Leapset introduces new technology to SL

Leapset is a software development company with a difference. Inventors of a cutting-edge IT product targeted at the Small to Medium business market in the US, which is revolutionizing - merchant-consumer interaction. Leapset replaces existing point-of-sale, credit card payments and online-offline technologies with one complete integrated platform.

Hailing from Silicon Valley, California, the birthplace and home to a myriad of global giants such as Google, Facebook and Apple, Leapset practice a very distinct style of development. The developers use an agile software development cycle that consists of multiple sprints that are three to four weeks.

The product team of the company defines the requirements for the sprint, and then the engineering team works on the tasks that form the objectives of the sprint.

By operating this way you don't waste six months on a release that the customer probably won't ever get, or when they do get it in their hands, is already out-dated.

This way, if anything crops up between sprints, we retain the flexibility to adjust, said Leapset's Vice President of Engineering, Paul Kelaita.

Leapset say that they are also able to start the development ASAP because of the agile model, and release the finished product into the market much faster. This allows them to keep up with the fast rate of technological evolution taking place in the market.

“If you spend too much time developing something, by the time you finish, people have already moved onto the next big innovation. The Agile software development style also lets us react to our competitors on the fly; if someone comes up with a good idea, we can adapt and integrate it into our product, or even out do it quickly,” said Leapset's Head of Engineering Sri Lanka, Rohana Kumara.

Leapset also accredit a lot of their success to what they call 'A Marriage of Silicon Valley Ideology with Sri Lankan Engineering Talent'. Leapset's CEO, Mani Kulasooriya and Vice President of Global Delivery, Shanil Fernando, have very close ties to Sri Lanka, allowing them to put an excellent team together and move Leapset's entire development operation to Sri Lanka.

“I have worked with a lot of different offshore teams from many countries around the world, including India, but it is clear that the talent pool is on another level here Sri Lanka,” said Paul.

“I have also benefited personally from the close relationship with the product team over in the US. They are a very experienced team with a lot of great ideas. Their knowledge of international standards for software product development has helped us raise our game,” said Rohana.

The Sri Lankan development team is also put through a rigorous training programme that includes tenure in the US. The senior developers travel to California and get an insight into the Silicon Valley philosophy and way of life. It also gives the developers a chance visit merchants and talk to customers who are using the product, allowing them to collect the insights necessary to come up with creative improvements. Not many other development companies in Sri Lanka offer similar experiences.