Software developer hailed over help on international transport project
A London-based transport specialist has called on Mancunian expertise to deliver a key international project.
Mobility company Karhoo worked with Manchester software developer Godel to deliver a taxi booking system for French rail operator SNCF.
Godel worked alongside the in-house software development teams allowing Karhoo to scale rapidly to meet deadlines.
The combined team has delivered ‘Mon Chauffeur’, a consumer-focused taxi booking system located on SNCF’s website that allows rail customers to book cabs from railway stations the length and breadth of France.
The new platform is the first consumer ground-transportation solution offering an aggregation of local fleets to offer a national service.
“Godel has been instrumental in the delivery of Mon Chauffeur for SNCF and is helping us more widely across our front-end product development, web apps and software development kits,” said Karhoo chief technical officer Bill Wilkins.”
He added: “Importantly, the teams in Godel are tightly integrated with our in-house staff in London and Krakow, Poland.
“Although we are a London-based business, hiring software development talent in numbers and at the speed required to deliver to tight deadlines is challenging.
“Skills are fought over and costly for an early-stage business like ours – we needed a more strategic, permanent and much faster way to scale our in-house software delivery team, and Godel provides the solution.”
Moving forward Godel will be working closely with Karhoo to look more widely at the way it integrates with downstream suppliers – taxi fleets as a primary example.
The Karhoo platform opens up a new way for driver fleets to access new customers through global brand partners generating demand from millions of visitors on their websites and apps.
“Godel is a trusted partner – the team’s approach and philosophy mapped Karhoo’s closely and we see the Godel developers as part of our own team. Our product squads, regardless of location work together to deliver a high-quality end product for our clients,” said Mr Wilkins.
Paul Green, Godel chief operating officer, said: “Working with Karhoo on the SNCF project provided the best beginning to a relationship we could have hoped for.
“Time and time again, organisations are approaching Godel to deliver the software development capability that their marketplace demands – and at the speed required.
“Godel offers a delivery mechanism in a very short time frame for any organisation struggling to find development talent – and we’re thrilled we could help Karhoo deliver such a significant national project.”
