Zwinny — Out of Business

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We are a consulting engineering firm providing building design services. I am a principal and practicing engineer.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We use multiple software packages to perform our engineering design, each one of them requiring the same basic information as it pertains to a client or job. Our business management system needed a way to communicate with excel. Manual data entry is fraught with the potential for error and expiration. Reducing low-level activity and increasing accuracy is important and we needed an API to provide access to the data center.

SOLUTION

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

We have been developing our business system for years and have used a number of consultants to provide project support. This project had become a high priority for us and we needed to move quickly so we acted on a referral from a known source.

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

The scope of work was defined through a series of workshops and meetings to establish the goals of this API. We provided sketches and partial specifications so that Zwinny could present a solution proposal. Once we had reviewed the proposed solution and ensured all the necessary elements were present, we proceeded with development. We would test as development proceeded, making any adjustments as necessary. The final deliverable included an executable that each user could install and use the data interface.

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

The development team included many individuals that I was not or did not need to be aware of. I worked with Alejandro as the project manager and occasionally with his senior developer. He managed other team members, to perform support tasks so I didn't have to communicate with everyone.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have been able to save approximately 5 minutes per event with an estimated 25 - 40 events per week. Additionally, the accuracy and consistency of the input have increased to nearly 100%.

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

We used on-line meetings, phone calls and emails in conjunction with thier project management system to communicate throughout the project. The project manager was the main point of contact and the development team was available during more granular conversations.

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

They were extremely organized and easy to communicate with. They were more accessible than some of the local consultants we have used in the past.

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

Nothing I can think of...

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the CEO of Mind Help Mexico. We provide online mental health care services to companies via our platform.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenges were you trying to address with Zwinny?

We needed custom software development services.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Zwinny used Scrum methodologies and several programming languages to develop our web-based and mobile platform. The team was in charge of frontend development and UI/UX design. 

What is the team composition?

We worked with two people: a project manager and a developer from Zwinny who collaborated alongside our development team. 

How did you come to work with Zwinny?

I had met Zwinny’s general manager when he worked at another agency. I really liked his work, so when he started his own company, I contacted him to help me with this project. 

Alejandro (Founder) was another one of the reasons I decided to hire them. He is a great leader, and I trust his management and technical skills. 

How much have you invested in them?

Our company invested about $10,000. 

What is the status of this engagement?

Our engagement lasted from May 2019–May 2021. We contact them every once in a while to work on upgrades.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Having Zwinny work for us made us save money and gave me and my team more time to focus on the commercial side of the business, as we felt more confident having experts manage the technical side. The platform was completed successfully, and we were able to be more efficient and meet internal deadlines in a timely manner.

How did Zwinny perform from a project management standpoint?

Zwinny was great on the project management front. The staff got involved quickly and studied the business thoroughly. At first, I worked very closely with them, but as the project progressed, they started to take things on their own. We started having weekly meetings and later turned to have them every two weeks to check progress.

When we worked in the midst of COVID-19, communication was a bit tricky, but it worked out well. We used Jira, Basecamp, Slack, and WhatsApp. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Zwinny provided us with great orientation since the platform’s conception. The team implemented their own methodologies to ensure the success of the project, were very dedicated, and provided personalized attention. The staff basically became a part of our team — I completely recommend working with them.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I didn’t love using as many platforms as we did for the management of the project — it was difficult for me. I’m a non-technical person so getting a grasp of the development language was hard sometimes, although over time we found simpler ways to communicate. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Evaluate the costs of having an internal team or an external one, both in terms of time and money. If you have a one-time project and don’t need a permanent IT manager, it’s more convenient to outsource the project to another team and work with them as needed.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO and owner of Bridge Below, Inc. We are a SaaS provider for the automotive aftermarket in the US.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Zwinny?

We needed cross-platform mobile application development services.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Our former development team had uploaded a buggy app to Android app stores and didn’t give us the latest code of the iOS app when they uploaded it to the App Store. Zwinny helped us finish this project that needed to have several features and bugs fixed.

Zwinny is currently developing another app for Android and iOS. The app is being built for people who have cars as a hobby. It’s a car social networking app that geolocates the user position within car shows and allows users to find each other, take pictures, and upload posts. They can also win trophies and awards. 

What is the team composition?

Alejandro (Founder) has acted as my project manager. I contact him when I need something, and he manages the development team to get things done. 

How did you come to work with Zwinny?

I had a lot of miscommunication problems with other development teams. One person referred me to Alejandro, and he offered me his business to make sure all developers were on the same page and I could take some weight off my shoulders. We do have an in-house development team, but we have no experience dealing with mobile development, so we had to outsource it.

How much have you invested with them?

We have invested around $3,000–$4,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our engagement started in December 2020, and it’s ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I’d highly recommend Zwinny. Their work has allowed me to focus on other parts of my business. Our previous project is now stable on all app stores. 

How did Zwinny perform from a project management standpoint?

The team always comes back to me with daily reports on the project’s status — they keep good timesheets. We communicate through Slack and email. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

I like that they’re always making sure everything is running smoothly. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t have anything for them to improve. They’ve taken care of us so well.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Don’t come up with after ideas and stay within your scope. Be honest and tell them what you need; they’ll get it done.