The more projects we have to accomplish, the more intensively we are likely to use the services of Nonillion.
Certipost, a subsidiary of the Belgian Post Group, is a market leader in solutions to facilitate and certify electronic communications. It hosts nearly 50,000 companies and over 500,000 private individuals on its platform in Europe. The company is based in Aalst and has offices in the Netherlands and France. Certipost provides solutions for the electronic delivery of invoices and other administrative documents, as well as electronic identification services for the secure usage of online applications. In Belgium, Certipost issues the electronic identity card, giving access to various secured access management applications such as e-Registered mail.
Mr. Matheussen, Certipost and Nonillion enjoy a beneficial business partnership. How did it all start?
In the past, I met professionally two of the present Managing Directors of Nonillion - Rudi van Den Bossche and Franky Redant – who have founded Nonillion. At Certipost, we have grown considerably over the past years and decided to further increase the quality of our products and services. In order to achieve that, we agreed on using some extended functional testing methods. We decided to work with an outsourcing service provider for this project, preferably a company established in an Eastern European country, as a first step in geographically expanding our workforce.
Therefore, we asked Nonillion to partner up with us, as they were delivering such kind of service and they had branches in Bulgaria. Nonillion found the right experts for us to do functional testing and the mission was successful.
This was the first step in the partnership between our companies. We decided to move towards extending our near-shore Java development, using the service of Nonillion. A year and a half ago, we started working with three Java Developers in the Bulgarian town of Rousse. Today, we already rely on six developers, and we plan to double their team. Specific screening takes place on security, development and communication skills.
What are the IT experts of Nonillion exactly doing for your company?
They maintain specific components and further develop some software components. Certipost’s core competences, architecture design, lead design and security knowledge remain inside Certipost.
In Rousse, we work with two types of experts: Solutions Consultants and Java Developers.
The Solutions Consultants are customising configurations of our software, enabling our customers to connect to their platforms and to send their forms in a correct way.
The Java Developers are working on new software features that we need to develop, based on particular needs and requirements. They are being supervised by senior developers at Certipost.
Certipost provides specific trainings for all Nonillion staff working for you. What are the benefits of these trainings?
Each person who joins us receives an intensive on-site training at Certipost of several months. The purpose of this training is, on the one hand, to let him upgrade his skills and acquire new knowledge necessary for his future assignments with us. On the other hand, good communication is essential for our company, especially if we outsource projects as in this case. The initial training enables us to get to know each other; we help the new person to get acquainted with the company as he is regarded as one of us. Indeed, the team of ‘Nonilllionaires’ we work with are considered members of the Certipost family: that is how we think of them!
How do you see the future partnership between Certipost and Nonillion?
I believe we will keep expanding it if productivity targets and other specific KPIs are met, for Certipost as well as for Nonillion services. The more projects we have to accomplish, the more intensively we are likely to use the outsourcing services of Nonillion. The scope of responsibilities will expand for the senior developers at Nonillion. Rotational assignments between Certipost staff and Nonillion team members will take place.
Would you recommend Nonillion as a business partner?
We are already doing that. Being a subsidiary of the Belgian Post Group, we recommended Nonillion to them. Nonillion is part of our selling proposition.