Intetics – Software & Technology Innovation Award 2016

Intetics Delivers Guaranteed Results with Predictive Software Engineering

Intetics creates and operates effective distributed technology teams focused on software product development, IT support, quality assurance and data processing. The CEO and President Boris Kontsevoi explains their new software development framework: Predictive Software Engineering.  

Software development, especially when outsourced, can be a scary, problematic process for many companies. Intetics, a U.S.-based company with software development centres in Eastern Europe, has a way of guaranteeing software development results and ensure that clients know what kind of system they will get at the end of the partnership.

In this Q&A, President Boris Kontsevoi tells us all about the latest trends in the software and technology industry and how a new framework for software development, Predictive Software Engineering (PSE), will help guarantee results and improve communication when engaging with clients.

What’s the current state of software services?

Software services are in high demand, as companies launch digital transformation projects and focus on improving their core services and customer relationships. Many companies need help developing and scaling their products and processes – and that’s where Intetics comes in. Market demand in this sphere is driven by two main factors: availability of skilled talent and the provider’s ability to deliver complete and reliable solutions. Companies want to work with skilled professionals, but they also want to know when and how they will be able to use their new technology. To solve both problems, Intetics builds distributed teams that can deliver the right solution, built by the right people.

What is the biggest concern for clients who choose to outsource their software development?

The biggest concern for companies who choose to outsource software development is getting a quality result on time. When another party is working on your code or platform, it’s very hard to verify how good the new code is or how well the resulting application will perform. What’s more, the tech partner will often ask for more time or say there’s been a bug, which will push the project end date by 3 months. Others go as far as to say that software development is a process and “it’ll be right when it’s right”. That’s actually quite strange, if you think about the fact that computer science is supposed to be a science. Most want to know from the beginning how long the project will take and what the investment is going to be. The main focus for us is how can we guarantee the end result at the very beginning of the project.
  

What is Predictive Software Engineering (PSE)?

To guarantee results at the very beginning of the project, we use a process we developed ourselves called Predictive Software Engineering (PSE). Many companies have experience in managing distributed teams, but the market lacks the ability to measure the results. In fact, there’s an entire market shift from paying per hour or per service, to paying for concrete and guaranteed solutions. PSE is a software product development framework that does precisely that; a disciplined delivery process with guaranteed results.

What’s the reason behind developing this framework?

Intetics has provided software development services for twenty years. Based on experience and industry analysis, we found that 70% of a project’s activities are largely similar. In other words, software development will always consist of certain steps, like system architecture and coding. These still vary, but they can all be put under the “software engineering” umbrella. The remaining 30% can be attributed to vertical expertise and can vary a lot. These are the attributes of a system that are required in a given industry, like any financial software has to have certain features because of compliance issues. So, while only 30% of a project’s activity will vary based on the team’s experience and domain, 70% of the software development process is fairly predictable. Yet, despite a large portion of the process being predictable, many vendors cannot guarantee when development will be fully complete. PSE was developed to remedy that and provide guaranteed, replicable results in software development.

How does Predictive Software Engineering work?

PSE is about improving communication and breaking down the development process into smaller pieces, with people developing really specific expertise in a specific field. Therefore, we’ve broken the software development process into 4 main spheres. These are: 1. business analysis (understanding client requirements), 2. project management, 3. engineering (actual programming activities) and 4. support (IT maintenance, feature integration). We have people who specialize in each of the 4 pieces (in addition to their software development expertise), making the development process more precise and predictable. Although this process might sound trivial, we apply 7 specific principles to each sphere, which is what makes it a truly unique process.

So PSE consists of 4 main fields with specialized people working in each field, what are the 7 principles that makes this model stand out?

All 4 pieces adhere to 7 principles that make PSE truly transformative. First, Meaningful Customer Care ensures clear communication with the client at every stage of the process. It may include a customer portal where a client can check on the progress of their project. Transparent End-to-End Control focuses on instilling productivity and proactivity as the cornerstones of development. Third, Proven Productivity ensures that the team stays focused. It means giving the components of the project to the most qualified members. Next, Efficient Distributed Teams can be created by focusing on high communication modes, shared community to troubleshoot problems, and aligning technology to fit the project’s requirements. Fifth, a Disciplined Agile Delivery process gives us a scientific and measurable approach to software development. Then, by creating a Quality Management Platform, we ensure that software is of high qualit­­­­y by measuring key software quality metrics. It’s an actual platform that can be easily accessed by any project stakeholder to check on the project’s progress. Finally, Sound Human Development emphasizes the importance of sustaining and growing talent, as the framework relies on highly trained individuals who know how to operate in a highly proactive environment.

What are the key attributes you possess that make you an award winning business leader?

I’ve always focused on results and making sure that Intetics delivers what it promises. When we build a piece of software and call it “quality”, we guarantee results. In addition, we focus on the client. Over the past twenty years we’ve introduced 3 different business models and transformed the process of software development outsourcing. We are able to do this by paying specific attention to our client needs – and designing services that improve services according to those needs. Finally, our engineers constantly help our clients build products that make them leaders in their industry. Technology can be transformative and innovative, and we want to enable our clients to take utmost advantage from it.

How do you think the software and technology industry has changed over the past year, and how has this changed your business?

In the industry nowadays, there is much more demand for guaranteed results as more companies are searching for ways to complete their digital transformation projects. Many companies remember the time when they have ordered apps, and the applications ended up not being quite right. Others are only just starting to realise that they need to upgrade their systems. Either way, as companies look for a technology partner, they also want to know what results they can expect. And that’s the latest issue we have tackled with the new PSE framework. With this model, our clients know exactly what they will get at the end of cooperation with Intetics. There’s no guesswork – Intetics is making software development a precise, scientific discipline.

What are your thoughts on the state of your industry currently? Are there any particular issues/changes that are affecting software and technology innovation?

There are a number of exciting trends that are going to change the landscape of software services in the coming years. For example, Internet of Things will create much more demand for apps and integration. At the same time, emphasis on quality will be paramount as everything becomes shared and it will be imperative that everything functions together safely. The big disruptor will be Artificial Intelligence, enabling companies to make sense of their data and use it to make predictions and prescriptions. Plus, Robotic Automation Systems will revolutionize business services. As these technologies become more available, the focus on quality will be paramount.

Companies will have to create new technologies – and when they do, they will want to know why is custom better than just taking pieces from here and there, and they’ll want to know exactly what to expect.

What has been the most important thing you have learnt as a business so far and how has this helped you achieve success?

We have learnt to focus on service. As a software development shop, it’s easy to dream about that next big app that you will build, but after we realised that we excel at service, things became much easier. We didn’t constantly have to come up with ideas unrelated to our core business. We could just focus on our customer and delivery technology, like PSE, and ensure we provided good results for them.

How do you think software and technology innovations help to improve the development and growth of business operations in the future?

We are in a technology-driven world, where every business will end up using some piece of software to make their business better and more efficient. We pay attention to what our clients want and strive to provide it before they actually have to ask for it. For example, we implemented our Quality Management Platform because we saw how it would improve our customer experience. Not many companies are able to create and recreate new business processes. We have a transparent process in place that allows us and our clients to be sure we can deliver quality software every time.

In the future, Intetics plans on spreading the idea of PSE across the industry. The framework has the potential to transform how software companies operate. Intetics is proud to be part of an exciting journey towards more transparency and guaranteed delivery. Currently, Intetics is working on a book, which is still in preliminary stages.

Boris Kontsevoi is the Founder and President of Intetics Inc, a software development company based in Naples, Florida. He has over 30 years of managing experience and about 40 scientific publications. He was a featured speaker at several international conferences. He holds a Master’s degree in Radiophysics and Computer Science from the Belarus State University and certificates in project management from Aspen (ISIM) University, Colorado, USA. He is Certified Outsourcing Professional (COP), a professional designation awarded by International Association of Outsourcing Professionals (IAOP) to leading outsourcing practitioners that demonstrated ability to design, implement and manage successful outsourcing initiatives.

Company: Intetics Inc.

Name: Boris Kontsevoi

Email: [email protected] 

Web Address: www.intetics.com             

Address: 10001 Tamiami Tr N, Suite 114, Naples, FL, 34108, USA

Telephone: +1-877-763-8338