u2i

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the COO of an NGO that gathers and integrates data from the worldwide Polish diaspora. Recently, we’ve launched a data science platform to streamline our operations. 

What challenge were you trying to address with u2i?

We needed help developing our database. 

What was the scope of their involvement?

u2i took over the work of our previous provider and developed our database using Ruby. Notably, the platform features filters that can refine searches, and it also has a jobs opportunities section. The platform has already been launched, and u2i continues to provide site maintenance and support.

What is the team composition?

I’ve worked with two developers and one project manager.  

How did you come to work with u2i?

A friend recommended u2i to us. When I reached out, they liked our project and expressed interest in helping. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve paid $2,500.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve started working together in July 2020, and our relationship is ongoing. 

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

The platform has received positive feedback from users due to its ease of use. We’re delighted that the site is functional. We’re 100% satisfied with u2i’s work, and they’ve exceeded our expectations. 

How did u2i perform from a project management standpoint?

u2i is good at project management — they meet deadlines, and our communication has been smooth. They’ve delivered the platform on time despite having a tight schedule. Working with them has been a big relief compared to our previous provider.

We collaborate through Slack, and we’re happy with u2i’s responsiveness. We have regular calls where they share their honest feedback. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

u2i’s flexibility in communication is impressive. They even provide proactive suggestions on how to improve our organization. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Follow their lead and advice — they’re very professional and know what they’re doing. 

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a senior project director in the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at a healthcare institution.

What challenge were you trying to address with u2i?

We had developed an app for collecting research data on child mental health and we had really focused on the frontend. By the time we had released it, we had all this data that was unfiltered and there wasn't really a full data pipeline.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We hired them to sort of build out our pipeline and to, you know, both investigate and implement tools for data analysis. They also redesigned our UX.

The app works on iOS and Android. They moved a lot of our backend into AWS, so we’re using tools like recognition and storage.

What is the team composition?

We worked with four people.  Interface with their COO once in a while, but our project manager is in control of the project.

How did you come to work with u2i?

They were recommended to us by other people in our institution.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent about $400,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in March 2019 and our engagement is ongoing.

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

They’re very smart. When we give them a problem, and even if we have a solution in mind, they come up with the best solution.

How did u2i perform from a project management standpoint?

The turnaround time for our UX redesign was so fast compared to previous teams we’ve worked with. They meet with our product owner once a week to have open-ended discussions on what they could build in the future. They’re super responsive and are always contributing to our workflow. They have an excellent tool for retros that we started using. They know when to scale up or down, and how things should look based on their experience. Overall, they’re great.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re smart and innovative. They consider every direction you could go in. Whenever we have a problem, they come up with about five solutions. Based on our needs, they will determine what option is the best and most appropriate.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Not a lot comes to mind. Their skillsets are so beyond others we’ve worked with.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Integrate them into your team as much as possible. Having them in discussions can be very helpful.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the tech lead for a hard money lending company.

What challenge were you trying to address with u2i?

The main challenge was to channel users through the workflow of our web application in an intuitive way. We wanted a platform that was quick to onboard and to assist in scaling our company. At the time, we were growing quickly and wanted a way to scale efficiently.

What was the scope of their involvement?

u2i researched our users to create wireframes and prototypes. Anna (Software Engineer) asked questions and took notes that she shared with us throughout the process. Their team created a user profile and story. They also provided a style guide for the developers to use. They designed the underwriting portal of our web app, which will be the hub of our underwriters’ day. It’s similar to a CMS, so we can click through the platform and it pulls our attention the correct way. We’re currently doing more design projects with them.

What is the team composition?

I worked with one person, Anna. We had biweekly meetings to not just keep me updated but also to ensure that she was headed in the right direction.

How did you come to work with u2i?

One of my colleagues worked with u2i when working for a different company. He said that their team was amazing and to give them a show, so we did.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent between $10,000–$15,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started the project with u2i in November 2019 and finished the underwriting project in January 2020. I actually liked them so much that I pushed my bosses to sign with them for another project.

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

We tested the design in the prototyping stage and our underwriters were pleased with it.  The designs were well above my expectations. Our team wanted to use it right away, so there’s a lot of anticipation for the product. Anna’s design skills are fantastic. We love the final product.

How did u2i perform from a project management standpoint?

Anna kept me in the loop on what was done and needed to be done. Anna made a Trello board that she shared, so it was easy to see the project plan. She even assigned tasks to me from time to time. Our company doesn’t even use a product like that, so I really appreciated it. It was a great experience.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their communication was above and beyond. It didn’t just have bi-weekly meetings but also constant check-ins with their managers. Their leadership made sure that everything went well. Anna asked frequently whether or not we liked the product. There was a lot of open communication.

Are there any areas they could improve?

It wasn’t an issue but u2i didn’t work in the same tech stack that I wanted. It’s possible that they didn’t have people available at that point who worked in it. They did offer to bring someone on with that skillset, but I made the decision to turn down the offer. That was the only area where we hit a tiny bump. However, I wasn’t so bothered by it.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Have someone committed to maintaining the relationship. I was involved in the project, which means that I don’t know how they work if you were to hand off the project. If you want to see personalized results, it’s important to communicate, which is a two-way street. Stay involved in the project. Make time for meetings and do what’s asked of you.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a product manager at a literacy nonprofit. We’re trying to close the literacy gap in the US, and we have an app that serves as a pathway to achieving that mission. I’m responsible for working with u2i to maintain the app.

What challenge were you trying to address with u2i?

We were working with another software firm on this project, and I wasn’t satisfied with the quality of their work or their communication in general. We decided to take a step back and see if we could find a team that could offer a different approach to the project.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They primarily help us with app development. They’ve already built the front- and backend of the product, including an automated SMS feature.

The product is a web-based application that provides resources and tools for families. For example, the feature that u2i created sends text reminders to parents about building better reading habits with their kids.

Aside from the development work, u2i also helps us with product strategy and design.

What is the team composition?

I work with two engineers—one senior full-stack engineer and one frontend developer.

How did you come to work with u2i?

I was referred to u2i by a colleague of our CEO. I reached out and had an excellent initial conversation. Even during those first couple of meetings, they were offering new ideas, acting as a technical thought partner.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent almost $200,000 at this point.

What is the status of this engagement?

We formally started around March 2019, but the conversations were already happening in January. The project is ongoing.

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

We’ve piloted the program, and it’s proven to be effective and valuable for families. They all said they loved it.

Also, the strategy and design work has been a huge help for us. We’re a small organization and can use all of that support.

How did u2i perform from a project management standpoint?

I handle the project management, and they develop everything. I’m in charge of setting up a process to track progress. Everything gets done very quickly, whether it be exchanges of information, feature iterations, or even feedback. They’ve been delivering consistently, and all of their work meets my expectations.

We communicate daily. At one point, they flew out to our office in California to work with me on a week-long sprint. That was a fantastic experience.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The relationship, specifically in terms of communication, has been excellent. It’s been very different from past experiences—less formal, in a good way. I feel like I’m working with friends rather than an external team. We’re always on the same page, and their team is super responsive.

They have this mindset where they want to build off of our ideas. They don’t look at it as more work; instead, they work with us to come up with a solution. They’re also willing to have that discussion over Skype, Slack, or any other method of communication.

Another thing I’ve liked about our relationship is their patience. When we were having our initial conversations, I never felt pressured to officially decide to work with them. Our relationship developed organically based on their vision and what I was hoping to get out of the project.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Even though we have two full-time people who are dedicated to the project, we feel that project management has been lacking. Maybe it’s because of the volume of work we have right now, but they could be more consistent with updating us on their progress. That being said, we use Asana internally, and they have shown improvement with updating their hours and inputting estimates.

We’re still using a mostly ad hoc approach right now where they keep their own notes rather than relying on a project management tool. It’s not very transparent for either party.

It hasn’t been a problem, and we’ve been working this way for a while, but I’m worried about how that might affect future phases. We’re hiring more engineers on our team, and I think having a transparent approach with each project will become important when they’re onboarding.

That would be the only thing, and it isn’t their fault at all. I don’t want to be too critical because most of this is coming from our end as well.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Get to know them as well as you can during those initial conversations. Take that time to establish a common understanding and set clear expectations. That will help with decision making down the road. u2i also very good at guiding that process at the beginning.

Another piece of advice is to treat them as collaborators and partners, rather than just engineering labor or a team of external consultants. That's been important and helpful for us. Their collaborative approach is the main reason I chose them and have continued working with them.

Introduce your business and what you do there. 

I’m the founder and CEO of an early-stage startup that connects people with compatible therapists.

What challenge were you trying to address with u2i? 

At the time, our match-making process involved a lot of human and financial capital because we were manually pairing clients with therapists. We relied on u2i to integrate technical solutions into our operations ultimately to help us work faster in a cost-effective way.

What was the scope of their involvement? 

u2i helped compile a lot of the data that we had been collecting via spreadsheets into a comprehensive backend database for our site. They then helped develop a matching algorithm that would analyze our client and therapist data to automatically suggest pairings. This allowed us to facilitate the match-making process in a smarter, faster way.

What is the team composition?  

They provided three business analysts, three developers, and a UX designer.

How did you come to work with u2i? 

One of my colleagues had had a good experience using u2i and referred me to them. In the end, I chose u2i because I trusted that word-of-mouth referral. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent about $50,000 thus far.

What is the status of this engagement? 

Their work started in November 2018 and is ongoing.

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

Automating the match-making process has resulted in a substantial increase in productivity. What was once a 10-minute manual process now takes about 10 seconds. By streamlining our operations, we’ve also been able to grow the number of matches we make as well as the number of therapists we currently work with.

How did u2i perform from a project management standpoint?

u2i provides more product management support than any other outsourced technical firm that we’ve worked with. We have biweekly calls to go over their work, and the team is pretty good about tracking stories. They update us on the progress status, deadlines, task timeframe, and execution difficulty. 

What did you find most impressive about them? 

I appreciate that u2i wants to be an involved part of our team. Rather than just receiving detailed specs and implementing them, they’re invested in looking at our business decisions to see if the technology meets our needs. They’re interested in all stages of development, from ideation and business analysis to design and implementation. This is particularly helpful for early-stage companies that wouldn't otherwise have a technical lead.

Are there any areas they could improve? 

Compared to other outsourcing options, they’re not the least expensive, but, in general, I would recommend them highly. Their values, work ethic, and quality of work are very strong.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?
 
In addition to doing a phone consultation, you should really distill and digest why you want to hire u2i. If you’re looking for a comprehensive technical team that can handle everything from product management to implementation, then definitely consider u2i. They’re a great fit for clients who are looking to develop tech strategy/optimizations. For clients who already have the technical talent in-house or who are just looking to outsource extra work, it might be better to consider more affordable options.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of Neocortek Limited. 

What challenge were you trying to address with u2i?

I needed a partner to develop a technological prototype for a personal knowledge management system. The idea was to help business people better manage their information, which usually sits fragmented across several tools.

What was the scope of their involvement?

u2i built our prototype, using TypeScript for the backend and Neo4j for the database. The platform interacts with various other systems, integrating data from sources like Gmail, note-taking apps, and a popular CRM. It allows for a user’s entire data pool to be queried all in one place. 

What is the team composition? 

I interacted with two developers. 

How did you come to work with u2i?

I knew the founder, so when I started this project, I hired them. They had a flexible business model that worked with my goals and needs.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked on this project from June-December 2018. The prototype is finished, but our partnership continues. They are now helping me figure out business models.

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

The team was easy to collaborate with, but I don’t have any quantifiable metrics yet except for the prototype being completed on time.

How did u2i perform from a project management standpoint?

We held weekly calls and used Trello to manage the project. They had an iterative approach that resulted in lots of feedback and project updates.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They have a unique model of letting their developers interact directly with the managing client. It requires the elimination of any unnecessary intermediaries and facilitates clear communication.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, they’re responsive and creative.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

As an entrepreneur or CEO, don't put a project or product manager in between yourself and them; talk directly with the u2i team to get the most out of their unique engagement.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the lead developer at a small app company based in Brooklyn. Our app is a parking sharing service that helps users find spots.

What challenge were you trying to address with u2i?

We had to overhaul an app that was stagnant after working with another firm. After I came on board, we hired u2i to help with our backend. The frontend and mobile side were mainly taken care of, but we needed a team with expertise in AWS, Node.js, and Parse API to update the work and get development running again.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Our parking service has a mobile and web app. Instead of scrapping the previous work on the WordPress site, their team built on top of what we had. u2i worked with Node.js, AWS EC2 and S3, and Parse API to turn our site around. They also used jQuery and PHP for the web and mobile side. We handled the frontend within our team, but u2i helped with refactoring on the Swift side. 

What is the team composition?

I worked with two of their team members including a project manager.

How did you come to work with u2i?

We found them on Clutch. I heard a lot of positive things and wanted to use a reputable site. I browsed through a bunch of companies to find agencies proficient in the tech stack we were using, and I read through reviews to see if companies were trustworthy. After narrowing down a group of agencies, I took a look at their websites to see how they presented themselves. I’m extremely detail-oriented, so if there was a small mistake, they were no longer in the running. u2i’s reviews and site were pristine.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent between $20,000–$50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with u2i from September 2018 to January 2019.

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

Before engaging with u2i, there were problems due to the previous developer. I defined those issues and target goals with u2i. This impacted what our metrics would be. We checked off those lists as the engagement progressed.

How did u2i perform from a project management standpoint?

Working with u2i was fantastic. Despite being located in Poland, their communication was clear, open and fast. Their team was concise, making sure I always understood their perspective. They were forthcoming with information and never made any false promises. We never felt pressured to add something we didn’t want to the project.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I was most impressed with their line of communication. Because of this, there was a factor of trust working with u2i. Their team never tried to lengthen the process, forcing our company into something the project didn’t need or require. They were extremely communicative compared to the developer the company previously engaged with.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Truthfully, there are none. Everything they did was excellent. I can’t honestly point out anything that their team could improve upon. u2i did amazing work.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

First, customers should call and arrange a sit down to make sure they're knowledgeable in the technologies you want to use. Also, make sure to discuss goals. u2i enjoyed working with our company because they believed in the business as much as we did. It was a pleasure to work with them because we shared the same ideas and beliefs about the project. 

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Respondent 1: I lead the social business unit for a media company and am based in New York. We provide a social media product to the media industry.

Respondent 2: I lead our social technology teams and I am based out of Chicago.

What challenge were you trying to address with u2i?

R1: Our challenge is to continually add value to our best of breed SaaS product in a highly competitive environment that has rapid change. 

What was the scope of their involvement?

R2: u2i is involved in the entire software development lifecycle, essentially. Their participation extends from requirements and analysis, which one of their architects leads, through the development and business-as-usual support. We follow a very Agile and collaborative process.

They work closely with our product teams who provide the wireframes and some high-level requirements. From there, it's really an ongoing collaboration to get to the design stage and the actual implementation. Our product is a web application that's primarily a dashboard tool. Specific technologies they used included Ruby on Rails, Apache Hive, and Hadoop.

What is the team composition? 

R1: The relationship started very small but has grown over the years. We used to work with just two developers but have scaled up to a team of 20+ as our business, and the demand for our applications has grown.

How did you come to work with u2i?

R1: I was brought in as a product development consultant into another media company to audit their product development talent and process where u2i was their outsourced development resource. It was very apparent that u2i's were a bright spot in their operations. I started working with them on a start up a year later in 2008 that was subsequently acquired a few years later.

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

R1: The proof of u2i's success in building a useful application is evident in our revenue growth. We've been getting more and more customers and have enjoyed solid success renewing our existing users. With u2i building our product, we have added large-scale improvements year after year since we first launched.

Change occurs at a rapid pace in this space, and u2i helps us stay competitive with smaller and more nimble startups. As our development partner, they empower us to build stable, functional deliverables correctly and on time. They've successfully executed the product plans that address our customers' demands.

How did u2i perform from a project management standpoint?

R2: Overall, u2i is very efficient. They don't follow the most traditional project management style like the waterfall method. Instead, they tend to be more Agile and iterative. They're better suited to that type a fluid and flexible life cycle. We use video conferencing and Slack to communicate and usually meet in person 1-2 times a year.

What did you find most impressive about them?

R1: u2i is a fantastic group of people. They're thoughtful, serious, and professional about their work. At the same time, their flexibility and sensibility make it really enjoyable for us to work together. The whole team is incredibly hardworking, smart, and creative. It's rare to find a group of over 20 people who are all not only talented but also fun to work with. The sound relationship we’ve formed is a key ingredient to the quality of products we've built together.

R2: Their developers are highly skilled. u2i is very selective about who they are, which is reflected in our day-to-day interactions. In the past five years, I haven’t come across a single resource that hasn’t either met or exceeded my expectations for software development abilities.

Are there any areas they could improve?

R2: Due to their model of working, scaling is a bit of a challenge for u2i. Their strategy is to prioritize certain types of quality and culture over growing their company. Being a niche player rather than a typical large consultancy might be a conscious decision on their part. This does create some challenges if we have critical needs to scale on a concise timeline. This is their strategy, though, and I don't know if it's necessarily an area for improvement.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Little Bird HR is a digital platform that’s tailor-made for staff in K–12 schools. We’re a professional organization that offers worksite employees benefits and HR support.

What challenge were you trying to address with u2i?

We hired u2i to code and develop our HR technology system called Little Bird Nest.

What was the scope of their involvement?

u2i built our human resources information system (HRIS). This platform automates the entire onboarding process. It connects users with our payroll and benefits administration tool. Our whole infrastructure is software-based.

Developers coded the software using Ruby on Rails with the Bootstrap framework. The cloud infrastructure database is built on Amazon Web Services (AWS). They’ve completed numerous feature sets and planned a roadmap for 4–5 additional major upgrades. The product is live and is currently in version 2.0.

What is the team composition?

We work with three developers and a scrum master from u2i. We can scale the team up or down based on our cashflow.

How did you come to work with u2i?

I heard about the team through a referral.

How much have you invested with them?

Their work has cost around $700,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with u2i in March 2016. The project is ongoing. We might scale development down a bit, but we're unlikely to stop it completely.

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

About 2,000 school employees are currently using our software, and we’ve gotten a lot of good feedback from clients. They’ve definitely loved the different iterations of our product and are always giving us new and different stories to work through.

Using our system to manage teacher-specific administrative functions helps schools function more efficiently. We conduct a survey at the end of a client’s onboarding process to ask how they like Little Bird Nest. The average rating is 8.7 out of 10 at the moment, which is fairly good. We haven’t experienced any major crashes or bugs stemming from their work.

How did u2i perform from a project management standpoint?

U2i uses the Scrum methodology for projects. We hold daily calls at 8 a.m. between u2i’s Polish team, myself, and our internal product manager. We have a larger meeting twice a week to discuss our backlog and functional needs.

We’ve run through internal process iterations to simplify things. After initially using Pivotal Tracker, we transitioned to the Kanban project tracking framework. This tool has worked very well. The team carefully tracks progress and sends regular updates to keep us informed.

What did you find most impressive about them?

u2i’s expert developers have a substantial technical knowledge base about products, applications, and new technologies.  The company hires the top 5% of the development talent in their market. Their profit structure gives each resource equity which motivates them to take ownership of their work product and put in the best effort possible.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Our products require substantial support to run smoothly. They do a good job providing support but could benefit from making this concern a higher priority.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Clients need to be involved in the team selection. Meeting the developers will help you make sure that the right resources are working on your project. Try to learn about the process of writing user stories, and make sure your team is capable of handling this piece.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the digital product director at a large children’s publisher. Primarily, we create content for kids, including a variety of books and digital products. I work on our websites and game apps.

What challenge were you trying to address with u2i?

A different firm built an older version of our site, but we weren’t happy with their prices or what they were able to produce. We wanted a team to take control, salvage the old site, and get us on a path toward a better future.

What was the scope of their involvement?

For years, they were our primary web developer for our kids’ websites. They used Ruby on Rails and maintained our original PHP sites. They customized an incredibly powerful and flexible CMS for each, which was the most important part of what they did for us. The customizations helped us integrate a lot of features into the API and easily connect user data in variety of places. At the push of a button, we could have the exact features we needed. They also helped choose the right commercial and custom tools for our projects.

They did DevOps for some of our games and a lot of other useful systems. Everything they built was responsive to our needs and expandable. We have a different team who does lower-cost maintenance for us now. u2i found that team and oversaw the transition, but we do miss their skills.

What is the team composition?

Over the years we worked with them, the team expanded or contracted to suit our needs. The team had anywhere between one and seven members, depending on the task at hand.

How did you come to work with u2i?

I wasn’t responsible for onboarding them. I believe another member of our team found them through a personal connection.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent over $1 million.

What is the status of this engagement?

The relationship started in 2008 and ended around January 2017.

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

We built a community of hundreds of thousands of users who post over 10,000 times each month to the message boards u2i built from scratch. Our marketing team was delighted with their flexibility and how quickly they could make changes and additions.

For a small investment, we built something that allowed them to achieve really great things. They made everything much more responsive and reactive.

How did u2i perform from a project management standpoint?

They helped us adopt an extremely successful agile process for both coding and project management. Anyone who acted as a project manager was also a developer, which helped keep things moving. They’re all incredibly talented programmers. We could contact them through Trello and Skype and they were willing to use the tools that worked best for us.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They are a perfect combination of easy-going and competent. They are incredibly organized and we haven’t found anyone else like them. They are the best external team I’ve ever worked with. Without reservation, I recommend them to anyone who needs their services.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t think so. We’ve never worked with a team that had their level of flexibility. We measure all our other vendors against them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Give them the opportunity to help find the solutions you need. Trust their experience, knowledge, and expertise. They can implement your existing ideas, but they’re really talented problem solvers. Honor their creativity and intelligence and use the full toolset they offer. They will respect your needs and help you accomplish your goals.