Interview with Arthur Sidorenko, CTO and Development partner - Ester Digital

Arthur Sidorenko  

CTO and Development partner, Ester Digital

Give us a quick overview on Ester Digital. When and how did you begin this journey and what were your motives to be successful in app development?

Ester Digital was created with my business partners in 2015 and has grown from a small Estonian start-up to a company with offices located in Europe, the UK, and the US. All of us come from very different backgrounds and expertise but we share a lively interest in UI/UX design and web & app development. Our motives for striving to be successful in app development are simple: it’s a fast-growing sphere with lots of opportunities to explore.

What is your role in the management and development of Ester Digital?

I'm a CTO and Development Partner. My role is to supervise every technical process, which includes assisting our development team with DevOps and making sure that the technical aspects of the project are properly implemented.

Tell us about your biggest achievement in the industry

It’s a cliché, but it’s true: our biggest achievement is our dedicated team and the people we work with. They astound us with their constant need to grow and enhance Ester Digital’s work every day. We’re also very proud of the client base we managed to gather, we appreciate their trust in us.

How do you schedule the development phases of the apps to promise the timeline to your clients?

Firstly, we plan the whole scope of work for a specific project. It means that we are trying to focus on the client’s vision of a product and our expertise in development. Secondly, we are trying to use short weekly sprints to prototype, design, and develop a product. Short sprints help us to be more flexible on a development schedule and give more freedom to add some extra features to a project. Lastly, we are trying to plan at least three product roadmaps at the very beginning of every project: the shortest one (a clickable prototype), the optimal one (an MVP), and the hardest one (an MVP plus some additional functionality).

How do you help your clients in choosing the right yet profitable platform for app development?

It's easy: we use only one technology for every type of app – React Native. Since 2017 it has proven to be the most reliable and scalable framework on the market.

Which would you suggest for a successful and profitable business progression, Native or hybrid apps? How do you define the factors that influenced you to make this choice? 

One needs to stick to hybrid technologies. In most cases, it's trustworthy and scalable: you can rely on the open-source community to back you up. Since it's scalable, you can develop features without worrying too much about how they’re going to be integrated within the system, because they’re highly flexible. However, the most important thing is that you can scale your team: hybrid technologies aren't simple for beginners in app development, but you can always hire employees with similar expertise like front-end development.

How do you scheme your pricing model? How do you fix your budget?

The main priority is to meet the client's budget expectations. Our cooperation with the client has to be completely transparent and open. We apply a so-called time-and-materials methodology, meaning that we work on an hourly basis on most of our projects. Being flexible and agile is very important for us. We understand that the initial scope of work might differ from the final scope for various reasons, so we openly let our client know of such cases. As a rule, we invoice our clients on a fortnightly basis, but it may vary according to the specific circumstances set by the workflow.

How helpful are the mobile apps developed by your team, for enhancing your clients’ business?

Our mobile apps help businesses to expand their online presence and reach out to mobile users who might not be able to access web apps or platforms in the same way as their mobile analogs.

What according to you are the best practices to attain client satisfaction?

We think that the end-user matters the most. We prioritize delivering personalized and custom-made solutions that are highly operational, so the balance between creative UX/UI design and the functionality of the product is essential. We always make sure that the communication between our team and our client is as transparent and clear as possible. We’re working together, not for each other. Collaboration and flexibility are the main factors in meeting the end-users’ and our client’s needs.

How do you update your business system to be in pace with the technological advancements?

We have an in-house team of React Native developers and built our technical infrastructure using React and TypeScript: we've built our website on Gatsby.js and WordPress (basically, we implemented a solution that uses WordPress as an admin panel and API service plus React.js for building static pages). Since last year, we've been updating, fixing, and maintaining this technology and presenting our customers as the most secure alternative to non-customized WordPress.

What are your thoughts about AR, VR and Internet of Things (IoT)?

Obviously, the world of technology is changing rapidly as we see it, addressing different needs, and making sure that digital information is utilized in the most efficient way. I think it’s really great that AR/VR and IoT are getting widespread since it only means more innovation, more personalized products, and a positive change in our lives.

What do you think will be the future of Mobile technology?

I think mobile technology is going to take up the market space even more than before: in recent years, mobile phones have become the main source of generating and consuming content. Competitive environments will force designers and developers to push their boundaries and create innovative and authentic products, which is a completely natural process for a fast-growing industry.