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Building dedicated teams for tech businesses

5.0
4 reviews

X1 Group is a product development company, headquartered in Berlin, Germany, with development offices in Eastern Europe. We’re building long-term dedicated development teams which become an integral part of your company while being hosted in our development center in Ukraine. Assessing the best candidates the market has to offer, our recruitment team also helps growing businesses and startups establish an R&D office in Ukraine. 

Our core services are:

  • Dedicated development team as a service
  • Custom product development
  • Remote R&D office set up and support

We specialize in:

  • SaaS platforms (including online lending and investment platforms)
  • Review aggregators
  • Property listings
  • Online media
  • Mobile apps
  • Blockchain solutions
  • Big Data applications
  • Electronic lab notebooks

Our key areas of technical expertise:

  • Frontend web technologies (JavaScript, Node.js, Angular.js, React.js, Backbone)
  • Backend stack (Ruby on Rails, PHP, Go, .NET, )
  • Big Data
  • Blockchain
  • Java, 
  • Scala
  • Python
  • AWS, Heroku
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$10,000+
 
Undisclosed
 
50 - 249
 Founded
2010
Show all +
Berlin, Germany
headquarters
other locations

Portfolio

Key clients: 

Kreditech, Finiata, Budget Energie, Käuferportal, iFunded, Rautenberg Media.

 

Finiata

Finiata provides individual factoring for freelancers, micro companies, and SMEs.

Here at X1 Group, we established a dedicated development team of 6 engineers (and counting) who strengthens Finiata’s core, in-house team, increasing overall development speed and capacity. The team is currently grown almost twice its initial size.

Kreditech

Kreditech is a consumer finance technology group that uses Big Data to score the users’ creditworthiness. One of the Top 10 fintech startups in Europe.

X1 Group hired a team of 40+ software developers and QA engineers who were building Kreditech products since the very beginning of the company in 2012 and continue to do so. At one point, the team counted 55 qualified engineers which allowed Kreditech to scale faster

…
and more efficiently.
Read more...

Budget Energie

Budget Energie is an energy retailer for SMBs and private customers with a focus on renewable sources.

X1 Group created an extended team of 7 developers in Ukraine that is helping a core, onsite team build a new software platform for main company operations. Budget Energie's team now consists of more than 15 developers and QAs and is still growing.

Rautenberg Media

For over 50 years, Rautenberg Media brings readers in Germany a highly personalized, hyperlocal news, and video content in just a few clicks.

We build a team of two smart Java developers, who helped Rautenberg Media’s in-house team improve the products quality and efficiency to bring users an unforgettable customer journey.

Casafari

Casafari is one of the best real estate metasearches that uses competitive intelligence and has 6,000,000+ property listings from Spain, Portugal, Austria, Germany.

X1 Group set up an experienced team of 4 software engineers, including a highly-skilled CTO, to help Casafari kick-start the product on the market and then, as the project scaled, transformed the dedicated team into a remote R&D office.

iFunded

iFunded is an online real estate investment platform through which private and institutional VCs can invest directly in properties of their choice.

X1 Group helped iFunded kick-start the product’s launch on the international market, building a team of 3 developers. Our CEO also acted as a CTO for this project.

Reviews

5.0
4 reviews
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Dev Team Staffing for Energy Consulting Company

“X1 Group’s teams pick up the requirements quickly and give us high-quality software.”

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5.0

Quality: 
5.0
Schedule: 
5.0
Cost: 
4.5
Willing to refer: 
5.0
The Project
 
$1,000,000 - $9,999,999
 
Apr. 2014 - Ongoing
Project summary: 

X1 Group provides long-term development outsourcing services, providing two teams of .NET developers to work on a company’s software environment.

The Reviewer
 
201 - 500 Employees
 
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Robert Stoppels
IT Manager, Nutsgroep
 
Verified
The Review
Feedback summary: 

Their developers are excellent, consistently producing high-quality deliverables and ensuring they meet the requirements exactly. The teams are well-integrated and work as if they are in-house staff members seamlessly, using an agile methodology and always responding to issues promptly.

A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the IT manager at Nutsgroep. We sell energy and telecom in the Netherlands and Belgium. We want to provide our customers with efficient help via our website, so our customers don't have to call, and their costs are as low as possible.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with X1 Group?

Highly-trained developers aren’t widely available in the Netherlands and the salaries are relatively high. We wanted to add developers to our team, so looked to see what other options there were.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Their developers joined our team to work on .NET software environment. We believe in organic growth—if it works, we want to make it bigger. For that reason, with X1, we started small and eventually decided to take on a larger team. We’re constantly building on the previous successes, and they’re growing with us.

What is the team composition?

We started with one developer and grew that to eight developers over the course of a year. Six months later, we ramped up to two teams—one in Ukraine and one in the Netherlands. There are an agile coach and a product owner on my side who interact with the developers daily.

How did you come to work with X1 Group?

We came in contact with them through a former colleague of mine. It quickly became clear that they could give us highly trained developers.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent over $1 million.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in April 2014 and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have three development teams in the Netherlands and two teams at X1 Group. Our statistics show that the Ukraine team constantly delivers high-quality software and has for four years.

How did X1 Group perform from a project management standpoint?

It feels like they’re our own employees. We have stand-ups every morning, while the product owner and scrum master on our side talk to their teams. I interact once a week with their team lead of development and all the communication is very natural.

The project management on their side is high quality, so much so that we don’t need it on our side. We work in an agile methodology, and they’re very sensitive to changes and constantly keep us up to date on variations in the team if something happens. It’s very nice working with them—they have the skills to acquire very good people.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their people are highly talented and speak English well, effectively translating our specifications into working packages for the development teams. X1 Group’s teams pick up the requirements quickly and give us high-quality software in a timely fashion.

The company itself provides a stable work environment that is safe and where people can relax. Even so, if I ask them a question, they come up with a comprehensive answer.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No. They’re very adaptive and intuitive to our needs. If we want something different, we explain why and there’s never a problem. They think of everything.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

If I needed to begin from scratch, I’d choose them again. I recommend them to other people if they want to outsource their development too.

5.0
Overall Score They’re good to work with and they deliver high quality software.
  • 5.0 Scheduling
    ON TIME / DEADLINES
    They do their best to keep their deadlines, and are willing to step up when needed
  • 4.5 Cost
    Value / within estimates
    For outsourcing, it’s really good for value. It could be cheaper, but the quality would be less.
  • 5.0 Quality
    Service & deliverables
    They approach every question with a lot of care, which is what I like about them.
  • 5.0 NPS
    Willing to refer
    I’d recommend them—they consistently deliver high quality software.

Engineering Team Recruitment for Online Lending Platform

"We're happy with the overall quality of engineering."

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5.0

Quality: 
4.5
Schedule: 
n/a
Cost: 
4.0
Willing to refer: 
5.0
The Project
 
Confidential
 
Feb. 2012 - Ongoing
Project summary: 

X1 Group recruited an engineering team to provide a backend and frontend software engineering services. The team then built a complete software stack, including a range of microservices.

The Reviewer
 
201-500 Employees
 
Hamburg, Germany
Alexander Graubner-Müller
CEO, Kreditech
 
Verified
The Review
Feedback summary: 

The recruited team is excellent, with the longevity of the partnership demonstrating the high quality of the deliverables produced. They fit in very well with the in-house team, engaging effectively with the company and its goals, while providing good support at all times.

A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the founder and CEO of Kreditech. We're active in the field of consumer lending.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with X1 Group?

We wanted to very quickly hire an experienced engineering team. Germany is very competitive, so it can be difficult to recruit talent in the field of software engineering.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We wanted a team of backend and frontend engineers who were experienced in certain technologies. X1 selected the candidates, recruited that team on our behalf, and then hosted the team. We had to clearly define profiles before they recruited for us.

It took a couple of weeks from the initial kick-off to having people in place. It was a little difficult to find people due to them not having the biggest span of technologies, and I wanted to participate in some of the final interview processes.

We built a complete software stack for our consumer lending business, which operates in multiple countries and consists of the frontend, backend, and a whole range of microservices.

What is the team composition?

We started with a small team of three people, which then very quickly grew because the model was working successfully and we were very happy with the results. We mostly communicate with the founder and CEO who has been the key lead for managing the relationship. We interact with him for all matters of our general partnership and business-related terms. In the day-to-day business, we interact directly with the engineers, which includes the leads and almost all the engineers. They interface very closely with our technology.

How did you come to work with X1 Group?

We were referred by one of our investors who worked with them before and highly recommended them. We were in the process of speaking to various other software outsourcing and nearshore companies, but X1 really convinced us because their services were adjusted to the specific needs of our company. We were able to establish our relationship very quickly.

How much have you invested in them?

We have a fixed rate per engineer per month, which depends on the seniority and skillset.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working with them in February 2012 and have an ongoing relationship.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The entire infrastructure that our company runs on has, to a very large extent, been built by X1. We're happy with the overall quality of engineering, as well as the fact that it's scalable for us so we can source additional capacity to our team. We have a certain amount of flexibility during the time when we need additional engineering capacities.

How did X1 Group perform from a project management standpoint?

We don't have a classical outsourcing model and the actual management of the team happens on our side. The responsibility for the project management and management of the delivery directly sits with us.

We've built a very good relationship with the team. We feel that the team identifies with our company and very quickly scaled all the way up to 40 people after three years.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We're still working with them today because we're very happy with the quality of people and the amount of support we receive. It's been unique, compared to the model that many other outsourcing companies provide.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

If you set up a team with X1, make sure it's a fully functional team and that they have all the roles you need them to work on. We found a fully functional team consists of a product owner, a technical lead, a couple of engineers, and QA who form a comprehensive scrum team and are able to take up their work independently. That works well and was a key lesson learned.

Another important part is to closely integrate people and make sure that they get a sense of what is happening in your company, what is important, and what the priorities are. Over time, we treated our team from X1 like a business unit, involving them in our own meetings and engaging them with our company. You have to be in a position to manage an engineering team, with a good understanding of the type of workflow you want to establish.

5.0
Overall Score We feel that the entire cooperation is built on a creative relationship of trust.
  • N/A Scheduling
    ON TIME / DEADLINES
  • 4.0 Cost
    Value / within estimates
    It's a premium service and we're happy with it. It isn’t a low budget solution, but the cost benefit is really quite good.
  • 4.5 Quality
    Service & deliverables
  • 5.0 NPS
    Willing to refer
    I'm very likely to recommend them.

Staffing Services for FinTech Startup

"They're really focused on meeting our business goals through fast delivery and improving our development."

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5.0

Quality: 
5.0
Schedule: 
5.0
Cost: 
4.5
Willing to refer: 
5.0
The Project
 
Confidential
 
Dec. 2017 - Ongoing
Project summary: 

X1 Group interviews and hires professionals for a remote development team. They're also providing remote office spaces and technical equipment.

The Reviewer
 
51-200 Employees
 
Germany
Head of Engineering, FinTech Startup
 
Verified
The Review
Feedback summary: 

X1 Group hires experienced coders that deliver high-quality code and quickly speed up development. They often go above and beyond, working outside of office hours to meet critical milestones. Delivery focused, their team is second to none.

A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the head of engineering for a fintech startup based in Germany. We provide services to freelancers and small-to-medium-sized businesses. At the moment, we primarily provide factoring, short-term invoice financing.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with X1 Group?

Our challenge was to scale our remote team as fast as possible. This was not possible in just Berlin, so we needed an outsourced hiring team.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

X1 Group seamlessly integrates as a remote hiring team in Ukraine. Their team interviews and hires professionals for our remote development team. They conduct calls daily and throughout the day to update us on our new developers. They’re providing office spaces and all the technical equipment for our employees located in Ukraine. We also work with their HR team approve vacations and other low maintenance management issues.

What is the team composition?

We work with their CEO and HR team.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started in December 2017 and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Their hires speed up our development significantly and are experienced senior developers that always produce quality software.

How did X1 Group perform from a project management standpoint?

They're always responsive and contact back within seconds on Slack. Even on weekends, they communicate with us on upcoming deadlines, which we really appreciate. We also use Google Hangout and Zoom video conferences. Their English is great, and our remote collaboration works well.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their focus on quality is amazing. They get our hires up to speed really fast, and the developers they hire are ready to work on the same day. They're really focused on excellent delivery, meeting business goals, and improving our development.

Are there any areas they could improve?

It’s sometimes tough to deal with an outsourced company. It would be nice if they were located in Berlin, but they’ve actually been pretty good thus far. We’re absolutely happy.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Actually use them, as they are great providers. Be prepared to answer a lot of business-related questions. Because this will help them figure out how to bring your business success.

5.0
Overall Score I have nothing to complain about.
  • 5.0 Scheduling
    ON TIME / DEADLINES
    I never have any issues. They even work within non-office hours.
  • 4.5 Cost
    Value / within estimates
  • 5.0 Quality
    Service & deliverables
    It’s very good.
  • 5.0 NPS
    Willing to refer

IT Staffing & Development for Home Services Directory

"X1 excels at scaling quickly and establishing new teams." 

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5.0

Quality: 
4.5
Schedule: 
5.0
Cost: 
4.0
Willing to refer: 
5.0
The Project
 
Confidential
 
July 2016 - Ongoing
Project summary: 

X1 Group supplements the in-house IT department. In addition to supporting ongoing operations, the team is also tasked with hiring, training, and evaluating skilled developers,

The Reviewer
 
201-500 Employees
 
Germany
Developer, Home Services Directory
 
Verified
The Review
Feedback summary: 

X1’s assimilation has decreased completion and delivery times. With a growing global team of talented resources, they play an integral role in daily processes. In addition to fostering a positive and productive international engagement, the team also offers creative, flexible, and seamless support. 

The client submitted this review online.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I prefer to remain anonymous.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire X1 Group?

We hired X1 Group to augment our in-house IT staff on a long-term basis.

What were your goals for this project?

The goal was to quickly increase our IT teams in order to optimize implementation time. Learning to work with international colleagues was an added benefit. 

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

Our former CTO personally recommended X1.  

Describe the project in detail.

X1 is responsible for hiring, developing, and evaluating highly skilled employees.

What was the team composition?

Over the years we have hired one UX/UI developer, several frontend developers, and multiple backend developers, all divided into various teams. The team has grown to 16 people.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Since the X1 employees joined our team, completion and delivery times have greatly improved. Although we don’t have specific metrics or statistics, we have gained invaluable experience with working across borders and incorporating new team members.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

Because we hired them to integrate with our IT department on a daily and ongoing basis, project management is not especially relevant.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

X1 excels at scaling quickly and establishing new teams. They offer fresh ideas and fully, broad-spectrum support.

Are there any areas for improvement?

They could communicate internal regulations better.

5.0
Overall Score
  • 5.0 Scheduling
    ON TIME / DEADLINES
  • 4.0 Cost
    Value / within estimates
  • 4.5 Quality
    Service & deliverables
  • 5.0 NPS
    Willing to refer