Case study
When upskilling becomes the delivery method
The most effective training doesn't happen in classrooms - it happens when experts and learners solve real production problems together, where every line of code serves both delivery and education.
Starting point
Insurance in the United States operates under a patchwork of 50 different state regulations. What works in California requires modification for Texas. An application serving customers nationwide must adapt to dozens of regulatory frameworks, each with its own laws and insurance policies.
Allstate, one of the largest US insurance providers, had developed applications for property insurance verification and estimation - tools handling complex cases with access to extensive data. The applications worked well for their initial markets. The problem emerged during expansion: the architecture wasn't designed for customization. Adding new states meant rebuilding rather than configuring.
Pair programming as knowledge transfer
Approach
Learning through building
GrapeUp engineers joined the Allstate team not as external contractors delivering code, but as working partners sharing a keyboard. Pair programming became the primary method: two developers at one workstation, one performing tasks while the other monitored, supported, and explained.
This approach transformed every development session into a training opportunity. When architectural decisions arose, both teams discussed options together. When obstacles appeared, solving them became a shared learning experience. The applications progressed while the team's capabilities grew in parallel.
From fixed to flexible architecture
The rebuilt applications moved to cloud-native architecture designed for configuration rather than customization. State-specific requirements became parameters, not code changes. Features displayed based on customer location without requiring separate application versions.
Design Thinking was introduced into the prototyping process, shifting the team's mindset from "build for current need" to "build for future evolution." Long-term planning and flexible architecture enabled faster development cycles.
Breaking The Linear
Instead of delivering rebuilt applications and then training the team to maintain them, we made rebuilding itself the training program. Every milestone delivered working software and transferred capability simultaneously.
From dependent delivery to autonomous evolution
Summary
Allstate came to GrapeUp needing applications rebuilt for nationwide deployment. They gained something more lasting: a development team capable of building scalable, configurable products independently.
The refactored applications now serve customers across the entire US market, with features adapting automatically to local regulations. But the real transformation happened in how the team works. Design Thinking shapes their prototyping. Cloud-native architecture informs their decisions. The pair programming experience translated into permanent capability.
After the project ended, Allstate continued development on their own -the clearest evidence that training worked.
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