We can only deliver good web applications by carefully examining the clients’ needs, expectations and issues. Therefore, we put a lot of effort into our work process, which we would like to showcase now using one of our JavaScript projects as a shining example.

Web applications are needed in almost every industry but you can’t just create one template and apply it to all companies. Each firm has different needs. Most require custom apps with functionalities tailored to specific processes. What’s more, the new product should bring value to the business and have an attractive and intuitive look and feel.

THE START OF APPLICATION DEVELOPMENT   

Every project begins with a discussion. Our business analysts spend a lot of time getting to know the customers’ problems and expectations. We also organize a design-thinking workshop for the clients to identify their needs. This phase of work is usually very demanding.

One great challenge was brought to us by SL Corporation. It’s a software company, based in the San Francisco Bay Area, which has been developing diagnostics and real-time monitoring software for Global 1000 and mid-market companies for decades. SL needed help to transform its on-premise application into a cloud-based solution.

Together with the client’s team we developed a toolset to assist users in building real-time graphical reports which showed data received from different monitoring and telemetry sources.

CURRENT WORK PROGRESS

At the moment, the web application is in closed beta and it is available only for selected users. They are giving the feedback on how the product works and the developers are making improvements to the app. Teams from SL and Synergy Codes also intend to go into open beta. We therefore decided to meet in person to identify the elements which are necessary to start open beta, plan the workflow, and set priorities.

VISIT TO SL CORPORATION’S HEADQUARTERS

Synergy Codes project leader, Artur Ptaszek, traveled to California for a couple of days to work closely with the American team and identify areas of code that were blocking progress. They also discussed functionalities and business features which are still missing in the app.

As we always emphasize—we love to share knowledge. Thus, Artur presented to the team the work Synergy Codes has done on the project using Docker and Kubernetes. We wanted to show to the client how these tools work and the business advantage of employing them in the project.

WHY ARE IN-PERSON MEETINGS IMPORTANT?

Every project that we have in Synergy Codes is remote. After a couple of years of such cooperation, we know exactly how to organize workflows and present our progress during online meetings. We have special conference cameras so that a distant teleconference feels more personal.

But, at the same time, we don’t ignore the value of in-person meetings and we make the effort to visit our clients. We believe that spending some face-time together impacts future work in a very positive way. It builds trust and reliability.

After his visit in SL Corporation, Artur also highlighted the value of networking that comes from in-person meetings.

“It was great to meet all the people who are involved in this project; not only the developers, but also the people responsible for product documentation and the sales team. They were able to identify functions which should be improved from their point of view, specific to the work they do,” Artur says.

He also appreciated working together with the whole team for the full business day, whereas they usually meet for one or two hours every day and with a limited number of people.

You can read more about our cooperation with SL Corporation in the case study.