Apadmi

I’m the senior product manager at a company that aims to bring together service providers that will speak to the AML compliance journey. We look to aggregate business problems in a single place, solving them through technology solutions.

There was a demand for document verification and facial comparison capabilities in the mobile space. We’re an API-based business, so we don’t typically work with mobile solutions. However, we wanted to build the development kits that would allow our customers to continue their services. We reached out to them to supplement our team in managing our expansion into the mobile space.

They were responsible for building solutions using React Native. The solutions were for both iOS and Android devices. In addition to building the software development kit (SDK) for each framework, they built and managed a sales demonstration app. That involved them loading the solutions they had built into a lightweight app so our sales team could demonstrate solutions directly to clients. There were a total of three SDKs and one sales demonstration app.

I worked with Christina (Account Manager), John (Senior Project Manager), and a few of their developers.

We did a search for mobile development shops and interviewed about 10 of the best options. They immediately understood our mission and goals, so we selected them. The price they came back with was also very reasonable, so they were the natural choice in the end.

By the end of 2020, we will have spent between $200,000–$250,000.

We’ve been working with them since March 2018. They continue to update our kits with the latest technology. We have two quotes with them currently. The initial kit was completed in about 12 weeks.

They’ve gone above and beyond their agreement on paper to make sure that our solutions are up and running as quickly and seamlessly as possible. We’ve been very happy with their work. The solution looks like it will go into profit in the next few months, so they’re certainly checking boxes in that regard as well.

Communication has been strong. While deadline management was a little slow in the beginning, they were able to quicken their pace after getting some institutional knowledge. They haven’t missed a deadline in the past 12 months, so they’ve definitely improved over time on this front. We communicated and managed the project over Basecamp. There, they track requests and answer questions. We also communicate over calls and email.

They integrated into our team so quickly that our engagement became a partnership, beyond an outsourcing arrangement that I may have been used to. There’s a lot of expertise and passion on their team. We’ve developed a strong relationship that allows them to provide us with honest feedback, which we appreciate. They have an understanding of the space that helps them make recommendations on how we can improve upon our solutions. They’ve certainly gone above and beyond.

Basecamp may not be the right tool for long-term tasks. Additionally, it would be helpful for them to be a bit more responsive to framework updates. It would be great if they could publish their testing of our solutions because we don’t have much visibility into that currently.

Rely on frequent demonstrations to ensure that the project doesn’t begin going down the wrong path.

I’m head of product for Co-op. We mainly sell food but we also have some adjacent businesses in funeral care, insurance, legal services, and so on. I work in the digital department. We span all of those different business units, building digital products and services. In my role, I support the customer team.

We were playing with the idea of developing a mobile app. Upon the initiation of our engagement, Apadmi helped us solve our problem of building a proof of concept as well as helped us prove or disprove the need for an app.

The proof of concept was a positive test. Apadmi brought the app to life, and the full application launched in September 2019. We did a relaunch with proper marketing in September 2020. The app is available on both iOS and Android.

We work with an account manager, lead iOS engineer, lead Android engineer, software support engineers, and a QA person. We’ve used other people on a consulting basis as well.

We went through an RFP process and went to tender with various competitors. They all did a presentation and were scored on a variety of things. We wanted to choose a business with similar values to ours. The fact that Apadmi was based in Manchester was a big plus. It was nice to know we could easily meet in person.

We invested between £1 million–£5 million (approximately $1.3 million–$6.7 million USD).

The initial engagement was from April 2018–September 2019. They did a relaunch in September 2020.

Our metrics are where we set out to be. The relaunch in September 2020 has helped us grow by about 140%. Our customers are using the app and returning to use it, which is exactly what we want.

They hit both of our deadlines comfortably. Communication is always great. They’re open about how feasible timelines are as well as collaborative in getting a solution to reach a certain outcome. We correspond mostly through Slack and Microsoft Teams.

I’m most impressed with their openness. It feels like they’re a part of our team; they’ve really blended in with us. They’re not afraid to say if something is a bad idea, suggest new ideas, or push back and challenge us. It’s clear that they have our best interests in mind.

No, nothing comes to mind.

Spend some time getting their team up to speed on what you want to achieve.

I’m the co-founder and creative director of JigTalk, a dating app. We’re an iOS and Android location-based app that is free to download. You match with other users based on your discovery criteria.

I needed someone to develop our iOS app. We needed it built to scale so that off the back of their development cycle, we could start building our own internal development team.

Apadmi developed our iOS app to a point where it was releasable to the public. We validated the app with a really roughly built cross-platform beta product before approaching them.

We worked with three developers, three UX teammates, and their marketing branch who helped us with our London launch. I personally interacted with leaders in each of their fields such as their head of UX, head of design, head of marketing, head of experience, and head of strategy.

We were referred by a friend of ours who happened to know Howard. My co-founder then went to meet Howard for an impromptu meeting just to talk through where we were at with the company and get some advice.

We spent $250,000.

We worked with Apadmi from November 2017–November 2018.

They really played a pivotal role in getting this project off the ground. We owe them a lot. Our London launch was very successful, and Apadmi laid all the foundation for us immaculately.

Project management was completely transparent. We could see it through a very granular level. They very often would rejig their calendar to see if something wasn’t on track. On a few occasions, they shoveled things around for us.

In terms of the development understanding and moving with the times and staying on top of best practice on both Android and iOS, they were top of their game. The team knew it so well.

No, I can’t fault them on anything. It was a phenomenal experience.

Embrace them as a partner and not as an agency, and treat them as a friend and a family member because they will want to do the same for you. Embrace the cost of it compared to a cheaper agency either nationally or internationally because, with Apadmi, you’re paying for guaranteed quality.

I was initially the product director, but I’m now the COO of a retail shopping app.

We hired them to develop our iOS mobile app.

We provided all of the wireframes and Apadmi turned that into a more polished design. They then developed the iOS app. They added functionality that allows users to save their ideas as they were moving from one website to another.

We worked with 7–8 teammates including a project manager, an account manager, a designer, and developers.

I’d known one of the founders for a number of years and I talked to him about our plan. They presented their value proposition to us and they were incredible, so we decided to go with them.

We spent about $350,000.

We worked together from November 2017–November 2018.

The app was received extremely well in the market and it enabled us to attract a number of investors to the business as well as retail partners.

The project management was good, and they were very transparent. The design team worked well to understand our specific requirements, making it easier to brief the development team. As with any large project, there were ups and downs, but nothing too hard to deal with.

They had a well-oiled machine in terms of development and quality of output. They set each project off well in terms of fleshing out the sprint plans. Additionally, the design element was good in terms of bringing our vision to life and then feeding that into the development.

Given it was such a big project, sometimes communication could’ve been a little better. Other than that, everything was fine. The quality of their work was fantastic.

Be clear on what you want to achieve and don’t try to come up with the solutions on your own. Let their experience do that for you. Set up roles and responsibilities well at the outset, which Apadmi tends to do well anyway.

I’m the delivery manager of a member-owned cooperative that deals with retail and prescription delivery.

We do not have a full-time mobile development team. We selected Apadmi as our mobile development partner. They were selected to help us build a mobile prescription ordering app as part of our plan to re-enter the pharmacy market in the UK.

Apadmi developed a new iOS and Android mobile app from scratch, working on the frontend. They added functionality that allows users to order their prescriptions and have them delivered to their homes. Additionally, the team provided some input on the design.

At the peak, we worked with five engineers and QA teammates. At the moment, we’re only working with two individuals.

Apadmi had been selected as a development partner for other work, so it was a natural fit for us. They were the winner after a competitive bidding process.

Apadmi’s contract started in October 2018, and I joined the project in November 2018. Our engagement is still ongoing.

We’ve been quite satisfied with Apadmi’s work. They’ve been a good partner and are flexible in terms of adapting to our working methods. Uptime and customer satisfaction have been great.

We are managing the project on our own, Apadmi primarily provides the engineering. They work alongside our developers using our tools.

Overall, they’ve been a good partner for our organization and continue to be.

No, I have no suggestions.

Be clear on your requirements and the way in which you want to engage. If you outline those expectations from the outset, it’ll help both parties.