Project at a glance

Verified review on Clutch

Client
Talentbase, London (1–10 employees)
Industry
Hospitality staffing (chef temping)
Products
Client app, chef app, admin panel, website
Platforms
iOS (Swift) and Android (Kotlin)
Back end
Laravel, MySQL, AWS; Stripe payments; Google Maps
Services
UI/UX design, app and web development, testing
Project dates
January 2024 to present (ongoing)
Client contact
One dedicated team member
Delivered by
Intelivita, LAD’s parent company
Talentbase chef app: Booked, Offered and Applied tabs, a list of upcoming shifts with client name, rating, dates, address, hourly pay and start time, and a Check In buttonTalentbase client app: Ongoing, Completed and Requests tabs, listing upcoming Head Chef shifts with dates, times and kitchen address, and a button to post a new job
First screen: the chef app, with booked shifts, hourly pay and one-tap check-in. Second screen: the client app, with ongoing, completed and requested shifts and a button to post a job.

What is Talentbase?

Talentbase is a chef temping agency in London. It provides experienced temporary chefs at a single hourly rate, giving hotels, restaurants and caterers quick, on-call cover when a kitchen is short-staffed.

What did Talentbase need?

An app that matches clients with temporary chefs, and one place to run the whole staffing process. Before the project, chefs signed up offline and timesheets were completed and approved on paper.

Talentbase’s problems and how each was solved
Problem How it was solved
Finding the right chef for each job Businesses post a job with the role, number of positions, rate and shift times, then review matching chef profiles
Keeping jobs, shifts and assignments organised Each job is linked to its shifts, showing required and accepted positions, assigned chefs and whether shifts are upcoming, ongoing or completed
Attendance kept in separate records Chefs check in and out in the chef app, and the times are saved against the shift
Slow, paper-based timesheets Hours are generated from check-in records and sent to the client to approve in the app
Payments disconnected from shifts Approved timesheets feed payment calculations and invoices, linked to each completed shift
No single view for the recruitment team An admin panel brings chefs, clients, job requests, unfilled shifts, attendance issues, payments, invoices and timesheets together

What did the team build?

Four connected products, each for a different user.

Talentbase products and what each user can do
Product Used by What it does
Client app Hospitality businesses Post jobs, choose chefs, track current and archived jobs, approve timesheets
Chef app Chefs See offered jobs, accept or decline them, apply for shifts, check in and out, track hours
Admin panel Talentbase team Manage chefs, clients, shifts, attendance issues, flagged profiles, payments, invoices and timesheets
Website New chefs and clients Explains the service and brings new sign-ups to the apps

How did the project run?

  1. 1

    The business posts a job in the client app, with the role, rate and shift times.

  2. 2

    A chef accepts or applies in the chef app, and the shift moves to “Booked”.

  3. 3

    The chef checks in and out on the day, and the app records the hours worked.

  4. 4

    The client approves the timesheet, which is created from those check-in records.

  5. 5

    Payment and invoice follow, linked to the completed shift and visible in the admin panel.

Which technologies were used?

Technology stack and the role of each
Technology Type Used for
Swift Programming language Native iOS apps
Kotlin Programming language Native Android apps
Laravel and JavaScript PHP framework and language Back end, admin panel and website
MySQL Database Chefs, clients, shifts and timesheets
Stripe Payment service Payments linked to approved timesheets
AWS Cloud platform Hosting
Google Maps Mapping service Job locations

What was the result?

Since the apps launched, Talentbase has seen more chef and client sign-ups, and chefs now sign up in the app instead of through the old offline process. Attendance, timesheets, payments and invoices are handled digitally in one connected system.

On the launch: the first launch did not work correctly. The team continued development for another six months until the platform went live. The work is ongoing.

What did the client say?

“Since launching the app, we’ve seen an increase in chef and client sign-ups. The app has streamlined the sign-up process for our chefs compared to our original offline sign-up process.”

Callum Reynolds

Business Development Manager, Talentbase · Clutch review, March 2026

Talentbase’s ratings on Clutch, out of 5
Overall Quality Schedule Cost Willing to refer
4.5 5.0 4.0 5.0 5.0

Where the client wanted more: clearer communication at some points, and more guidance on alternative approaches when planning new features.

Ratings out of 5, from a verified online review on Clutch. Read the full review.

How much does a staffing app cost?

A staffing platform like Talentbase costs more than a single app. It needs separate client and chef apps, an admin panel, payments and invoicing, and native builds for iOS and Android. Starting with the core job, shift and timesheet flow keeps the first version focused. Most apps we build cost between £5,000 and £150,000. See what affects app development cost.