Velir

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the CIO of ICI, a trade association located in DC.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We recently went live with a new Drupal website, however the vendor that worked on this ended their relationship after being unable to resolve a number of performance issues, and leaving our site unfinished. We needed a company to come in and pickup where that company left off, and fix the problems that company had left us with. We then wanted to have a long term partner for ongoing enhancement and improvements to the site.

SOLUTION

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

We conducted a competitive RFP process, evaluating approximately 6 firms that specialized in Drupal. Ultimately we selected Velir based on their experiences in similar situations and they approach for assessing our situation and iterative approach at addressing the issues.

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

Velir did an initial onboarding assessment, and then started working on key issues. They use Jira as an issue tracking system, which has worked well. Additionally, they employ a very thorough change management and deployment management process.

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

There were a wide range of positions, depending on the initiative - probably 10-12 people over time. We have a dedicated project manager as well as business analysts. We have seen strong consistency in the technical team in particular, which is very helpful.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

A lot of what we've had to do to date was resolve significant technical issues the prior firm left us with. We are just now getting to more forward thinking initiatives.

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

Velir uses Jira as their issue and case tracking system. They supplement this with other tools and reports, which are effective. We have a weekly status report meeting, and meet on an ad hoc basis depending on what's needed.

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

Their willingness to come in and pick up where another firm left, knowing it was a mess and risky. They have been very thorough in approach and diligent in keeping us up to date, and constantly moving toward our goals.

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

Earlier in the project we had some continuity in communication issues, and delays in getting information, but Velir addressed and fixed this proactively.