Alpha Software Corporation accelerates how developers build and deploy mobile and web business apps. Today they released results from a commissioned survey of enterprise application developers that identifies what they and business users of mobile applications deem critical requirements for success amid the coming enterprise mobile app explosion.

With mobile-optimized enterprise apps predicted to quadruple, market experts forecast unprecedented levels of app development and deployment in the enterprise. Developers are accelerating their development and preparing to deliver better user experiences in shorter time frames. The majority of developers surveyed by Alpha Software, 63 percent, plan to develop up to five mobile apps in 2016 and 23 percent expect to develop six or more. 

To meet this demand, survey data indicates that enterprise-level mobile applications must include offline functionality, security and back-end integration. The survey also indicates that enterprise developers are increasingly turning to low-code, rapid mobile application development (RMAD) platforms to meet these criteria and the increasing demand for business apps within organizations. 

"The results of this survey show definitively what enterprise developers and end users deem mandatory in the mobile apps they’re building in 2016," said Alpha Software CEO Richard Rabins. "Enterprises must seek developers who can quickly adapt and find the right platforms to deliver these critical requirements or their apps are likely to fail. Increasingly, these developers are turning to low-code platforms to satisfy the toughest criteria and quickly develop apps from inside enterprise walls. A ‘true’ mobile application is more than just a responsive web application running on a mobile device, it is a well-designed program adapted to the necessary medium." 

As enterprise organizations pick up the pace in mobile app development, developers must shift their mindset and employ new tools to keep apace of the explosive demand for better mobile apps delivered faster and more cost effectively. Developers point to easy backend integration, offline capabilities and cross-platform development as key criteria. Low-code environments are the platform of choice, as they allow developers and end-users to meet these criteria quickly. 

Alpha Software commissioned Bock & Company to survey approximately 1,950 mobile app developers in an attempt to learn about "must-have" features for mobilizing enterprise apps. Key findings include:

• Technical capabilities: Easy integration with backend database was ranked as a "definitely must have" capability by 96 percent of respondents. This was followed by offline capabilities (79 percent) and multi-channel deployment support (78 percent), which enables developers to create an app only once, and scale to other necessary platforms and devices.
• Business requirements: When asked the most important factors to overall business strategy and line-of-business decision-makers, developers pointed to security (90 percent), the acceleration of application development (79 percent) and, again, offline capabilities (78 percent).
• End-user priorities: An enterprise application is created to simplify the lives of its end-user. The top priorities in this regard include ease of use and intuitiveness (92 percent), accurate data capture (84 percent) and improved productivity (84 percent).

The full report, Enterprise Developers Rank Critical Requirements for Success in the Coming Mobile App Explosion: Surveying the Business Benefits of a Low-Code Platform, is now available here.