Case Study
Empowering Vizrea/WebFives with Global Development Excellence
Overview
Vizrea/WebFives, an innovative photo and video sharing platform, partnered with a specialized team led by Jozef Antony to accelerate development and deliver groundbreaking syncing and sharing technologies. Their platform enabled users to seamlessly upload, organize, and access media across computers, phones, and tablets—an innovation that later influenced Microsoft’s Windows Live and Windows Mobile services.
The Challenge
Vizrea faced critical challenges in scaling quickly:
– Need for immediate access to skilled developers.
– Development of unique, market-differentiating features.
– Managing a fast-growing, distributed development team across the USA, Czech Republic, and Slovakia.
– Overcoming communication barriers and maintaining consistent project delivery across regions.
– Rapidly adapting to evolving business and technical requirements.
The Approach
Led by Jozef Antony, the engagement was structured for speed and flexibility:
– A large development team (10+ developers and analysts) assembled quickly.
– Adopted modern web, mobile, and server technologies including:
* Desktop: .NET C# application;
* Server: ASP.NET for sharing software;
* Mobile: Symbian application for syncing images.
– Weekly reports, milestone reviews, centralized issue/bug tracking, peer code reviews, and daily communication via Skype and email.
– Automatic build server and deployment scripts maintained build quality.
– Agile iterations enabled quick adaptation to new feature requirements.
Technical Details
Technologies and practices included:
– .NET C# for desktop development.
– ASP.NET for server-side media sharing.
– Symbian mobile apps for image synchronization.
– Centralized issue tracking systems.
– Continuous build automation and peer-reviewed coding standards.
– Communication tools: Skype, email, wiki documentation.
Distributed development coordination was key, ensuring all teams (USA, Czech Republic, Slovakia) were aligned.
Key Success Factors
– Strong Global Communication: Regular in-person meetings despite geographic distance.
– Unified Team Integration: External developers fully embedded with internal teams.
– Senior Leadership Presence: Continuous access to decision-makers accelerated solutions.
– Fast Iterations: Agile responses to changing market and business needs.
Results
– Faster Product Delivery: Achieved accelerated market entry.
– Technological Innovation: Delivered automatic syncing and advanced image handling.
– Strategic Technology Acquisition: Microsoft acquired Vizrea’s core technologies for integration into Windows platforms.
– Successful Knowledge Transfer: Established a strong operational model for distributed software development.
Job Done
Through Jozef Antony’s leadership, Vizrea/WebFives successfully accelerated innovation, scaled its technology, and achieved market leadership. Their collaboration model set the foundation for future strategic acquisitions and technological advancements in cloud media sharing.