Transcription
Okay Alex, nice to have you here in the call. And maybe, please introduce yourself briefly. What you're doing, what is your company, and who are you? And what can I buy from you from your business?
Sure, thank you. Thank you for the interview. Yeah, my name is Alex. Thank you for having me. I'm the co-founder of Press Master. It's an AI tool that helps companies like yours build thought leadership print content, respond to trends quickly, and draw PR campaigns using AI. So that's basically what PR Master does.
Great Alex, a few questions. What challenges did you bring to use software? What was the main challenge before you met us the first time?
Sure. So obviously, we took the initial path was almost identical to most of the software companies that are getting founded. We hired an agency, we built the MVP, then we continued working with them, whatever we saw a need in, from excellent agencies to having in-house teams. And that's where use software's help topped. So we basically, uh, transitioned from using external service providers to having our own team lead our own mobile developers. Yeah.
Okay. And where did you stand before our cooperation? Yeah, so maybe some key rates, prices, customer quality, what was the point before we started to work with you and build the dev team for you?
Sure. So the, the first project was basically just getting people helping us quickly build something what we call the MVP. But then we quickly realized that what the team that we worked with, there were great differences between having an in-house team and having an external service provider. And one of the main things that we realized is that we're able to control the quality standards way better. So that was one of the major reasons why we moved. So before, it was more like, hey, let's build something quickly, just for the sake of launching the MVP, getting the user feedback. So we didn't really pay attention to, we obviously we paid attention to quality, but it was all about speed. And the more we got close to having things under control, setting our own quality standards, that was basically the point, the initial starting point where we realized, okay, we might have to move on to build our own team up. We started with the first tech lead who's now for over a year with Press Master, which we consider being part of the core team. And we have expanded to the mobile and developers. Well.
Okay, got you. And what goals did you pursue in the new collaboration with you software, in the short term and also in the long term?
Sure. So what are the key things that were very important for us, and we also got the feeling like that was the right decision from day one, was that we can trust that we get team members that are capable of what we're looking for, right? Because the, the problem that I faced in the past was that we had great service providers with great offers and and breakdowns, everything looked fine, and indeed it was fine. But never could be 100% sure those people that are working on the project are actually meeting our quality standards. So this resulted in basically having to switch and iterate the team more than two times. So we had to replace developers, first request new ones. And one of the key things that we realized with H software was that our first hire was basically the perfect hire, was matching the team, matching the expectations, and more important, was able to adapt to us quickly. So that's something that led us to basically proceed also with developers.
And which of your goals did you already achieve? And how could we help in that goals?
Sure. So there are two things. The first one is, since both founders are not dev themselves, right, one of our main goals was to have someone in our team we can integrate into what we call the core team at Press Master. So that was a major thing that was very important for us, which I think we achieved with few software. So the very first hire is actually part of the core team at Press Master. And another, the other part was we had to quickly develop our mobile app. We had to move on very from designing the MVP, the mobile version, to building up the team, and then starting the execution. At use software, basically was providing us the two developers that we needed. Think three or four weeks, just to give some context. We have January 2020, sorry, March. February 25, we made the decision mid-December to start developing the app. We had at Jan, first developer joining, and end of January, the second one. And the MVP is getting launched now in February. We were basically able from making the decision in December to having the team build up in January, mid-January, to launching our and the mobile version in February. And that was the second point that was very important for us, which is speed. And real speed, but also trusting that while maintaining the speed, the quality of the team members we're getting is high quality. These are basically the two points: trusting that the people that we're getting are really who they are, how they're getting fit, the experience level, as well as the speed of hire.
And how do you feel about working with you software and your team?
To be honest, we, which is actually a good thing. We don't really, the good thing about working with use software is we actually don't talk that much, which is a good thing, right? Because everything works in the back. So I can share a lot, and the only thing I can share is that we actually talk maybe every two, three, four weeks, which is a good sign. Our team members are happy, everything looks good. We basically don't feel any of the problems like the paperwork, any of those things to be. So the only thing if we know working with use software is basically having the onboarding, sharing what we need, and that's it, basically. So we don't have to and anything else, which is a would. So I would say the experience working with H software is actually not really feeling that there is administration behind everything, which is an important point for us as well.
And how long did it take to get the first measurable, the first candidates for the team?
Sure. Our tech lead, I think it was four weeks, five weeks. And again, our tech lead, it was our first in-house hire. Our type took four to five weeks, and he's still with PRM. And the mobile developers, I think we got the P CDs within the first two weeks, and we closed the higher work also actually four to five weeks.
And why with you software? How is use software different from similar offerings on the market, like other outsourcing companies or freelancers?
True. So the problem, I mean, the outsourcing companies we work with, obviously everyone is doing their job, everyone is doing a great job. But I mean, one of the main things that are and visible is that it's a difference between working with having your team in house, where you can set the speed, you can set the expectations, you can set the standards. There's a difference between having an in-house team where you can set everything and having service providers where you feel, okay, they're part of the team, but they're not really any time. Maybe it's a key member that worked from the project for five months, and then the key member has to switch to another one, which is a big pain. So it's not having the, our experience with working with external providers is that we don't really, why we get the feeling like we're under control, we actually don't really are are out of control, only to a certain level. So the main difference is here, being able to control the key points. And when it comes to hiring, so you, software was basically our first and only choice, to be fair. So it's not like we worked where I started, we didn't work yet with multiple outsourcing companies together, but yeah, based on the experience I know, like we don't question use, and that's a big point. Like we don't question the CVs we are receiving, we're not questioning the the deadline. We know we have a short deadline, let's say we need to start the project within four weeks, we actually know that use software can members that we need within that specific n. Yeah, we haven't looked at for other outsourcing providers. Yeah.
Okay. And Alex, what would you say to someone considering use software as a future partner?
Also, one of the major benefits of use software is that as a, as a startup, especially as a company that needs to move fast, the last thing you need is paperwork, is wasting time with people that start working on the project and quitting two months after the onboarding, or going back and forth with sources. If you're a company, a startup that aims to move fast, have trusted the team members are capable of delivering what you're expecting, then use software is the best choice because you guys provided us the team members that we needed at the speed that we need it. And one of the main benefits that I also like about use software is that we can take over the team, right? It's like we, we just based on how the contract is structured with us, at least, is that we can take over the teams, which is a good thing, right? So we basically to have this speed, the benefit of implementing past, getting candidates, past onboarding them into the project, not having to manage all the people work, but then also being able to take over the team. Yeah, use software is basically for companies and startups that want to move fast without wasting time.
Great Alex, the last question. Is there anything else you would like to say about you software? Maybe you got some another thing?
That I personally really like is the diversification. Most crossing companies you have, when they're all great, you have alers companies in Poland, Ukraine, German ones, Indian ones, South American ones. One of the main benefits I personally really like, which you suffer, is that us are not narrow, right? You're not just in Ukraine, Poland, but you also have candidates in Romania, in in other parts of Europe, in South America. So that that always gives us the feeling like we're not trying to outsource from just a very specific region, but we're also capable first across the globe, which is just beneficial for us as well.
Okay Alex, thank you very much for your time. And hopefully, we stay in touch for a long time and and do a good job for you. And yeah, we'll grow with you together. And we will see what happened in the future. Thank you.
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