Velvetech LLC

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Co-Founder and CEO of a healthcare company

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Digital health technology for monitoring urinary flow

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Velvetech LLC to accomplish?

• Build new software technology

SOLUTION

How did you find Velvetech LLC?

Online Search

Why did you select Velvetech LLC over others?

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

How many teammates from Velvetech LLC were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

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

• Project: Mobile and web remote patient monitoring software development for urinary and prostate health 
• Duration: 2+ years, ongoing 
• Technologies: Kotlin, Swift, React Native, Firebase, ReactJS, GraphQL, Apollo, NodeJS, NestJS, Prisma ORM, Google Cloud Platform, CircleCI 
• Target audience: healthcare providers

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The digital healthcare market has been enriched with an innovative tech solution. It created a competitive position for us and helped the company foster a modern approach to urology. The product, consisting of a refurbished web platform and new mobile apps, enables male patients to make urinary tests and monitor physiological parameters like maximum flow, average flow, voided volume, and hesitancy time. Concurrently, physicians can analyze test results that help them diagnose urinary conditions and offer treatment plans. The solution allows us to leverage remote patient monitoring and promote preventative care.

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

To address the company’s goals, the entire scope of work was divided into two major parts — web platform overhaul and mobile app redesign. With skilled project managers and business analysts on board, Velvetech created a step-by-step project plan aligned with the best agile development practices.

What was your primary form of communication with Velvetech LLC?

Virtual Meeting

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

Our biggest hurdle was finding a partner that understood the complexities of healthcare-focused development such as HIPAA compliance, patient-facing applications, and physician-facing dashboards. Velvetech worked as an extension of our team and helped us build a HIPAA-compliant physician platform and a new version of our mobile medical device app.

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

none

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am a project manager and analyst with a consulting firm servicing the real estate industry.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We sought Velvetech's help to complete our partially built web-based application that is the backbone of the analysis and consulting services we provide to our clients. We were in a bind when our in-house talent was no longer able to continue development on our new application. This was in the midst of the pandemic with our office all working remotely and we needed a quick solution that did not require the hiring of additional staff. The goal was to complete the development of the online application.

SOLUTION

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

My company has been a Velvetech client for many years however the nature of the work was different (big data management, no UI/UX). We were aware that Velvetech had expertise in web-based applications and UI/UX and when we had a sudden and critical need for these services, Velvetech was a natural fit for our company. The deciding factors were the speed at which they could complete our project and an overall excellent understanding of our needs despite not being experts in our industry. It was obvious to my team that they would be a much faster solution than hiring talent to work in-house.

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

Velvetech took over the development and management of our web-based application that is the backbone of the analytical services our company provides. The first step for Velvetech was to get into the application and review the code and how the app works with the massive amounts of data that feed into it. They had to also learn the intricacies and nuances of the data that powers the app. Our main goal was to add new functionality to the online app however in the discovery process, Velvetech also identified opportunities to streamline and make our app much faster.

They were able to clean up the existing UI/UX and the result was a greatly improved user experience. They also completed our original stated goal of building out the app to provide analysis on a different sector of the real estate brokerage industry. Velvetech continues to be our partner as we add even more features to our toolset. The best part is that they have suggested several enhancements that we never considered or thought possible. The Velvetech experience has been a true partnership.

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

I primarily work with 2 people who communicate our needs to a larger group that supports our project. One is a project manager and the other has more of a developer background.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We were able to launch new development that allowed for more detailed analysis of real estate agent production and comparisons to other sales professionals. We were also able to launch new analytical tools related to real estate sales brokerages, market share and market place trends. All of the data can be filtered by variables such as geographical location, sales type or time period. The data is served up in tables and charts and is visually pleasing. Velvetech improved the speed of our app (in some cases queries would take a minute or two to almost instant results).

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

It was very easy to work with Velvetech! We communicate through email and Confluence (Atlassian). They are willing to receive information from me in any way I can share it and they also suggested some toolsets for me to use which were easy. This was especially appreciated because no one in our company has a developer or project manager background. We know what we need, but don't always know the most current lingo and acronyms used in the developer world/project management world. This was not a problem at all for Velvetech! They made it pretty easy for us. They exceeded expectations on timeliness! In most cases they delivered quicker than we could digest.

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

I most appreciate that Velvetech looks for all opportunities for improvement. Several times throughout our relationship they have suggested changes or new enhancements that we never knew were possible. They have actually pushed us forward in what we can offer to clients. In this regard the relationship feels like a true partnership.

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

Honestly...no. This is one of the rare times in my life where I am speechless and have zero constructive criticism to offer!

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the President of SchoolDuels. We are a high school sports media website company. We cover all the high school sports in Maryland, DC, and Virginia, and some of the neighboring states. We do media coverage, scores, scheduling, all the results, and content for that as well.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Velvetech LLC?

We were revamping our entire site, going from an older PHP site to a new, mobile-friendly React site. It was a whole new technology stack. They came on to give recommendations for the whole process.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We did a whole rebuild that involved migrating to AWS. We also worked on implementing some newer features in the admin portal to make the process of uploading scores and schedules easier. They designed the admin portal as well, but the frontend design for the website was done by a third-party.

What is the team composition?

Our main point of contact was Anastasia, the project manager. We’ve had between 3–4 developers.

How did you come to work with Velvetech LLC?

I wasn’t too involved in the actual sourcing of them, but I was toward the end. Our director of technology was leading the charge. We were looking at 5–10 development shops and felt that their price point and reviews made up a great body of work, as did the proposals they made.

How much have you invested with them?

We’re about at $175,000 with them.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working together since April 2019. The project is ongoing. We’ve finished all the big hurdles, pulling back development a bit to do more support and adding little things.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our end users are parents — they’re the ones looking at the scores and schedules — and they’ve been pretty pleased with the site. We also work with coaches, who use the admin panel. It was a little bit of a learning curve for them at first, but after we got through that they’ve seen the benefits of it. It’s a much quicker system and easier from a user flow perspective. The quality has been good, and Velvetech is always great about doing exactly what we want them to.

How did Velvetech LLC perform from a project management standpoint?

Even though there’s a bit of a language barrier and a time difference, they did a good job not letting those become obstacles. Anastasia has been fantastic and great to work with. she’s very communicative.

We communicate Slack, email, Confluence, and Jira, but Confluence is the most notable. We have our back and forth there. We also have weekly standups with them.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They take ownership of their work. They want to show it off because it’s their project as well. That goes a long way.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Sometimes I felt that they wanted to do some things their own way. They jumped the gun on some things, either deploying or going a route that wasn’t exactly what I was going for at the time. Then, I’d have to pull back on them a little. They just had some urgency to them, where I wanted to slow down and really think about which way we wanted to go on certain things. It only happened once or twice though.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be very detailed about what you want. If you have questions or want them to be more involved in the vision, make that apparent. Otherwise, if you have a vision, be very detailed and stick to deadlines because they move quickly. Respond quickly and be on the same page with them.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the president of an IT technology company that develops custom software systems for the Metals Service Center and manufacturing markets.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Velvetech LLC?

Our customers were asking for mobile user interfaces capable of streamlining warehouse operations and reducing errors.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We provided our hardware and software requirements, mock-ups of the Mobile App screens, and the REST APIs for the application. Keeping our goals in mind, Velvetech recommended changes to our screen designs, application workflow, and developed all of the Android code.

What is the team composition?

There was a designer/project manager, a technical lead, a developer, and a QA resource. 

How did you come to work with Velvetech LLC?

I found them on Google. We submitted a detailed RFQ, and they responded with a high-level project plan.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent approximately $25,000. The project was billed on actual hours, but they ended up coming in under the original estimate.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started in the last week of July 2019 and finished the second week of October 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The app has only been live for a few weeks.  The initial feedback from our customers has been very positive.  Easy to use and logical UI.  They’re already asking for more features!

How did Velvetech LLC perform from a project management standpoint?

We met every Monday, and they always had an agenda. They managed the project with Confluence and Jira. We ran through 2–3-week long sprints, and the QA plan was always accessible and visible. They also implemented automated testing. They were very professional.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They were friendly and responsive. The day the app was released for testing, we needed to update some of the UI translations, and we were having trouble doing it ourselves. Even though it was the weekend, they fixed it for us. It was a great relationship. We plan on working with them again.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

The documentation we provided made this project successful. It was very detailed and didn’t leave much room for interpretation. The more detailed the spec is, the easier the project will be.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of software development for a design service provider in IoT technology.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Velvetech?

We engaged Velvetech to supplement our resources for specific projects that required more workers or specialized skill sets.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Velvetech first worked with us on a small embedded device for commercial users. Their team created the GUI, developing the graphics and interactions for users. We then integrated their work into the device. It joined seamlessly and worked without issue. We’re now working on a Linux gateway together using Embedded C and Erlang.

What is the team composition?

We work with 2–4 engineers at a time as well as a project management team.

How did you come to work with Velvetech?

Our president worked with Velvetech while at another company. He introduced their team to us. After they performed well on an initial project, we brought them in for a second one.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent between $20,000–$60,000 on each project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in 2017, and the partnership is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

On our most recent project, Velvetech beat our deadline despite some scope changes from our end client—an impressive feat. We’re readying for another project with their team after our current engagement finishes. This upcoming project will involve close integration with our team and more complex specifications.

How did Velvetech perform from a project management standpoint?

The team manages itself with minimal oversight from us. They report consistently and respond quickly to any questions or changes when requested. We communicate weekly using Confluence and use Jira tickets to track issues. Velvetech also provides us with a full development environment if we want to work on the project ourselves.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Velvetech has been an excellent addition to our team. Their ability to scale resources as needed allows us to react far more quickly to clients’ requests. Their team can find high-quality, specialized developers at fair rates within a week, which is faster than we can hire or contract similar resources for a specific project.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The team speaks excellent English, but on occasion, a language barrier leads to minor misunderstandings. However, we’re overall happy with the collaboration.

Any advice for potential customers?

Given our time zone differences, we’ve found it simplest to give outsourced companies like Velvetech a highly segmented project piece with a detailed requirements document. This process allows their team to work independently with regular check-ins. However, we are looking forward to our next project, which will require more day-to-day interaction and close integration. So far, Velvetech’s flexibility has been reassuring.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the founder and president of Real Data Strategies, Inc. We analyze data from hundreds of Multiple Listing Services (MLS) in the U.S. Our team gathers, stores, and standardizes millions of property and entry records. We use this data to publish quarterly and monthly analyses of the real estate market and industry.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Velvetech LLC?

We’ve worked with Velvetech LLC on MLS data gathering and storage within our warehouse, which they’ve also designed and supported.

What were your goals for this project?

We needed a qualified technical partner to do the heavy lifting. Those supplemental resources would enable us to concentrate on the value added from our application.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

A former employee became a business analyst for Velvetech LLC. They introduced us to the team’s extensive technical and project management capabilities.

Describe the project in detail.

They feed data into the databases. We access that information on an as-needed basis to meet our contracted publication schedules. Services include standardization, storage, and monthly and quarterly downloading. The team also streamlines access to listings and maintains entity records from online MLSs.

What was the team composition?

We worked with our former employee during the partnership’s initial stages.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve met all contracted deliverables and have virtually no client turnover as a result.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The partnership is seamless and highly effective. We seldom need to communicate, unless new systems are added to the process.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

They were willing to design a system that met our unique needs.

Are there any areas for improvement?

No. We love our partnership, the team’s technical skill sets, and our data warehouse’s automated updates. Our team has nearly zero concerns; that’s the definition of a great partnership.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am a partner at 20/20 Foresight, an executive search firm that specializes in placing C-level and executive level positions at real estate investment companies. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Velvetech LLC?

Our company maintains an expansive database of companies and people, including their current contact information. Because our entire workflow is centered on this platform, we have a team of researchers responsible for manually updating fluid information related to these records on an hourly basis. We hired Velvetech to build an application that would automate a large portion of this process. 

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted to improve our scalability and reduce or eliminate the need for additional personnel to perform remedial tasks. 

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We selected Velvetech based on their knowledge of our end goals. We were especially impressed with their CEO. 

Can you go into detail about the services they provided and the scope of the project?

Velvetech developed a proprietary application. They engineered the entire lifecycle from the process mapping to product delivery and training.

What was the team composition?

The team consisted of a project manager with a team of developers beneath him. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The impact is significant. We are now able to import and update data into our database nearly three times faster than we could before. 

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

Their sprint methodology facilitated effective and highly collaborative project management, with clearly delineated assigned roles for each developer. Communication was systematic and always on schedule.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

We appreciated their engaged approach to the process design prior to building the technology. Rather than simply ask us what we wanted, they quickly grasped the nuances of our business, offering their own experienced advice and ideas to optimize and enhance certain aspects. 

Are there any areas where they can improve?

There are none that I can think of. We look forward to working with Velvetech in the future.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the president of Whatmed, S.C. We offer a healthcare app with three main services. First, users can find information on over-the-counter and herbal medications for early symptoms of minor illnesses. Second, users can schedule a paid consultation with a specialist through our virtual medical office. Lastly, users can purchase over-the-counter medications and have them delivered to their home or office. The platform is available on iOS, Android, and web-based devices.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Velvetech LLC?

We’d initially developed the application offshore, and we were running into many problems. Frequent crashes, blank pages, and display problems were hurting our business. We needed to refurbish the app and redevelop some of the functionality to improve our user engagement while staying within our cost and time constraints.

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted to recreate all of the original functionalities of the app, with all of the bugs and crashes worked out. We needed the UX to be the same across all platforms—iOS, Android, and web devices.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We were looking for vendors with strong communication skills and a good culture located in the Greater Chicago area. We also wanted a team with experience in the healthcare industry. After a vigorous internet search, we narrowed our options down to five candidates. Velvetech LLC was very responsive and showed a real commitment to our project, so I chose to partner with them for this project.

Can you go into detail about the services they provided and the scope of the project?

We started with a discovery session to establish a mutual understanding of our business challenges and our goals. They submitted a proposed workflow and mockups for our approval. Then, they began the development process, which was structured in two-week sprints. During each period, they made improvements and implemented any changes we requested.

Velvetech LLC worked on our platform and built a landing page. They created, configured, and refurbished the functionality of our site while fixing bugs that trigger our system to crash. They continue to support our development efforts.

What was the team composition?

There are three people on our core team, but they provide additional specialists when necessary. Our main point of contact is our project manager, who holds progress report meetings during every phase of the project.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’re still working, but so far, we’ve seen an astronomical increase in user registration and customer engagement. The platform is more robust than its previous iteration, allowing us to confidently deploy new services and grow our business.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

Their project management skills far exceeded my expectations. They routinely meet deadlines and regularly communicate any delays we should be aware of. All of our interactions are through GoToMeeting, Jira, and GitHub. If we do email or call their team with problems or questions, they respond promptly.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

We have direct access to every part of their team, and their culture is highly communicative. They’re always available for discussions and patient when trying to understand goals and challenges. The team’s knowledge and drive help them complete tasks.

Are there any areas where they can improve?

I can’t think of any aspect of their service that needs improvement. I hope they maintain this level of excellence ad infinitum.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the retail garden center manager and communications director for Leider Greenhouses. We’re primarily wholesale flower growers.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Velvetech LLC?

We needed a partner to help us build a custom production software for our business. We also needed IT help with migrating an old server to a new server.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We split up the work into two projects. The primary one is building a new production software. Our previous software was 20 years old and in need of updating. The language it was written in was very outdated. Plus, there were a lot of flaws and things that we didn't need anymore. Velvetech LLC completely rebuilt it and modified our production system. It helps us with all stages of growing plants, everything from placing an initial order for product to each stage of growing the plant. It tracks the process from moving a cutting into a different sized pot to what greenhouse it’s in, and the process varies based on the product that we're growing.

What is the team composition?

We have one project manager who oversees the project. The owner and senior director are both always available as well.

How did you come to work with Velvetech LLC?

We’d been searching for a company that could help us. We found one company in the horticulture industry that had an existing pre-built program. We tied it out, but it did not go well. Then we did a Google search for program design firms. We interviewed a lot of different companies. One reason we went with Velvetech LLC was they were thorough in their initial exploration of our current setup and what we needed. Their costs were lower as well because they use programmers in Russia.

How much have you invested with them?

We've paid them around $54,000 to date. We’ll owe them more once the other project is done, but I don't have an exact amount.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in January 2018. They’re not fully done with the new production software but it's close. We're actually adding on new things to our program because they've done such a fantastic job so far.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They’ve made significant improvement in our peace of mind in terms of IT support. There's not been one technology related problem or issue that Velvetech LLC hasn’t been able to solve. We’ve worked with a lot of tech firms over the years that were never able to figure things out. They're able to figure out every issue we face, which is excellent.

How did Velvetech LLC perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re unbelievably organized and detailed in everything they do. They send regular weekly status updates and billing reports. They document every single conversation we have. Their contracts are very detailed. It's been amazing working with them.

They have a good-sized team working on our projects. We use GoToMeetings to communicate with our project manager, and then they keep the rest of their team in the loop. We really like that it’s not a challenge to know who to talk to about any issue; it all goes through one person.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We've never worked with a better company. I wish more companies were as organized and responsive as Velvetech LLC. They make it so easy to communicate with them. They always respond quickly. They’re true to their word. When they give a date for when something will be done, there's never been a time that they don't meet the schedule. They remember every detail that we mention of future projects or issues. They always follow up, no matter how small the detail. We really appreciate their customer service. It’s the best.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, they've met all of our expectations. Anything that has come up—such as a billing issue—they're willing to come up with a solution that works for us and them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be as detailed and clear in your initial exploration and explanation of the project. They more you can tell them about you want them to build, the fewer issues that may come up down the line.