Zfort Group

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the managing director of Emotional Positioning System LLC. We are a marketing services company that primarily focuses on consumer insight and its applications. We create market research software and license it to larger companies.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Zfort Group?

I worked exclusively with Zfort on software development for a recent project.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They built the market research software for my most recent project.

What is the team composition?

I worked with a terrific client services manager and an even more terrific project manager. I have also communicated with many of their developers through either the client services or project manager.

How did you come to work with Zfort Group?

The company that hired me chose Zfort for the project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked on this project from January 2015–February 2018.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Right now there are two pieces of evidence that point to success on this project. First, the third party who hired us to create the software already has a massive amount of technology in place, and Zfort has been able to insert my products directly into that system. Second, we have received comments that the product is easy to understand and visually appealing.

How did Zfort Group perform from a project management standpoint?

Zfort was great at communicating even though they are headquartered in Ukraine. I am lucky to get ahold of some of the market research companies I work with past close of business hours, but Zfort answers practically any time of day or night. We worked primarily through a proprietary project management system, but I often spoke with them over the phone.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I have been either writing or commissioning software since 1968, and—in terms of personality and skill—Zfort is the best team that I've ever worked with. The difference with Zfort is that they care about the quality of the work and whether it meets your needs, and they continue to care about whether or not you're succeeding with the outcome of their work.

Additionally, because English is not their first language, they go the extra mile to translate back and restate your requirements so that there is a higher level of clarity at each step of development. I have dealt with a lot of people over the years, some for decades, and they never engaged as strongly as the Zfort team.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

It is necessary to do the planning step with the project management. That is when the clarification and back translation happens in order to overcome any cultural assumptions, and to ensure your understanding of what you need matches their understanding.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What was your main goal or objective for working with them?

The reason used is there’s normally a cost, normally cheaper and easier to find. There’s more stuff than in the UK. We did find that, in this case, they were exceptionally good. We spent hundreds of thousands of dollars. We've been quite happy with their results.

SOLUTION

Can you speak a little more on the projects themselves?

The whole thing. From design to back end and front end. I kind of led the specking and the designs of the product, but they put it all together for me.

What specific technologies were used in the project?

I think they were mostly LAMP. They did some front end and some mobile work for us that was done in HTML. Full for mobile. However, that was about three years ago.

How long ago was the most recent project completed?

About six months ago.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

How happy were you with the results?

Very happy. Always happy with them. They are an amazing team.

Is there anything that stood out to you as being unique or special when working with them compared to other developers you have worked with?

They're extremely good at project management and their developers are competent communicators, too. If there’s a problem, they let you know about it because sometimes the client is sitting there waiting. They were very proactive about identifying and discussing problems.

Also, they are very professional. They thought the issue out pretty quickly in a professional manner without getting personal and pointing fingers.

Looking back on the work that they’ve done for you is there anything that you’d do differently a second time around, or think they could improve on?

I think I’ve been pretty lucky in having a really good experience with them. I haven’t had any negative situations.

BACKGROUND

Can you provide some background information on what your company does?

We are an English-based team, and we offer English training programs to individuals
as well as companies. In 2003, we started a platform called English-Test.net, which is the
largest platform for people who want to test and improve their English. This is the largest collection of free interactive exercises and materials catered to people who want to prepare for tests, such as the TOEIC or TOEFL test.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What was your main business goal or objective for undertaking the project with Zfort?

Since I am not a programmer, I had to employ programmers to build our website. Unfortunately, when the website was built in 2003, there were not many content management systems available, so they hard-coded the website. This meant, at some point, we needed professional help. We used Elance, and hired a number of companies using their services in maintaining the site, as well as creating new applications. In 2011, I finally found Zfort, and it has been the perfect match.

SOLUTION

What the process for discovering and choosing Zfort to work with?

I placed a couple of ads on Elance and got several responses. In order to see what the response was, and also to see what these companies were capable of, I gave them mini projects. Zfort was very responsive, and also dedicated to quality. Everything that I was looking for, I found with them.

Can you tell me more about the scope of the project?

Well, that's not easy because the website is very complex and, unfortunately, there is not much documentation. It means is that you have to dig deep into the code, and you have to get an understanding of the server structure. Not many companies can do that. What they usually do is just look at the site and say  "it's too complex and too difficult for us to maintain. What we can offer is we can rebuild it from scratch."

But, this was not a viable solution for me because this would have meant rebuilding from scratch, I needed to keep the existing site up and running, and at the same time, then I have to think about how to rebuild maybe a new site. Most companies took a look after I gave them access to the server, and said, "Unfortunately, we are not able to guarantee that the site will be running. It's too difficult a job for us to undertake."

Zfort was a company who spent hours analyzing the structure and the code. They came back with a solution whereby they said that it will take a certain amount of hours per month to keep the site up and running, and to fix certain things. At the same time, they made an offer as to how the site can be rebuilt. So, that's why they were my choice.

Can you give a general cost estimate for the project? 

So far, I've spent probably $12,000 in total with Zfort, but it's now close to the $20,000. That includes the maintenance, which is one of the ongoing projects and it's a great challenge, as well as some new projects. It's been roughly 1-1/2 years so far.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

It sounds like you're pleased with the results so far?

Absolutely. Yes.

When working with Zfort, is there anything that you find unique or special compared to other developers that you've worked with?

I would say they go out of their way. They are able to put  themselves into the customer's shoes. There is a saying in English that goes, "You don't know what you don't know." I've probably worked with a dozen IT companies. With all of them, on various levels, the problem was always that they said, "You have to tell us exactly what to do." For me, without an IT background, we speak different languages. I speak, let's say, a user's language, so I describe to them what I want. Then, usually, they would come back and would say to  break it down into all the steps so that our developers can do these tasks.

With Zfort, I could talk to them in my language. I can tell them what the problem is from my perspective, and then they translated it into developer-speak. Then, the developers can work with what kind of documentation Zfort creates for them. This is very important for a company like mine where, as of now, I don't have my own IT development department. So, it's very simple. I can send them an email, and I can speak to them, I can tell them what the problem is, and then they come back, and they offer me a variety of solutions that I can pick. Also with them, they sometimes tell me things – they test the site, they test a few things, and tell me what could be improved, and I don't have to see these things myself, which is also very important.

That is something you usually don't find with an IT company. They expect you to have documentation, to have a project description, and then they do exactly what you describe. But, sometimes, it's impossible for you to describe everything, so you leave certain things out, or it's not clear enough, and they would not ask. With Zfort, there's a task that I describe, and they say, "Do you really mean this and have you thought about this?" So it's really more a partnership, rather than a customer-client relationship.

Is there anything that you'd do differently a second time around, or you wish they could improve upon?

That's really a difficult question because, as of now, they really have been the best company I've
been working with so far.

Because most of their clients are B2B clients, they work with Web development agencies and larger companies – big companies where you have a budget maybe of $50,000 and more. They'll usually have a technical department that can already describe the project on a large scale. Sometimes, this is something that I have problems with, and they've been doing an excellent job.

But, maybe, what they could do is if they also target consumer companies, like myself, then it would be even easier. I'm helping them now with German clients, and there is this communication thing where the Germans usually don’t speak English while, at Zfort, they speak very good English and also Russian. Other than that, it's really difficult for me to say what I would do differently.

BACKGROUND

Can you give a brief description of what your company does?

There’s more than one company. We run a dating site including two top-10 hit-wise dating sites, the last of which we sold in May of last year. Zfort had been working on that for us and, more particularly, on a white labeling system for that. That went with the company. That’s now owned by a different company. That’s something they built for us and ran for us during the period of a couple of years. That was a big dating project and needed to be white labeled rapidly, especially since we could just decide on a URL, decide on a type of user we wanted to segment in our large dating database, and within seconds, we could have a new dating site live. It might be a dating site for divorcees, for instance. Then, we can automatically segment the database and, in hours, completely reformat the site. We color the site, have some graphics throughout, and all of that will be much of the bridge.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

Is this basically to expand into different markets?

Yes, it’s exactly that. To be able to deliver more specific offering to people who wanted it. That was done, and it’s now live with many sites, running off of that platform. It’s now owned by Global Personals Ltd, who is the largest white labeling company in the world. They still have the team that we built with that for. We have more than one team. So. they effectively bought that team from us, and run the team with Zfort.

SOLUTION

How long ago was the project completed?

It never really is completed. It’s an ongoing thing, competing with other dating sites. It’s constantly being upgraded. But it was launched about a year ago.

Can you provide a little more information on the technologies used?

The technology we’ve used for most of the stuff we’ve done with them has been the same. There’s another company we’ve built with them that is a real-time market research business. That had been incredibly robust because third parties plug in varying API, and call the site for every page that they render on their own websites. So, it gets vast amounts of traffic. For every page called on any one of our partner sites, we effectively serve the load. So, we also are an aggregate of all these sites. They’re vast sites, too. We have a large newspaper company in the United Kingdom that’s 250 sites, and various other companies that are connected via this API, and delivers real-time market research via these networks of sites. So, when someone asks a survey on Usurv, it’s distributed across the network, and they get instant results. That’s a project that we’ve been building for the last two years. We launched that at the beginning of last year. It’s doing very well. That, and the dating stuff was all built on .NET SQL and Microsoft SQL IS. They’re also working on a project for us now, another dating project. That’s the PHP/MySQL project.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

It sounds like you’re pretty happy with the results so far?

Yeah, we’re very happy. I think we’d been working with them for as long as five years now. We had many bad experiences with outsourcing before. In fact, we’ve pretty much given up on outsourcing. I think we’ve spent probably in the region of $100,000 to $120,000 just testing the water with outsourcing with three companies. We have never used anything that these companies have done for us because, ultimately, it was not of sufficiently high quality.

A friend had been using Zfort and said we should give them a try. I was unsure because I’ve had some bad experiences. But, as that I had a very strong recommendation, I tried them. We’ve had a very positive experience. We employed a number of teams. We employ permanent programmers with them. That’s our approach. We don’t do it project by project. That’s pretty much all I can speak to because that’s my experience with them. Extremely technical developers, very hardworking, conscientious, and at the fraction of the price.

When working with Zfort, is there anything that stands out as being unique or special compared
to other outsourcers or developers you’ve worked with?

Compared to other outsources, they produce stuff that we could actually use. That’s not the result of about everybody we’ve had previously. They were very professional from day one. They were flexible. We had very specific demands. For instance, I wanted to be able to talk to all of my programmers even though they’re based in the Ukraine. I don’t speak Russian. These men had to provide us with English-speaking programmers. They did so in so far as they were able to, and they hired after that. They found us several English-speaking programmers. The hiring process cost us nothing. We didn’t have to commit to six months or a year of business with them in order to get them to hire these guys. They were their employees. They had the responsibility for them. We had our 30 days’ notice, so from our point of view, an incredibly flexible position to be in. They were doing lots of work, taking lots of responsibility to get us the people we wanted. The cost and responsibility to us if we had done that in the U.K. in terms of employee responsibilities, legal responsibilities to employees, hiring cost, and HR cost would have made that whole process massively more expensive if we hadn’t liked the developers.

Is there anything you’d do differently a second time around or that you think Zfort could improve upon?

We need to improve upon some stuff. You kind of have to learn how to work with outsourcers. It isn’t the same as having guys in your office that you can shout across the table at. You have to explain things in more detail. It becomes less true if you’re using a team like we are, because just like having guys in your office, they just get used to your ways, and what you’re doing. So, now my head programmer over there, I’m going to talk to all the programmers, but my head programmer over there is like my right-hand man. I barely need to finish a sentence before he knows exactly what I want. It took a while for him to get to that point, of course, just as it would with an employee. But, we got there. So, now the communication is super rapid.

We very foolishly took an approach early on, not deliberately, that they were kind of black box. We typed in to Skype our instructions, and then these instructions were carried out by robots at the other end. We didn’t really think of it as these people are employees; they’re totally devoted to us, working on our projects. We never bothered at that stage to try to get their buy in to the projects, which is really naive of us. As soon as we did, as soon as we worked that, everything was perfect. They started to care. They’d start to come back to us with ideas that were more than just developers. They were then part of our team.

We were the kind of clients that never tell them anything, expect them to work really hard, and treat them like they’re robots. They’re not. They want to get excited about their job. When they do, they’ll reward you.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the manager of 8 Miles Solution

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

we harness the power of technology and innovation to accelerate your business forward. As a leading provider of cutting-edge growth solutions, we are dedicated to helping organizations like yours navigate the ever-evolving landscape of the digital world.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Zfort Group to accomplish?

• Our company was looking for a team to create a Marketplace Mobile app and website. It was important to hire a team that could work with us both technically and on marketing.

SOLUTION

How did you find Zfort Group?

• Online Search
• Clutch Site

Why did you select Zfort Group over others?

• High ratings
• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Zfort Group were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Scope of work was complex as it included Market Research, Discovery, UI/UX Design, Development of Web and Mobile apps, Support and Digital Marketing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Project is ready, and we’re planning for a new phase before launching. We’re planning the new phase, as Zfort group delivered the Phase 1 features 1 month earlier than expected.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

We are using JIRA and wanted a team that is flexible to use JIRA and Slack. They have experience using JIRA and Slack, so project management was outstanding from their end. Zfort group is too accurate when they’re showing up in a meeting, always ahead of time.

What was your primary form of communication with Zfort Group?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

It’s rare to find an agency, who can work with you like a Technical Partner. Not just technically they’ve helped us in Planning and Marketing too.

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

I believe in focusing on Strengths instead of Weaknesses. Therefore, They’re pretty solid and deliver what I ask for.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the operator of MajorKey Technologies

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

MajorKey improves security performance by reducing user friction and business risk, empowering your people, and protecting your IP. We provide Advisory, Integration, and Managed Services for Identity and Access Management, Application Deployment and Security, Data Security and Governance, and Cloud Security. Delivering at the speed of business to protect our client’s identities, apps, data, and systems without hampering their agility.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Zfort Group to accomplish?

• Our aim was to create a globally accessible Mobile App and backend infrastructure that streamlined the process of online ordering and delivery at golf courses, making it effortlessly convenient for consumers worldwide.

SOLUTION

How did you find Zfort Group?

• Online Search
• Clutch Site

Why did you select Zfort Group over others?

• High ratings
• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Zfort Group were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Through a series of productive discovery meetings, we communicated our overarching objectives and outlined the desired application flow to our development partners. This collaborative effort has led to ongoing progress and continual refinement of our application. Our primary focus has been to articulate the precise flow requirements of both the application and its backend, supported by accompanying screenshots to effectively convey our comprehensive vision to the developers.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

we engaged in additional agreements with our development partners for further enhancements and ongoing support. While the team has demonstrated exceptional performance when actively engaged in the project, we have recently experienced a significant decline in the level of support despite extending the project timeline and purchasing additional hours.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

The project management aspect of our collaboration has been satisfactory thus far. Our development partners utilize Zoho Projects, email, and Google Docs for communication and coordination. However, we have identified room for improvement in terms of communication efficiency, particularly when working with technical documents within email threads, which often proved cumbersome.

What was your primary form of communication with Zfort Group?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

Working with the zfort group has been a highly positive experience, as they have demonstrated active involvement and a strong commitment to the project. Their engagement and collaboration have contributed significantly to the overall success of our partnership.

Additionally, we have found that the development team excels in their work, particularly when they are able to concentrate on specific tasks. Once the team is locked down and given clear directives, their performance and output have been consistently impressive. Their technical expertise and dedication have played a crucial role in achieving the desired outcomes for our project.

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

Not at all, They consistently demonstrated their capabilities and delivered excellent work when focused on the project.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the developer of Zolute® Technology & Consulting

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

It focus on IT consulting and Development. With global presence in, UK and UAE, the company aims to deliver efficient solution with help of latest technologies.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Zfort Group to accomplish?

• We wanted to develop a historical data screen in our mobile application for users to access progress and historical trends in their data.

SOLUTION

How did you find Zfort Group?

• Online Search
• Clutch Site

Why did you select Zfort Group over others?

• High ratings
• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Zfort Group were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

I have multiple projects with zfort group. I give them my idea, and then their business analyst provides documentation for the design, cost, and timeframe. At present, we have around 7–8 projects, including a hardware device, a web booking panel for doctors, and an app. They also do web, IoT, AI, and game development tasks for me. We’ve used technologies such as Python and Laravel. In total, we’ve developed 11 software and apps.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

All of the software we’ve developed are HIPAA-compliant, and I’m getting the best results from zfort group. I’ve seen cost savings for my business. Moreover, a lot of consultants are in my area, but my quote is usually 70% lower than their quotes — that’s because of the team’s affordable services. Overall, I’ve found a good development partner in them.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

The best part is that I receive screenshots of what they’re doing. Every five minutes, if I want to know if a resource is working, I can use Jira to track all screenshots. I also receive weekly reports of their accomplishments. For communication, we use WhatsApp and Skype. I have access to project managers even after office hours. Overall, they’re highly transparent.

What was your primary form of communication with Zfort Group?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

Zfort group is highly flexible and honest — the whole team is amazing.

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

The start of the engagement was a bit bumpy, and it took us time to build trust. However, I’m so happy with them as of now. I’m going to use them for a long time; I can’t run my business without them.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the sales head of UnaFinancial

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Web application for AI and Decision Support

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Zfort Group to accomplish?

• Develop the web software as per internal requirements

SOLUTION

How did you find Zfort Group?

• Online Search
• Clutch Site

Why did you select Zfort Group over others?

• High ratings
• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Zfort Group were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Development of the two web applications as per our instructions.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Very important impact on sales and services. Customers appreciated the move of services to the web.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

The project was conducted through continuous information and instructions exchange between our team and the vendor's development team

What was your primary form of communication with Zfort Group?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

In three words: Reliability. Continuity. Professionalism

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

Nothing to point out for now. They are the best.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Lead-founder & CEO of Allymatch

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

We are smart b2b platform for seamless matchings.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Zfort Group to accomplish?

• We hired Zfort Group to design and develop AI systems.

SOLUTION

How did you find Zfort Group?

• Online Search
• Referral

Why did you select Zfort Group over others?

• Pricing fit our budget
• Good value for cost
• Referred to me

How many teammates from Zfort Group were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Zfort Group is designing and developing enterprise AI and cloud software using a variety of languages/platforms to support integration and deployment of analytics products and solutions.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Zfort Group helps to Identify, analyze, and interpret trends or patterns regarding user activities.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

They respond to our needs and delivered the project on time.

What was your primary form of communication with Zfort Group?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

They have good communication and teamwork skills.

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

Zfort Group did a great job and delivered a project that satisfied us.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Vice President of Development at TRITEC Real Estate Company, Inc. of TRITEC Real Estate Company, Inc.

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

TRITEC was recognized for providing an exceptional corporate culture

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Zfort Group to accomplish?

• Blockchain consulting and strategy development
• Blockchain integration with existing systems
• Blockchain architecture design and development

SOLUTION

How did you find Zfort Group?

Referral

Why did you select Zfort Group over others?

• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Referred to me
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Zfort Group were assigned to this project?

6-10 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Zfort Group collaborated closely with the TRITEC team to comprehend their unique requirements and create a blockchain solution that would support their objectives. At every stage of the procedure, from early planning to execution and assistance, they offered professional advice.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

TRITEC has benefited greatly from the blockchain services provided by Zfort Group in a number of ways, including:

• enhanced transparency and security in real estate deals
• Time and expense savings in real estate deals
• Automation and greater efficiency in real estate operations
• Improved client happiness and experience

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

The Zfort Group and TRITEC worked together in a very efficient manner. Zfort Group collaborated extensively with TRITEC to make sure that all of our needs were satisfied, and they were communicative and responsive throughout the project. Additionally, Zfort's team possessed a great deal of expertise and experience, and they were able to produce an excellent solution within budget and on schedule.

What was your primary form of communication with Zfort Group?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

The Zfort Group's profound understanding of blockchain technology, their dedication to client happiness, and their capacity to provide creative and practical solutions most impressed TRITEC. The team at Zfort Group is extremely skilled and knowledgeable, and they went above and above to support us in achieving our goals.

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

TRITEC did not find any areas where Zfort Group's services needed to be improved. We had nothing but the utmost satisfaction with the job scope, results, process, and overall Zfort Group experience.