Oggetto is a growing web-development company in Taganrog, Russia. Its staff of 15 has years of expertise in consulting, web design, web-programming, server administration and more, but only spun off as an independent company in early 2008. Oggetto’s staff met on oDesk and teamed up to capture even more work in the oDesk marketplace. We talked to
Paul Sedacove, the company’s CTO and project manager, about his approach to remote work.
Q: It can be difficult to create a reputation from scratch over the Internet. How did Oggetto establish itself in the oDesk community?
A: I agree it’s kind of a problem, but we were lucky. We had a couple of customers we knew before and we brought them to oDesk. That allowed us to start with normal rates, and when some first jobs were successfully finished in time, we got very positive feedback. Beside this, our guys successfully passed tests on oDesk and it helped us to represent ourselves as a professional development company.
Q: The larger a provider company is, the more skills its staffers might have. Did Oggetto set out to be an all-purpose solution for any buyer’s needs?
A: Well, what I have to say on this point is that we do only what we can do the best way. For example, any kind of web-programming work is not a problem for us, but we will never take the copywriting job because English is not our native language and we are programmers, not writers—we can’t do that job better than others. Or we would never take an iPhone-application job, even if it is related to the buyer’s website somehow—we don’t know the technology. This is something like a credo for us, and it’s a very important decision in my opinion.
Q: How important is customer satisfaction, and how far should a provider go if problems arise, the budgeting goes wrong, or there are unforeseen circumstances?
A: Customer satisfaction is crucially important for us, and I believe it should be so for any company that would like to build a strong reputation. From another side, it can be impossible to do everything a client asks without changing the timeline and/or budget. That’s why we pay a lot of attention to analyses and estimations. We try to give only promises that we will be able to meet. We try to provide as accurate an estimation as we can. If we see some issues prior, we try to notify the about these issues and bring his attention to them. After that, everything we promised should be kept. If our budgeting was wrong, it’s our problem and we need to finish.
Q: What advice do you have for buyers? When they approach a provider or a provider company, what can they do to make sure they hire the best provider, or get the most out of the job?
A: I’d like to advise them to pay more attention to checking the experience of the provider: check feedback, tests, portfolio. oDesk provides everything to show this experience to the buyer, so the right company will have it. Also, don’t believe cheap prices. It’s the first reason to start thinking, “What’s wrong with this provider?†Qualified providers will never have too-cheap rates. And of course, it’s very important point to get a detailed understanding of what you are asking the provider to do. Only if you have that may the job be successfully realized. If you don’t have the business-logic explanation, nobody will realize your job the way you need.
Q: What are the signs of a buyer/job you just don’t want to try for?
A: Absence of specifications or a good explanation of scope. We don’t work with buyers who don’t know exactly what they want or can’t explain it. I don’t mean technical aspects—I’m talking about business requirements for the job. Based on my experience, I can tell for sure that if you take a job and you aren’t absolutely clear on the scope, the job will never be successfully done, or at least you will never meet the timeline/budget. At the least, you will have problems and a lot of headaches. So we don’t work with the buyers who ask us to do “something, but something definitely cool.†I’d like also to mention that we always pay attention to a buyer’s oDesk history, and usually it reflects the actual status of the buyer.
Q: What’s your advice to new providers trying to establish themselves on oDesk?
A: Chose an area and try to be the best in it. Don’t apply to the jobs when you are not 200 percent sure that you’ll be able to perform it. Don’t promise anything that you cannot meet.
And I’d advise them to pay attention to filling out their profile: It’s critically important to represent your skills and abilities in the correct way. Don’t forget to enter information about your background, to populate the portfolio, pass tests, etc. All of it will bring you more chances to get the job.
Q: Part of your role at Oggetto is as a project manager. What’s the most important skill for being a good project manager?
A: I think a PM has to be a very responsible person. He also has to keep many different projects in his mind; this is a kind of talent, I think. Another key point is availability. I am available for the client 24 hours, 7 days a week. So, if you are not ready to receive phone calls in the middle of the night, this job is not for you. A PM should have some technical background and be a great communicator. He should always be able to find a way where both customer and team are happy.
Q: The global economy is in serious turmoil. Have you seen signs of the crisis in the oDesk marketplace?
A: Of course the crisis is everywhere—but I can’t state that oDesk has stopped offering good opportunities for providers. There are a lot of interesting jobs there, and oDesk statistics prove it. So, dear providers, everything is in your hands.
