Dedicated Software Development Team in Ukraine | Experience
We're all living in an increasingly globalized world, where the most unlikely connections between people and businesses at opposite ends of the world are possible. American design merges with Chinese manufacturing, African materials make it into Asian goods and Eastern European technological expertise powers innovation all over the planet.
Ukraine has long since become one of the top destinations for outsourcing of software development for international technology companies. With more than 100,000 IT professionals, the country has earned a reputation for outstanding technical talent and knowledge. One of the country's hubs for software innovation is Kharkiv, a city that hosts some 80 universities and more than 200 IT companies.
After a few e-meetings, my impression was that I liked Kharkiv better than
any other place," said Evgeniy Berkovich, Wellness Layers' Vice President of
Research and Development. "I also learned something about the location -
that it's a city of students, with strong education capabilities - and so we
decided to go to Kharkiv.
"I've been working in Silicon Valley and Israel, and have been involved in high tech since 1994," said Amir Kishon, whose company Wellness Layers works with Kharkiv-based Agilites. "Before going to Kharkiv for the first time, I was expecting it to be a nice place where I'd meet nice people, but what I saw surprised me. I met not just nice, but great entrepreneurial people, the kind of people you see in Silicon Valley or in Israel - highly motivated, highly intelligent, highly inquisitive and willing to learn."
Read about Kharkiv as a perfect location for offshore IT outsourcing in Ukraine
The example of collaboration between Agilites, as an outsourcing services provider, and Wellness Layers, as a software products company which also has offices in the US and Israel, shows how a team of dedicated software developers can work seamlessly across countries and continents. The result of this work is the improved health and well-being of thousands of people.
Healthcare, digitized
Kishon founded Wellness Layers about 14 years ago, and has utilized his experience in the high tech industry to make healthcare more modern and accessible.
"For the last two years, we've been operating on the Digital Therapeutics market and focusing on digital coaching," he said. "Wellness Layers is a platform for Digital Therapeutics, or digital health collaboration, which enables clinicians to interact with patients and guide them towards various objectives. These include managing different conditions, such as diabetes, as well as facilitating medication management, wellness, etc."
The white-label solution that Wellness Layers offers enterprise customers boils down to a concept where, on one end there's a clinician, and on the other is a group of patients. The former guides the latter through web and mobile apps, and is also able to check whether patients are complying with the instructions given to them.
Although the idea might sound simple, creating a platform that offers a powerful and engaging solution for both the patient and the clinician is complex.
"The platform consists of three systems: patient’s application, coaching framework, and program builder," Kishon explained. "The app allows the patient to get a plan from the coach: it could be that they need to take certain medication, measure their blood glucose level, walk a thousand steps a day, or drink five glasses of water. Once the patient is doing and tracking what they've been told, their activities are channeled into the coaching system.
"That, in turn, allows the coach to track all their patients and see who's compliant with the guidelines and who is not. The framework also allows the coach to intervene at any time, change programs, or send notes to the patients.
"The third system is a program builder framework that allows us to create different programs for both coaches and patients."
Since its launch, Wellness Layers has worked with a number of high profile clients, including IBM, Medtronic, Rite Aid, VillageCare, Vitality, and others. At a certain point in its history, the company faced the necessity of expanding its technical team and turned to Eastern Europe in search of talent.
Bound to the East to win our own dedicated software development team
After the initial selection process, Wellness Layers decided to choose Ukraine as the place for its outsourced software R&D center, singling out Kyiv, Lviv, Dnipro, and Kharkiv as the preferred cities.
Read interesting facts about outsourcing to Ukraine
"After a few e-meetings, my impression was that I liked Kharkiv better than any other place," said Evgeniy Berkovich, Wellness Layers' Vice President of Research and Development. "I also learned something about the location - that it's a city of students, with strong education capabilities - and so we decided to go to Kharkiv.
"I went there in person, together with a colleague, and met with the people from Agilites. Our impression was that we were talking to great people, and that's what's important for our company - we need good people to work with."
Berkovich and Kishon have never regretted their choice since then.
"The city of Kharkiv is very nice and has a great ambience to it," Kishon said. "Everything about it is really genuine. I appreciated the city, the cafes, and the people, and especially the amazing dedicated team we're working with. The developers at Agilites are on a par with our Israeli and American teams."
Kharkiv, Ukraine: hub for outsourcing the development of your innovative products
Kishon is sure that now is the best time to get to work with technology partners in Ukraine, and Kharkiv in particular.
"It's almost obvious that in 10 years Ukraine will take a similar path to that of Israel in the early 90s," he said. " Kharkiv has the ingredients to become a miniature Silicon Valley. There will definitely be more international companies working with Kharkiv suppliers. Now the time is right."
For newcomers to Ukraine, Wellness Layers has a few pieces of advice on how to find the right partner in a new country.
"The creation of a relationship is very important," said Kishon. "I'd advise companies that need to choose a partner in Ukraine to come here and meet with potential partners, get a feel for the city and its people. Such partnerships are like a marriage, and you certainly can't do that remotely."
With the vibrancy of Kharkiv’s tech scene, as well as the number of new engineers joining the industry from universities every year, it's safe to say the city should be able to accommodate many more international guests looking for mutually beneficial partnerships. Ukraine has definitely got tech talent, and it's going to get better at adding value for customers all over the world.
