Monthly Archive for June, 2008

LimeExchange Living the Lime Group Vision

Published
by
Pawan Agarwal
on June 29, 2008
in Business, Freelance, Freelancing, LimeExchange, Person to Person Outsourcing, SMB, Service Providers, Small and Medium Business and outsourcing
. 2 Comments

With the global launch of LimeExchange, we are moving outsourcing to the next level by going beyond matchmaking, and bringing the power of peer to peer outsourcing & social networking to the on-demand services marketplace model.

Other outsourcing services take a pure matchmaking approach, that is, they focus only on transactions between service providers and buyers. While these nascent sites established the groundwork for outsourcing, it was a relatively cold exchange. We liken them to “ebay” for outsourcing. Our vision at LimeExchange is innovative and creative in that we are moving beyond the traditional matchmaking model and integrating social network.

LimeExchange Difference

Today people want tools and technologies that allow them to forge close and lasting relationships online. LimeExchange provides opportunities for service providers and buyers to develop and forge strong social relationships with each other. This allows an opportunity for business relationships to develop naturally, in a personalized manner.
The Market is in continuous flux; however the demand for outsourced talent is growing exponentially. As global barriers are broken down by the power of the internet, talent demand increases and the existing service provider pool becomes far more accessible than ever before.

LimeExchange offers an opportunity to capitalize on this demand in simpler ways than previously offered in this space. For instance, we offer free registrations, project posting, and project bidding. But what is really unique about LimeExchange is on the social end; we cultivate and support user partnerships via affiliations programs, knowledge forums, blog contests, and by providing access to the community driven knowledgebase. In addition, we provide the user with integrated relationship management and delivery monitoring tools. Our in-house IT is unparalleled in quality and skill to bring you the best experience possible.

We are truly living the Lime Group and LimeExchange vision:  we believe sharing and collaboration starts in-house first and that fun and work  can and do go together; it proliferates an environment of “out of box” thinking. LimeExchange truly is the new socially networked marketplace.

On Technology, Collaboration and Peer To Peer Outsourcing

Published
by
Abhishek Gupta
on June 26, 2008
in Business, Freelance, Freelancing, LimeExchange, Person to Person Outsourcing, SMB, Small and Medium Business, Technology and outsourcing
. 2 Comments

As introduced by George, with the creation of LimeExchange, we have moved from traditional, transactional models of outsourcing, into a new realm of using software as a collaborative social platform and talent marketplace for both individuals and businesses worldwide. Our vision is multi-faceted; LimeExchange helps providers monetize their professional skills in the global arena and helps businesses to create talented, remote, worldwide workforces.

Relationships Based Services Market Place

We have modeled our user collaboration tools by the same processes that have helped our teams in India and the United States to create LimeExchange. Such tools will further diminish the geographic distance between service providers and businesses to provide real-time collaboration, accelerated execution, and flawless delivery of various outsourcing goals. Our knowledge-sharing platform will enable users in the marketplace to strengthen their social and business ties, and create an amicable environment where users can exchange ideas, nurture talent, foster team building, and help each other achieve their goals.

CollaborateBy enabling our users the power to collaborate, share knowledge, and create content and by its rich user experience, LimeExchange runs to the forefront of Web 2.0 platforms. We have taken great care to focus on the design and usability of LimeExchange as well as the social aspect, giving our users the ability to become active affiliates of the site.

LimeExchange is built and run on open source platforms and technologies; we are amongst the first few to embrace Ruby on Rails (RoR) an open source web application framework. Our entire technology stack is built around open source applications such as Apache, Lighttpd, MySQL NDB Cluster, Juggernaut, Solr, MogileFS to name a few. This allows us to build and develop our platform rapidly and efficiently.

Use of open source software coupled with agile development practices have enabled us to build LimeExchange in a very short time span, and also makes our turnaround time for new features and fixes much shorter than the competition. Our design philosophy is simple and straightforward: design a loosely coupled system that can be easily put together and taken apart.

At LimeExchange, the climate of innovation and change is compelling. We are constantly striving to bring the best user-experience on the web for all needs, including outsourcing and social. LimeExchange brings these two components together, holistically integrating business and relationship needs.

Introducing LimeExchange

Published
by
George Searle
on June 24, 2008
in Freelance, LimeExchange, Person to Person Outsourcing, Service Providers, Small and Medium Business and outsourcing
. 1 Comment

I want to take this opportunity to introduce you to LimeExchange, the first socially networked marketplace for online global talent.

To create LimeExchange, we’ve assembled a team of some of the brightest web development minds in the US and India.  Technology has allowed us to do that.  The internet has made the world a much smaller place.  It blurs the boundaries between our offices in Noida and here in New York to an almost imperceptible line.  Technology allows us to tap into a global resource pool, giving us access to skills in software design that we otherwise could not find or afford.  It allows us to collaborate across 11 time zones and exchange ideas with great fluidity in rapid development.

We’re not the only company to take advantage of technology and globalization. Businesses around the world have used outsourcing for decades to access the specialized skill sets for particular projects and help achieve a flexible workforce, with lower costs, and greater responsiveness.  Traditionally, though, outsourcing was the exclusive purview of big business:  big, multi-year, multi-million-dollar projects delivered by big service providers to big multi-national companies.  Small and mid-sized businesses didn’t dare outsource due to legitimate concerns over risk, cost, and complexity.  And that’s unfortunate, because small and midsize businesses, on the one hand, and small and midsize service providers, on the other, are made for each other:  one typically lacks skills and the other specializes in delivering those skills at an affordable price.

LimeExchange brings the power of outsourcing to smaller businesses and service providers everywhere, and connects them through the power of social networking in a way that opens the door to whole new opportunities for each.  By drastically simplifying the contacting, contracting and controlling of projects, LimeExchange makes it easy for businesses of every size to build tight, productive relationships with talented service providers anywhere on earth, and realize the same benefits of technology and globalization – whether on large projects, or small one-off projects.

LimeExchange goes beyond mere matching of buyers and sellers or providing simple feedback rating systems.  It provides the contemporary social technologies knowledge workers need to establish, build, manage and sustain profitable business relationships around the world.  Ultimately, we’re providing a trusted marketplace that breaks down the digital walls and lets businesses and service providers of all sizes participate in the global economy in which we live.

I hope you’ll join us in LimeExchange and become part of this revolution in outsourcing.