Project details 3 hours of travel distance 4 technologies 12 team size Services Tech Teams Technology Client Intermate influencer agency Date 17 Sep 2020 Outperforming the competition by building custom software About the client INTERMATE is one of Germany’s leading influencer marketing agencies. The agency matches big brands such as Starbucks, Vodafone and Levi’s with influencers, helping their customers increase brand awareness and sales with the help of influencer marketing. The client aimed to scale its agency work by developing an in-house tool. This tech solution would help reduce time by automating the process of matching brands with influencers. As a result, it would help create a competitive advantage in a time when other agencies were matching brands manually. Challenge 1. Scaling the development team Before approaching Trustshoring, the client worked with a team of freelancers during the initial stage of developing the platform. To move quicker with web development, the client started looking for a tech partner. 2. Finding a team proficient at the client’s tech stack Proficiency in Node.js, MongoDB, TypeScript and React – the technologies the client started building the platform with – was one of the requirements for choosing an outsourced tech team. 3. Reducing the operational and HR cost of hiring developers Hiring and maintaining an internal team of developers in Germany was expensive and time-consuming for the client. They needed someone to engage in hiring and managing a remote team. Solution 1. Assembling the team from day one We were approached with the task of finding a team proficient at Node.js, MongoDB, TypeScript and React technologies that would be able to kick-off the project quickly. Two developers started working on the project right away – from day one. Later on, the team scaled up to three front end developers, four back end developers, one team leader per team – front end and back end, one project manager and two quality assurance managers. 2. Making communication clear The client visited the tech team in their office for the first time during project onboarding. The team and the client visit each other on a regular basis now with only three hours’ travel distance between Berlin and Wrocław. During the whole process of cooperation, the tech teams used remote management tools such as Slack and Jira, with the client having direct access to the developers. Conclusion By relying on Trustshoring for team matching, the client saved hours of work that would otherwise have been spent on the cumbersome process of vendor selection and shortlisting. By outsourcing web development to a Polish development agency, the client managed to cut costs of development whilst still being able to retain an excellent code quality and meet deadlines.
