The challenge

Education Horizons is an Australian-based company with over 40 years of experience in the educational technology (EdTech) sector. They offer a suite of software solutions designed to enhance school management, teaching, learning, and asset management. Their products, including Synergetic, SEQTA, Engage, and AssetWhere, are used by over 2,000 schools across 68 countries, reaching more than 3.2 million users. In 2016, the company came under the ownership of private equity investor Potentia Capital.

In July 2022, Education Horizons sought to accelerate its growth and enhance its product development capabilities. The company's product development workforce was approaching 150 employees, with around 40 personnel sourced from an Asia-based outsourcing company. However, both the internal team and the outsourcing agency were identified as needing significant improvements. Mike Somogyi, the newly appointed CTO, recognised the need for a strategic overhaul to elevate the company's product and organisational performance

The solution

Education Horizons partnered with Everest, specialist in product development and organisational transformation. Everest deployed its personnel across six of the twelve product development teams at Education Horizons, integrating with the existing staff. This collaboration aimed to establish a robust engineering culture and shift the organization towards a more proactive, product-led approach. Everest team members were a mix of local and India based people, with most but not all senior roles deployed from Australia.

Key initiatives involved:

Embedding Everest's tech leads and senior developers within the teams to set standards anddrive improvements.
Deploying a senior Engineering manager reporting to the CTO and responsible for the overallcontribution of the Everest team, and increasing the performance of the tech leadership team atEducation Horizons
Developing a technical strategy in collaboration with various stakeholders, including peerengineering managers, product managers, and the CTO.
Facilitating a community of practice for engineering management, focusing on areas such ascloud engineering, people leadership, and process management.
Implementing regular training workshops and learning activities through Everest Academy tofoster a culture of continuous improvement and quality management.

Results

Over the 18-month engagement, Education Horizons experienced a significant transformation:

The overall product development team at Education Horizons was reduced from 150 to 90members, achieving greater productivity and job satisfaction.
The company witnessed an increase in product releases, improved bug resolution, andenhanced performance, leading to better sales and customer retention.
The Everest team size peaked at 30 before scaling down to 20 towards the end of theengagement, ultimately enabling Education Horizons to operate independently.
The Everest team, initially comprising 15 members, effectively replaced the 40-person team fromthe outsourcing agency, delivering higher quality work within weeks.

Key insights

Leadership and change management were crucial in driving the transformation, with a focus onleading change from the front line, middle management, and the top.
The adoption of true cross-functional teams with shared goals and tightly integrated ways ofworking, and a shift from a project-managed to a product-led organization were instrumental inachieving success.
Hands-on coaching, technical competence, and a commitment to continuous improvementwere identified as vital components of the new engineering culture.

Transforming Product Development and Engineering

The challenge

Let us innovate and create together,
as a team at Everest!

Or send an email to hi@everest.engineering

++ See more of our work

Using AI to predict what customers actually want before going to market.

Using AI to predict what customers actually want before going to market.

Pick the fun way! c

Transforming Product Development and Engineering

The challenge

Let us innovate and create together, as a team at Everest!

Or send an email to hi@everest.engineering

++ See more of our work

Using AI to predict what customers actually want before going to market.

Using AI to predict what customers actually want before going to market.

Pick the fun way! c

Let us innovate and create together,
as a team at Everest!