Coretec Inc.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the finance manager for Slotegraaf Construction Inc., a general contractor.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Coretec?

We have an in-house software program that we’ve developed ourselves. There hadn’t been any updates to the backend, nor to the look of the platform. We knew when going in that we would have to update the user experience eventually, as we initially focused on the functionality of the program.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They helped us with overall design work, as well as development.

They were hired to upgrade the backend of the system to MySQL 5.7, PHP 7.2, and Laravel, which included mandatory changes to the code.

They upgraded the software to better-looking designs to provide an improved end UX.

On top of that, they also developed a portion of the software for tracking tools. For the newly-developed software portion, we gave them the requirements so they’d know exactly what was needed.

What is the team composition?

We originally met with Sara (Director of Projects, Coretec). We worked predominantly with her and a project manager, plus they had a team of coders behind them.

How did you come to work with Coretec?

They were referred to us by someone, we had an initial meeting, and they did a preliminary review of our code. We were able to see if they’d be a good fit and if they’d be able to tackle all our problems.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent approximately 7-8 months with Coretec.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from January–August 2018. They’ve completed what we set out to do. We have more on the horizon, but we need to assess our progress and set next step goals now.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our users really like the look of the platform. Due to the upgrades, it also runs faster now.

How did Coretec perform from a project management standpoint?

They used great communication programs, including Asana, which allowed us to create tickets, review what had been completed, and what was still outstanding. This gave us a great way of knowing where we stood at any point in time.

The communication was good and they delivered on time. When they told us they would have something done, they worked hard to deliver it.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They were pleasant to work with and approachable. They got back to us when we had any questions or concerns; they’re knowledgeable, professional and, at the same time, easy to get along with.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The only challenge was the significant size of our code, which made it hard for them to fully understand the scope of work from the beginning. They did an initial review of the code, prior to putting together an estimate, but it was hard for them to fully grasp the full depth/size of the code.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of development for a mobile app development company focused on the agricultural industry. We work on specific projects for web-based and app-based solutions.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Coretec Inc.?

We received a deluge of work all at once and needed an outside firm to augment our dev resources.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Coretec Inc. works on web and native app projects, depending on what’s needed. Our company takes over development projects for our clients, making modifications and updates with Coretec assisting our internal team. We also start from the beginning of a project, sitting down with the client and figuring out the goals and strategy. We determine the budget, timeline, and resources necessary to accomplish the task.

We often work on old apps, having Coretec convert 4–7-year-old coding languages and frameworks. For example, they’ve taken iOS apps written in Objective-C and updated them to Swift. We often act as the client manager and use Coretec to fill in our development needs, wherever they be.

They’ve worked on custom platforms but are also familiar with Drupal and WordPress. For one project, they rewrote an entire CMS for a farmer-focused app. Users can put in environmental details from a specific field or farm and get a recommendation for what to do with their crop. They can submit the recommendation to a database that others can access. The app is a complicated system that integrates geolocation services, a relational database, and administrative access. The administrators choose which information to keep in the database that the public can then see and access.

What is the team composition?

We work with at least four people, but mainly the project manager. It makes the process more streamlined and efficient.

How did you come to work with Coretec Inc.?

A colleague referred them.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent over $100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working together since September 2015. We finished the farmer-focused app a few months ago and are working on other projects.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Nearly all of our clients are happy with Coretec’s work, especially when Coretec is updating an already-existing product. They appreciate the added benefits, and lots of clients love the UI overhauls.

How did Coretec Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

We have good communication, meeting at least once a week, if not more. They clearly address any issues or concerns and present easy-to-follow plans and project scopes. We meet in-person when needed, but we usually communicate over the phone or email.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re flexible and willing to work on unconventional projects. They adapt to meet the issues we bring to them, which we appreciate.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They’re still young but growing fast, so they have to bring on a lot of new people. This makes it challenging and time-consuming to onboard everyone, but it’s not too much of an issue.

UPDATED REVIEW

This review was updated on March 5, 2019, by the client. The original star ratings were: Overall – 4.5, Quality – 4.5, Scheduling – 4, Cost – 4.5, NPS – 4.5.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

My role has remained the same. I am the director of development for an agriculture industry development firm.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Coretec Inc.?

The business challenge has not changed since July 2018.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of this project?

Coretec Inc. developed a platform—which included web software and a mobile application—for our client.

What is the team dynamic?

We worked with the same project manager, who served as our main point of contact. Our team interacted with a few other resources during the engagement.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $120,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We completed work with Coretec Inc. in February 2019, but are still in communication with them. Our business partners still have a relationship with the team.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

How did your partnership with Coretec Inc. evolve over time?

Most of the issues arose during the project’s final stages. The original estimate was appropriate, but Coretec Inc. requested more money as problems kept emerging. Delays occurred on both sides during penetration testing. We then found additional coding errors during deployment on our servers. While the timeframe for fixes was reasonable, the delays were significant to the overall timeline. Work didn’t end until February 2019, at which point the elongated timeline resulted in cost overruns. The service level stayed the same throughout this process, but the consequences of the delays were disappointing.

Describe the impact this engagement has had on your business.

Since this was a third-party project, the delays and unexpected costs put a strain on our business relationship with the client. We were locked into a certain revenue stream and could not recoup the loss.

While the partnership concluded last month, our team continues to update the platform. As a fix, we allocated internal resources to resolve issues, specifically rewriting the app in Swift from Objective-C. Although the scope called for Swift, Coretec Inc. did not complete the conversion. We did not get what we paid for in this respect.

What steps has the vendor taken to resolve the issues?

Coretec Inc. gave us access to all completed assets. From a functionality standpoint, the web-based software and mobile app work as intended. We’ve designated internal resources to modify the solutions and correct the code. But even with the issues, the team did meet our task plan.

How was project management handled?

The team communicated well via phone and email. Coretec Inc. was accessible and available to discuss issues as they arose.

In what specific areas can they improve?

The quality of work was the engagement’s biggest issue.

What advice do you have for clients with similar needs to yours?

Challenges occur in every project. However, we were disappointed with the results and the final timeline. The direction of the scope went off course and made the partnership costlier.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm one of the co-founders of an employment futures exchange. We're building a marketplace that connects today's students with tomorrow's jobs through a double-sided database. Students can sign up and create a profile for free and interact with employers in this marketplace to build a relationship for a future job posting. We’re focused on raising the standards for entry-level employment by giving students access to formative career advice.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Coretec Inc.?

Both my co-founder and I have business-oriented backgrounds and experience with student leadership. We could interface with those pieces of the marketplace effectively but needed extra support on the technology front. We outsourced most of the platform’s development to Coretec to expedite the process. As we built the database, we wanted to keep security at the forefront of development. Getting experts involved made sense in that capacity. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We approached Coretec about building a minimum viable product for our platform. They essentially made a rough prototype of the database with double sided functionality, namely web-based intake capability for both student and employer profiles. They made the entire database searchable. A posting functionality lets employers list available jobs. After building out all these features over about a month, they got the platform set up and hosted through Amazon Elastic Cloud Compute (EC2). 

Moving forward, we began an iterative development pattern. We collected feedback from local employers, student focus groups, and schools to funnel back to Coretec's team. They've completed the MVP, and we're just about ready to start the next round of development together. 

We made it clear that we wanted the prototype to focus on functionality. We emphasized the need for a low fidelity model that had room for updates and changes based on user input. They’ve been helping out with some design from a functionality perspective to improve the platform’s layout and efficiency. 

What is the team composition? 

We've worked with nearly everyone from their team. I've met all the leadership and a few of their developers personally. We have a close relationship and see them at community events as well. 

How did you come to work with Coretec Inc.?

We met them through a Communitech event for sales leadership in our area. We had many mutual interests that led to us sharing ideas about our company. Everything flowed from there. 

How much have you invested with them?

We spent $25,000 CAD ($19,000 USD) on their services. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We were in talks from April 2013–June 2018. Coretec conducted a development sprint for 5-6 weeks near the end of that period.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

In general, my team has been pleased with the work Coretec has done. They've done an excellent job on our platform and stayed both on track and on budget. They quickly delivered our straightforward requests and efficiently consolidated everything into a neat package for us at a reasonable price. While we haven’t gotten extensive feedback yet, there has been a notable amount of excitement about the product. 

Coretec delivered a usable prototype that makes it easy for us to solicit useful feedback from the client end. Our end users have praised how the platform’s effective layout and how simple it is to use. Since they didn't do much work on aesthetic development, we asked our users to reserve judgment on the design. Most critiques have been about changes we should make internally.  

How did Coretec Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

They managed the project very effectively. We met in person quite a bit since their office is relatively close to ours. I was also in contact with a project manager on at least a daily basis. Once they developed a stable enough feature to show us, they consistently kept us updated. 

Coretec brought us in for feedback whenever possible. The initial round of development wasn’t Agile, so it was reasonably hands-off for the majority of the time. We'll be moving forward with an Agile approach, so I expect to see a lot more interaction from now on. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Despite being a smaller development shop, they interacted effectively with our startup. Using the right mode of communication is easily swept under the rug at larger companies. We were extremely pleased with how much personal effort Coretec put into our project. 

Getting close attention from their CEO and CFO was amazing. Other teams we got quotes from quickly passed off our project to a junior staffer. We appreciated Coretec’s high engagement, which was a significant contrast from comparable firms.  It really made us feel great about working together.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Since I’m relatively inexperienced at technology, it would have been nice to get more proactive communication sometimes about how specific functionalities work. I would have liked to have more dialogue, but that's mostly due to using a traditional top-down development model for the first phase. Our correspondence level so far doesn’t necessarily reflect their management style. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of JTD Consulting, an engineering services company that helps startups in the IoT space bring proofs of concept to the market.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Coretec Inc.?

For one trucking client, we needed to build a tire pressure monitoring system’s (TPMS) backend system. We hired Coretec to develop the website’s frontend for communications—dispatchers and back office—operators, and drivers.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They created wireframes in about one week. I then showed those to the client for approval before moving forward with a functional frontend, which would be tied into a separately-built backend. The reconfigurable dashboard was among the key features Coretec developed. The dashboard displayed tire pressure and brake information from the truck’s sensors for both the driver and back office. Furthermore, operators and dispatchers could simultaneously view data from hundreds of trucks.

During this project, we wanted to replicate this technology as the client moves closer to a web-based approach. To achieve this goal, Coretec built frameworks that enable translations from the web interface to native Android and iOS apps. In addition, we plan to launch icon widgets and other features for the platform.

What is the team composition?

I worked directly with the COO in the project’s early stages and then interacted with the project manager. One developer led the weekly reviews and there was at least one other working behind the scenes.

How did you come to work with Coretec Inc.?

We got a referral from our network. Coretec was a good fit for our needs.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent $21,000 CAD ($15,859 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together on the initial phase from May–June 2018. Our team expects to complete the backend next week. I’ll re-engage them once the other phases have moved forward.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Coretec delivered everything on time and on budget. The site’s visuals greatly impressed the client. Stakeholders, big trucking and logistics companies, loved the solution because it was that kind of technology is uncommon in their industry.

How did Coretec Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

They had a proactive approach for triaging problems and action items. To keep the project efficient, the project manager did on-the-ground assessments and adjusted resources as they were available. Working in agile, the team did daily standups and provided weekly updates to keep us informed and process feedback. Coretec resources worked to their fullest to achieve our objectives. There wasn’t any downtime and they put maximum effort even into routine updates. Internally, Coretec used Slack, video conferencing, and a wide variety of other tools.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I liked that they're Canadian.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t say definitively because we only worked together for two months. Everything was great, but my opinion may—or may not—change after we re-engage them.