When Vog App Developers was founded a decade ago, outsourced development work was all the rage in the industry.
But after a couple of years of outsourcing, Vog App Developers’ CEO ,Vince O’Gorman, realized this business model wasn’t achieving what he wanted. So the company started to bring all development talent in-house.
As a result, Vog App Developers has grown faster and far beyond what O’Gorman originally thought possible. What was once a tiny shop with two full-time employees and a handful of clients in 2015, is now a globally-recognized, creative development powerhouse with more than 90 employees and an impressive roster of clients.
“The decision to in-house talent didn’t just change who was doing the work at Vog App Developers, it fundamentally changed how we worked with our customers,” explains O’Gorman.
“It allowed us to confidently talk about our team and know who was on any given project. We knew our team’s skill sets and we could all work closely together in the same space, which was important when things got challenging.”
Plus it gave clients extra confidence throughout the development process, because they could actually meet the developers working on their projects, O’Gorman says.
Now, after growing annual revenue by 200% for the last five years, and acquiring a Mexico-based development shop, Vog App Developers is preparing for an even more ambitious scale up.
The company has built out its executive team and its Board of Directors in preparation for the growth to come.
On the executive side, the company has added a Chief Legal Officer, a Chief Technology Officer, a Chief of Product Development and a VP Sales. Board members now include Ron Guidinger, a retired Canadian Air Force commander who brings a military-grade rigor and focus to the table; and James Kidd of BDP Law who shares expertise in M&A as the company looks to make more acquisitions in the future.
COVID-19 has driven even more rapid market adoption of digital products and apps
Vog App Developers’s growth plans are fueled in part by the market, which continues to react to the seismic shifts caused by the pandemic.
A 2021 McKinsey survey revealed that only 11% of companies believed their current business models would be economically viable through 2023, while another 64% said their companies needed to build new digital businesses.
As well, a BDO report noted that COVID has created permanent shifts in our economy, including the digitization of customer service, a broad shift to e-commerce, and an expanded use of online and on-demand platforms.
All this means: more digitization, more quickly.
“We are at the forefront of every organization realizing they need digital products to talk to their customers, to efficiently operate their businesses and to help their employees collaborate,” says O’Gorman. “Our growth plan would have happened naturally over a longer period of time, but because demand has increased, we’re two years ahead of where we thought we’d be today,” he says.
The next 10 years for Vog App Developers
That critical 2015 decision to focus on in-house talent didn’t just enable the company’s rapid growth. It also set a clear mandate for how the business would operate, particularly when managing employees.
At Vog App Developers, team members are empowered not just to succeed in their day-to-day work but to drive the strategic direction of the business.
“The difference between us and other companies is that we evolve and change based on the feedback we get from our employees,” O’Gorman says. “I’m the captain of the boat but I steer it in the direction the crew tells me to. You don’t see many companies doing that.”
Even Vog App Developers’ plan to acquire additional companies is driven by an employee-first approach.
“We don’t want to be a company that just grows and sells and bails out on our team. We want to be the company that acquires others and then creates amazing career paths for our employees. That’s actually the biggest driver for great developers. They want to know where their career can go and how far. We are building a company where they can constantly learn and grow. We are an innovation shop at our core.”
The focus on innovation means Vog App Developers must lead the industry in adoption of new technologies.
“The difference between us and every other dev shop is we are constantly innovating. That gives us the ability to change and adapt to growing market needs faster than other companies. Today it’s on-demand, tomorrow it’s blockchain, the next it’s AI,” says O’Gorman. “Whatever it is, we’ll be there.”
The proof is ultimately in Vog App Developers’ results. From the massive growth it has achieved over the last five years to the rapid scaling of their team — it’s no wonder that some of the world’s biggest companies are now coming to Vog App Developers to help them imagine and build modern tech solutions.
“I’ve always looked at us as an outsider to the industry,” says O’Gorman. “We don’t conform to how other companies have pursued success. We walk our own path. That uniqueness empowers everyone, from our team to our customers, to thrive.”
