Surf

I am the Business Director, Love Republic of Love Republic (MELON FASHION GROUP)

LOVE REPUBLIC is a part of MELON FASHION GROUP BRAND and manufacturer of women's clothing. Love Republic retail chain is represented in 4 countries and has more than 150 stores.

• Implement a more convenient logic of user interaction with the application.
• Avoid critical bugs in the old application.
• Implement the most necessary and convenient functionality that covers all needs

Online Search, Referral, Other

High ratings, Close to my geographic location, Good value for cost, Referred to me, Company values aligned

2-5 Employees

Virtual Meeting, Email or Messaging App

The Surf team, using their experience in market research, made a number of adjustments to the logic of the app, thanks to which they were able to make user interaction with the app more flexible and logical. They tried to take into account all of the possible cases that users encounter in the app. Despite the fact that integrating analytics into the app wasn't part of our initial plans, the Surf team managed to finish the task in a shorter period of time and released it. The Surf team has always tried to help our backend team members from Love Republic, so that everyone involved in the development process moves in the same direction and meets the deadlines.

• In six months, the Surf team developed an updated app for Love Republic.
• We were able to keep business goals in mind and release an app for the all-important Black Friday for any e-commerce app, saving about 40% of the budget through the Flutter cross-platform.

The team was fully available to us, on a daily basis, with open and clear communication.They often organized intermediate demos and meetings as issues arose.

I appreciate their professionalism. By the way, they worked in a very organized way taking into account all our business needs. We completed the project on time thanks to quality services and management.

It’s a great pleasure to collaborate with Surf. It’s been very efficient, and we can only wish the team to keep up the good work!

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’ m the Head of Mobile Banking App Development

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

The old version of our mobile app was based on an out-of-the-box solution (white-label banking software). However, the bank made a decision to replace the out-of-the-box solution with an app of its own. This way the bank could be able to upgrade the app in a way they see fit without having to adjust to limited capabilities of the out-of-the-box while-label platform.

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

To find a contractor we placed an order on an electronic tendering platform. The terms were published in the public domain and several companies took part in bidding. The offer Surf made had the best price. Moreover, Surf turned out to have the most experience in development of banking and fintech solutions.

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

We had a tough challenge - building native app for Android and iOS. The whole project was divided into several steps. At the first step a brand new version of the app having the same functionality as the old one had to be designed. The other steps involved the following: publishing the app on the stores, gradually migrating users from the old version and into the new one, developing new features, and introducing upgrades to the new app.

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

Surf team consists of: 5 iOS developers, 5 Android developers, 2 QAs, 2 business analysts, and a project manager.

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

We have launched an updated version of our application and it is now undergoing a user migration phase. Our clients noted great usability and functionality of the new app.

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

The cooperation process was very clear and transparent. We were always aware of what lay ahead at the next step. The team adapted to our requirements and wishes in a flexible manner and promptly made the corresponding changes. In addition, we were very impressed with the suggestions that Surf made based on their experience.

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

Surf has extensive experience in banking solutions. Besides that, they have a great technical background and huge experience in mobile app development.

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

So far, this collaboration with Surf has fully conformed with all of our expectations.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m a Product owner in the IT department of the company. Our company is one of the international chains of fast food restaurants, represented in more than 100 countries around the world.

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

Surf needed to implement a Web application, which would transform these processes from paper to digital media. It had to be suitable for employees of different levels - managers, directors, territorial managers. Another task was to allow executives to work out of the office via a mobile app and monitor the restaurants' operational indicators online.

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

We sent out a purchase proposal to our IT partners, including Surf. The deciding factors for choosing Surf were: Extensive experience developing mobile apps for major brands Readiness to allocate a sufficient number of specialists to our project Price, timing and quality of development

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

Surf has developed a Web and mobile application for this system. The app has become one of its most important parts. With its help, restaurant managers and area managers can install the app on their personal phones, monitor indicators remotely, and adjust restaurant performance in real time.

Key features of the mobile app: Dashboard with online restaurant performance metrics, Daily checklists for restaurant shift managers and area coaches, Restaurant Team Rating and KPIs, Restaurant Rating. Surf created a striking design in the company colors and a very user-friendly interface for our app, which makes interaction with the app easy and pleasant.

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

On the Surf side:

• 3 backend
• 1 frontend
• 1 flutter
• 2 BA
• 1 qa
• 1 service manager
• 1 pm

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

The system helped move business processes - reporting, scheduling employees, planning and control - from paper to digital media and integrate into a unified IT system. The system has become an important service that the company offers to all of its franchisee partners.

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

Surf showed a very good level of technical competence - they are able to implement the solution at a high technical level. It is important that the team understands the specifics of large geographically distributed companies. At the same time, they helped us to reduce development costs by offering a great solution - the cross-platform Flutter framework. I would also like to note that Surf has a productive and well-organized communication process, both within the team and with the client.

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

Surf was able to offer us a solution that helped us cover all our needs at once: speed up development and reduce the project budget. It is a cross-platform application development on Flutter (it allows creating a single application for Android and iOS) and the concept of Bring Your Own Device (restaurant directors and area managers use the application on their personal phones).

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

We continue to cooperate with Surf and we really like the level of their professional competence and well-organized communication.

Please describe your company and your position there.

Our company is one of the largest Financial startups. I working as top manager in this company and responsible for business and product development.

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

We would like to create our own payment instrument for cross-border transfers with payment in cash. Surf has expertise in working with it. Therefore, we turned to Surf.

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

Surf was ready to engage developers with the necessary skills and experience we needed. The key factors influenced our decision to collaborate with Surf was professionalism and quick estimation of the proposed project. The team was able to engage the project extremely quickly.

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

At the start of the project, we had several meetings with the Surf Team to detail all the business requirements, identify the nuances, and fix the development approaches. They launched several Agile processes in parallel. Established the process of identifying business requirements, preparing the terms of reference and layouts. They developed a float for authorization, and the customer deployed an additional two-factor authentication system.

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

My team worked directly with the project manager. Additionally, we mostly interacted with two lead front- and backend developers and analyst.

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

We got a ready solution (web-service) for partners' interaction with the money transfer system. Simple and clear functionality allows you to send, pay out money transfers and administer the functionality of the web-client for end users. The project envisages further scaling - expanding the functionality, increasing the number of sending directions and customizing the interfaces.

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

The project manager was easy to communicate with and provided frequent updates. We had both in-person meetings and phone calls, but most of the feedback was through email. Everything was delivered on time and we received ample warning if a deadline wasn't going to be met.

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

Surf is a pleasure to work with. They had a high level of expertise in different areas and offered many solutions and ideas to improve some functions. We also liked the fact that the team was proactive and showed high interest in the results of the project.

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

Nothing

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am CPO of Burger King Russia. Burger King is the second largest fast-food restaurant chain in the world. Every day more than eleven million visitors come to BURGER KING restaurants around the world.

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

We decided to update the design of our mobile app, improve its fault tolerance, as well as systematize the work with conversion and user experience. With these tasks we turned to Surf.

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

The decisive factors for choosing Surf were:

• Extensive experience in developing mobile apps for major brands
• Readiness to allocate a sufficient number of high-qualified specialists to our project
• Price, timing and quality of development

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

Together with the Surf team, we implemented a new brand design concept in the mobile app. Now the Burger King sales channel has a much more modern and stylish design that reflects the current brand values. The Surf team solved several important tasks simultaneously: stabilized the app, developed features in the old version, implemented the redesign, and systematized work on conversion and user experience

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

My team worked directly with their iOS, Android developers, QA specialists, and the Project Manager as the key contact person

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

Today, 85% of the company's sales are made on digital channels and during 2022, Burger King's mobile app ranked first in the food and beverage category on the App Store and Google Play with user ratings of 4.8 and 4.3, respectively.

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

In the work with Surf we would like to highlight a good understanding of the features of Android and iOS mobile platforms and excellent knowledge of the requirements for publishing mobile applications. Throughout the project all team members were available and promptly responded to business correspondence.

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

Surf showed a very good level of technical competence - they were able to implement the solution at a high technical level. The company's specialists showed the ability to be part of a team and to flexibly adjust to the needs of the project in a short time frame

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

We continue to cooperate with Surf and we really like the level of their professional competence and well-organized communication.

Please describe your company and your position there.

The company is engaged in the construction of shopping centers. We also have district centers with stores, places for entertainment and services for the population. I plated the role of IT Business partner for Marketing team

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

The main goal was to develop the app as a full-fledged digital-communication channel, allowing us not only to attract customers, but also to connect all users for ex. register for upcoming events and stay up-to-date on what's going on in the community center, as well as reaching out to others in the community

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

We searched online for the best mobile developers in our area and shortlisted 10. After interviewing them, we chose this vendor based on their requirements, experience of the agency and cost estimate.

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

We collaborate with the team in the preparatory stages of our projects. The team has proved to be highly professional and reliable in developing mobile applications. In this stage we clearly define the business metrics that the application will be focused on, and form a development budget for the project from investors. Surf also conducted a technical study and worked through the architecture of the project, taking into account loads and integrations with third-party services.

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

Project Manager, Art Director, Designer, System Analyst, Flutter Developer for consulting puproses

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

As a result of Design phase we received: MVP Vision; a design concept; Integration and Functional Architecture; Back end architecture; a detailed cost and time estimation; backlog We were fully happy with the result. Many thanks to the team!

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

The team proactively shared new ideas and asked appropriate questions to clarify all the details. We regularly hold online meetings to synchronize and discuss current issues. Communication within the team was really well organized with chats and project management tools

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

I would like to mention their mobile app development skills and the ability to foresee potential risks to avoid delays in the project progress. The way they designed the App was great.

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

Fully happy, nothing to add

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the business project manager in charge of the development of a bank’s new mobile application.

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

Initially, we wanted to improve the native app we already had. Besides, we intended to implement test automation in the app and infrastructure for the tests as it reduces testing time and allows developers to fix bugs quickly.

During the detailed discussion of the project, we understood that it would be easier and less expensive to create a new Flutter application from scratch and lay the foundation for its further scaling than modify the existing one.

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

Surf has a wealth of expertise in banking projects. In addition, we appreciate the level of their Flutter skills. Important was the fact that the company has a fully functional team covering all the roles we need: designers, PM, developers, analysts, and QA.

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

Within nine months of collaboration with Surf, we have developed a Flutter application with automated tests and infrastructure for them. The app is available for smartphones and tablets.

The first release covered a large set of features:

• 4 methods of authorization
• 2 ways to register
• Product review and management
• Setting up products: cards, accounts, deposits
• My Finances module allows you to understand your financial situation in terms of all banking products
• Payments and transfers
• Automatic payments
• Favorite payments
• Operations and activities history
• Expenses analytics
• Chat for customer support
• ATM and branches review
• Personal data management

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

1 designer,1 PM, 2 analysts, 4 Flutter developers, 2 QAs.

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

We successfully launched the first version of the app. Users like it and rate it highly. We have done a lot of work to update the design for the bank’s app:

• We brought the design up to date and adapted it to Flutter development.
• We improved UX: all solutions suggested by the bank were analyzed, taking into account Surf experience with banking apps.
• Some options were suggested, to make the app more user-friendly.

For example, improvement of the interface variant for small screens: to arrange the elements in a way that allows avoiding unnecessary scrolls. Now the app development continues, new features are released every month.

One more significant point is that based on the code of this app, Surf is currently developing an app for another bank, which is also a part of our group. It has a different design and set of features, but reusing the code will reduce the time and cost of the project to 70%.

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

Surf has efficient communication processes. They consider all wishes and comments, the stages are transparent, and it is clear what result is to achieve at each stage. The team is easy and ready to communicate, offers efficient solutions based on their experience, and proves them with reason. In general, I believe, in a short time, we have implemented a great scope of tasks.

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

I am impressed with Surf's expertise in developing solutions, both for banks and other industries. I like that the team strives to dive deep into the product, go thoroughly through each stage, and offer the best possible solutions. Surf's commitment to constantly improve the product is impressive: now we continue to work together on the app and improve it.

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

We continue to develop the project with Surf and we are satisfied with the level of expertise, proactivity, and well-organized processes in the team.

Please describe your company and your position there.

We develop financial applications for retail and institutional brokerages, wealth-management firms, investment funds, exchanges, and insurance companies. As a Head of Department, I am responsible for the Outsourcing department processes, which coordinates collaborations and relationships with our partners.

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

We specialize in developing highly complex solutions for the financial industry. We needed a professional and reliable team with the relevant background to engage them in our projects when it is necessary

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

Surf was ready to engage developers with the necessary skills and experience we needed. After several successful projects, our collaboration has grown into a long-term partnership. The key factors influenced our decision to collaborate with Surf was a recommendation from our partners, professional and quick estimation of the proposed project, and high professionalism of their manager. The team was able to engage the project extremely quickly.

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

We collaborate with the team in the development and testing stages of our projects. The team has proved to be highly professional and reliable in developing native mobile applications. One of the major tasks delegated to the team was a complex refactoring, the result of which significantly improved our project.

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

Typically, the team includes several iOS\Android developers with a Team Lead, QA specialists, and the Project Manager as the key contact person.

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

In the context of our partnership, the most significant outcome is that the Surf team has become a part of our team and we can delegate them any tasks.

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

The team is proactive with sharing new ideas and setting relevant questions to clarify all the details. We hold regular online meetings for sync and discussion of current issues. The team communication is well organized by chats and project management tools.

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

I like to commend their mobile app development skills and ability to foresee potential risks to avoid any delays.

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

Up to now, we have nothing to complain about.

Please describe your company and your position there.

Yotolab is a web & mobile app development company working with startups in the fields of robotics, neurotechnology, augmented reality, retail, foodtech, social media, and others. I am the CEO for Yotolab.

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

We needed an application for managing company personnel. We wanted to create a digital profile for each employee, where all information about them is collected. Based on this data, the manager or HR department can evaluate the employee, analyze their involvement and efficiency, and draw up development plans. And the employees themselves - to evaluate the possible directions of development, to undergo training, to present themselves from the best side.

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

To speed up development, we wanted to create a cross-platform application on Flutter, and Surf has a lot of expertise in working with it. Therefore, we turned to Surf.

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

Each employee of the company has a digital profile: all information about their skills, role in the company, achievements, completed training is entered into it. HR can assess the level of each of the employees, offer them training, see when a person has already “grown up” to move to the next step in the career ladder. For the employees themselves, such a profile is also useful: they see the trainings that take place in the company and can sign up for something of interest. They can also declare their achievements by entering them in their profile. This data helps HR make the right career decisions, and helps employees develop in areas of interest to them.

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

1 analyst 1 designer 1 PM 2 Flutter developers 1 QA

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

We have just launched the application, so there are no quantitative indicators. But we expect that our turnover rate will decrease, the level of employee satisfaction with their development in the company will increase.

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

The process was fine-tuned. We had one entry point - PM, he perfectly translated “from technical to human”, so there were no complaints or misunderstandings during the interaction.

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

Surf is a pleasure to work with. They have a high level of expertise, they offer many solutions themselves. We also liked the fact that the team was proactive and showed high interest in the results of the project.

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

Everything was great, keep the same level.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Head of UX/UI division at Bank Zenit, finlab Tatneft. Bank Zenit is present in 45 cities of the Russian Federation with 11 branches and almost two hundred offices. The company is a subsidiary of PJSC TATNEFT and is rated among the Top 40 Russian banks in terms of net assets.

For what projects/services did your company hire Surf?

We needed to develop a unified UI / UX for the mobile banking app.

How did you select this vendor?

It was a formal tender procedure. The terms were published in the public domain and Surf made the offer that fit best.

Describe the project in detail and walk through the stages of the project.

It is a mobile banking app where a client can make payments and transfers as well as check the accounts, deposits and credits. They can also view their spending analytics or find an ATM or a bank office on the map.

The Surf team did research and put together a UI prototype based on our wishes and existing data and using the bank's corporate colors and unified design elements. Thanks to this, the application looks cool and organically integrates into the overall style of the bank.

All new features are also implemented in the same style. What’s more, the interface was integrated with the Fast Payments System. This is a project set up by the Central Bank of Russia in order to make transfers between clients of different banks. It is developed as a part of the Open Banking initiative endorsed in Russia. The Central Bank sets strict design requirements for this module, so it took considerable effort for the Surf team to do it.

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

Art Director and 2 designers from Surf

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

The project that Surf made is in line with our vision and expectations. Many clients of the bank use the application and like its user-friendly interface. Moreover, it has high conversion rates. The app is under ongoing development with new features constantly added to it.

Specifically, now we are implementing about 10 new features, such as requesting information about banking products (credits, deposits, etc.) via the application without having to visit the bank, push notification service, and personal offers.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Our communication with Surf was quite productive. On a number of issues Surf showed their expertise and had some suggestions at hand on the best ways to implement a feature. Those suggestions were backed by analytics on user activity, thus boosting efficiency of the product and making it possible to make the right decisions at minimal risk of possible errors. Our cooperation has been going on for over two years, and that just speaks for itself - we have managed to build an effective workflow.

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

Development of a banking app is a complex and massive project. Surf has extensive experience in development and continuously impresses us with their expertise. The team has profound insights into the process. They offer interesting solutions and build on a number of similar cases in UI/UX development.

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

So far, cooperation with Surf fully meets all our expectations.