Zencode Technologies

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We’re a Hong Kong-based charity focused on cultural citizenship education. We work with all demographics, but we mostly attract youths. We connect people in Hong Kong with international partners in more than 150 countries. I’m the founder of the organization.

What challenge were you trying to address with Zencode Technologies?

We received funding two years ago for a new project, and we wanted to make the experience more digitized. We decided to build a mobile application to engage youths to join in a series of social challenges, something like scavenger hunts.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We hired Zencode to develop the application and apply our gamification strategy to it. We developed the general framework of the app with another partner. Zencode guided us on how to transform that work into a prototype. We also provided them with the design. The team developed the app for Android and iOS.

What is the team composition?

I've been in communication with Benson (Global Marketing Head). Our project director works with their project manager, who communicates with their development team in India.

How did you come to work with Zencode Technologies?

I met their founder through my entrepreneurial social network. One of my friends in the industry had employed Zencode, and he was satisfied with their price and services. I made a comparison with other vendors, and found that Zencode had really competitive pricing. Looking at what they’d done made sense for our project, so we picked them.

How much have you invested with them?

The cost of their work has been around HK$600,000 (approximately $75,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Zencode around November 2019, and it’s ongoing.

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

While the app isn’t live, we’re satisfied with the quality, and we’ve seen good engagement. We’ve run training sessions with over 100 attendees, and we’ve created a task posting board associated with the app that has thousands of posts already.

We’re new to developing applications, so it was challenging for our team to handle debugging and the rest of the process. The deliverables are reasonable, matching our expectations, but the communication is sometimes challenging. 

How did Zencode Technologies perform from a project management standpoint?

Their team is based in India, and our team hasn’t been satisfied with their project manager. She sometimes fails to communicate properly with their team, and she doesn’t know much about the technical part. We changed our manager two times, and the most recent one has been better, but taking our feedback is still challenging for them.

We have a WhatsApp group where we can communicate with the Indian team directly. Everyone’s there, including our project manager, the Indian programmers, and our project director. We also use Trello for project tracking.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their founder is always optimistic and eager to collaborate openly. He’s willing to accommodate our needs and requests. Even though there’s been some miscommunication between our teammates and project manager, we can still work it out. This is why we’re maintaining the relationship. Also, compared to other vendors, Zencode’s price is competitive.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I’d like for their project manager to be more responsive to our requests. Some of our user requirements weren’t captured properly during meetings. If our communication lagged behind, the development cycle always suffered. This kind of trouble has kept happening.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the owner and director of a tour operator based in Hong Kong. We welcome foreign visitors to the city.

What challenge were you trying to address with Zencode Technologies?

We wanted to develop an app that follows the Airbnb model, but for tourism. Ideally, customers would be matched with available tour guides. We also wanted to develop a system to manage all of our many guides.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Zencode Technologies built a tool that continuously updates the rosters of our tour guides to successfully match them with seeking users. 

It's a web app that's mobile-friendly. It has an integrated database that frequently updates the availability and schedules of the tour guides that work with us. The database aggregates the tour guides’ earnings, profits, and losses to pool into our larger financial reports.

What is the team composition?

There was a project manager, who served as my primary point of contact. I believe there were 2–3 programmers.

How did you come to work with Zencode Technologies?

They were recommended to me by a business partner.

How much have you invested with them?

I’d say we spent between $30,000–$40,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in March 2019, and we’re finishing up now, in May 2020.

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

They’ve been excellent, especially from a backend development standpoint. They just “get it,” where they continue to demonstrate their understanding of what I’m looking for. The team — and especially our project manager — was willing to work odd hours, which I appreciated. Our project manager was detail-oriented and would suggest UX/UI improvements that I hadn’t considered previously, which was great.

The platform itself hasn’t experienced any major technical issues, despite being very sophisticated. It runs three or four processes at the same time so this was quite a feat. While the backend has been great, there have been a few minor design problems.

How did ZenCode Technologies perform from a project management standpoint?

They utilized Trello, but we communicated on WhatsApp. That was the most efficient collaboration method for me.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I’d highlight how detailed they are. They’ll really work to get it right. I’ve been really happy with their commitment to meeting the customer’s exact needs. The management team was flexible about my working constraints, as well, which I was grateful for.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I think they’d benefit from having a better product validation process. It would be great if another team (essentially, a fresh pair of eyes) could look at the final solution before its actual delivery.

Please describe your company and your position there.

My company provides a SaaS platform to enable organisations to onboard and engage new hires and employees. Mobile-first tech helps to accelerate company familiarisation and streamline HR processes. I am Founder and Managing Director.

For what projects/services did your company hire Zencode Technologies?

I needed a company to check existing code for bugs and to then build out my technical functionality for both backend and frontend requirements.

What were your goals for this project?

My goal was to have a customer ready solution by year end 2019; a platform that could be demo'd in front of the customer. The demo had to be strong enough to convince customers to buy, even though the platform wasn't go-live ready.

How did you select this vendor?

What I liked most about Zencode over other dev teams I considered was their clear communication skills, enthusiasm to understand my project and business and my goals before trying to sell me on their technical competence like so many others had done. I was able to meet the founding team and engage with their offshore dev team which gave me the confidence that Zencode were the best fit for me personally, and for my business.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

They took existing code, took the time to understand what the functionality required was, and then went through the code and cleaned it, eradicating bugs that previous teams had not been able to. I shared functional flow slides, which they rigorously went through, flagging questions as they went, rather than assuming they knew what I wanted. They built the backend and then the frontend app solution, continually testing that the two systems were communicating as needed, releasing timely test logins for me to also test the platform and app as we went. This is still the case. They also went above and beyond my expectations by joining me on customer meeting to face off with technical personnel, fielding questions that I would be unable to, adding credibility to my solution and business.

What was the team composition?

The project team consisted of a Lead PM, CTO, and approximately 4-6 developers.

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

With Zencode's ability to grasp what I needed to be done quickly, to provide the right resources at the right time, and to always be available, I was able to meet my goal of securing a customer by year end 2019. This was something I had hoped for rather than expected.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

When my expectations/requirements were received, Zencode worked hard to provide me wth a full breakdown of resources required, time to delivery and cost associated. This helped me to mange my own expectations when it came to setting up future customer demos. When things didn't work as expected, we were able to address and discuss in a coherent and clear manner, something I'd been unable to do with previous dev teams.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Responsiveness and willingness to genuinely help me achieve my business goals. They went above and beyond our commercial agreements by joining me in partner meetings. 

Are there any areas for improvement?

The only area where I would say improvement could be found would be in their delivery of functional demos. A bot more descriptive narrative when going through new functionality steps would help. This, however, is a very minor consideration.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I work for a fintech company called TIPS Dollar Hong Kong, Ltd. We’re developing a mobile app that allows users to buy fractional shares of listed companies in Hong Kong. It’s a personalized mobile app where users can buy and sell shares anytime they want, which is something that doesn’t exist in Hong Kong right now.

What challenge were you trying to address with Zencode Technologies?

Our founder and CEO has 20 years of trading experience and has built financial trading systems for institutions. Our strength is in algorithm trading as well as quantitative analysis trading. We wanted to keep our strengths on the backend, and because we’re a startup, we didn’t want to hire a team to build the frontend. We found that Zencode Technologies was up to date with modern solutions for the modern fintech world.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Zencode Technologies developed our app for iOS and Android. We gave them the scope of work that covered the full user flow of the app. Then, they designed all the wireframes and started coding it.

What is the team composition?

We have a designated project manager who’s very helpful in terms of communication and delivering what we want.

How did you come to work with Zencode Technologies?

Our founder discovered them through research. We were considering two companies and concluded that Zencode Technologies was more passionate about what we were developing.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested $500,000 Hong Kong dollars (approximately $64,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Zencode in May 2019, and our partnership is ongoing. We’ve had some business model changes in between, and we’re currently working on branding.

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

We haven’t pushed the app into the market yet. One major reason is that we decided to rebrand last month, which basically equates to redesigning the whole app.

How did Zencode Technologies perform from a project management standpoint?

There’s room for improvement, but very minor things. Overall, they did a good job. We didn’t use any specific tools. We used an Excel spreadsheet with dates and tasks. I have experience building digital products and started from the ground up together with the founder.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their passion and dedication to achieve the defined goal are excellent. The solutions they provide are very up to date. In Hong Kong, software companies tend to use the same thing for every requirement but Zencode Technologies is pretty customized.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They’re very keen on helping us complete the product. It’s probably a new model for them, but they understood it pretty accurately. The solution wasn’t 100% perfect because it’s pretty new to the market and to them, but they got it pretty close.

In terms of room for improvement, their UI design could be better, but that’s not too big of a problem for us.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the founder of Circular City, a clean Tech social enterprise based in Hong Kong. We use Technology and smart systems to find value in waste and implement circular economy.

For what projects/services did your company hire Zencode Technologies?

We hired Zencode to build our Recycling Rewards platform. We are a startup with limited funds, so we needed to have a plan that enabled us to start small with a prototype web application and then build upon this after trials for a full deployment application. Like many startups, we had the ideas but not the technical know-how to code our custom software application, hence Zencode's services. We have been very fortunate to have received a lot of introductions and networking opportunities from Benson Lau at Zencode. These have been for both the startup community and introductions to corporates/foundations, which have proved equally as important as the app itself! They have truly gone the extra mile to help us in our efforts.

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted a platform that could enable token exchange and data tracking in the backend, but a clean, user friendly UI on the front end. We also needed capabilities to interact with IoT smartbins using QR unlocking features, and also the ability to transfer tokens to vendors on our marketplace (eg. coffee shops offering rewards for recyclers tokens). Although we are only in MVP stage, Benson has been very helpful with offering ideas on how we could integrate these. They have also been flexible to various requests for changes. We envision this platform as being a way for users to both receive rewards for their sustainable practices but also to be able to visualise their efforts through the data it collects. We also look to use this data for our own metrics etc.

How did you select this vendor?

I initially wasn't sure where to start with this. I prefer to get recommendations rather than cold searches on websites. As it turned out, I met Zencode's Benson Lau at a networking event for startups, where we had quite a long discussion on social enterprises and his support for them. It became apparent having followed him on LinkedIn thereafter that social impact is a key area that Zencode are keen to promote and work with.

I did get quotes from another developer recommended but they came across as quite cold and uninterested in what we were looking to develop. We were happy to go with Zencode through due to their company vision and general good vibes from having chatted to Benson on several occasions.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

The project was to create an app called recycling rewards. The project rewards users for doing their recycling correctly. Users submit their recyclables into our smartbins, and their recyclables are verified as clean and pre-sorted and digital tokens are deposited to their account.

Recyclers then have the ability to spend their tokens on rewards provided by local coffee shops, restaurants and service providers. Users can select from these rewards on the app's marketplace. Users use QR scanning to both unlock smartbins for recyclable deposits and for transferring tokens to rewarding merchants. Their is also an admin platform to monitor recycling deposits and alert recyclers when deposits have been made.

This also includes the input section for rewards etc. We provided a detailed breakdown of how the app should function and the expected outcomes. Zencode have delivered on these through different "phases" of development. We are currently on an MVP phase and hope to continue with development if trials go successfully.

What was the team composition?

I am unaware as to the size of the team at Zencode that worked on the project, but I was in regular contact with both the project manager, one of the technical leads on the project and Benson Lau on customer success. All were easy to get hold of and were responsive to issues/improvement requests.

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

We cannot provide metrics on impact this project has had on our business as we are only starting trials on MVP, but we will be using the MVP platform to run the trials and gain feedback for future development. We have had success from the introductions that Benson Lau has given us through network channels to both corporates and foundations. These have proved useful for finding shared value with other companies.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

Compliance with deadlines: Zencode were very good at sticking to timelines, and were flexible with my delays in some aspects due to still working full time in another job. They were aware I had time limitations so were able to work around this without getting frustrated.

Responsiveness: They were responsive to requests and generally got back to me quickly. Tools for communication: Whatsapp & Email. Zoom on occasion. Barriers: None specifically, but language barrier over whatsapp message caused some confusion at times.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

They are pro-social impact and go the extra mile to connect you to potential partners/corporates etc that could benefit from your project. They're responsive to changes and accommodating. Things that make them stand out from the crowd: Their interest in supporting social enterprises.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Regular (maybe weekly) video meetings would be something I would ask for on the next phase of development. Helps to avoid confusion over issues and catch possible misinterpretation early on. Price was expensive for me (self funded project), but was cheaper than others that I was quoted. Next phase is reliant on external funding - Zencode have been proactive at helping me find some!

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the founder and Managing Director of a research and AI development startup based in HK and SG.

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

For our core AI technologies, we needed a professional team of developers to help us develop the user interface and APIs so we could deploy them on internet, iOS and Android environments. We aimed to make them available to our target customers in 4-6 months.

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

We selected vendors based on personal knowledge with senior members of the company, their years of history, their number of staff, their social profile & reputation, their previous clientele and related project experience.

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

The project required development of:

1. Web portal for individual users

2. Web portal for corporate decision-makers and managers

3. Mobile app for use on iOS devices

4. Mobile app for use on Android devices

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

4 developers worked on our project.

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

We have been happy with the team at Zencode as their senior management pays detailed attention to our needs and development progress. Their developers are highly cooperative with us and are able to follow a work plan developed by us. They provide daily updates and would proactively reach out in case there are roadblocks in the development process. Their deliverables meet our requirements and are instrumental to our success in the market.

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

We communicate using Planner and Teams on Microsoft. We communicate in-person using Teams.

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

They try their best in understanding our needs and are proactive in giving suggestions.

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

They could improve their abilities in estimating time requirements for each task and be earlier in flagging potential roadblocks that will delay the project completion date.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the administration manager of the overseas membership office of an international accounting network with member firms across 47 countries/territories.

For what projects/services did your company hire Zencode Technologies?

We hired this vendor to design and develop a mobile responsive web application for our network of accounting firms to reference client information to prevent potential conflicts of interest.

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

We acquainted this vendor through a business connection of the CEO of our company. But we did identify several potential vendors for comparison. This vendor was chosen because they have a proven track record for delivering cutting-edge IT solutions and services with a multinational presence and has upmarket clientele like AON, NUS, Charles & Keith, Toyota, DBS, McDonalds, CSL, and L’Oreal.

Describe the project in detail and walk through the stages of the project.

They researched several web applications before presenting us with 2 options. They also presented us the pros and cons of each solution from a client perspective, i.e. cost-effectiveness and suitability for our needs. Then they implemented the database engine and migrated our data required into the engine.

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

Their director of the vendor was our main point of contact, but there were about 2-3 IT specialists working in the background.

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

Shortly after the launch of the database engine, 86% of our member firms have actively performed searching in the database to reference client information to prevent potential conflicts of interest.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The workflow has been very effective. We mostly communicated over in-person meetings and email. Whenever we had a question, they would email us back within one business day.

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

I appreciate that they took the time to understand our industry. This allowed them to recommend tailored IT solutions that best fit our situation. In addition, they have been very patient to hear our feedback and worked tirelessly to adjust the engine accordingly.

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

No.

Please describe your company and your position there.

SocialBirds is the latest in fundraising innovation product that gives non-profit organizations and individuals one platform to support causes they believe in and raise the funds they need. It’s easy, free, and offers tailored tools to make your campaign stand out. Iam the Founder of SocialBirds Company.

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

SocialBirds Prototype was developed 3 years back by a different company. we hired Zencode to redesign the website completely and gave them my references. Zencode Technologies understood project requirements and were able to provide a full breakdown of what needed to be done

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

We short listed few companies that came through my references. After talking to all the shortlisted companies,we selected Zencode as Management was Genuine in the conversation and also had clarity on what needs to be done within the Budget.we were confident on their team as they had a very detailed Plan on the project.

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

we had a kick-off meeting to discuss the project requirement. For their the team was able to pick the wireframes of our website along with UI designs. They updated the content to reflect the company services and created the Dashboard.

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

Project Manager was the Main Contact for the development. Also sometimes executive was on call to make sure development is happening to the best.

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

Deliverables were on Time and Also Measured based on Test Results.

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

They were always on Time and even if it was missed i was notified early with Valid Reasons.

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

They took ownership and were transparent in communication. The technical skills of the Team are above compared to competitors.

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

Not for this Project.They were good.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the co-founder of Enablere, Inc, a technology platform enabling financial /lending acceleration for the middle market (Mid Size companies)

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

We were in need of some hands to design and architect our state-of-the-art platform. We need to partner with someone who has Industry knowledge and is ready for a long-standing relationship. Zencode checked all boxes for us and we are very happy to partner in the future too.

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

Industry knowledge and Quality deliverables.

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

Midsize lending platform hosted as SaaS AWS service

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

There 5 members including a Project leader and Designers. The managing director of Zencode often involves in critical discussion to ensure quality and controls as needed.

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

A high-Quality middle market lending platform is drawing 1:3 customer conversion in the US since the Beta launch.

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

Email and In house Project management tool.

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

Zencode's management shows complete transparency, driving our business to success.

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

A US-based in-house team would have been much better for greater synergies.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the Senior Product Manager in Tricor. Tricor is the leading business expansion specialist in Asia.

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

We worked with Zencode on a HR system development project. The challenge in this project includes:

• Tight delivery timeline
• High complexity in system requirements

How did you select Zencode Technologies and what were the deciding factors?

We compare the proposal from a few potential vendors. The considerations include - the vendor's team size and flexibility - the team's technology capability - the vendor's past experience - the overall investment

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

• Information system on .Net technology
• Azure cloud
• Responsive front-end
• Microservice back-end
• HR information management
• Payroll and Tax
• Report generation

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

Zencode provides 10-15 talents working for the project, including architect, designers, tech leads, developers and QA.

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

The project follows the agile scrum methodology. Communication tools: email, daily standup, online meetings, instant message, MS Teams and DevOps. Timeline and goals are managed by sprints.

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

Zencode can offer flexible work contract (e.g. dedicated resources and secondment) to fit the project's needs. Zencode has a good resource pool to quickly set up the team and start running.