SynapseIndia

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

It produces a lot of advantages. We do task planning and tracking. Although there are other commercial products out there, we don't use them because they are not well-aligned with our R&D business process. While we follow a process, it's emergent and evolving tied to R&D. This tool that we built helps with that, keeps tasks on time, and at the same time gives our small team a lot of flexibility.

In terms of business advantage, it's like any other task manager. It helps us keep all the projects on track, keeps our costs manageable, provides much more efficiency, and improves communication between team members.

How did SynapseCo perform from a project management standpoint?

We interacted through Skype and Upwork. It was very frequent, almost on a daily basis, and I received immediate responses. At the end of the work day, they're clear in communicating what was done and what was posted. Any requirements and ambiguities were resolved through Skype. Examples were given and documents were exchanged through Upwork and our server. When I didn't feel comfortable having information in the public domain, we used our servers. They were very responsive. They clarified everything we requested. They were very thorough.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Everyone has a good work ethic and technical competency. Their graphic design was very nice. It's very good compared to some agencies I've worked with before. I think they're a very good value for the money for their skill sets. Communication in specifications was sometimes a challenge, but they were very proactive in clarifying exactly how they understood it, went back and implemented it and asked me to verify it.

Are there any areas they could improve?

It would be nice if I didn't have to verify so many things. My specification was more along the lines of a narrative and not a software description. If someone could translate nebulous software requirements and turn them into more concrete, detailed design, it would be nice. It would save us some effort. I got some design ideas from them, but I had to ask them for it. Hiring someone with experience in requirements analysis would be helpful.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

The more defined your product concept is, the more efficient they'll be. They are very quick and thorough in taking a relatively closed implementation specification and doing it. They'll certainly get you to the point of success. The amount of time it will take going from your concept to the product will depend on how good you are at specifying it. If you leave things abstract, plan for more design and verification time, which is to be expected, but I didn't have a person with that skill set in the team. If you're looking to give abstract ideas and broad concepts, make sure you factor that into your overall process. They're capable of executing it, but it takes longer.

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

The program seems quite functional so far. Although I don’t have specific metrics to share, I can speak to their value as a company. All the people I've dealt with have been very helpful, and they're excellent at staying in touch. They're always available to respond to our emails, despite the time difference; we're located in Toronto, and they're in India.

Over the last year, they've provided excellent influence for our project. I’d take screenshots of each webpage, compile them into a word document, and add content to show their team what I wanted to change. Several of these update documents evidence the impact of their work, and the nature of our progress over the past 6-8 months.

How did SynapseCo perform from a project management standpoint?

As my first time managing a project, I struggled to see the trajectory from a design and content perspective. They've been supportive in that regard, and consistently gave us useful suggestions to improve the program, including what things to add. I spent a lot of time testing and tracking the site, which may have made the project more expensive than we'd anticipated.

We used several threads on the Guru site to connect on a daily or weekly basis. We also communicated daily or every other day via e-mail and Skype, which is much easier. Despite being based in India, we had very few issues communicating with the group. There was a negligible language barrier, and we resolved incongruences by sending screenshots with additional context.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I appreciated their constant availability, quick responses to emails, and regular updates on project status. If I was busy with work and missed correspondence, they'd send reminder emails and accommodate my schedule. They consistently indicated when they started work on new fixes, and would confirm receipt of my messages by the next day. It was never difficult to get in touch with any of them.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Sometimes as the manager for this project, I received insufficient guidance on what direction to take. I would prefer them to provide specific outlines, rather than having to guess what best practice would be. I often gave them basic design templates to show what we were picturing, which they’d implement as-is. We wanted them to showcase our designs at a higher level, and upgrade these generic examples to fit our layout.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I would suggest asking to provide specific examples of PDFs or web links from previous projects related to one’s industry, whether that’s finance, insurance, or marketing. That will give you a nice idea of the value they can bring to your project, or what types of programs they can build for you. Some of their work is shown on Guru, more specifically catered materials might be helpful.

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

The app only launched about one month ago and the feedback so far has been positive relating to the look and feel of the app.

How did Synapse perform from a project management standpoint?

I am very impressed with them. They politely and enthusiastically prod me to keep the project moving along because they are excited to work on the next phase. I get the sense that they really know how to do business. As an example, I just gave them specifications for an update on the Android development, and they turned it around and got back to me with a proposal in one day. They are also flexible with workflow, allowing me to break the development into five milestones, which is how I like to work.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I found that they were able to bring a number of experienced people to the project, consisting of Android programmers, database programmers, and  SEO capabilities. They have provided me a complete team to be able to get my project to the Play Store, quickly and professionally. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

Right now I am very happy with the way they manage projects and I don't have any improvements to offer.

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

I used to do a dictation service, which was very costly, but with the app there won't be any fee because I will input the information and print it at the facility.

The app (both iOS and Android) is getting ready to launch, so it hasn't been utilized in the public domain yet.

How did they perform from a project management standpoint?

They're very responsive, professional, and timely. We use Skype, email, and phone to communicate. We prefer email since they're in India and I'm the United States.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They're very knowledgeable about the product. I had no IT experience, and they guided me through the entire project. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Have a clear vision of what you need, and Synapse will be able to guide you and give you suggestions on how to market it.

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

They deliver their products on time and perform at the same level or better than our in-house team. Any new projects go to them first because I know they’ll do a great job. Normally, I'm very thorough and picky when it comes to working with a third-party vendor, but SynapseCo has consistently impressed me.

How did SynapseCo perform from a project management standpoint?

Most of our communication is via Skype, but we also use email, screen shares, and phone calls. We talk with them every night.

The team they provide us has changed a few times, but it’s probably been about 90% consistent so far, and whenever it does switch, we’ve never lost any quality.

What did you find most impressive about them?

For an overseas company, they’re timely and easy to work with. They deliver on their promises, and their skillsets make them an invaluable partner. I can trust that they’ll do the job well and be honest about their capacity and limitations.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The time difference and language barrier have sometimes been a challenge, but that’s not necessarily their fault. We’ve managed to work through any miscommunications, though.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Do your research and be clear on your expectations so that everyone is on the same page. In long distance partnerships, it’s critical that everyone understands the project or else the timeline can be severely delayed.

Could you share any statistics, metrics or other feedback from this engagement?

SynapseIndia is a good and thorough development agency.

How did SynapseIndia perform from a project management standpoint?

SynapseIndia has come to understand how we expect them to work. We have daily contact through Skype and can easily give them instructions. If SynapseIndia’s team is unclear about anything, they will let us know. We also collaborate through the Upwork platform and work on an hourly basis. Upwork is good enough for us, so we don’t use any specialized project tracking tools.

What distinguishes SynapseIndia from other providers?

SynapseIndia works well as a team. They work well with each other and their clients in order to provide the best possible solution. It’s better to work with a team that has the cumulative expertise and knowledge in order to get the best result. Previously I worked with a different company for server maintenance, but getting two companies to talk can be difficult, so we decided to move that task to SynapseIndia, so they could manage the whole lot.

Is there anything SynapseIndia could have improved or done differently?

SynapseIndia should make sure that their resources have a good grasp of the English language, given that they’re dealing with English-speaking clients. We have been able to get through to them, but it’s sometimes better to talk to a vendor in our own language.

RATINGS

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

SynapseIndia did a very good job of developing our marketplace integration software. They delivered the work in a reasonable amount of time and always checked if everything was working properly. We run many scrum jobs, and any problems are addressed without delay. SynapseIndia's team will usually have overtime until everything is working properly. Their commitment level is always 100%. SynapseIndia's team is also very polite, respectful, and professional.

How did SynapseIndia perform from a project management standpoint?

In terms of scheduling, we've only had minor issues. We don't use any specialized project management tools because our management does not require this. Documentation and feedback are provided by myself directly. I give SynapseIndia small tasks, instead of overall projects. They report to me twice a day by either email, Skype, or phone.

What distinguishes SynapseIndia from other providers?

SynapseIndia is a serious company, compared to some of their competition. I worked with other developers who always found reasons for delays, sometimes lying. SynapseIndia focuses on my project and gives me access to the resources I hire.

Is there anything SynapseIndia could have improved or done differently?

Whenever we have issues or delays, SynapseIndia simply gives me discounts. At times, I was not charged for a week's worth of work when their developers needed more time to do research. SynapseIndia has always accommodated me and made sure that I was happy.

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

Expertise has been shown repeatedly by SynapseIndia. They've been helpful with design and coding, as well as with changes to our website. SynapseIndia is very responsive in this sense.

Defects are problems that are never addressed or are outside of the scope of what can be done, which has never happened with SynapseIndia. If we run into a problem, they will fix it, so it's never been an issue.

How did SynapseIndia perform from a project management standpoint?

They've been better than myself in terms of responding to progress checks. Communication has always been done verbally and with occasional screenshots for what needs to be changed in terms of visual design. SynapseIndia has allowed us to work in this way, without any issues. Because I constantly deal with the same person, I haven't had a need to use specialized project management tools.

What distinguishes SynapseIndia from other providers?

Since I've worked exclusively with SynapseIndia for a long time, I don't have many points of comparison with other competitors. I've found that their level of communication has been extremely good and has allowed me to rely on SynapseIndia for programming. We've underwent a series of small code changes which have progressed over almost 10 years. The application has changed in ways which couldn't be predicted in the beginning, but SynapseIndia rolled along with this. They've shown flexibility and adaptability.

Is there anything SynapseIndia could have improved or done differently?

I'm very happy with the relationship. We've settled into a very smooth communication routine, so there are no problems in that regard. In terms of programming skills, I definitely have no issues with SynapseIndia. Whenever I needed additional expertise on top of the PHP work, the company itself has stepped up with programmers who could provide the service. Upsurge capability is a good advantage.

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

In terms of outside feedback, I don't have a whole lot. My own feedback is that they're average to good, engineering-wise.

How did SynapseIndia perform from a project management standpoint?

They did a great job in terms of cost effectiveness and delivery. You will always have technical difficulties. Because we are in a very resource-controlled environment at this point, we do our best with what we have. I do all illustrations myself, and the engineers make up 60-70% of the project. Communication with them is generally very good.

Is there anything SynapseIndia could have improved or done differently?

Not that I don't think highly of them, but they don't really work on a project. They maintain the relationship at asking if everything is okay.

When it comes to design, they're not really what you're looking for. They do not have the right resources for creative work. If you're looking for good, organized, engineering work, they should be able to support your need. I ended up firing the designer assigned to us because the work was very lousy and unorganized. I didn't think they knew what they were doing. In the first six months, I was not able to go to the backend and look at the code. I could look to the CSS, but had no access for making corrections myself. I would give them a design and it would come out totally different. The current designer is more organized and generally better. I wish I'd had him from the start.

The problem is that it's very difficult to go back and fix things. It's very time-consuming. This is my one bad experience with them. Again, in terms of engineering, they're very good and efficient.

My recommendation for future clients is to treat Synapse as a production shop for more technical work, and to steer away from using them as a creative or strategic partner. If you're just looking for something very ordinary, it would be okay.

Our business concept has been done before, but it's still different from anything out there. This became a challenge. I'm the designer myself, and I have very high standards in terms of what I'm looking for. Something being two pixels off from what I wanted is a problem. If you have very high standards, you should have an in-house designer to work with them.

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

Since they operate as an extension of our team, we don't really have any specific metrics tied exclusively to them. Our own staff has been very impressed with their reliability and the consistency of their work. We rarely have issues with bugs discovered after launch.

How did SynapseIndia perform from a project management standpoint?

They've mostly delivered on budget. The few exceptions have not been their fault. The scope of the original project was not done correctly.

They've been really good at setting up times that are convenient for both of us, so we could have real-world communication. We talk through Skype every morning.

Is there anything SynapseIndia could have improved or done differently?

As great as their communication is, there occasionally will be an issue because they are in India. They should get some more native English speakers even though they generally speak the language. The project manager's English is fantastic. When it comes to speaking with some of the programmers, though, things will get lost in translation. That's not really their fault because they don't typically send clients that far down the rabbit hole.