Rolique

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I'm a mobile engineering manager of Linktree

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Linktree, the world’s leading link-in-bio platform that enables creators, brands, and businesses to share multiple links through a single profile.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Rolique to accomplish?

• Support Mobile Roadmap
• Grow Mobile Eng team
• Bring in additional mobile talent

SOLUTION

How did you find Rolique?

Acquisition

Why did you select Rolique over others?

• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Continuity

How many teammates from Rolique were assigned to this project?

6-10 Employees

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

Rolique’s team contributed directly to the growth of our mobile apps by handling feature development, QA, and product management support. Their developers worked on React Native mobile features, their QA engineers ensured quality across platforms, and their PM/BA supported coordination and alignment with business needs. Their integration into our team was seamless, and they have been a steady contributor to our success.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The mobile team reached several key goals and milestones. We improved the stability of our applications, accelerated feature delivery, and enhanced overall quality and parity across platforms. The partnership gave us the flexibility and capacity to effectively support Linktree’s growth on mobile.

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

The collaboration was smooth and effective. Rolique integrated seamlessly into our mobile team and worked in full alignment with our processes and goals.

What was your primary form of communication with Rolique?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

We valued Rolique's expertise, team performance, seamless communication, and reliability. They consistently delivered high-quality results.

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

 Nothing comes to mind at this moment

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am an executive at Orderfox Schweiz AG

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

We are developing ai based solutions for the industry to help decision makers get deep market insights, find the right partners or simply make data driven decisions.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Rolique to accomplish?

• Develop a predefined product
• Release constant improvements

SOLUTION

How did you find Rolique?

Referral

Why did you select Rolique over others?

• High ratings
• Great culture fit
• Referred to me
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Rolique were assigned to this project?

12

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

Summary of Collaboration between Gieni and Rolique

Gieni collaborated with Rolique to develop an MVP version of an AI chatbot, specifically tailored for the CNC manufacturing industry. The project involved overcoming various challenges and implementing innovative solutions, resulting in a functional and scalable product ready for beta users. Below is a detailed scope of work and key deliverables:

Scope of Work:

• Data Collection and Quality:
• Data Sourcing: Gieni and Rolique assembled a comprehensive global database of CNC manufacturers, including information about machines, capabilities, and materials. This involved overcoming the challenge of fragmented and disparate data sources.
• Data Quality: Ensuring the accuracy, relevancy, and currency of the data was paramount. The team verified the data to avoid inaccuracies that could affect the chatbot's responses and user experience.
• AI Model Training and Accuracy:
• Training Data: The team curated and prepared a diverse dataset for training the AI model to accurately understand CNC-related queries.
• Precision and Recall: A balance was achieved between precision (accuracy of relevant responses) and recall (coverage of all relevant information), addressing a common challenge in AI-driven systems.
• User Experience and Interface Design:
• Dashboard Design: A user-friendly dashboard was designed to present maps, charts, diagrams, text, and other content in a coherent format.
• Intuitive Interaction: An intuitive design approach was adopted to ensure users could easily navigate the chatbot, understand its capabilities, and access the desired information without friction.
• Natural Language Understanding (NLU):
• Domain-Specific Language: The AI was trained to comprehend and interpret CNC-related terminology and industry-specific jargon accurately.
• Ambiguity Handling: The team resolved ambiguities in user queries to provide precise responses, crucial for technical domains where context is essential.
• Monetization Model and User Engagement:
• Balancing Free and Paid Access: A balanced approach was implemented to entice users while maintaining revenue.
• Feedback Loop Implementation: A solution was implemented to encourage user feedback, integrating it effectively into the system to improve the chatbot's performance and offer more free questions.
• Regulatory and Ethical Considerations:
• Data Privacy: Compliance with data privacy regulations was ensured, securing user information.
• Ethical Use of AI: The team ensured responsible and ethical use of AI, particularly in providing market insights or recommendations.
• Technical Infrastructure and Integration:
• Database Integration: The technical challenge of integrating and synchronizing a global database into the AI system was solved while maintaining performance and accuracy.
• Scalability: The system was designed to handle increasing user demands and scale infrastructure to accommodate a growing user base.

Key Deliverables:

• User Authentication: Seamless login functionality for users to access the chatbot's features and services.
• Sidebar Functionality: Search functionality within the sidebar for quick chat access.
• User Logout Option: Secure log-out feature for users.
• Follow-up Questions: AI-generated follow-up question suggestions based on initial inquiries.
• Dashboard Widgets: Various widgets (Pie charts, Big Number widgets, Bar Chart, Chat History, Interactive Dot Map, Interactive Treemap, and Manufacturers list) were made available on the dashboard.
• Comprehensive Information Provision: Commitment to delivering comprehensive information in response to user queries.
• Chat Management: Capability for users to create and manage multiple chats from the sidebar.
• Questioning Capabilities: Two request options for users: choosing from suggested questions or entering a custom query (cost 1 credit).
• Multilingual Support: UI elements displayed in English, with multilingual responses provided.
• Dashboard Generation: Automatic dashboard creation, accessible via the "Show Dashboard" button when sufficient data is available.
• Results:

The MVP version of the AI chatbot was successfully released, thanks to the joint efforts of Gieni, Rolique, and all interested parties. The product is now available for beta users, with ongoing improvements and scaling efforts based on user feedback, market research, and expert interviews.

Gieni expresses gratitude for the productive collaboration with Rolique. The quality of work has been very positive, providing flexibility in addressing improvement areas. Gieni looks forward to continued success and achieving greater milestones together with Rolique.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Comprehensive Database:

• Compiled a global database of CNC manufacturers with thousands of entries.
• Achieved a data accuracy rate of over 95%.

AI Model Performance:

• AI model precision: 92%; recall: 90%.
• Trained with thousands of diverse data points.

User Experience:

• User satisfaction score: 87%.
• 65% engagement rate among beta users.

Monetization and Engagement:

• Over 1,000 beta users in the first month.
• 20% conversion rate from free to paid users.

Compliance and Ethics:

• 100% compliance with data privacy regulations.
• Zero incidents of ethical violations.

Technical Infrastructure:

• System uptime: 99.9%.
• Scaled to handle a 50% increase in users without performance issues.

Feature Utilization:

75% of users regularly used dashboard widgets.
Supported users from 20 countries in multiple languages.

Continuous Improvement:

• Implemented over 200 improvements based on beta user feedback.
• 80% of beta users provided detailed feedback.

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

Timely Delivery:

• They've consistently met deadlines and delivered milestones.

Responsiveness:

• Quick and effective communication, addressing needs and queries promptly.
• Flexible and adaptive to feedback and changing requirements.

Proactive Communication:

• Regular updates on project progress, ensuring alignment and transparency.
• Actively sought and integrated feedback for continuous improvement.

Problem-Solving:

• Provided innovative solutions to technical challenges.
• Maintained high-quality work throughout the project.

What was your primary form of communication with Rolique?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

Innovative Problem-Solving:

• Rolique's ability to creatively address complex challenges, particularly in AI model training and data integration, stood out, demonstrating their technical expertise and innovative approach.

Exceptional Responsiveness:

• Their rapid and effective communication ensured that any issues or needs were promptly addressed, facilitating a highly collaborative and efficient project environment.

High-Quality Deliverables:

• Consistently high standards in all project deliverables, especially in data accuracy and user interface design, ensured the development of a robust and reliable AI chatbot.

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

• While Rolique's performance was exceptional, there are a few considerations that could further enhance their already impressive capabilities:

Enhanced Documentation:

• Their documentation is spot on, i believe with now AI solutions helping in this, it might make sense to evaluate this and move into streamlining this and storing this in one place, as meeting minutes are send via email.

User Training and Support:

• Offering additional training sessions and support materials for end-users could enhance the adoption and effective use of the AI chatbot.
• Resource Allocation:
• Optimizing resource allocation during peak project phases could potentially increase efficiency and expedite the delivery of critical milestones. While this is no issue, i believe this could even make it better.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the Head of Product at a martech company engaging creators across the world to develop visual content for global brands.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We needed a really high performing, cohesive team to work with our small internal team to develop a long term relationship and build multiple platforms.

SOLUTION

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

I chatted to Rolique after receiving positive feedback from a different client. We were also able to experience a short term contractor for some time who was incredible and really established the trust and skill level. Speaking to Vlad (founder) numerous times who is ones of the loveliest, smartest and kindest humans made this an easy decision - especially upon learning the exceptional practices and culture Rolique has in place.

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

The team has developed a multi-sided application, having had to rebuild an existing application in a far more scalable and maintainable manner that utilizes modern development practices. We have a complicated service that needs to cater to a large range of people including our own internal team members and global enterprise customers.

The team has deeply understood every aspect of what we do and built out every feature for launch (and hopefully will continue doing so as we release new features).

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

We have a Senior FE Engineer, a Tech Lead / Snr FE, a QA Engineer and a BE Engineer alongside support from a Project Co-Ordinator. All have been absolutely phenomenal. I have never worked with such a high quality team in well over a decade. It has been a joy.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We were able to build and launch two platforms, create a design system and develop the component library, implement endless new features, and develop the platform exactly to design specifications and business requirements along with consistently pushing for more optimal solutions and scalable code.

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

It has been seamless integrating into our Product Operations and Rolique is simply an extension of our team. We manage our roadmap, sprints, tasks and shaping together every day across multiple systems. Everything is incredibly transparent, all tasks and cycles are always effectively managed and this has made everything a dream.

Communication is of an extremely high standard, the culture we've created is relaxed and collegial while maintaining incredible efficiency and standards. I have never had to spend any time with Rolique on coaching, complaints or issues that tend to arise in engineering teams.

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

Incredibly unique is Rolique's ability to recruit people who are exceptional at what they do and then hold onto them for many, many, many years - a rare feat in technology. Our team members have also been flexible in their approach and have supported us beyond their job roles, for example in streamlining processes and assisting product ownership while that function doesn't exist in a single role. Their adaptability to meet business requirements, find solutions and push for better options has been remarkable.

A number of the team had also worked together previously which was a huge bonus. The fact we did all this during an active war in the country is a testament to the unbelievably supportive culture Rolique has developed internally.

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

I've tried and I can't think of any.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a product lead for a global employment platform; we help companies hire people. I’m on the strategy project team, so I take care of project initiatives and manage the engineering team.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Rolique?

Due to our industry, we don’t offer a typical SaaS product, so we engaged Rolique to help us with product growth. Our goal was to introduce more tools to help our users make decisions even prior to using our main tool.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Rolique has supplied us with two frontend development resources with experience in React.js, Node.js, and JavaScript. They’ve also identified a designer to help us part-time, as needed. The resources have helped us design and build several React-based web applications from scratch. The web apps act as tools for different functions, and one of the tools helps users decide where to hire team members based on the nature of their work. 

Users can input their requirements, and our tool suggests which countries they should hire from based on their inputs. For example, if users want to target a specific time zone, they can state that in the requirements, and our tool will consider that when making suggestions. Similarly, they can say whether they’re looking for an exclusively remote team. 

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with two developers, a designer, and Halyna (Project Coordinator) from Rolique.

How did you come to work with Rolique? 

I was looking for agencies, and one of my friends connected me with Rolique via Twitter. We talked via email and scheduled a call. After evaluating several agencies, we felt Rolique was the best fit to meet our technical and budgetary needs. 

How much have you invested with them?

We invest roughly $20,000 per month, which is $150,000 in total. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working with Rolique since April 2022, and the partnership is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

It’s hard to measure success when it comes to engineering because there are several impacting factors such as marketing and user research. Even if developers do a good job, that doesn’t matter if the software isn’t practical. Having said that, Rolique has ticked most of our boxes. They’ve identified technically skilled engineers who’ve communicated effectively. The team has done an excellent job overall, even though some projects they’ve delivered have been more successful than others.

How did Rolique perform from a project management standpoint?

Halyna facilitates calls, manages invoices, and answers questions, but we regularly communicate with the whole Rolique team. We use Jira to manage the project and Slack to communicate, which is convenient.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I’m impressed with the team’s engineering capabilities and fast turnaround time. They continuously set realistic expectations and develop technical solutions that meet our requirements. Furthermore, they deliver high-quality work for a reasonable price.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Even though we’re getting what we pay for, Rolique could improve their design aspects. We provide a lot of design direction, and it would be great if they could own the strategic design process from start to finish.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I highly recommend engaging Rolique for your project and integrating them into your team.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am a Product Manager that develops an internal SaaS solution for a construction consulting company of 15-20 employees that partner with lenders in the Construction Loan Monitoring space. The company engages with banks to provide inspection services for commercial construction projects throughout the Southeast, over to Texas, and has recently expanded into California.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

Focusing on the commercial loan inspection process, we engaged Rolique to design, develop, and implement a workflow management solution for construction consultants that connects the field to the office, leverages collaboration, and enables teams to focus on what they do best.

The largest problem we faced was how much time we took from people due to manual processes, duplication of systems, and highly dispersed data. In an industry where turnaround times are crucial to client success, this was a major problem to solve. Our goal has been to eliminate dispersed data, increase efficiencies through real-time data collection from mobile devices, reduce manual tasks through automation, and provide data insights for smarter decision making.

Additional business specific goals that are supported by the product include expanding into new geographic market areas, increasing market share in existing areas, and providing a scalable solution that supports the build up of remote staff.

SOLUTION

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

We found Rolique through a referral from Trustshoring, an IT Recruiter that matches needs with a professional software house. The deciding factors for us were how well Rolique understood the challenges we were facing, their experience in developing similar products, and their track record of delivering scalable and reliable solutions.

Prior to engaging with Rolique, my company spent a lot of money with a software house that released a product a 15 months behind schedule that was still only about 25% functional. We are a small sefl-funded company, so the same error couldn't be made again. With this history, building trust and confidence that Rolique could deliver a solution on-time, on-budget, and one that is both useable & reliable, was of paramount importance. Having designed and built an entirely new system in 1/3 of the time, our trust in them has proved well-founded.

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

Rolique led us through every phase of the product cycle from research & planning, to design, to migration/implementing/testing, to release and support. We began with a discovery process that enabled them to collect data, files, reports, and workflow information in order to better understand the challenges we faced. Then, they provided mock-ups and functional specifications for revision and approval before starting production. We worked using an agile framework that included 2-week sprints, allowing us the ability to test functions and give feedback prior to release. Key deliverables have included

- Kanban board to manage work orders

-Inspection requests and location mapping

-Project management and overview pages

-Workload capacity/volume tracking

-File management and previews

-Document management,/tracking

-Notes collaborations

-Varied user views and role permissions

-Multi-dimensional contact list and mobile access.

We are currently in the development stage of productivity metrics and automated report writing. We are also in the discovery/research phase of a cost database to run comparisons between similar projects.

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

There were 7 people on the core team, including a project manager, a designer, a back-end developer, 2 front-end developers, a QA tester, and a business analyst. The developers are full-time and the others are part-time, but were continually available for communications. Additional support was provided on an as-needed basis.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

So far we have reduced the number of duplicated systems by 50% - with the coming feature set, that will be reduced to near zero. We've also reduced the lag of work order status keeping projects in real-time. The amount of communications/notifications between admin and inspectors has been reduced because inspectors are automatically notified of a bank request in real-time .

Additional outcomes are: eliminated dispersed data and, thereby, improved version control; increased the speed at which administrative staff can request and track documents; and enabled inspectors to route plan for not only their requested inspections, but also anticipated inspections. Because our inspectors cover such a wide geographic area, this ability can/has literally saved them days worth of travel. When the productivity metrics are released, the daily manual tracking of submitted reports will be eliminated.

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

I can't say enough good things about their management and communication styles...they are a real joy to work with. Using Jira and Slack, I always feel I know what we are working on, what the priorities are, and how long it is going to take. Their responsiveness to ongoing questions and clarifications has been outstanding, and their patience seems to be endless.

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

I've really valued (and enjoyed) the ability to interact with the entire team, which helps with communications and reduces the amount of back and forth. I very much appreciate how flexible and adaptive to changing requirements and needs they have been, as well as their willingness to consider alternatives that would make our product better. In other words, they aren't rigid in their process, rather, they demonstrate a mindset of continued improvement and are not willing to settle for a subpar product. What I admire about each of them is their resolve in the midst of hardship.

Our software house is in Ukraine. Despite the outbreak of war in their country, the team continued to work diligently in order to release the product in a timely manner. Their efforts were extraordinary - while they provided housing, safety, and food to refugees, the still maintained constant communications and continued development of our product. It would have been very understandable had the project come to a complete halt during the war, but their dedication to the project never faltered. It's been truly remarkable to work with them.

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

I've honestly thought about this for some time and have struggled to come up with an area of improvement. This team is exceptional, professional, knowledgeable, cohesive, insightful, and hardworking. The only area of improvement I came up with is in regards to some user stories and acceptance criteria not being detailed enough. However, they recognized the issue early on in the cycle and remedied it quickly.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CPO for a company called Luckabox AG. We specialize in last-mile logistics and freight forwarding between customers, retailers, and carriers.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Rolique?

We needed a good frontend development team to help us build our application.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Rolique built the entire frontend of our SaaS application from scratch, using React as the framework. They worked together with our internal team on building out its components, design, and features, as well as conducting QA and implementing the necessary improvements. They also helped out with the backend, which was developed using Node.js.

What is the team composition?

We work with three people from their team — two frontend developers and a QA specialist.

How did you come to work with Rolique?

They were found by my predecessor, who hired their team based on their competency.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent about 150,000–170,000 CHF (approximately $180,000 USD) so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in January 2021, and our engagement is still ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Overall, I am very happy with their work — they’ve been delivering on their promise while meeting our quality standards. They also work so efficiently, which makes us feel like they’re really part of our team.

How did Rolique perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management style is great. They manage everything in an agile fashion and work closely with us making sure that all deliverables are being tracked and delivered on time. For instance,  their project manager holds weekly meetings to address all internal problems, including the paperwork, and always stays in touch with us.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I’m very impressed with their strong sense of teamwork. Despite being in a remote setup and never meeting one another, they’ve managed to create a collaborative environment to ensure a successful outcome.

Are there any areas they could improve on?

I can’t really point out anything specific that they need to improve on, but they can perhaps start thinking about how to prototype ideas faster. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Don’t hesitate to hire them! They’ve been such a solid partner; they have an amazing team, and they’re really good at what they do.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the CTO of a fintech company based in the Baltics. We offer credit and payments via e-commerce merchants.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We had an outdated Affiliate CRM platform, which needed an upgrade. The designs were ready, but we didn't have enough frontend developers to actually build the website.

SOLUTION

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

We found Rolique through the company that designed our website. Since they had already worked together and were located nearby it made sense to use their skills together with the designers.

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

The Affiliate CRM was already halfway done, but we lost some development resources so development had to be stopped. Fortunately Rolique could take over the development within a week of onboarding from our last developer. The project was run in 2-week sprints and our internal frontend developer was also integrated into their sprints.

The sprints were measured and delivered very accurately. The project was built on ReactJS along with an older project from Angular 2.

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

A part-time SCRUM master was the main point of communication with us and he lead the entire frontend team. There were also 2 full time frontend developers (later 1, since we didn't need all the resources) and 1 part-time competence lead, whose role was to ensure high quality work from the developers.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The new Affiliate portal has now successfully replaced the old portal and we are ready to build new features.

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

The frontend team had daily standups to review progress. Every 2 weeks there were demos at the end of the sprints and sprint plannings. Task communication was done through Jira and more casual conversations were in Slack.

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

I am impressed by how fast they onboarded to our project as well as how accurately they could predict their sprint goals and actually deliver them.

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

Sometimes the shared communication channels were ignored and info flowed through direct messaging, which is not optimal for us, but in the end Rolique adapted to our style.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of engineering for an online fintech company. Our team consists of both in-house and outsourced developers, and I oversee the development process and technology direction. I also work closely with the product team to scope out the projects that we’re working on as a team.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Rolique?

We’re scaling an online platform to support 100 times the lead volume it previously provided. Our teams are integrating it with our parent company’s ecosystem to better serve our customers. Overall, we want to maintain the existing software while delivering valuable new features to our end users. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Rolique provides us with full stack developers who help us build the app for our end users. Apart from that, their team also provides us with product management services. 

Our platform provides invoicing and payment features, bookkeeping functionality, business insights, and human assistance. To develop these features, we use a wide variety of technologies, such as Node.js, Vue.js, Docker, PHP, and AWS microservices. In all of our projects, we provide their team with the documentation of the tasks that we ask them to do. 

What is the team composition?

We use around 12–13 teammates from Rolique, including engineers, senior engineers, team leaders, and architects. 

How did you come to work with Rolique?

I wasn’t involved in the original decision to hire Rolique. However, we decided to continue working with them because of their professionalism. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent more than $1 million over the years we’ve worked with them. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in January 2019, and the partnership is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Rolique developers take ownership of the tasks that we assign to them. Moreover, they do well in learning the business context behind our product, helping them provide better feedback to us for scope and ideas. On top of that, they generate ideas for new projects. In fact, several of their senior members have taken the initiative to improve the software even if that’s not part of their scope of work. 

For example, one of their developers has decided to speed up the responsiveness of our frontend, which has resulted in a better UX design. That developer has also come to us with suggestions on what we should be doing, and our team happily supports him. It’s been both a sign of growth for that developer and an improvement in our software. On top of that, one of their architects proactively finds scalability issues in our software. That architect also coaches not only their own teammates but also our in-house developers to improve their skills. 

Overall, we’ve continued doing business with them because they truly believe in working with us as partners — they don’t just complete tickets; they own the broader software platform. 

How did Rolique perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management is good. The Rolique team has good communication skills, and members are always open to feedback and improvements. In other words, they take their job seriously. 

Moreover, we have regular sync-up meetings to find or address problems. Their team breaks down projects, executes them, and communicates their status over time using Slack, Jira, and video calls. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Rolique’s initiative is the best part of working with them. They don’t wait to be told what to do and members come up with their own ideas as they bring their experience to the table.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The only struggle we have is the difference in our time zones. That being said, Rolique finds ways to make the engagement work for us. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be upfront and transparent. The Rolique team is highly eager to correct issues and improve their processes. As a result, as long as you’re open and transparent with them, they’ll help you find good solutions.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and CEO of a three-year-old computer software company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Rolique?

Some time ago, we had a product that had been designed by junior developers, but we weren’t satisfied with it. We work in the visual communications industry of designers and printers, and our products didn’t reflect what our company could be capable of. We started looking for a company that could rebuild and/or redesign our software products.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Rolique worked on UI/UX design, provided DevOps consultancy, and executed mobile and back- and frontend development. The team provided 100% of the recommendations and knowledge to this project. They used a MySQL database and Laravel for the backend. We were previously running our frontend on Angular, but we transitioned to React.js — where they also worked on mobile development. We used AWS for hosting services.

What is the team composition?

I worked with seven people: two full-time frontend developers, two full-time backend and mobile developers, one part-time designer, a project manager, and a business analyst. 

How did you come to work with Rolique?

I did some research online, and they were recommended as well. 

How much have you invested with them?

We invested €68,000 (approximately $82,000 USD). 

What is the status of this engagement?

Our engagement lasted from October 2020–March 2021. Rolique completed the original scope of work, but they have gone on to become our tech team. Our company is establishing the marketing team in the same city as Rolique, so we are developing a very close working relationship.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We offer guided demos that go straight into a converted sale — we don’t offer free trials. Since our engagement, the uplifting conversion rate has been phenomenal. Previous clients who had rejected subscribing to our product are now doing it because of Rolique’s efforts.

Our customers understand our product perfectly thanks to the intuitive UI/ UX design provided by the team. We weren’t sure about investing in UI and UX designers, but Rolique suggested it, and I think it’s the best decision we made. 

How did Rolique perform from a project management standpoint?

They performed excellently. I hadn’t had great experiences with other software development agencies, but Rolique was incredibly accurate in estimating timeframes and making sure all processes and systems were running in place. I communicated through Slack and went to their offices at least one week a month.

At the beginning of the engagement, I went to Ukraine to spend one week doing discovery sessions with the team and kickstarting the project. The process went so well I ended up staying for three weeks.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Rolique not only had a swift understanding of the technical nature of our product but also came back with comprehensive reports where they listed areas for improvement. They were flexible at finding solutions and always worked toward making us happy. 

In the initial conversations I had with the team, it was clear that they were very experienced people, who were not just good developers, but were commercially aware as well — and that’s very difficult to find. 

One important factor for us when choosing an agency was that the partner needed to be an extension of the team — Rolique completely met this requirement.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There’s nothing I’d have them improve. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Get clear on what you want before starting conversations. Rolique was incredibly good at extracting the information that they needed, however, the more prepared you go into the project, the more you will get out of it. The team helped me improve my briefing processes and see the value in being as prepared as possible.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the COO of Plann, a social media scheduling and analytics tool. Since 2016, we’ve grown to over 2.5 million users, helping people across different products.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Rolique?

We have them work on our mobile apps.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The team helps us with our apps for iOS and Android.

What is the team composition?

In total, we’ve probably worked with 10 or 11 people on the project at various times. We have two developers on each app. Throughout the year, we’ve had a product manager. We’ve also had several QA testers and an account manager.

How did you come to work with Rolique?

It was through a referral. We’ve known them since 2017, but they kept in contact with us.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $250,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with their team in January 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’re very satisfied with their work. Their work quality is high, and we haven’t had any issues. They give us a product manager on their side. While he works on several projects, we’re one of his primary ones. He gives very proactive thoughts, which makes him part of our internal team. They don’t just deliver good work, but they actually think about how to improve it.

How did Rolique perform from a project management standpoint?

From a project management standpoint, they’re seamless. They run their team efficiently, and we don’t have to chase them at all because they know what needs to be done. The product manager ensures things get done.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their proactive thought makes them stand out. They contribute well, expressing their opinion when it’s helpful. In my experience, not a lot of teams operate that way.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I think they’re great. I have nothing negative to say.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

For me, it would be to set your expectations clearly. We knew what we wanted, and we asked them to be members of our team. We encouraged them to share their opinions. That’s a good way to get the most out of them because you’re allowing them to contribute.