connected on Slack, our primary tool, and we send the occasional email. The team uses Jira and Miro for project management. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Startup Development House’s project management is impressive — they run a tight ship. They hire out entire product teams so that any business can go to them with a product idea, and they can develop it. The team does their work well, ranging from product discovery to implementation. Startup Development House is also really efficient; the amount of work they can do with a few people on each team is outstanding. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

There isn’t anything they need to improve about their setup. We’re trying to integrate them into our team, which has been hard because they’re optimized for having an entire product team and not being part of a platform. However, that’s on us and not them, to be honest. We knew it would be hard beforehand, and we’re trying to make it work.

Additionally, we have cultural differences, and we’ve had some friction in that area. If they should improve something, it’s the cultural fit when working with companies in other regions. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Let Startup Development House run the project! Don’t try to do project management because they’re really good at it.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there? 

I’m the CEO of LEID.NO, a self-service rental platform for home equipment.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Startup Development House?

We needed help in creating our e-commerce web app where our customers could book and pay for objects they want to rent.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

During the discovery phase, they helped us create our customer journey map, user profiles, and more. After that, they built the MVP on React, and they integrated an inventory system so that we could have control over our stocks. Customers could rent our products, and they could also buy accessories. In addition, we wanted them to integrate a smooth customer experience. Currently, they provide maintenance and development work as needed.

What is the team composition?

The team changes over the different phases of the engagement, but we've had two project leads, a front- and backend developer, and a designer working with us for the majority of the project.

How did you come to work with Startup Development House?

They emailed us, and we set up a meeting. One of the main deciding factors for us was their approach to startups. We also felt that they were the right choice based on what they presented and the impression that we had about them.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent €150,000 (approximately $170,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together around April 2020, and we continue to collaborate.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We now have a functional platform and we now own the code of our e-commerce app, unlike before when we had to rent another platform from someone else. We definitely chose the right company to create our MVP.

How did Startup Development House perform from a project management perspective?

The MVP development project has been extremely smooth. They’re highly engaged and willing to understand our problems. We communicate via Slack and we use Jira.

What did you find most impressive about them? 

They’re consistent, and they deliver what they promise and match it with our budget.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They could improve their process from the development phase to the maintenance phase.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

They’re an awesome team to work with if you're a startup. They’ll make you feel like your team has expanded.