Symfa

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the owner of a software development firm.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with AIS Novations?

The challenge that I had in the past was finding good solid software engineers and developers that could provide quality service. I was hiring them to build my product with my name on it. I needed not only quality but to be able to count on their abilities and them being there.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

AIS and I have been doing business now for the past six years. The principle of AIS and I started together on a single project. Then, as projects came in, I continued to use them and added their staff members to the point where now I only use AIS developers. They're in the same office and I have a proven track record with their company.

One recent project we’re working on is updating a client’s application that was written in .NET and C#. The older version needed to be more flexible and quicker, and it needed new features added. They hired us to come in and completely rewrite it using the same logic. We eventually had a team of 11 people working on it including developers, project managers, and testers. We’re in our third year of the project and now down to 5 team members.

Another example is an application we’ve been building with developers from AIS over the last two years. We wrote a complicated online ordering system from scratch that’s integrated with QuickBooks.

What is the team dynamic?

We often have multiple projects ongoing at the same time. We pull in who’s available at the time, both people we’ve worked with before and new people from their teams.

Because their teams are so large, we've not had a situation where we couldn’t get the expert staff in for the technology we were working on. We’re using a wide range of technology, both web and database wise. They offer everything. They’re a very well-rounded shop.

How did you come to work with AIS Novations?

A personal reference via word of mouth. The principal owner's wife is a programmer who was working for me. She could no longer program for me but said that her husband could. She gave me his information and that's how we started.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working together for 6 years and its ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The evidence is that either the product works or it doesn’t, and the client likes it or they don’t. Our measure of success is the fact that our client retention is 97%. You can’t ask for a better testimonial. Based on the example I gave before, when you have a group of people that are developing software and your client keeps you on for 3 years, that is a testimony to how well we do. That translates into how well AIS does because that is where the development staff comes from.

How did AIS Novations perform from a project management standpoint?

The participants on a given project vary and I act as oversight to identify any problems. The only problems I’ve seen are typical ones. Often, they’re not real problems, just management issues that occur when a criterion hasn’t been written to specific details so that it can be understood.

Overall, they’re dependable. We require them to be on the clock during our business hours or our client business hours, wherever they may be. They're always available. They turn in their work and its high quality.

We’ve worked so well together and we have fine-tuned the working relationship over the past 6 years. We've ironed out all of the things that there would have been issues with. At this point, it’s like we're one company even though we're not because I use them exclusively.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I liked the fact that, when you give them a task, they’ll come back to you with questions for clarification and with examples and suggestions of how to do it better. That is truly professional. They don't just take what you've given them, they take ownership. They bring an attention to detail and high level of knowledge to the task.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

The higher quality your requirements are the more you're going to like the results. Vague specifications don't get results. Also, stay interactive in the project. Don't give a task to them and then come back 6 months later, hoping that they’ve built what you asked for.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the president of an e-commerce company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with AIS Novations?

We were looking to update two of our websites, optimizing their performance and making them mobile-friendly.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We supplied them with our own design expectations for the two websites, and with that, they updated the sites’ out-of-date .NET platform to the latest version of .NET, which increased their speed and performance. They also made the sites mobile-friendly, while maintaining their key functionalities. 

What is the team dynamic? 

We worked with our primary project manager, Sergey [CEO, AIS Novations], as well as another project manager who helped oversee the project and deal with its nuances. We also worked with a rotating team of developers who were overseen by a lead developer.

How did you come to work with AIS Novations?

We found a number of companies to interview for the project on UpWork. When we talked to Sergey, we felt comfortable that he was knowledgeable and had experience in what we needed, so we chose to work with AIS.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested around $40,000 to $50,000 on them.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began partnering at the beginning of 2016 and continue to work with them. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The overall traffic on the two websites increased, and we think it’s probably due to the improvements AIS made. We can also see for ourselves that the websites are performing faster and more efficiently, so we know our users are getting a better experience.

How did AIS Novations perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re very responsive when we need them to troubleshoot or if we had a concern. They ensured we had all the resources necessary to get the project done on time.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We found their ability to deal with very complex issues most impressive. They allocated resources properly so they could solve anything that came up.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They initially used MongoDB technology for the two websites’ databases, but the rest of our websites operated on Microsoft SQL. We wanted our websites to uniformly remain on the Microsoft SQL database since that was most effective for our business, so they had to make that adjustment for us.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be interactive with them and monitor the project timeline by having weekly progress meetings. This will ensure that nothing slips through the cracks and your timeline is met.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Owner of Jenn Newton Marketing, LLC

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Helping businesses in the energy industry save time and money by improving their processes either by updating procedures or helping with creating software to minimize or eliminate spreadsheets.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Symfa to accomplish?

Oil Energy Software to help maintain and reconcile data

SOLUTION

How did you find Symfa?

Online Search

Why did you select Symfa over others?

Good value for cost

How many teammates from Symfa were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

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

So far there is a new system where I can: 

• upload truck ticket details
• capture errors that are out of specific range
• add and maintain static data
• add in contract data

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

This project is still ongoing. I am happy with the results, but I am looking forward to being able to actually use it for settlement purposes.

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

Everyone has been very nice and quick to respond to all of my needs.

What was your primary form of communication with Symfa?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

Willing to work with me on budget and timeline.

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

Not that I can think of at this time.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

 I am a department director of a financial services company 

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Commercial Property and Casualty Insurance Provider

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Symfa to accomplish?

• Staff Augmentation for Project Based Work

SOLUTION

How did you find Symfa?

• Referral

Why did you select Symfa over others?

• Good value for cost

How many teammates from Symfa were assigned to this project?

1 Employee

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

Symfa has served in a staff augmentation role for our application buildout as it relates to our Excess and Surplus products. In the past 18 months, the Symfa team has partnered with in house resources to refine and modernize in house applications and also bring a brand new product to market.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our measurable deliverables over the past 18 months included the below. Modernize our external platform to meet business needs. Build a new supplemental product complete with a process and experience API layer to power a low code front end.

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

Our Symfa resources were task oriented and stuck to their deadlines very well. When training opportunities were identified, they were addressed, and growth and experience were noticeable in the group.

What was your primary form of communication with Symfa?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

The work ethic of our Symfa resources was extremely strong. While there is a learning curve when dealing with proprietary technology, the effort was always there.

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

One request for improvement would be an increase in attention to detail. When dealing with proprietary products and technology, proper development testing is extremely important as there are many regression scenarios to consider. With experience and dedication, the team can build upon this foundation.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am an executive at Colined

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Developing application for Atlassian eco-system

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Symfa to accomplish?

• Software development outsourcing

SOLUTION

How did you find Symfa?

Referral

Why did you select Symfa over others?

• Pricing fits our budget
• Good value for cost
• Referred to me

How many teammates from Symfa were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

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

• Developing the apps for Atlassian Jira application. 
• Implementing new features, including on the basis of user reviews. 
• Every app consists of three parts - Java application, bunch of Node applications and Client-Side Web application.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Three releases full of new features were published in Atlassian Marketplace

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

They demonstrated excellent project management. No issues with time. Communications is fine

What was your primary form of communication with Symfa?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

Perfect price / quality ratio

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

No idea

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Managing Director of a Consulting & Software Company

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Consulting and software solutions for the telecom industry.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Symfa to accomplish?

• Modern mobile app for our customers
• Public and private web portals
• Desktop apps for various platforms: Windows, MacOS and Linux

SOLUTION

How did you find Symfa?

Referral

Why did you select Symfa over others?

• Pricing fit our budget
• Good value for cost
• Referred to me

How many teammates from Symfa were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

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

The project consisted of creating several custom made mobile apps and web portals for our customers in the telecom industry.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Projects were delivered on time and on budget, the end customers were happy with the process and the end results.

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

They ensured excellent project management and delivered all tasks on time. Any minor issues were addressed and solved in a timely manner.

What was your primary form of communication with Symfa?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

• Excellent customer relationship management. 
• Outstanding technical personnel.

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

Nothing comes to my mind.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

The SumatoSoft software development company delivers IT solutions and services with a deep understanding of modern technologies, transparent processes, and strong expertise in business domains. We implement comprehensive projects and deliver high-end web, mobile, IoT, and SaaS solutions. I work as a project manager.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We hired AIS Novations to make business analysis for creating Form Builder solution for a third party company.

SOLUTION

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

We needed a high level business analyst for the project and AIS Novations could provide him.

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

Business analyst worked during Discovery phase to gather all high level requirements and when development started was engaged with preparation of development tasks.

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

1 person, business analyst.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We closed all timelines of the project in time with good quality.

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

Good business communications, punctuality, good process organization.

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

They're professional and a pleasure to work with.

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

No areas to improve.