Volpis - Mobile and Web Development

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Head of Product for a SaaS connected vehicle and fleet management platform.

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

We engaged Volpis to design and build a companion mobile application for our SaaS platform. We had built an initial version of the mobile app but want to move this onto a native code base and improve overall stability and user experience.

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

We conducted an online search across multiple global regions and shortlisted 3 different mobile development companies in 3 different global location. We then conducted meetings and initial workshops with each company, review their proposals and ultimately selected Volpis as our preferred partner.

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

We completed initial scoping and design workshops with the Volpis team before detailing the initial requirements for the project. These included a complete UI design of our mobile app and UX flow. Once the scope of work was defined, the Volpis team built Android and iOS versions of our app as per our requirements. Following internal testing the app builds were provided to us for acceptance testing. Once the app builds were finalised, Volpis worked with us to create all collateral for publishing the apps to the Apple and Google Play stores and managed the app publishing process, including supporting us through Apple Store approval. Since completed the initial builds of the app, we have continued to work with Volpis over the last 3 year, to add new features and functionality into the mobile app, along with developing a second app.

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

We were assigned a Project Manager, who coordinated the UI/UX designer and subsequently the mobile app development team comprising of x2 Android and x2 iOS developers.

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

Within 3 months of engaging Volpis we had published the first version of our mobile application and used this to assist the launch of our product into new verticals and territories. We have subsequently add many new features and capabilities to the mobile application and it has become a key USP for our broader SaaS platform offering.

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

Volpis is open, transparent, friendly, and passionate. We have worked with two PM's during our time with Volpis and both have been great to work with. The core tools used are Jira for managing development pipeline.

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

The Volpis team are highly dedicated and talented. The developers have always produced high-quality code and mobile applications and have been able to quickly and effectively take our requirements and deliver them within estimated timelines. They have become a core partner to our development and product teams and we have built a strong collaborative and supportive relationship.

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

Nothing

Please describe your company and your position there.

Fit Society LLC is information technology company that owns the rights to the Fit Society Mobile Application. The company is focused on health and fitness services. I am the founder and designer of the product.

For what projects/services did your company hire Volpis?

Volpis was hired to complete the iOS development for the application.

What were your goals for this project?

The app was built to give users an easy and quick way to create and share workouts. While many fitness app platforms exist, they can be confusing to use or require purchase. This app was meant to address those issues and provide a free app that gives users the ability to create the workouts and routines they desire with the option to purchase expert plans if desired. I anticipate a positive response once the app launches and the many enhancements already planned for the future.

How did you select this vendor?

I interviewed numerous companies online and associates. After speaking with Volpis, I felt as though they had the passion and know how to make this project a success.

Describe the project in detail.

Once I chose Volpis to develop the app, I was introduced to the team and we went over scope and responsibilities. I would provide the design and specifications and the team would produce. The team employed the agile methodology with sprints and demos concluding every two weeks. I attended standup calls twice weekly. The team delivered on all the requirements and regularly exceeded expectations. The app was only developed for iOS.

What was the team composition?

The team was comprised of a project manager, two iOS developers, one backend developer and one tester. I was the product designer.

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

The app is performing flawlessly as it stands in its current state. I will not be launching for another few weeks but have no doubt that it will perform well on the market.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The team performed excellent during the project. Communication, scheduling and expectations were all handled very professionally. Our workflow consisted of communications via slack, design-dev handoff via Zeplin and zoom for demos. The team was offshore but spoke excellent english so language barriers were non-existent.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

I was blown away by the knowledge and skillset that the team possessed. The team had an excellent flow with the project manager always staying in tune with their needs. If the team asked something of me, I was notified quickly and reminded if I had not provided it to them. I've worked with numerous vendors and would consider Volpis top of the league. Their service, skills and knowledge are all topnotch.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Everything can always be faster but I was satisfied with the service they provided. Quality is of upmost importance and I feel that they delivered where it mattered.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the product manager for a company that offers cashback services. We have a mobile app called “inShopper” and it’s the first of its kind in Russia. With it, users can scan QR Codes on receipts and gain cashback for their purchase.

For what projects/services did your company hire Volpis?

Our mobile app was created three years ago on Android and it required a large update. We decided to completely change the design and logic of the app, but we didn’t have in-house mobile app developers. Furthermore, the quality that our previous development team provided was low, so finding a new team was our biggest goal.

What were your goals for this project?

Our goals were to attain a clean and simple design, update the app’s UX, increase the user base and number of downloads, and integrate AppsFlyer and other analytic systems within the app to track paid traffic.

How did you select this vendor?

Our CTO and I searched for a freelance developer on Upwork, providing clear deadlines and such. We spoke with Kostya (CEO, Volpis) and discussed our needs. We looked at his company’s portfolio and saw that his latest projects were of high quality, he offered a fair price, and also promised to deliver on our deadline. We made the right decision.

Describe the project in detail.

Kostya's team handled the update of our app through three iterations. I shared detailed specifications and the new design, describing each task in Trello before starting the work. After two months of collaborative work, we completely changed the design of the app and made a release. We continued the partnership to include more features in the app. Volpis also provided support and fixed small bugs.

What was the team composition?

Kostya acted as the project manager at the beginning. I later worked directly with an Android developer. All design, iOS development, and QA was done on our side.

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

The new design and UX has produced a twofold increase in our user base and lots of positive feedback on the app’s usability. This led to our startup being bought by a large Russian IT company as well as the investment on the further development of our product.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The work process was very well organized and structured, which helped us make complex decisions quickly. Kostya is highly responsive and available at any time. His team always paid attention to details and are true professionals. We used Slack and Skype for communication and Trello for setting tasks.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Volpis has vast knowledge about mobile app development and UX. Their team was patient and flexible, often working during weekends to meet our deadlines. This was valuable for me and the project!

Are there any areas for improvement?

I wish they would share their vast knowledge of app development with their clients more. Their advice has helped me a lot, particularly regarding Android development.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

My name is Vadym Grynchenko and I'm a product designer at Green&Co, which offers a series of health-related mobile diagnostics apps.

What challenge were you trying to address with Volpis?

We had the idea for a mobile app that will help people understand their health problems and figure out how to proceed with treatment, and needed a company to build the app.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They helped us define user stories and use cases for the app. An algorithm for disease diagnosis was created. The team developed the code and the UI for both iOS and Android versions.

Multiple iterations were built and tested. The first iteration used images for the buttons, which looked nice but made the app too heavy (around 100 megabytes). They found another approach using colors to make it lighter.

They launched the app in the App Store in Europe and Ukraine.  

What is the team dynamic?

My main contact is the iOS developer, and I also work with another person on invoices and other project management details.

How did you come to work with Volpis?

They were one of several firms that responded to a request for proposals. I chose them because they’re based in Ukraine, which means that they are highly skilled developers and offer low rates.

How much have you invested with them?

To date, we've spent about $8,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The work started in 2015 and is ongoing. There have been some gaps in the work due to needing to secure additional funds. The plan is for them to develop a version 1.3 of the app.

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

According to our statistics, the app has very few bugs or reports of crashes.

For us, the big win is simply that it is already available in the App Store in Ukraine and in Europe. It needs additional testing to ensure compliance with the FDA [Food and Drug Administration], but we expect it to be available soon in the U.S.

How did Volpis perform from a project management standpoint?

It’s been a standard Agile development process. Everybody works remotely; I'm in Germany and they’re in Ukraine. I thought this might be an issue but it’s worked well. I'm in touch with the iOS developer almost every day.

They created a dashboard that I use to create tickets for work that needs to be done. The ticket is passed on to them, and then we set up the deadline for that piece of the project. They generally hit all of the deadlines, plus or minus a couple of days.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Most impressive is that they are able to find a solution for any task, even if a small budget limits the technology they can use.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I frequently had to wait a long time for an answer, which was very stressful. I would recommend they hire an account manager to handle client communication.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Road Hunter LLC is a truck navigation mobile app. I’m the founder and CEO. 

What challenge were you trying to address with Volpis?

We needed someone to develop our mobile app.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They built a whole route-finding app for drivers starting from the sketches. We started with a native Android app on the server side and Java. Then we developed our iOS app with Objective-C and Swift. We use Google Maps APIs, REST APIs, Microsoft XML, and data process using different languages with JavaScript and some React. We have features like navigation that require a lot of skill. We’re working with a product called SQLite. Other features are route planning, truck stop finding, diesel prices, severe weather alerts. We’ve used all the latest technologies.

What is the team dynamic? 

I mostly work with the founder of Volpis and a couple of developers. We use them for more than 40 hours a week.

How did you come to work with Volpis?

My main focus was to have a team who knows how to work with Google Maps APIs and Lifetime maps. They sent me quite a few projects that they have done and I was amazed by the quality of the work. 

How much have you invested with them?

$35,000–$55,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together around 3 years ago and the work is ongoing.

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

If you type “Truck Stops” on Google Play, we’re in 2nd place in the U.S. and Canada. We have a 4.5-star rating on Google Play and 4.8 stars on the App Store. We have 80,000 downloads and around 2,000 active users every day. They’ve done a good job.

We’ve also been mentioned in 5–6 magazines in the U.S. and we’ve been published in several trucking magazines. 

How did Volpis perform from a project management standpoint?

They are doing very well. These guys are not only developers but software engineers, which are really different things. Coders and software engineers are different people. They’re always on top of the new technologies and giving me good suggestions. They did an amazing job on that. We used Trello. We used screenshot trackers so I could see what’s going on. We used Bitbucket for our code repository. We used JIRA, Slack, and Skype. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re a very responsible team. They give a lot of good feedback about the product. They suggest interesting things. Most of the time when working with offshore companies, they just follow whatever you tell them to do and code it. With Volpis, before coding, they asked me a lot of questions about particular features. It saves me time and money. Time is money in this case.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, everything is perfect. I like to work with them. That’s why I’ve been working with them for almost 3 years.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and CEO of Taddrees, an education platform app. We just launched in the UAE and plan to grow throughout the Middle East.

What challenge were you trying to address with Volpis?

I had an initial idea for the application and needed developers to build it.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Volpis essentially functions as our full-time IT team. They built the application based on my specifications, but also provided a range of solutions to make the app more user-friendly. They also recommended a number of functionalities I hadn’t considered.

The app is available for both iOS and Android, and we plan to launch a web-based service.

What is the team dynamic?

I communicate directly with their CEO.

How did you come to work with Volpis?

I did an online search and initially contacted three companies, but these candidates only offered excuses and lacked the technical skills to build my desired functionalities.

Volpis, on the other hand, stood out immediately. I could tell they were hard workers and possessed the knowledge necessary to build my app. They were excited when I told them my idea and immediately put forth their own suggestions.

How much have you invested with them?

I spent approximately $25,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in April 2017 and launched the app in November.

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

We gained 20–30 subscribers within the first two weeks of launch, and in a very short time have grown to 300 subscribers. We haven't encountered any bugs, and Volpis is still hard at work adding new functionalities.

How did Volpis perform from a project management standpoint?

I have a background in business and management consulting, so while the tech world is new to me, I’m used to working in a highly organized way. Volpis has a similar work ethic and provides detailed plans.

We coordinated through online tools, including Trello and Slack, and they provided constant updates. They were transparent about day-to-day operations and quick to respond to any questions.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Unlike the other vendors I considered, Volpis demonstrated real dedication. They believed in my product and worked to ensure development of a superior app. They constantly offered suggestions for improvement, and even incorporated additional functionalities at no extra cost.

Nothing was beyond their technical abilities. Given enough time, they accomplished every goal we set.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I'm normally a very critical person when it comes to other businesses, but no, I can’t think of any suggestions.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am Founder and CEO ofmatchmaking company IT Export Union. ITEU unites Software Development companies and independent Teams/devs with a proven track record and top global clients under one umbrella. Also, independent developers and remote R&D teams with high unique tech stacks, skills and capabilities.

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

We've had request from Client to develop Mobile Application (Android and iOs)

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

We have done a reverse auction (internal tender) with few Mobile Vendors on price, time, best relevant experience and Volpis Team wins this competition and time shows that the choice was right.

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

We have a series of discovery meetings to discuss goals and timeline, as well as technologies that will be used: iOS and Android. Volpis team also provided wireframes and designs.

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

I worked personally with Volpis CEO Kostyantyn Khuta as the main contact. Highly recommended professional to have business with.

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

Within a year after we started this project, we saw increasing in all metrics such as app store rating, downloads and they totally met the client's expectations.

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

Project Managers were very skilled and experienced. Everything has been delivered on time and with excellence.

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

Their ability to solve complex tasks and proficiency in solving common issues was surprisingly professional to me.

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

All was fine and smooth.

Please describe your company and your position there.

This was a side project that I am working to turn into a new business

For what projects/services did your company hire Volpis?

Volpis was hired to create UI wireframes for the marketplace website

What were your goals for this project?

To translate my ideas and vision for the design into a proper UI

How did you select Volpis?

I found them on UpWork. Reviewed their portfolio and met the team. They seemed to understand the full design process well.

Describe the project in detail.

I provided a product specification with an overview of the product we were building, as well as some of the pain points that we are solving for.

Once we understood the high-level objective, we were able to jump into wire frames and collaborate through Figma. I will provide comments and at times my own design tweaks, and we would iterate based on that.

What was the team composition?

1 designer, 1 project manager, 1 manager

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

We handed this design off to a front end developer who was able to take the wire frames and customize an ecommerce to match

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Pretty good… We pulled a project manager into the process early on which helped align the designer and me.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

They quickly provided a project manager to facilitate the discussions between me and the designer in order to keep the project moving forward without letting new ideas take over

Are there any areas for improvement?

Knowing what I know now, I believe we could have pulled in some pre-designed templates and modified from there to save a bit of time.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the co-founder of a small digital health startup.

For what projects/services did your company hire Volpis?

We needed experienced mobile app developers to build an MVP.

What were your goals for this project?

• Mobile app MVP in 2 weeks
• Fast iterations towards product
• Market fit

How did you select Volpis?

We interviewed 4 providers that offer mobile app development. We selected Volpis based on interviews with their developers. They showed great communication skills and understood our goals quickly.

Describe the project in detail.

We started with Android and added iOS a week later. Based on our preliminary research we knew that iOS would be an uphill battle. Android made it into the play store after two weeks which met our expectations. At a later stage, we also added another android developer and UI/UX to test different value propositions and to improve the usability of the app.

Over time, the complexity of the apps have increased significantly but the developers are able to keep up and provide high-quality output.

What was the team composition?

• 2 x Kotlin
• 1 x Swift
• 1 x UI/UX

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

Our solution is the leader in its space and it wouldn't have been possible without the mobile apps.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Very effective. We made sure that the developers work directly as part of our team. The whole team coordination happens internally.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The CEO is very responsive and there are no unnecessary middlemen involved.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Not at this point

Please describe your company and your position there.

FlowMSP is an industry-leading pre-incident planning software platform for the fire service. Our goal is, and always will be, to innovate new ways for the fire service to collect, and use, critical building and response information.

For what projects/services did your company hire Volpis?

We asked Volpis to redevelop and redesign and redevelop our App for iOS and Google.

What were your goals for this project?

Better UX Increase features and capabilities Work within our budget

How did you select this vendor?

We selected Volpis because of their technical depth and an ability to quickly understand our strategy.

What was the team composition?

Project management

iOS and Android developers

Backend 

Design

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

We increase the number of downloads for our app by 118% and increased overall usage.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

We had daily standups describing the work that was being performed.  The meetings were fast and effecient.  Volpis was able to consistently deliver against our project milestones.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Speed

Technical depth

Cost effective

Provided strategic options 

Are there any areas for improvement?

None