Case Study
SinglePoint
Successful cooperation of front-end and back-end team
For Boston Software we have created an Angular front-end of their comparative rating application, SinglePoint, while working closely with their back-end team.
SinglePoint: Main dashboard, create new home quote dialog
SinglePoint Auto: Drivers RMV lookup
SinglePoint Auto: Options with Warnings panel and highlighted required option
Project
Client
Boston Software provides comparative and custom rating software to independent insurance agents and carriers.
SinglePoint Rating is an essential tool for professionals needing an exact-dollar estimate of policy premiums as well as the sales and efficiency features to manage their book of business in today’s fast-paced world.
The solution is now used by thousands of insurance agency and carrier users throughout Massachusetts.
Brief
SinglePoint Rating is a web-based application that replaces the successful WinRater desktop application. SinglePoint Rating brings all WinRater’s features, which customers love, to a modern and flexible web environment.
Xfive was asked by Boston Software Corp. (BSC) to create the front-end for SinglePoint Rating. The BSC team implemented the back-end and API.
When we started to cooperate together, the API endpoints were not finalized, which posed a significant challenge to our front-end developers.
Solution
Cooperation Model
The client uses flexible hours packages to cover the costs of the team with two Angular developers which is extended up to three developers and a quality controller in critical moments.
Team
- 1 x Project Manager
- 3 x Angular Developer
- 1 x Quality Controller
Methodology
Agile approach was evaluated as the best choice due to an ambitious scope and a tight deadline of the project.
Tools
- Git
- BitBucket
- JIRA
- HipChat
- Slack
- Confluence
Technologies
- Angular
- ITCSS
- RxJs
- Zone.js
- Jasmine
- Karma
Timeframe
Over 12 months. The project is live now and Xfive supports the client’s team with the development of new features.
Results
- A quick beta release: Agile approach allowed us to deliver first application release (MAIP module) in April 2017. BSC was ready to start the external tests with a limited number of beta testers.
- Cooperation in different time zones: Despite 6 hours time difference, there was enough overlap to share knowledge and arrange necessary calls. The US team could review progress and prepare the feedback when the Europe team was offline.
- Desktop-like experience: New web-based application brought new possibilities but also some challenges from its desktop predecessor; for example, how to allow users to review different quotes on different tabs within the same user session while keeping it secure.
- RMV lookup implementation: We used RMV to lookup drivers and vehicles data to populate specific forms in the application. When the RMV service wasn’t available during our working hours, we worked on new features or enhanced the existing ones.
- Older browsers support: While modern web applications call for using modern web browsers, we had to remember about users stuck with older systems. That’s why the app is also compatible with IE11.
Increasing front-end performance by 25%
When starting to work on the project we decided that the best approach would be to develop it in Angular 2.0, which was released several months ago at that time.
Over the course of project, Angular versions 4.0 and 5.0 were released. Because we prepared for the above scenario, we could upgrade the application to Angular 5.2 shortly after its launch. As the result, the performance of the application front-end increased by approx. 25%.
The Xfive team delivered what we needed for a critical project. They were responsive to our needs and worked within development guidelines we established for the project. Both teams worked together to refine a process that delivered quality results despite the challenges of time shift and separate team locations. The Xfive development team worked closely with our team using our collaboration tools to find shared understanding for our product. Most impressively, Pawel and the Xfive team continuously worked to understand our objectives, our timelines, and our requirements. Their development team was outstanding and helped us to build a high quality product.
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