Enterprise Application Development involves creating complex, scalable, and reliable software solutions tailored to meet the unique needs of businesses. These applications are designed to improve efficiency, streamline processes, and support business operations at scale. For instance, from custom software development to integrating various systems, enterprise applications play a crucial role in enhancing organizational productivity and driving business success.
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What Is Enterprise Application Development?
Enterprise Application Development is the process of creating software applications that help businesses manage and streamline their operations. In other words, these applications are customized to address specific business needs, support large-scale tasks, and enhance overall efficiency. By integrating various systems and automating processes, they play a crucial role in driving business growth and success.
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Traditional vs Modern
Traditional App Development
- First and foremost, traditional app development is characterized by:
- Slow app development: Apps take a lot of time to be built.
- OS dependent: Dependency between the operating system and the application makes migration and scalability complex.
- Slow release pace for app updates: A lot of time is spent searching for a problem’s source and solution.
- Organizational structure takes priority: Developers give the application code to the operations team before being released.
- Costly: The app development team has to set up data storage and other unnecessary services.
- Not secure: Development across the entire lifecycle is hosted on the organization‘s server.
Modern App Development
Fast app development: Developers conform to a framework designed to maximize flexibility.
OS independent: Developers use the development platform to eliminate dependencies. Migration and scalability are easy.
Faster release pace for app updates: The company responds to user needs faster, increasing user retention.
Swift and smooth transition: The development process takes a different approach and combines people, processes, and tools.
Cost-effective: An organization only pays for the tools it uses.
Very secure: Data is secure and on the cloud. It can be accessed from anywhere across the globe and is easy to use.
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Types of enterprise applications you can build
Examples include:
- Asset management apps: An asset management application records and tracks assets throughout their lifecycle—from procurement to disposal. As a result, an organization knows where specific assets are located, details about them, who is using them, and how they are being utilized.
- HRMS apps: These applications store employee information and support different human resource functions such as recruiting, training, benefits, and payroll. Consequently, they support human resource management by taking advantage of automation, collaboration, and data.
- Procurement apps: These apps give companies complete control over every purchase. Thus, they consolidate information on purchasing requirements, supplier availability, and purchase order status, creating a unified system that links purchasing activities across departments. The apps foster visibility and transparency in procurement.
- Customer support apps: Support agents use these apps to help customers. Specifically, they provide answers to questions, help customers troubleshoot technology, give instructions on how to use products, and resolve issues.
- Sales apps: Sales representatives use sales apps to market new products and services and to make customers aware of available discounts and offers. In doing so, the digital applications help businesses to streamline, optimize, and speed up sales processes. They provide sales reps with tools and features that help them achieve their targets.
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Ways to build apps:Low-code and No-code
Low-code means using a platform that still requires developers but allows them to work much faster. For example, there is much more drag-and-drop functionality, and nothing has to be designed from scratch. However, developers still have nearly complete control over what the application will do and how it will function. Moreover, many enterprise low-code platforms are simple enough for a business user to collaborate with a developer for more co-creation of the application.
No-code means there is no custom coding. In other words, everything is drag and drop. It’s all visual and there are no ways to change the basic modules. No-code is great if your business users want to create their own applications. However, there may be some lack of features or the ability to customize.
Features Every Enterprise Application Development Platform Should Have
Key features include:
- Security: Custom applications are built using sensitive customer and company data that needs to be protected. Thus, an enterprise application development tool should have advanced threat detection, secure firewalls, multiple-factor authentication, reliable password policies, secure data centers, backup and disaster recovery features, HTTPS encryption, and IP login restrictions. Since data breaches are damaging to a business, choose a platform with a security-first outlook.
- Scalability: Enterprise application development tools must be capable of scaling according to business requirements so organizations can keep benefiting from them. In addition, the platform you choose should be able to accommodate an exponential increase in data, workload, work modules, and simultaneous users. For instance, a development tool that supports huge data streams, including IoT data, is better for business growth.
- Integration: A good app development platform must integrate with other business systems to improve business processes, making them efficient and controlling costs. Therefore, it should be a centralized data hub for information and sync data in real time. The platform should comprise modules that interlink data from all departments, allowing users to automate repetitive and tedious processes. Additionally, it should support data sharing across departments and help managers and executives make data-driven decisions.
- Reporting & Analytics: Analytics and reporting features empower decision-makers to analyze and understand process efficiencies and make data-driven decisions. For example, they can use data to gain valuable insights into user behavior and adapt to new market trends. Data can also be used to drive business development and growth.
- Cloud Access: Most companies now use the cloud, so cloud access is an essential feature of an enterprise application development tool. Consequently, software with cloud access allows users to log in from multiple locations. This means they can work whenever it’s most convenient for them. Moreover, the platform should also have user access controls that restrict access to data for certain users or user groups.
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How Kissflow can help you leverage enterprise application development
Kissflow enables you to:
- Build scalable apps: Growing businesses need to scale their operations. In this way, Kissflow low-code allows users to immediately adapt to changes in size and/or usage needs. Thus, it’s responsive to users in a way that traditional software can’t be.
- Optimize your business processes: To drive growth, a business must optimize its processes. Specifically, Kissflow low-code allows users to optimize business processes and streamline operations. As a result, the optimization of business processes results in market compliance, optimized operations, good use of resources, reduced risks, higher-quality products, and end-to-end visibility.
- Increase productivity: Collaborate better, increase throughput, and streamline processes. With Kissflow, your employees can collaborate and coordinate tasks and projects more effectively. Additionally, your business can use our platform’s reports and analytics to analyze and capitalize on opportunities faster than the competition.
- Automate workflows: Enterprise applications that automate workflows make processes more efficient. In this context, Kissflow low-code collects vital data about the processes in your organization, pinpointing which ones should be automated. Consequently, you can easily automate processes based on how much time and effort they consume. Therefore, developing enterprise applications reduces the time spent on repetitive tasks, allowing employees to focus on high-value work.
- Standardize processes: Standardized processes are the backbone of your firm’s performance. Thus, you can easily track and measure performance, utilize all the available resources, and maximize revenue. Moreover, standardization allows your employees to execute high-quality work efficiently and provides a scalable infrastructure for future business growth.
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What is enterprise application development?
- Enterprise application development is evolving to become more agile and collaborative where IT works to build applications both with internal business teams and agencies external to the company — better understanding and incorporating the end user’s needs. This evolution is primarily enabled by the rapid adoption of cloud technologies.
- Historically, businesses would build the software they needed by taking advantage of large teams of in-house resources, using a lengthy, rigid waterfall process. This was primarily due to the limitations of the technology. On-premise approaches using Java, .Net, and other options kept the individual steps within the application development lifecycle rigid and siloed, limiting collaboration and rapid iteration.
- Moreover, these applications were also often difficult and expensive to develop. For instance, 76% of IT professionals say that it takes on average at least three months to develop an app. IT needed to set up infrastructure, ensure uptime, availability, security, and scalability for every application. Consequently, this added to the burden of building and later maintaining applications.
- On top of the issues related to development time, organizations were forced to deal with developer shortages. For example, 37% of organizations face a shortage of mobile developers and 44% identify a knowledge gap in the necessary development skills. As a result, in-house developers and IT departments are often unable to keep up with demand. Specifically, 62% of IT professionals who develop apps report backlogs of development projects.
- In short, the traditional approach to building applications required a significant amount of time, expensive talent, and investment in infrastructure and tools. However, that approach is even less feasible with the new demands of the connected world. Fortunately, all of that is changing with the introduction of cloud platforms as a service.
- High productivity cloud platforms eliminate the barriers to enterprise-level application development. In other words, with the cloud, users can work with programs and services without having to worry about expensive or time-consuming hardware installation and infrastructure setup, nor do they need to deal with server security, uptime, and availability. Therefore, on-premise app development solutions are quickly becoming a thing of the past. Furthermore, cloud platforms allow for better communication and real-time collaboration between teams, and for businesses interested in enterprise mobile application development, it offers something more.
- Cloud app development platforms are capable of doing most of the heavy lifting when it comes to creating customer apps. Specifically, built-in tools, APIs and data integration, security, user management, and even reusable UI components and templates — all help to resolve the challenges of enterprise application development. Consequently, even small- and medium-sized businesses can enjoy the same customized application solutions as enterprise-level companies, thanks to software development tool providers.
- The three levels of the cloud — SaaS, PaaS, and IaaS help businesses move faster with apps. To elaborate, with SaaS, designed for end users and delivered directly over the web, along with PaaS which lets non-coders configure and build custom cloud apps using a simple model-driven approach, and IaaS which gives developers a plethora of custom cloud services to build and run apps with minimal infrastructure setup effort, enterprises are supported through the entire process.
- In summary, now that businesses are able to use cloud-based platforms rather than relying on heavy infrastructure, the question for IT departments isn’t “How can we design this app?” Instead, it’s “What type of cloud can offer us the best support while we design this app?” Indeed, finding the right app development cloud provider is an essential part of the development process, one that may easily set the tone for — and effectiveness of — app development projects for years to come.
High productivity cloud platforms eliminate the barriers to enterprise-level application development.
With the cloud, users can work with programs and services without having to worry about expensive or time-consuming hardware installation and infrastructure setup, nor do they need to deal with server security, uptime, and availability. On-premise app development solutions are quickly becoming a thing of the past. Cloud platforms allow for better communication and real-time collaboration between teams, and for businesses interested in enterprise mobile application development, it offers something more.
Cloud app development platforms are capable of doing most of the heavy lifting when it comes to creating customer apps. Built-in tools, APIs and data integration, security, user management, and even reusable UI components and templates — all help to resolve the challenges of enterprise application development. Now, even small- and medium-sized businesses can enjoy the same customized application solutions as enterprise-level companies, thanks to software development tool providers.
The three levels of the cloud — SaaS, PaaS, and IaaS help businesses move faster with apps. With SaaS, designed for end users and delivered directly over the web, along with PaaS which lets non-coders configure and build custom cloud apps using a simple model-driven approach, and IaaS which gives the developers a plethora of custom cloud services to build and run apps with minimal infrastructure setup effort, enterprises are supported through the entire process.
Now that businesses are able to use cloud-based platforms rather than relying on heavy infrastructure, the question for IT departments isn’t “How can we design this app?” It’s “what type of cloud can offer us the best support while we design this app?” Finding the right app development cloud provider is an essential part of the development process, one that may easily set the tone for — and effectiveness of — app development projects for years to come.
These are the factors you should consider when choosing a platform for cloud application application development
1. Scalability
Ensure the platform can scale with your application as your user base grows. This includes both horizontal and vertical scaling options.
2. Security
Evaluate the security features offered by the platform, such as data encryption, compliance with industry standards, and access control.
3. Cost
Consider the pricing model of the platform. Look for transparent pricing structures and whether the costs align with your budget.
4. Integration Capabilities
Check how easily the platform can integrate with existing systems and third-party services. This is crucial for maintaining seamless workflows.
5. Performance
Assess the platform’s ability to deliver high performance under varying workloads. This includes response time, load balancing, and uptime guarantees.
6. Support and Community
Consider the level of support provided by the platform, including customer service, documentation, and community forums.
7. Compliance and Regulations
7.1 Overview of Compliance Standards
Discuss the general importance of compliance and regulations in your context. Highlight why adhering to these standards is crucial.
7.2 Key Regulatory Bodies
Identify and describe the main regulatory bodies that govern your industry or sector. Explain their roles and responsibilities.
7.3 Specific Compliance Requirements
Detail the specific compliance requirements that your organization or industry must meet. Include relevant laws, policies, or guidelines.
7.4 Implementation Strategies
Outline strategies for implementing compliance measures. Discuss best practices, tools, or systems that can help ensure adherence to regulations.
7.5 Monitoring and Auditing
Describe the processes for monitoring compliance and conducting audits. Explain how to assess and ensure ongoing compliance.
7.6 Penalties and Consequences
Discuss the potential penalties or consequences of non-compliance. Highlight the importance of maintaining strict adherence to regulations.
7.7 Future Regulatory Trends
Provide insights into emerging trends or upcoming changes in regulations that may impact your industry in the future.
By breaking the section into these subheadings, you can improve readability and help guide readers through the content more effectively.
Cloud-based enterprise application development companies generally share a number of characteristics, namely that they save users time and effort by providing tools that can be accessed without specific hardware requirements. In order to find a better fit for an enterprise’s application strategy, here are several factors to consider when selecting a cloud app development platform:
- Faster application development tools
Speed is always a concern when creating business apps, which is why the tools themselves need to be capable of producing fast results. To accomplish this, the best app development tools offer a variety of time-saving features, such as easy visual prototyping, model-driven development of business logic, APIs to integrate apps with data, easy testing and analytics capabilities, direct deployment via web or mobile containers, and the options to use code, low code, or even no code development for all of the above. - Security
Custom applications rely heavily on vital customer and company data. Of course, that data may also be very sensitive, and so should be protected at all costs. The best application development tools rely on effective, built-in security measures. Both network- and application-level security help to ensure that no weakness exists in either the app or the cloud for cyber criminals to target. Reliable password policies, permissions, multiple factor authentication, field- and row-level security, penetration testing, secure firewalls, HTTPS encryption, advanced threat detection, IP login restrictions, secure data centers, third party certifications, and backup and disaster recovery options all help ensure that your data is protected. - Scalability
As businesses grow, they need tools that can grow along with them. Effective app development tools should be capable of scaling along with your business, so that you benefit as much from them tomorrow, as you do today. Development tools that can support massive streams of data — including internet of things (IoT) data — will be better suited to help your business grow, and tools that can be configured to your existing practices and processes will be able to remain viable as those processes change. - Support for disruptive innovations
As new innovations come along, they have the tendency to disrupt the existing market. Superior enterprise application development tools include the ability to support these disruptive innovations, so that your business doesn’t end up getting left behind. Predictive intelligence, continuous DevOps, at-rest encryption key management, enhanced API management, and more can help ensure that disruptive innovations don’t disrupt your work. Likewise, having machine intelligence built directly into the tools allows users to build intelligent task automation into the applications they create. - Ecosystem that accelerates innovation
Even with the right tools, creating a custom app from scratch takes time. As such, an enterprise application development platform designed with a reliable ecosystem of prebuilt components and apps natively developed by 3rd parties on the platform of your choice may make all of the difference. The right app ecosystem decreases the time and money spent on development, and ensures that your application is ready when you need it.