Smart platform for emergency services management
3X
faster project development
67%
error resolution boost
100%
expertise gap closure
Challenge
Lack of in-house tech and domain expertise coupled with the need for engineers enjoying advanced English proficiency skills.
Solution
Implementation of a non-adaptive desktop application composed of 2 components: the client-operator part (clientUI) and admin panel (adminUI).
Tech stack
React, Redux, CSS-modules, SCSS, ASP.NET, Redis, RabbitMQ.
Business vertical
Emergency Services Sector
Initial project team size
7 specialists
Cooperation period
Ongoing since January 2023
Modsen augmentation team
6 developer engineers
Client
Our partner is a state-owned ESS institution that ensures the proper functioning of a response system for emergency situations in one of the biggest Baltic region cities. Their activity encompasses emergency call reception and processing, management of the dispatch system, and inter-institutional coordination. Aiming to switch the existing quick-response software system for an upgraded and more reliable one, the client decided to hire Modsen outstaff engineers for emergency services software development.
Project Scope
When Modsen received the IT team augmentation inquiry, our client was facing a major challenge of scaling the functionality, optimizing internal processes, and elaborating the design of the smart platform for emergency services management. It was essential to gather all the parties engaged in emergency response on a single platform by developing a user-friendly navigable app that would facilitate the process of coping with the mentioned tasks quickly and effectively. Our partner identified the key goals for Modsen team to achieve:
- Scaling and optimizations of the app’s functionality.
- Incorporation of adaptive integration with other products of the company.
- Redesign of the back end and front end.
- Development and maintenance of reusable components on the basis of React/Storybook/CSS-modules/SCSS/AntDesign/DevExpress.
- Implementation of data storage for UI using Redux.
- Implementation of IPC-interaction with SignalR via Electron and JSSip middlewares for transferring generated trigger events to various app windows.
Cooperation process
Requirements clarification
The development of emergency management software requires maximum attention to every minute detail as human lives are at stake. With that in mind, Modsen CTO delved into the team augmentation process with maximum thoughtfulness, responsibility, and dedication. At the requirements clarification stage which lasted for 1 week, the client communicated their project requirements, goals, and expectations to the external team. Through detailed discussions and documentation preparation, we as a staff augmentation services provider gained a clear understanding of our partner’s needs and were ready to dispatch a suitable team of Modsen experts on the project.
Selection of specialists
The overall success of the in-house expertise-strengthening process always comes down to the stage of specialists selection. Based on the previously gathered requirements, the CTO as a person who possesses the most comprehensive information about the strengths and abilities of each tech specialist, identifies and selects experts whose skills, experience, and expertise match those required for the project.
In-house testing
One of the IT staff augmentation benefits at Modsen is that the process of in-house testing prior to the dispatch of professionals is only a small part of the whole skill improvement and evaluation cycle arranged at our company. Positioning ourselves as a “staff greenhouse”, we center our efforts around continuous employee training, upskilling, and testing which implies that if you decide not to spend time on extra assessments, you’ll still get a team of experts whose competencies have been examined and verified dozens of times throughout their work at Modsen in general and before their incorporation into your project in particular. Given that the selected specialists had undergone a rigorous in-house testing phase where their technical skills, problem-solving abilities, and domain knowledge were assessed, the client opted for omitting additional tests.
Onboarding
Once 6 developer engineers were chosen and approved by the client, they seamlessly integrated into the existing project team structure within 1.5 weeks since the cooperation request was received at Modsen. High onboarding velocity has always been one of the priorities of the IT staff augmentation services we provide as there’s nothing more precious than time when it comes to software development.
Project execution
Collaborative approach
Team augmentation inevitably fails if the external team works on its own and doesn’t foster a collaborative environment. When dispatching our highly-skilled tech resources, we make sure their communicative skills are as good as technical expertise and English language proficiency. The collaborative approach instilled by Modsen top offshore developers encouraged knowledge-sharing, idea exchange, and effective communication, leading to synergy among the extended team and streamlined development of the emergency services management software. The communication within the team was organized on the basis of Slack and centered around daily meetups and weekly/monthly retrospective calls.
Domain expertise
The question of how to find skilled developers for emergency services software remotely got our client searching for credible staff augmentation providers having truly expertised domain professionals under their roof. 3 months of searching resulted in a clear understanding that universal and at the same time narrow-specialised engineers with relevant experience in ESS software development are difficult to find. Luckily, our partner contacted Modsen last minute and got matched with professionals who brought in valuable insights, industry best practices, and a deep understanding of the project's domain. Their expertise ensured high-quality deliverables and mitigated the risks associated with complex ESS software challenges.
Flexibility
Integrating into an in-house team, our engineers do not try to hog the blanket by instilling the software development practices they are used to. Instead, they quickly adapt to the coding and tech documentation writing style and software building management methodologies adopted in a particular team. Flexibility helped the augmentation team members win the trust of the in-house team and resulted in the implementation of several efficiency-boosting solutions suggested by Modsen enthusiasts.
Scalability
As project demands fluctuate, additional specialists can be seamlessly added or removed from the team. In our case, scalability ensured that the team size aligned with the project's needs, enabling efficient resource allocation and timely delivery of project milestones. When the software was 80% ready, the client scaled the augmentation team down to 4 engineers, ensuring optimal resource utilization and cost-effectiveness.
Versatility
Top IT staff augmentation companies understand that with the global tech talent gap, specialists they grow in-house have to be versatile and excel in a number of domains and technologies. That is why at Modsen we take thorough care about broadening the skill set of our team members as it enables flexibility in tackling various challenges and ensures a well-rounded approach to project execution.
Monitoring
Hiring staff augmentation experts at Modsen, you can be sure that throughout the project, the team’s progress and performance will be closely monitored by respective company managers. Apart from regular check-ins, progress reviews, and performance evaluations conducted to ensure that the team meets project milestones and adheres to quality standards, each project team member is supervised on the subject of mental and emotional state stability.
Reporting
One of the concerns our client had about going for an outstaffing solution for building the emergency services software application was the quality and regularity of progress reporting. At Modsen we do our best to dispel such fears by generating weekly and monthly comprehensive reports that highlight the progress, achievements, challenges, and significant developments related to the augmentation team. These reports provide transparency, facilitate effective communication between the client and the team, and enable informed and timely decision-making throughout the project development process.
Results and outcomes
The development of a robust, safe, and responsive emergency services management platform was finished slightly ahead of schedule. During the process, our joint team successfully managed to:
Develop 2 interconnected apps in the form of clientUI + adminUI.
Build a full-scale process of accident site registration with further opportunity to change its characteristics through clientUI.
Enable the administration by separate parts of clientUI in accordance with the role of an authorized user and availability of user license.
The decision to incorporate Modsen experts into the software development process was crucial for the overall success and top-tier quality of the project.
x3
Project development velocity boost
67%
Increased operativity of error fixing
100%
Project expertise gaps patching