MISO3
ProductSavvy is handling custom software development for a SaaS company. They're designing, building, and maintaining the backend infrastructure of a cloud environment solution using AWS.
THE REVIEWER
CEO & Founder
MISO
THE PROJECT
Custom Software Dev & UI/UX Design for SaaS Platform
THE REVIEW
“I’ve been very impressed with their roll-up-the-sleeves attitude.”
Project summary:
ProductSavvy is handling custom software development for a SaaS company. They're designing, building, and maintaining the backend infrastructure of a cloud environment solution using AWS.
Feedback summary:
Despite being launched for a short time, the platform is already growing customers. ProductSavvy implemented an effective scrum methodology that drives an excellent project management style. They have a strong work ethic and provide customized solutions that deliver results.
BACKGROUND
Introduce your business and what you do there.
I’m the CEO and founder of MISO3. Our product is a business software application that helps companies manage their recurring service assets and obligations.
OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE
What challenge were you trying to address with ProductSavvy?
Over the years, we had found that within the enterprise market, companies are ill-prepared for all the changes involved in people moving into the cloud. This ranges from managing all the cost components to the computer or telecommunications sides to licensing. We found that the majority of businesses are doing this through Excel or very manual processes. My business partner and I realized how challenging this was even for people whose core business was to manage it. The inability of enterprises to understand they’re wasting millions of dollars every year drove our focus on automating that process so it requires less people, time, and efforts, all while leading to savings. We started off with the concept of what we wanted to build. ProductSavvy comes into play because we had the idea and business acumen for it, but we’re not software development people. Our objective wasn’t just finding developers, it was building an architecture that could scale. Some of our clients have hundreds of thousands of services renewing daily, managed by thousands of employees. We wanted to make something that’s relatively complex in its size yet scalable and simple for a user to navigate. We engaged ProductSavvy to help us design, build, and maintain the platform.
SOLUTION
What was the scope of their involvement?
Our team built a prototype of a version of the tool, some things we did well and others we didn’t. We started this engagement with a deep dive with the ProductSavvy team. We had to start down at the platform’s architecture. The deep dive was a look at what we had done. Together, we discussed where we wanted the process to go. It’s been an iterative collaboration. We set priorities and communicated frequently. There were a handful of developers, but no one to drive the process so we used a scrum process of setting expectations every two weeks. We build and then think about what we’re building for the next event. ProductSavvy took a disorganized process we had created and made it more structured. As we went, we discussed the architecture side; this became a big selling point for us. We brought on some of their developers to assist with the backend infrastructure like managing the cloud environment with AWS. As CEO, I have more visibility into what we’re trying to accomplish and if were succeeding or not.
What is the team composition?
The team composition has varied throughout the different phases. There’s been between 5–7 individuals depending on the stage. There are about three individuals we work with on a consistent daily basis. However, if we need expertise in certain areas, they bring someone in to fill the gap.
How did you come to work with ProductSavvy?
They were a referral. I was talking to a group that’s helping us vet our business plan. They suggested we focus on product and design. I’ve learned it overtime that it’s better to build something well the first time around. The referral led to a couple of meetings with some of ProductSavvy's leadership team members to chat about what we were doing. They hit on some points that were very accurate and areas that I thought we were doing well in. Through this, I realize there were some gaps.
What is the status of this engagement?
Our ongoing partnership began in August 2019.
RESULTS & FEEDBACK
What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
We recently launched the platform and are already seeing strides. We’re getting faster as we go and starting to see the fruits of the labor we’ve done over the last year. One of the biggest impacts is that we’ve grown with customers and are scaling a pretty large client base right now. Recently, we’ve signed some nice-sized customers. Without some of the capabilities that the platform has, we wouldn’t have the opportunity to do so. Another highlight is that we’ve had zero outages. We resolve our issues at a relatively quick rate.
How did ProductSavvy perform from a project management standpoint?
Project management is their expertise. We have daily standup calls in the morning, and they run a great scrum process. It’s been an eyeopener for me. We have developers on three continents. These calls last between 20–30 minutes and are always well-documented. ProductSavvy runs a tight ship. Everyone knows their objectives. The standups allow us to go through the progress we’ve made. We’re able to see where we’re exceeding expectations and areas that are taking us longer than we thought and why; I really appreciate it. What’s more, the ability to add expertise at our need has been very nice. Their team members are great, and they’re almost a part of our company now.
What did you find most impressive about them?
I’ve been very impressed with their roll-up-the-sleeves attitude. I work with Jonathan (CEO & Founder) very often. Their team has a strong work ethic and realizes it’s not one-size-fits-all. Every client comes to them in a different direction, and they focus on understanding each client and their needs. This is a strength of theirs that has allowed us to not spend resources to have an in-house CTO or COO in an early stage environment. We’ve leveraged them for that.
Are there any areas they could improve?
As we continue to work with them, there are some groups that focus a lot more on the outward-facing part of the product. We haven’t had much opportunity to use that side of their company yet. First, we need them to build the foundation and ensure the designs are working. They’ve built the underlying tools that allow us to build out all the features we’d like to have. Our team knows how connectors and applications will be added in. This is like filling in pieces of a puzzle. We’ve done the corners and edges and now we’re putting the middle pieces in.
Do you have any advice for potential customers?
Make sure to have a call with them. Sit down and chat about your expectations. Be realistic about your budget. Every company is very different. Everybody wants it today but you have to decide how fast you want to hit the gas. Again, be candid about expectations. If you’re going to engage a firm, assume they’re part of your organization. They’ll see the good and the bad. You want to be upfront and make sure they understand. For ProductSavvy, you’re not just a number. They really try to understand your business and want to be a part of it.