Vilmate LLC

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am one of the co-founders of Formsatsningen, a Swedish online social platform that motivates people to lose weight through a combination of competition, social support, and reward.

Formsatsningen is a fitness tech start-up company that aims to revolutionize the way people approach weight loss. Through the introduction of unconventional yet effective motivational techniques into the weight management process, Formsatsningen puts an emphasis on the sense of community and reward-driven competition.

This means app users not only can give and get support encouraging one another to reach their goals but they are also awarded an opportunity to win prizes and money.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Vilmate LLC?

Our product vision suggested that everything had to be built from scratch. In particular, we searched for a software development vendor to design a professional custom website and mobile application for iOS and Android devices.

Along with the project vision, we had also prepared design and software requirements specifications and therefore needed a trusted partner to do the job and deal with developing a website and an iOS and Android app for us in accordance with the requirements presented.

What were your goals for this project?

First and foremost, the goal for the project was to transform our business idea into reality. We wanted to create a hassle-free, high-quality app with multi-device compatibility and a smooth UX, and a website that would be easy to navigate and use.

Our primary focus for the project involved building an application in such a way that it's launch would demonstrate a high level of user engagement.

SOLUTION

How did you select Vilmate LLC?

In the meantime of going through the process of evaluating different vendors, we discussed our ideas with Vilmate. Based on their prompt responses to our queries and proactive involvement with our team, we concluded that they looked like a good fit.

They gave an impression of being driven and excited to work on our app, as well as willing and prepared to work quickly to meet the deadlines we set. We also found them very reliable and transparent which was important for us.

Describe the project in detail.

Initially, we held a series of meetings with their development management team. We thoroughly discussed our vision and project requirements, explored the project idea, and finally agreed on the contractual terms for the project implementation.

Based on these findings, they estimated resource requirements, prepared a project proposal, planned the development cycles, and put together a development team. As we brought in a UX designer who designed the application, they took the outlined ideas and product specifications and started turning them into code.

Every piece of software had to be designed and developed from scratch, so they began with building the software development infrastructure and selecting the technology stack, which ultimately included .NET Core, Angular, Cordova, and Microsoft Azure.

The application for iOS and Android was developed in the form of a mobile web app where users could register, login, create their own customized groups, and join existing ones.

They also can participate in group chats to share their photos and videos, receive support, encouragement, motivation, and extra tips from group mates. On the Formsatsningen app, users can easily set weight loss goals, track progress, and check the statistics.

On top of it, the application allows executing payment transactions conveniently and securely from the dashboard, and more. The Vilmate project team ensured that the app had all the necessary basic functionality and some powerful features that helped it stand out.

Meanwhile, the website that they delivered became one of our key marketing tools for app promotion.

What was the team composition?

Throughout the project, the team consisted of 2 back-end developers, 1 front-end developer, and 1 QA engineer. They were very well organized and hard-working. Vilmate did an amazing job putting together such a qualified team for our project.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

As a result of our collaboration with Vilmate, we now have a fully functional website and a mobile application available for use on mobile iOS and Android devices. Once the development team approved the app for beta testing, we received a rather prompt response from users, which allowed making all the necessary tweaks to the app just as quickly.

The team has always managed to promptly identify and address all the impediments to the project implementation. So, the bottom line is that they delivered a clean and straightforward app and built a user-friendly website at the scheduled time.

Currently, the Formsatsningen mobile application is stable and in active use within Sweden.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Once the project started, the workflow was excellent. Although there were no project managers involved, we had regular direct back-and-forth communication with Vilmate’s team.

It also meant that team coordination, organization, and management were part of our duties. However, they have professional people working for the company, and so was the approach to our new website and application implementation. They kept to the project schedule, and we are happy with the overall experience.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

It is understandable that you might have qualms about whether a relationship with a remote outsourcing partner like Vilmate can work. However, from our experience, I can say that we’ve never had any major problems.

Their rates are really reasonable, and communication with the team is consistently effective. I can trust them, and they provide excellent service quality. Considering that it was our first venture into the app development world, they’ve taken care to ensure everything is transparent and kept us informed at every step of the development process.

I appreciated their willingness to look for ways to further improve our product. They are a knowledgeable team of enthusiastic mobile and web developers who put their minds and hearts into the project. And it is always nice to know that the team is as invested in the project as you are.

Are there any areas for improvement?

I can’t really recall anything specific. Of course, there’s always room for improvement, and any service provider can strive to achieve more. Vilmate is a wonderful team that provides exceptional value for the work they deliver.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am co-founder and Board Member at Jobcast, an online job search platform and employer branding provider, headquartered in Stockholm. The Jobcast app is designed to facilitate interactions between candidates and employers in the form of a podcast. It innovates how companies promote their employer brand and helps develop recruitment marketing strategies.

Jobcast allows recruiters and job candidates to use such a non-conventional medium as podcasts to initiate and maintain professional interactions with one another.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Vilmate LLC?

There are many job search platforms designed to connect employers and applicants, but we wanted to bring this experience to the next level. We’ve come up with a more efficient way of posting and responding to vacancies – in audio format.

Not only listening to vacancies had to be made possible anywhere and anytime, but also audio postings were intended to become more emotional to the listener and easily accessible right on a smartphone. We hired Vilmate to create a custom mobile app for iOS and Android devices.

The end product was intended to allow users to post and listen to job openings, thus vocalising the employer and employee’s first meeting.

What were your goals for this project?

Our engagement focused on building an app that could provide people with a simple and effective way to initiate a dialogue aimed at hiring talent, promoting one’s employer brand, or getting a job. The main objective was to build a product that would facilitate this communication seamlessly.

The project’s primary goal was to develop not only a beautiful app but also a user-friendly mobile platform that employers, recruiters, and candidates would enjoy and find useful.

SOLUTION

How did you select Vilmate LLC?

We had been in touch with Vilmate for two years leading up to our partnering on the Jobcast project. So, when we got into the negotiating process, I felt they understood exactly what we wanted out of the app, and they offered competitive pricing for their services.

Describe the project in detail.

We started our cooperation by facilitating brainstorming sessions. At that time, we had a fully functioning website and an idea for future mobile apps. So, once we selected Vilmate, we had a series of meetings to work out the details of the applications.

We showcased the desired app design through some rough sketches and provided more information about the concept and the goals to be achieved. After that, they put together a project proposal that outlined how long the project would take, the project scope, and the estimated cost. When we approved the proposal, the actual app development for both iOS and Android platforms began.

Using Python and Reactive Native, they developed a turnkey solution that now allows users to search for jobs and hunt suitable candidates to fill open positions. Some essential functionality they’ve added includes an audio player powered by autoplay and background audio play features, a payment system, and adjustable profile settings. In the meantime, they’ve also been taking care of the testing part.

What was the team composition?

The project team was composed of 2 front-end developers and 2 back-end developers (1 full-time and 1 part-time.) And if there was ever an issue, someone was always ready to step in and address the matter, avoiding any project delays.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The best evidence is that we started with a vision and now have a full-fledged mobile app built in less than 6 months. It was a fixed-price project in every sense of the word. The app launched about a year ago, and the number of downloads and users, as well as the Jobcast app partners, keeps growing.

The app continues to help companies tell their stories. It introduces audio into new user environments and makes recruitment interactions more engaging. So, overall, we are happy with the result.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Unlike other companies in the software industry, we ensured at every phase and step of managing the project that there were clear metrics set to measure outcomes. The Vilmate team, in their turn, guaranteed they delivered those outcomes on time and of predictable quality.

Throughout the development, we held meetings as needed to address any questions. As a result, the app was launched as scheduled. Besides, Vilmate is transparent and responsive.

They were consistently good at communicating. So, even though there were no stringent deadlines, they always kept us in the loop, managing our expectations on schedule, functionality, and more.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

We enjoyed working with Vilmate. Every time we were giving feedback, they were very accommodating and supportive. The team worked hard and cared about the success of our project.

They processed the functional requirements quite well and managed to interpret them correctly, designing the app the way we’d envisioned it. Also, they were honest and consistent throughout the project development process.

They never charged extra, as the scope and cost had been specified and agreed upon early in the project.

Are there any areas for improvement?

There is not much that they could improve upon. We are satisfied with the level of service they deliver.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m CEO and Co-founder at GetCompliant, a tech company founded in Stockholm, Sweden, in 2013. We help food-service and grocery chains organize their everyday operations and processes. Our platform serves as a tool powering businesses to keep track of ongoing tasks and daily routines, save time and money, as well as secure service quality and compliance.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

As we approached Vilmate, GetCompliant had an application with limited and simple functionality. At that time, we were searching for a partner to make our web-based and mobile (iOS and Android) compliance management solutions fully functional and well-established. So, we decided to outsource further app development to Vilmate.

The objective of our involvement with Vilmate for the project was to redesign the existing system and to make our iOS and Android mobile applications as well as our web client app equipped with some core functionalities that we didn't have before, but which were meant to enhance the user experience and make our product more usable.

SOLUTION

How did you select Vilmate LLC and what were the deciding factors?

We searched for software development vendors online. And Vilmate’s development capabilities, project management approach, and communication skills made them stand out from the competition. Ultimately, we selected Vilmate because they offered the broadest skill set, a reasonable price, and a realistic timeline.

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

Once we selected Vilmate as a vendor for project implementation, they began the recruitment process to put together a team of professionals to work with us. While the recruitment period was ongoing, we have had several design sessions with the team’s technical lead intending to build a product roadmap that would give a detailed picture of a project's deliverables. Then, once the development team was set-up, they got down to the work of implementing our requirements.

Using the latest technologies, they redesigned the system’s API, reengineered the legacy database, updated the front-end, and added a number of conceptually important features. This included task creation, task history, interactive dashboards, and secret customer functionality for auditing. Currently, Vilmate continues contributing to the project, which includes adding new capabilities, running tests, and software maintenance.

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

Vilmate took responsibility for organizing recruitment efforts and keeping track of the candidates. Initially, we started assembling a project team with 2 software engineers. As our product vision has evolved in the course of the project, we requested to augment the team to include 4 web developers and 2 QA engineers.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Their contribution to the project was more than essential. We’ve been cooperating for over 7 years now. In the course of this involvement, the team has always been professionally dealing with the task of planning, implementing, and maintaining the project. We have launched GetCompliant Android and iOS mobile applications, and the number of businesses in Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Denmark using them keeps steadily growing.

Besides adding new features to the system, the team has been responsible for running and maintaining all bug-fixes and infrastructure support, which positively impacted product quality. Throughout that time, we were always looking for new ways of improving our processes, and Vilmate was instrumental in getting that done.

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

Vilmate’s transparency and openness in interpersonal communication gave a sense of being on a team with a shared vision. Project management was based on an interactive discussion that built strong trust between team members and a shared understanding of the purpose of the project. The collaboration, feedback, and motivational process were at the core of the success. We have regular progress review meetings and use Slack for everyday communication. We don’t talk about the “Vilmate” och “GetCompliant” teams, we talk about the Kharkiv and the Stockholm teams.

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

They are the people who know how a profitable business partnership has to work. Also, they worked very well as a team and were always extremely professional and friendly. We’ve been lucky to work with Vilmate for the past seven years and very impressed by the results we managed to achieve.

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

They’re an excellent company to work with. I appreciate their willingness to improve the product, and they don’t leave you feeling like you are the only one who cares. Together, we are constantly improving the processes and we couldn’t ask for a better team.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am an Executive Partner at CoPatient, a Connecticut, U.S., based healthcare consumer advocacy startup. CoPatient was formed by a group of healthcare experts to help consumers make sure their medical bills are fair and accurate.

We review medical bills and advocate on behalf of patients, so they never pay more than they should. Our advocates have decades of experience working with insurance companies and healthcare providers, which helps them pinpoint medical billing issues, evaluate cost savings opportunities, and negotiate a fair price.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We were looking for a development team to custom build a web application from the ground up. We’ve partnered with Vilmate to develop our software product on time, with consistently high quality, and at a competitive cost.

One of the biggest project challenges was associated with the need to ensure compliance with the stringent security requirements for data and document storage, imposed by U.S. law. Another significant challenge stemmed from the rapid growth of the mobile web over the preceding years and, as a result, the majority (over 60%) of the user requests made from mobile devices.

SOLUTION

How did you select Vilmate LLC and what were the deciding factors?

Vilmate was recommended to me by a business partner we both had previously cooperated with.

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

To successfully get a project off the ground, Vilmate selected qualified candidates with years of experience working on creating marketable products from scratch. After several interviews, we picked one specialist who then came to the United States to actively participate in the Proof of Concept (POC) development. When the first mockups and interactive prototypes were created, they all were presented for review and critical evaluation of the general idea.

Based on these findings, we defined the requirements for the MVP. As soon as the MVP was approved by all the stakeholders, the recruitment process began. In the shortest time possible, the Vilmate’s recruitment team helped us select specialists with strong knowledge of Python/Django, AngularJS, Redis, PostgreSQL, AWS, and Heroku. Once the project team was put together, they got down to work.

The team planned the architecture of the application and its underlying infrastructure. They put forward their recommendations on how to organize software development and testing processes and set up the initial configuration of the required tools and services. The closer we were getting to the MVP release, the more new business ideas and requirements emerged, sometimes radical and requiring significant implementation efforts.

The project team showed their ability to quickly adapt to changing conditions and did their best to effectively bring those ideas to life and in as short a time as possible. After the MVP was released and the obtained results were analyzed, it was decided to continue developing the project, as the then-established team proved to have the skills and flexibility to cope with the rapidly changing tasks.

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

First off, Vilmate sent one full stack software engineer to work on the POC on-site in close cooperation with the management team. After a quick and successful completion of this task, they put together a team of 4 experts: 2 full ­stack developers, 1 front end developer, and 1 QA engineer. As the project evolved, the team’s composition has been adjusted to accommodate project needs, schedules, and workloads.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

As a result of their involvement, CoPatient has gone live and is, presently, in active commercial use. Also, we hired one more team of professionals from Vilmate to work on another ongoing project that has, as of today, yielded the same predictably excellent result.

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

During the years that the project has been under development, the Vilmate team has been managed directly by me. Vilmate’s business model allows eliminating the need for intermediaries like project managers. The professionals they hire are independent enough, which makes it possible for us to communicate directly with the development team and be sure that they will understand business requirements without the slightest chance of misinterpretation.

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

I was sincerely amazed by the incredible unity, agility, and expertise of the team Vilmate put together. To get things done in a startup environment, they were all ready to work overtime, ignoring a significant time zone difference. They were also able to arrive at the U.S. office on-demand every time it came to addressing high-priority or legally sensitive tasks that must be handled onshore only. We were pleasantly surprised by the perspicuity of the Vilmate’s approach, as it was our first experience working with the outstaff model.

Overall, these guys are technically savvy, have great work ethics, and know how to deliver in an agile way in a startup environment. An awesome team we want to continue working with.

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

They could extend the reach and promote their services better in the U.S. market :)

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the founder and CTO of a Stockholm-based tech company focused on helping managers and HR leaders improve the workplace experience for their employees.

Since 2014, we have been providing our solution to organizations willing to increase employee engagement, improve their work environment, and build positive company culture.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Vilmate LLC?

Our solution is a large system that consists of Android and iOS mobile apps and a web-based application. However, at the time when we contacted Vilmate, the mobile version needed to be improved in terms of performance, usability, and its feature-set.

We selected Vilmate to do the redesign and rebuild of mobile Android and iOS apps and also the design and development of a tablet version of the app.

What were your goals for this project?

The goal was not only to develop an app but a modern user-friendly solution. We wanted to update the tech stack for our mobile applications so that they could deliver a great user experience.

We needed the app for iOS and Android to be a convenient tool for users to get all the necessary real-time insights that could be further acted on.

SOLUTION

How did you select Vilmate LLC?

Vilmate approached us after finding out that we were looking for a tech vendor to help with software development and system optimization. Their specialization and track record with other companies were convincing and so we engaged them for what we thought was a fair price.

Describe the project in detail.

From the outset, it was clear that the development team had to get down to work as soon as possible. So, first of all, we set a task to find an Android and an iOS developer qualified to get us the result we were after.

Eventually, the project team was extended to include another iOS developer and a QA engineer. Vilmate’s hiring team has always managed to recruit talented professionals in a relatively short period of time. The work on the project began with migrating an application. It was not an easy business but handled by them, it turned out smoothly.

The app’s initial logic was not affected along the way, it grew more coherent, while the app’s architecture became much more flexible, and the &frankly application’s responsiveness was considerably enhanced. The Vilmate team re-engineered the existing functionality in an efficient and timely manner.

They also implemened the tablet version of the app within one year and prepare a new software version with an updated UI/UX.

What was the team composition?

We began our cooperation with a team of 2 mobile app developers (iOS and Android), then it was augmented with one more iOS developer and a QA engineer. Vilmate’s team of recruiters did their best to help us hire top talent capable of delivering software fast and in good quality.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They have been very important in the development of our service, and has sole responsibility for the app development of the service.

As a result of their early efforts and our ongoing engagement with Vilmate, we have fully functional and feature complete Android, iOS, and tablet versions of the app with the updated UI/UX design and advanced features.

Besides, they continuously deliver new functions and features that make the app even more beneficial to the customers. We regularly receive positive feedback from our customers on the app.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Workflow management with Vilmate has been very smooth. They were flexible and planned future tasks based on the bandwidth of each team member, which was in alignment with our business requirements.

Twice a week scrums over video an an always agreed upon backlog of prioritized tasks has given complete transparency over what was being done on a daily basis and made interpersonal communication within the project team much easier.

As the work on the project just began, we had a lot to accomplish, and the Vilmate team didn’t lose sight of the roadmap as they worked through it. They were a strong, robust team with a clear, shared set of tasks and clear priorities.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Vilmate always has every aspect of the workflow organized and every task done decently. They managed to meet deadlines in a professional manner even though their team size was relatively small.

I could tell they have high standards to live up to and they would not compromise in that respect. I would highly recommend Vilmate to anyone looking for a company who needs strong competent developers to integrate to their development workflow to build components and applications, standalone or as part of exiting services.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Not that I can think of really. Vilmate does their job well in the sense that I don't have to worry other things than the business priorities we want to implement, and have maintained a happy and engaged team for considerably longer than what is standard in the industry/for developers to stay on.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Rule's #1 industry is marketing automation. We develop digital communication solutions for carrying out rule-based omnichannel marketing campaigns, with a focus on hyper-personalization. Founded in 2007, Rule Communication AB is located in Stockholm, Sweden. I am the CTO.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Vilmate LLC?

We faced some challenges related to finding, hiring, and retaining onsite staff at a consistent rate. At the time we got in touch with Vilmate, our platform was already operational. The processes, however, needed to be optimized.

Therefore, we relied on Vilmate to help us increase our velocity and reduce time-to-market so that we could build even more cool and innovative features engaging customers with hyper-personalized marketing campaigns.

What were your goals for this project?

The outcome of our partnership with Vilmate was expected to be the overall improvement of the existing platform. We also wanted to optimize the development process. The solution had to contribute to the ease of use and the partial re-architecture while supporting the old target platform.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

They were recommended to us by a senior technical stakeholder of one of the Vilmate’s clients who was well-acquainted with their technical capabilities, skills, and reliability as a provider.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

They augmented our team to work together on our marketing automation platform optimization. For the project, they used Lavarel and Lumen frameworks, AngularJS, MariaDB, Redis, integration modules and libraries. As a result, they helped us to create the template editor, add Facebook messaging functionality, fine-tune integration with the Facebook Lead Advertisement platform and Magento2, and make improvements to the statistics monitoring and aggregation functionality, which all promote hyper-personalization in users’ marketing campaigns. Now, they continue assisting us with the app maintenance and development of new features.

What was the team composition?

They took care of the recruitment process for the project. So, we began by hiring 1 software engineer from Vilmate to augment our onsite team. Eventually, the project team grew to include 8 Vilmate’s employees. Developers and QA engineers were coming and going as we required different skill sets. Along the way, the Vilmate team has been managed directly by our Head of Development, which means we were always in touch and aware of the current state of things and ongoing progress. This, in turn, allowed us to check each other's advancement and sync up the appropriate skills in our team.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any information that demonstrates the impact that this project has had on your business?

They managed to add real value to our marketing automation product. Reducing the development cost by 52%, we nearly doubled our development effort as a result of their involvement. The team delivered mission-critical functionality in excellent quality without falling behind the schedule.

In fact, they proved to be a performant and reliable partner so that we continue to grow, bring new features, and add stability to our application together ever since. As a result, all of this has helped cement our position as the #1 marketing automation platform in Scandinavia.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

Project management was at its highest. Although we did not have much experience of hiring offshore developers from software development vendors before we got in touch with Vilmate, open communication and transparency on their side helped establish an excellent workflow between our team and theirs.

We’re proud to have worked out the kinks by now and have a quality and sustainable long-term relationship after all.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Our communication with them is excellent and they are as concerned about the product quality as we are. This is critical for project success, as they truly aim to understand our needs and always make sure the right people are involved. We're really pleased with what they have done so far, and we have the feeling that we can make a lot more in the future!

Are there any areas for improvement?

Overall, I’m satisfied with our experience with Vilmate. For us, it turned out to be a great software development outsourcing experience.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Trailhead Technology Partners is a boutique senior architect consulting company that builds custom business software. We work with a variety of companies.

I’m a partner.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with VILMATE?

We were looking for senior-experience developers and QA [quality assurance] engineers for both web and mobile testing.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

60% of our relationship deals with development and 40% with QA. They provided QA on web apps and both native and Xamarin mobile on iOS and Android. They used JavaScript and C#. We do an Agile process with our clients and then we bring in VILMATE’s team members. We manage the project and run the scrums, so they choose their work and perform it independently including the QA.

How did you come to work with VILMATE?

I had worked with VILMATE through my past three employers. In total, I’ve worked with them for 4 years.

How much have you invested with VILMATE?

Over the past year, we’ve spent $300,000 with VILMATE.

What is the status of this engagement?

We have been working with VILMATE since January 2016 and we continue to work with them.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

We work on time and materials but we have a pretty detailed estimate that we track the actual hours against. A typical project will be within 10% of our estimate on cost.

How did VILMATE perform from a project management standpoint?

They always deliver on time. They use our system for project management, which is Visual Studio Team Services, in order to manage work items, do our sprint planning, and manage our test suites and many other processes.

What did you find most impressive about VILMATE?

We’re very happy with them. They have well architected, high-quality work with no bugs.

Are there any areas VILMATE could improve?

Technology evolves constantly, so it’s a matter of keeping up with the changes. VILMATE does very well in staying current.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are like Google Waze App but for business-to-business [B2B]. We produce traffic information in real time, and from that we create different types of services, to make logistics companies more efficient. I am the chief executive and chief technology officer.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with VILMATE?

We're building a sports event management logistics tool. We specified the product we needed and they developed it.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We've done another project with them as well. We built an Android/iOS for our commuter application. The requirements were pretty different. For the first project, we specified more generally what we wanted to do and achieve, and from that, they helped us put up the project plan, identify the tasks, and how we were going to build it.

On the other one, we already had our backend system, so they actually did a native iOS and Android app. In all the solutions, I think it is native in both iOS and Android, and I think they used Node.js on the backend side for the event management tool.

How did you come to work with VILMATE?

Previously, we had a start-up here in Stockholm. I got an email through LinkedIn or something, asking to meet us. They were targeting the companies who we were sharing offices with. I took the meeting and we just talked. Then, after a while, we had this new project coming up so we thought we'd give them a try. It worked well. We were impressed, so we let them do the other project as well.

How much have you invested with VILMATE?

We have spent roughly $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The engagement began in January 2016 and is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

I think the good part has been that they're always fast, but if there's a problem or there is an issue, they take care of it and fix it. They're always available.

The funny thing was when two weeks before we were set to do our first launch of the sports event management tool, they actually arranged their own running race for the entire office just to try out the tool, to verify it themselves. I think it was high quality. It was nice. I didn't pitch for it; they just did it. They thought it was great. It’s definitely a nice success story, I think.

When we have our events, they make sure they stay online in case something goes down or something happens. That's been really good actually. When we're running the app for larger events in Stockholm, they're alert in the background, just in case something happens and stuff like that.

How did VILMATE perform from a project management standpoint?

They have meetings once or twice every week to go through the specifications and keep on track of what's happening. I really like the relationship in regards to the format we work in.

In our case, we specified everything for the project including all the desired features. We prioritized what we wanted to do. Then, we added up all the things we wanted to get done in the Spring, and had different guys working on the list and doing the tasks. We follow up at least once a week to discuss progress and testing, and such. We're quite Agile.

We give them a lot of freedom. We don't control them too much and they come to us with improvements to our suggestions. They can choose technology freely and things like that. The work is quite structured, but they have a lot of freedom. We haven't had a problem where we've had to really specify all the details and things.

We both have great trust in each other. It feels like they're working in the same company.

What did you find most impressive about VILMATE?

They were really good at specifying the time spent on different things and showing the results. You always knew how long everything took, which was exceptionally good. You knew how much time was spent on each part of the work. Their transparency and flexibility are great.

Are there any areas VILMATE could improve?

The good thing is they've been very structured. We've been the ones who have been unstructured, changing our mind and things like that. I don't know what they could have improved really.

When we want to build features, they're like, “We can do it.” Because they're eager to solve it and we're eager to produce it, maybe we don't think through how much work is involved or how hard the effort can be. Sometimes, we had to spend a bit more time than expected because we didn't think through the complexity of something all the way.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Our company is in Stockholm, Sweden. It’s a crowdfunding platform focused not so much on donations and awards, but more on equity and loans. It’s one of the biggest ones in Scandinavia.

I have been the chief technology officer [CTO] for six months, leading development and the development team. I was previously CTO in another company, so I’ve been leading software development for a few years. I’ve been in IT for six years.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with VILMATE?

I was recruited for this job. The company had an issue with developer retention onsite. I was tasked with setting up a new team. Since I needed to do it quickly, I saw a challenge in Stockholm with the developer market being oversaturated and felt that the recruiting process would take a long time. I contacted VILMATE, who I had worked with in my previous position because I felt comfortable with their recruiting process and I trust them as people. In this company, we’ve not outsourced before. There’s a cost-benefit to outsourcing. As I see it, there’s another benefit that has become more important recently, which is that it’s possible to find developers and it’s quite quick.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

There are a few different parts of outsourcing business models. Some guys do fixed cost. Some guys do hourly, etc. I’m not sure about everything that VILMATE does. What their task has been primarily is to handle the recruitment process, and not just putting bodies in the chair but actually finding individuals, setting up a team, and thinking about the team dynamic for a more long-term commitment. They have been looking for a good mix. At the previous place, we were a Microsoft shop, so we searched for talent in .NET, C#, full stack developers - of course modern HTML, JavaScript, CSS, REST API, SQL, SQL Server. They also worked with iOS and Android development. In my new job, we are open source. We are using Python, Django, Postgres, Amazon AWS hosting, Linux server, and also modern frontend JavaScript and modern HTML/CSS. I know they also work on PHP there. I don’t know about what else, but for these skills, the recruiting has been a good fit. Our team is oseven people.

How did you come to work with VILMATE?

My previous employer was already a client at VILMATE when I started there, and that was about two years ago. That’s how I got to know VILMATE and worked with the team there. Then, I moved companies and it was just natural for me to contact VILMATE for the new recruiting opportunity because I had a positive experience with them previously.

How much have you invested with VILMATE?

There’s a monthly cost. It has two aspects. They have a transparent business model and cost model. They have a fixed fee that goes to VILMATE; it’s their cut. Then there’s a variable salary part that is negotiated on an individual basis with each developer. VILMATE’s fee covers the recruiting phase. Of course, they don’t start invoicing until the first working day, but then it covers office space, equipment, your regular developer PC stuff, and also testing equipment, iPhones and iPads, and some team activities, etc. Then, there’s a range for the developers. Usually, the developer will have a salary request. Usually, I will acknowledge it but it depends on their seniority. They have a 5% markup. Other than that, the salary part goes pretty much straight to the individual developer and those prices range from between $1,000 and $3,000 per month.

What is the status of this engagement?

I started with them at my current company in April 2016.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

I gave them the task of setting up a developer team of six people completely from scratch. They did so in two months. This is not just grabbing six people from the street. This is a real long-term team that works well for me. It was a crucial situation for our company and they came through. I needed them previously for C# but for this company we needed Python. It was a little bit different, but they pulled through and did it. I am running my team at VILMATE closely myself. We don’t have another team or an internal team - I’m the technical guy in our company. They are delivering according to expectations.

How did VILMATE perform from a project management standpoint?

I know other clients that have dedicated project managers from VILMATE. I’ve chosen not to do so because I want to have a more hands-on role myself. I take most of the project management part of it. I have daily communication with my team. I come from a developer background myself, and I want to work with these guys as a team, not just a project. VILMATE's management is not involved on a daily basis. That said, whenever it’s been needed I feel that they’re there. I know they’re there in the background making sure that things go smoothly. If I don’t talk to VILMATE directly in a month, it means everything’s good. If I have an issue, I can contact their senior people there and they’ll straighten it out in a few days. We use modern communication tools.

Again, I handle the project management part of it myself, meaning I set up the tools that I will use like project management for scrum planning, etc. I’m pretty sure that if I wanted to, they could help me set it up. It wasn’t a need I felt. They handle human resources and they report on a monthly basis. As I have worked with them for quite some time, the trust is already there.

What did you find most impressive about VILMATE?

I trust them. It sounds easy, but it’s very important. I think a big part of working remotely like this is trust. I’ve heard many people that have been less experienced with this type of offshoring and had a bad experience because they didn’t really do it fully; they didn’t understand what would be required of them from a management perspective. But it also could be that those vendors were maybe a little bit shady or it was difficult to understand who your individual developer was. For instance, as soon as someone went from junior to mid-level, they would disappear or people would come and go on a project, etc. I felt nothing like this from VILMATE. I feel like they take my needs as a customer very seriously and work hard to make sure there’s a good fit with the coders. That said, they also understand that in order to attract young and skilled people, they have to make sure that they’re happy as well. In conclusion, I like the recruiting process. It’s not only done professionally but also with passion. And then I like the pricing model. It’s very transparent.

Are there any areas VILMATE could improve?

My recommendation with anyone that is outsourcing is that it is work. You can’t just assume a body (resource) is a body (like an employee). Building with people is difficult; it involves the water cooler talk, etc. That’s part of a general reflection not specific to VILMATE. Of course, there have been issues. I’ve worked with them for quite some time and I’ve gotten to know them on a personal level. It also means that conflicts can arise. But I don’t have a specific negative I can mention. We’ve always figured it out when there have been issues.