Netguru

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and CEO of VisionHealth, a company developing and marketing digital therapeutics. We provide patients who have chronic respiratory diseases with an application for medical purposes that has a clinical effect on them.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Netguru?

We had four developers internally to drive our app development project, but we needed to expand our team. However, as a startup company, we have limited funds. Sometimes we need more resources, and other times we need no extra resources. Thus, we hired Netguru to augment our development team as needed.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We had already developed the AI behind our app, and we had built an app around that AI. However, it had been built on an old programming language, so we needed Netguru to move it into a new programming language that met the European regulations regarding data security and cybersecurity.

Thus, Netguru provided us with developers who built almost a completely new mobile app for our AI on React Native. When they joined, we provided them with the app’s design and specifications for its features and functionality. Using that input, they developed the new app completely from scratch for iOS and Android.

Our mobile was built to help patients with chronic respiratory diseases. It helps them track their symptoms and medical values to see how their illness evolves over time. It also reminds them when to take their medication because they usually have to take different medications throughout the day.

One of the main issues with respiratory disease patients is that most of their medications need to be inhaled; it’s not like taking a pill. Thus, the dose that gets to their lungs depends on their inhalation. Our app uses the AI we created to provide inhalation training for those patients. It evaluates their inhalations, tells them what they did perfectly, and tells them what they should do differently to maximize the drug dose that gets into their lungs.

What is the team composition?

We worked with three people from Netguru, including a senior developer and two junior developers. Sometimes, a QA engineer helped us as well.

How did you come to work with Netguru?

During the vetting process, Netguru was very forthcoming and open, and they let us know about their internal processes, whereas other companies didn’t. That was one of the main reasons why we chose them.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around €350,000 (approximately $371,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from January 2021–March 2022.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

For this project, we had three different goals: having the app delivered within a certain timeline, meeting a minimum checklist of requirements, and passing our QC to meet European standards for medical products. Netguru accomplished all three goals. They delivered on time, accomplished the most important requirements, and delivered a high-quality product.

How did Netguru perform from a project management standpoint?

Netguru’s project management was very good, and they were very accurate. Additionally, we both were very efficient in our communication, which was a big plus. We had a 15-minute meeting every morning to align on the tasks for the day. As for collaboration tools, we used Jira for project management and ticket tracking.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Throughout the development process, Netguru’s senior developer was fantastic. Everyone told us that it was very rare to find a developer of that quality, which is why we kept working with them for the entire project. She was a top-notch developer.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Netguru has increased their prices considerably since we worked with them. For the price they charge now for one developer, we could hire internally one full-time and one part-time developer in Germany. That’s the main reason why we find it difficult to work with them again in the future.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Having regular communication with Netguru, whether it's brief or not, is the best way to generate an efficient collaboration.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I work at SOL-MILLENNIUM Medical Group, and I’m the global VP for corporate transformation, which also makes me the global head of IT. We’re a global medical device distributor.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Netguru?

We needed help with our overall business’ digital transformation and digitization.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Netguru has developed a CRM, a custom application, a Salesforce service cloud, and a website for us. First, they adapted their system to our capabilities and rolled us into Agile management and product discovery. They started the digital transformation with a Salesforce CRM, where they rescued a failed implementation. They performed an implementation audit and then executed two new implementations for us; one in the US and another in Europe. Both rollouts included the development of an API for our SAP ERP. Therefore, it wasn’t a standalone CRM; it came integrated with our ERP, and the team did that integration within that project. 

In the meantime, they worked on the Salesforce service cloud for North America. The team built our custom application using Microsoft Power Apps and Power BI. The team also developed the website from scratch using Webflow. They designed the site considering that direct e-commerce would be connected later. They’re now preparing the site for B2B e-commerce. 

Currently, Netguru provides us with ongoing development and helpdesk services for the CRM and the service cloud. Moving forward, they’ll also integrate client or vendor portals into the website. 

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with about 15 teammates from Netguru. The team has included business development managers, sales executives, the CEO, icon designers, and a group of programmers in different technologies.

How did you come to work with Netguru?

I found them through my personal network because I was friends with one of Netguru’s supervisory board members.

How much have you invested in them?

We’ve spent about $500,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our partnership began in November 2021, and it’s still ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The first metric to measure Netguru's success is their development time. We launched two CRM instances, and each project took about eight weeks, which is a record time. The team did the core mapping in less than two weeks, and both the Netguru side and our developers did great work. This was also one of the fastest and most successful API development that we've had.

Meanwhile, this was the first time we used any CRM, and in the four months of using our North American instance, we've had about $15 million worth of opportunities there. There's also a significant improvement in our customer service process through the service cloud. Though metrics are hard to measure because we didn't measure our ticket turnaround before, I speculate that the solution has doubled our customer response efficiency.

Moreover, Netguru has excellent business development personnel that are both technology and business oriented. They also have a well-established product discovery process. When we started, their process was more advanced than we were ready to accommodate. However, they accommodated us and suggested an Agile approach.

How did Netguru perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management is their strongest point. The team has a unique ability to utilize the Agile methodology, so they're spot on in terms of deadlines. Budget-wise, I would give them fairly high marks because while we've gone over the budget here and there, it hasn't been entirely their fault; part of it is due to our scoping as well.

We communicate through Microsoft Teams. This is another thumbs up for Netguru because they've adapted to what we use in our organization, making communication far easier for us.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Netguru is agile and has project management and accelerated implementation abilities. All our other partners work with a classic statement of work (SoW), with meetings three times a week and two-month projects. Meanwhile, Netguru has the unique ability to handle accelerated implementation. 

Additionally, their very high technical ability allows us to focus on the business instead of fighting bugs and validating their solutions from a technical point of view. Moreover, the team has business acumen; they tell us when we haven't given them the right requirements using diplomatic words.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, there hasn't been a challenge or question to which they haven't found the answer.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be disciplined on the customer side. Netguru has big development power, and they'll quickly build what you ask from them. Therefore, it's good to do your homework and carefully think through the scoping. Additionally, Netguru always engages a bigger group of people which allows them to develop timely manner and with technological reliability. However, this also costs money, so get your scoping right, kick off at the right time, and they will deliver.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the VP of product at Aspit, a Norweigian company that provides healthcare professionals with electronic health record (EHR) and electronic medical record (EMR) systems. We mainly support professionals in physical therapy, chiropractors, psychiatrists, psychologists, and anyone else working in the area of therapy.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Netguru?

We needed help with UI/UX design because we didn’t have any internal designers.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Netguru helps us with our UI/UX design projects. For example, they designed the workflow of our EMR system. We’re also developing a web app, and they’re doing all the workflow designs. Additionally, they’re designing the buttons and making a style guide.

This web app is a patient booking portal. On it, patients will be able to book their online appointments with their therapists, and they will be able to use this app on their cell phones, tablets, or web browsers. Additionally, it will be available for iOS and Android.

Aside from that, Netguru is also designing a journal system, and we have a maintenance agreement with them for one of our products.

Last year, they helped us with a development project as well, but we decided to go in another direction. We stopped that part of the project and only use them as designers now. However, this wasn’t a reflection on them; we just had to change the sequence in which we were delivering the product.

What is the team composition?

Over the last year, we’ve worked with two designers from Netguru. Before closing down the development project, we also worked with three developers, a QA, and a team lead.

How did you come to work with Netguru?

I wasn’t working for this company when they brought Netguru in. However, I know that they were working with a company based in Sri Lanka, and they wanted somebody closer to Norway, in the same time zone, and with a similar culture.

How much have you invested with them?

We spend €20,000–€30,000 (approximately $23,000–$35,000 USD) per month.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in April 2019, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Netguru redesigned our system’s workflow and UX, and now, it’s very user-friendly, easy to understand, and easy to manage. The product that we’re currently developing is quite new to the market, and we’re gaining new customers weekly. So far, the feedback has been really good, and our customers are happy. Overall, we’re really happy with their designs.

Additionally, Netguru has really great design resources; I’m very thrilled to be working with them. They’re very professional, and they have a great eye for design.

How did Netguru perform from a project management standpoint?

Netguru’s project management is very good; we’re very pleased with them. They’re easy to work with, and they deliver on time. We communicate through Slack, and they have their own Jira board set up so that it’s easy to manage which stories are being worked on.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Netguru is very professional, organized, and polite, and they give great feedback on our plans.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, we’re really satisfied.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Stay close to the project.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Cleve Kennelly: I’m the COO of Hivewyre, a digital advertising company.

Joey Lake: I’m the manager of our area’s ad ops. I work closely with Netguru’s team.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Netguru?

CK: We needed them to handle our engineering and development efforts.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

CK: Netguru manages the front- and backend of our existing internal system. They address any technical issues that can impede its performance and focus on refining our data system and UI, which our internal team uses for our advertising campaigns.

JL: They’ve conducted a discovery process to go over our platform and determine any vulnerabilities or areas that need major updates. After that, they’ve presented their findings and suggestions to improve its quality, appearance, and performance. 

Upon securing our approval, Netguru’s team then modernized our outdated UI with a new coding language and upgraded our existing features. They’ve relied on Python to improve our interface and prevent any potential security issues.

We’ve recently decided to build a software program for our clients, and Netguru is in charge of developing that platform. They’re currently working on its backend, and the entire software is set to come to fruition soon.

What is the team composition?

JL: We mainly work with Dominik (Senior Discovery Consultant), our head developer. At any given time, we’ve worked with a team of 3–4 resources from Netguru’s team, including a project manager.

How did you come to work with Netguru?

CK: We acquired Netguru as an offshore team through some ownership changes.

JL: We already worked with Dominik before we acquired them and eventually transitioned to rely on their entire team’s services.

How much have you invested with them?

CK: Their current monthly service fee amounts to $12,650, while we paid them $11,000 a month last year.

What is the status of this engagement?

CK: Our ongoing engagement with Netguru kicked off in October 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

JL: One of the highlights of Netguru’s work is their successful code work, which has evidently modernized our outdated interface. Their overhaul has resulted in a more secure platform — we’re more confident to use it now because there are no risks that can compromise its safety.

Additionally, Netguru ensures the continuity of our system and business with their efficient maintenance services, and they generate helpful suggestions to help us refine our existing methodologies.

How did Netguru perform from a project management standpoint?

JL: We rely on Jira for project management. Netguru has a structured workflow, which we find efficient as it helps us stay in the loop and track their weekly progress. They’re also highly responsive, and they immediately resolve any issues that we raise — we don’t consider our time zone differences challenging because of their approach.

While I personally wish the project has progressed faster, I know that development work takes time, and engaging an offshore team is another challenge.

CK: Netguru has accomplished our project requirements within the timelines we’ve set. We’re extremely satisfied with their team’s performance.

What did you find most impressive about them?

JL: What stands out about Netguru is their orderly work structure — Dominik has already impressed us with this quality when we’ve solely worked with him, but it’s noteworthy to see Netguru exhibit this as a team. Additionally, their flexibility and professionalism unfailingly meet our timelines, needs, and budget.

Are there any areas they could improve?

JL: I can’t think of anything off the top of my head. Netguru has been a very flexible and timeline-oriented partner that strives to overcome our time zone differences, and we’re just thankful to have them on board.

CK: Netguru’s most recent price increase has surprised me, so I’ve quickly expressed my sentiments to their team. However, they’ve responded well to my feedback, so we’ve already resolved that.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

CK: Make the most of your engagement with Netguru by communicating with their team regularly — this is important in any partnership that deals with time zone differences.

JL: Know what you’re getting into, and pay attention to their suggestions and ideas to make for a harmonious partnership.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the co-founder and CPO at Shepper. We help businesses across a range of industries such as retail, property, media and utilities to collect insightful data on their physical assets using a network of local trusted people that pick up jobs using our app.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Netguru?

We’d just gotten our series-A funding, and as a startup, we were always working against the clock. At that moment in time, I couldn’t risk employing a big team internally, so I wanted to rely on a really good partner who could get up to speed quickly and scale the team up and down as the project progressed.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

A key component of the platform is the frontend Shepper app, which is the gateway for picking up data collection jobs in the market for our users, whom we call Shepherds. Netguru developed it in React Native. The backend was done by our in-house team.

I created a lot of the wireframes myself, and we kicked off with a UI/UX designer from Netguru. We were mid-rebranding at the time, so we didn’t apply our brand to the app designs. Netguru also helped a bit with the screen design, but we provided most of it.

How did you come to work with Netguru?

They do a lot of content marketing on LinkedIn, and my co-founder at the time knew Netguru through his wife. I thought that I’d give them a go, so I picked up the phone and called.

How much have you invested with them?

The total so far is £425,000 (approximately $566,700 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Netguru in December 2018, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I couldn’t recommend Netguru highly enough, and I’ve been saying that since we struck up a conversation with them. They’re completely different to work with than any other agency.

Fundamentally, we don’t look at Netguru as an agency. They’re a development partner, and I’m very proud of the work they’ve produced. They’ve done a phenomenal job of creating the mobile app.

How did Netguru perform from a project management standpoint?

We’re working with them remotely, but that’s true for everyone these days. We just wish we could integrate them more into our internal culture, but they’re well-represented within the business. Everyone knows who Netguru is.

Their project management and general team attitude are amazing. They’re the type of team that, if they don’t know something, they’ll find someone internally who does. Everybody supports everybody, so we get a lot more value than just having a team assigned to us. 

It’s been a wonderful relationship. They have their own Jira board for our project, and we have a Slack workspace with them. They’re always there when I have a question, which is fantastic.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The quality of their work speaks for itself. It’s almost a given that we’re going to have good quality work, and it’s in their nature to want to help and make suggestions. Netguru listens very well and always tries to find something to do. 

They can also work autonomously. Rather than having me guide them in the right direction, they’ll come up with their own suggestions and even challenge me. It’s nice to have a team like that.

A traditional agency would just agree to the work but not deliver the desired result because maybe they hadn’t thought about something. It’s the opposite with Netguru. It’s a collaborative effort, and we all work together for a common goal.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I have nothing negative to say. I score them every quarter, and it sometimes seems like they’re doing that too much, but it’s just because they want to gauge how satisfied we are. 

We’ve had a few account and project manager changes, but the project’s been ongoing for two years, so that’s quite natural. The project managers we’ve had have been fantastic.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

What I hear a lot from Netguru is that they like the energy I bring, because it makes them really excited. The client should show that they really care about the product, rather than just giving Netguru an app to build and checking in every once in a while. 

It’s important to have a good kickoff session and to act as a leader in the environment. Netguru will work better if they can see that it means a lot to you as a business.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the head of product with Newst.se, a B2B marketplace for commercial real estate. We’ve been on the market for about 18 months. We connect brokers and real estate owners with companies looking for commercial property, whether it be an office or warehouse. On top of that, we add tools to the supply side that help them reach out to properties faster and essentially find someone to move into their vacant commercial properties as quickly as possible.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Netguru?

In Sweden, developers, coders, and the technical side of things is fairly expensive; there are high costs for that kind of labor. We decided to go nearshore in Poland — we are in Sweden, and Netguru is in Poland — because the costs are very competitive, and they still provide high-quality resources.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Netguru essentially helped us set up our entire online digital product. They’ve touched upon anything from design UX to product management, front- and backend development, and DevOps. They’ve been involved on every level in terms of developing the product.

We came to the partnership with an idea of what we wanted to achieve, and we wireframed that with Netguru. They came up with high-fidelity designs. It’s a very collaborative and organic effort, and the team that we’re working with is very integrated with our team and process.    

The package is hosted on Amazon. It’s a Rails-based stack, primarily, with JavaScript and a couple of React frameworks.  

What is the team composition?

We’re currently working with three developers: one frontend and two backend. They’re dedicated to us. There’s also a scrum master on their end. There are other resources that we can add along the way, including QA, design, and DevOps. They are very flexible from that perspective. The core team is always there, and then it’s fairly easy to onboard other resources as needed for certain amounts of time.

How did you come to work with Netguru?

We found them through a recommendation. We had a couple of meetings, and we had a good fit straightaway. They understood what we wanted to achieve and laid out the resources we needed. From there, we initiated the operation.

How much have you invested with them?

Our running cost is around $25,000 per month.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our work together began in 2018, and it’s ongoing. They’ve been with us since day one. Our product has been live for 18 months, but we’ve worked with Netguru for about 24 months.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They’re very integrated and forthcoming. We’ve basically been with the same resources since the start of the engagement, so even though they are outsourced, we really feel that they are a part of the team. We try to give them the ability to feel ownership of the product and what they deliver to us, and they’ve taken to that.

They want to deliver a good product with us. Rather than just sending them specifications, they actually come with suggestions, so it’s a very dynamic and fruitful cooperation. It’s very valuable and cost-effective for us to have part of our development with Netguru.

How did Netguru perform from a project management standpoint?

We’ve never had any issues in terms of meeting deadlines and communicating.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Having worked with a few other providers, I feel like Netguru has a bit of a different approach. It almost seems like they’re a startup in terms of their roles, like a customer success manager. They really try to deliver a quality product, and all of the resources we need are always available. 

Overall, it’s a very well-oiled machine. They try to not only deliver something to us but also develop themselves, learn new technologies, and come up with new ideas. For them, it’s not just about delivering specifications, but also delivering a really good product for us.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There’s nothing that’s worth mentioning or that affects the delivery for us. You can always get better at different things, but at the end of the day, we’re very happy with Netguru’s final delivery.

Any advice for potential customers?

I don’t know if we just had a great team fit, but based on my experience working with Netguru and learning how they work, I think it’s very valuable to try to integrate them as a team. That way, they will definitely feel more ownership. They have communication skills that make it possible for them to integrate, so if you allow them to, they will, and good things come out of that.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CTO of CRIF Bürgel, a financial services company based in Germany. I’m responsible for the whole architecture, infrastructure, and security in the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Netguru?

We wanted to develop a new product for identifying fraud. The product would use different strategies, including device fingerprinting and biometrics.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Netguru developed a fraud prevention solution using best-in-class services. They implemented a microservice and infrastructure as code (IaC) architecture. Their team used Redis, CockroachDB, Rancher Kubernetes, AWS, React.js, and Node.js.

What is the team composition?

We started with two developers and increased the team to four developers and three DevOps team members. We increased it further from there, adding a product designer, a scrum master, and a product owner.

How did you come to work with Netguru?

I looked for outsourcing companies on Clutch and shortlisted 10 of them. Netguru ranked well, and we had the best communication with them.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent between $300,000–$400,000 on this project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Netguru in late-February 2019, and the project finished in February 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Everything was high-quality and delivered on time.  

How did Netguru perform from a project management standpoint?

While my product owner was in contact with their developers, I was in contact with Netguru’s project manager. Their agility was good as was the quality of their people.

What did you find most impressive about them?

If I had another project, I would directly start it with Netguru and not look for other providers.

Are there any areas they could improve?

One challenge for Netguru may be keeping their team motivated during the coronavirus. However, there was nothing that they could’ve done better. Netguru just needs to continue in this direction.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and CEO of elScript SA, a legal annotation service. I’m developing an application that is like a digital document for lawyers or legal practitioners. It allows them to annotate legal documentation.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Netguru?

The challenge was with the algorithm running the application. The product works a little differently than others. Most annotation tools detect that your annotations remain the same and are the ones being modified over time. In the case of the application I had in mind, it’s the text that gets changed, and the annotations are there to remain as a knowledge base. 

We needed to develop an algorithm that helped the application to sort the differences between two legal texts and to port over the annotations to the next text.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Netguru built the application. They did design and front- and backend development. They also developed the algorithm.

What is the team composition?

Most of the time, there was a project manager, a frontend programmer, two backend programmers, a designer, and a QA person.

How did you come to work with Netguru?

I looked at a review site for developers. I was looking for someone in Eastern Europe because I wasn’t able to afford Western European programmers. I targeted Poland, as I knew they had really good programmers over there. 

I found some good reviews about Netguru. I went on their site and was convinced they were the right company for us because they had a very clear article about how to talk with developers if you don’t know anything about development. It made things very easy for me to know what I had to do to help them understand my project.

How much have you invested with them?

My company spent €200,000 ($237,400 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from February 2019–July 2020. We had an MVP released by the end of 2019 or the beginning of 2020. Everything went live in July.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I’m very happy with them. They delivered what I wanted. The application is functional. We’re testing it with users. We’ll be starting a campaign to see if we have more users that will pay to use the application.

How did Netguru perform from a project management standpoint?

Project management was good. I didn’t know anything about this kind of stuff, and Netguru helped me. They were good guides for me. They set the different steps we needed to go through, and everything was clear from the beginning. We had 1–2 initial Zoom sessions, and then we used email or Slack.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Netguru was very helpful in explaining the process and how it was going to work. They were good at designing what the MVP should be. Initially, it was a very broad project. They were able to focus on what would help us to be impactful and leave the rest of the bells and whistles for later. Discussions were good. The relationship was always peaceful and friendly.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Sometimes the QA could have been a little better. I had to do some proofreading myself.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I recommend working with them. Go to Netguru with some mockups and clear ideas of what you want to achieve. Tell them who your target users are.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and CEO of Odin Company, a psychometric software company. We develop very innovative software apps that are used mostly B2B. We do a combination of tests on unconscious motives and conscious behavior. It all takes 10 minutes online.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Netguru?

We had way too many bugs in our software development. We were looking for a more professional business to improve our software.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

When we switched to Netguru, they confirmed that our software needed a lot of work. We started to revitalize our existing software to make it more solid and consistent. Now we’re at the end of the lifecycle of that software because with the new plans we have, it’s better and cheaper to rebuild it. We already aligned that process with Netguru. They’re more like a partner to us than just a software development company. It will be a development process that happens in several phases.

We’re using Ruby on Rails coders and architects. They help with front- and backend development. They weren’t involved in the design­–we already redesigned the complete, new software. We created wireframes and screens. We first have to get out the proof of concept for the new business proposition because that will bring us to the exit of our business.

We’re making our product highly scalable. We’re about to launch 3-4 scrum groups for the end development of our new product. They’re going to build an engine in which we can easily connect many people to jobs or training options. Our software is sort of a black book that combines candidates for training possibilities. Once a candidate takes a test, we match them up with jobs or training opportunities that match the results of that test. It will be a standalone system.

What is the team composition?

The project manager manages the team. There’s an account manager, project manager, a quality manager, two coders, and an architect. I also work directly with coders and designers.

How did you come to work with Netguru?

Someone I know had a warm relationship with them. We asked them to review our software and they were very thorough. We were convinced they were the right partner for us.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent 300,000–400,000 euros ($335,000–466,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in May 2016 and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We are very happy with their work over the last three and a half years. We haven’t had even one bug. It’s an advantage for us that we can scale the team whenever we’d like.

Our clients are very happy about the percentage of uptime, which is extremely high. The software is very solid. They put in sufficient tests and live protocol to test new software. New releases are very solid and our customers hardly noted anything about maintenance.

The setback is almost all the developers we knew are not available, which is normal because they can’t be waiting for us. Last winter, we had to restart the team. It comes with how we work, but it would be interesting if their backlog for transfer of knowledge to new teams could be a bit more consistent.

I understand if we don’t build anything for a year’s time, they have to move on. My solution for that is that we visit them once in a while. We take two or three days to invest in the time to get it all up and running again. We are very happy with them as partners.

How did Netguru perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management is really good. I’ve been having troubles with account management because I’ve had some account managers who came in after the project manager did her work and started it all over again. I don’t have time for that. I’m very honest about that and am sort of blunt sometimes. They’re very open to whatever we need even if it disrupts their structure.

The core of it all is the project manager. I have a real connection with the project manager and the coders. At first, I didn’t have a bond with the account managers. They were flying in without asking. I didn’t see their value until a few weeks ago when I met the new account manager. He does what he should do and he’s really adding something to the project manager. He thinks with us and helps us to position things. He’s a contextual guy, which is really good.

We started communicating with email, but at a certain point, we had to bring everything into a ticket system. I hate it, so I hired an AI student to take care of my tickets. She’s been the middleman between me and Netguru regarding the ticket system.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I really like that the people at Netguru add some things to the deliverables I want or need. I know quite well what I’m looking for and they come up with the smart solutions to do it so much better than I could think of. They are so solid.

What you see is what you get. They’re really young and are so good at this–they never make promises that they can’t keep. Estimations are secure.

We had a workshop with them last winter. We were visualizing the customer journey of the new software to be built. One of the coders asked us to take another 30 minutes to guide him through the process. It was a courageous thing to do rather than just pretending to get it all. Through that, we found out we missed a few things too. We’re very happy with them as a partner.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The account manager should be aware of how a customer works. I’m a content person and I like to know all the details because I have to sell it to my customers. The project manager is key for me. I don’t feel the account manager needs to be the person in charge. If I were Netguru, I’d reconsider how they divide responsibilities in their company.

Everything they do is highly protocoled, but it would help them to have cultural awareness of how other countries function.