Whether you are an IT pro, a business owner or business manager, you probably like to stay up to date on industry developments, and on the newest technology. That is a wise choice, because these advancements can often provide leverage for you to enhance products and/or services, and create competitive advantage.
You have a really great business idea for a software product and you want to develop the concept. Perhaps it is a business application you want to sell to other businesses, or it might be a consumer software product or web application. Whatever the case, your business will want to proceed carefully. There are many developers, programmers and IT consulting partners who offer custom software application development services, and mobile application development, but there is a distinct difference between custom software application development and software product development and therein lie the issue.
If you have chosen MEAN Stack development as the environment in which you wish to develop your project, you are probably wondering whether to attempt an in-house development or to choose an IT partner that is skilled and experienced in MEAN Stack.
No matter the development environment, the enterprise typically does not have enough resources to dedicate to a development project. Adding this type of project to the responsibilities and tasks already assigned to your IT team can mean that your team is pulled away from other critical tasks, and it can create risk. Existing tasks may be delayed, and IT professionals may feel overwhelmed and you may lose team members.
Of course, there is another critical issue here, namely whether your team has MEAN Stack skills. In order to quickly and effectively create your software product or application, your business must ensure that the team assigned to the project has the experience and knowledge needed to assure success.
‘When reviewing the references, capabilities and services of MEAN stack developers and IT partners, the enterprise must ensure that the prospective partner and its team is capable of overseeing the full development lifecycle.’
By engaging a skilled IT partner, you can ensure that the project is completed without a lot of rework, and that all resources and capabilities are available to you to help you achieve success. The cost and time required to complete a project using professional MEAN Stack developers is much more likely to meet enterprise requirements and produce outcomes that satisfy end users, customers, suppliers, partners and stakeholders.
It is estimated that nearly 70% of professional developers are currently using MEAN Stack for projects. To be sure you choose the right partner, you must include the following skills in your vendor review:
‘The cost and time required to complete a project using professional MEAN Stack developers is much more likely to meet enterprise requirements and produce outcomes that satisfy end users, customers, suppliers, partners and stakeholders.’
When reviewing the references, capabilities and services of MEAN stack developers and IT partners, the enterprise must ensure that the prospective partner and its team is capable of overseeing the full development lifecycle.
To engage Mean Stack Development Services, and hire MEAN Stack Programmers, Contact Us today. Find out more about our products and services and our rich history of Partnerships. Find out more about MEAN Stack development with our free article, ‘What is MEAN Stack, What MEAN Stack is NOT, Why Choose MEAN Stack Development and How to Hire MEAN Stack Developers.’
Original Post : Hire MEAN Stack Programmers with Skill and Experience!
At its inception, offshore outsourcing was a curiosity, and one that often struck fear in the hearts of the business enterprise. Today’s remote and hybrid offshore outsourcing solutions provide the flexibility, scalability and professional resources businesses need to quickly, easily and affordably support the needs of any organization in any country. No matter your technology needs, it is worth considering the offshore outsourcing approach to ensure affordability, rapid deployment and project success.
What if your business could see into the future? What if you could launch a consumer app or an in-house software program without risking years of investment, time and resources, only to find out that you missed the mark? What if you could test your theories about software features and functionality and ensure that you had it right BEFORE you launched your product?
Whether your business is small, medium, or large, whether your business focus is in retail, manufacturing, media, finance, healthcare, fitness or technology, there is a good chance that your enterprise can benefit from mobile application development. Today’s business user and consumer is used to having access to tasks, activities, special interests, news and entertainment and work processes and, in an age where mobile devices rule the world, that access must be mobile. If you want to understand why mobile app development is important, consider this: Mobile applications allow your business to expand its market and competitive advantage and ensure customer satisfaction.
In most cases, a business cannot isolate and dictate the devices its consumers and/or business users prefer. Even if your business provides its team members with an Android or iPhone device, that user is likely to have more than one device and those devices may not use the same operating system.
Given this reality, the wise organization will choose to develop its mobile application using cross-platform mobile development. Cross-platform app development ensures that business team members and consumers can access your mobile app, no matter the device they are using.
‘There are many options for hybrid mobile app development, and it is crucial that your selected IT partner understand all of those options and that they can accurately and effectively advise you on the best option for your project.’
In this article, we will discuss cross-platform mobile application development, otherwise known as Hybrid Mobile App Development. We will define the technology, the pros and cons of this approach, and how to decide whether to use hybrid mobile apps, and we will provide a list of considerations to include when selecting a hybrid mobile app development partner.
Now that we have piqued your interest, we should answer the question, ‘what is hybrid app development.’ In order to give you a complete picture of this approach, we must also tell you about the alternative.
While Hybrid Mobile Apps provide access via Android and iOS (Apple) operating systems, native mobile applications are designed to comply with and operate within only one of the two operating systems, either Android or iOS.
Hybrid Mobile Apps – What are hybrid mobile apps. Hybrid mobile apps blend the native and web application approach with the foundational code written with web technologies like HTML, JavaScript and CSS. Tech Target defines a Hybrid Mobile App as ‘a software app that combines elements of both native and web applications. Hybrid apps are essentially web apps that have a native app shell.’
This approach allows users to access the application via iOS and Android devices. Hybrid mobile app developers can write the code once and deploy it across iOS and Android platforms, so implementation and upgrade is easy and fast.
Native Mobile Apps – When we consider native vs hybrid apps, the biggest difference is that the native app is designed and developed using code that supports the iOS OR the Android environment (not both). Developers use Java or Swift, etc. to create the solution. When a business considers hybrid vs. native applications, it must decide whether to release and support one native app for Android or iOS or to design and develop two separate solutions (one for Android and one for iOS) and maintain and upgrade two versions of the solutions as the application and user needs evolve.
If your business is trying to decide whether mobile application development, and specifically, hybrid mobile application development, is right for your enterprise, you may wonder what you can do with this technology.
Here are a few examples of existing business applications to help you understand the value and use of hybrid app development:
Social Media – Businesses like Instagram, X (formerly Twitter), and WhatsApp use hybrid apps in a very different way. Whereas Instagram and X look to engage users and support ranking, popularity and community, WhatsApp leverages hybrid development to create an app that is used for communication, messaging, and international access to friends, family and co-workers.
Reservation Systems – Uber and other well-known businesses use hybrid apps to allow customers to book and pay for services, with user-friendly features that allow for ranking, check the status of delivery or arrival, etc.
Communication and Integration – Companies like Gmail provide apps to communicate with friends and co-workers and integrate that functionality with document storage and editing and other applications and features, including video conferencing.
Image and Data Design and Synchronization – Evernote is a great example of how hybrid mobile apps are used to provide a secured interface for scanning, image capture via built-in camera, data synchronization and design features. This app also allows for collaboration and discussion and permits users to make notes.
Banking and Crypto Accounts – Hybrid mobile apps are used to manage accounts and monitor the status of financial investments and/or cryptocurrency investments.
App Stores – The Amazon and Apple App Stores were developed as hybrid mobile applications. Here you can search for and find games, media apps, entertainment apps…in short any kind of app you might need, and download those apps, and you can return to the site to upgrade the app or to find reviews and information about apps.
Streaming – There are mobile apps designed and developed to enable streaming of programs and content from your favorite streaming networks. These apps include the ability to access and login to your streaming account for a particular service, so you can keep all your content and services in one interface for your viewing pleasure. Shopping and eCommerce – Hybrid mobile apps allow for product searches, and some even allow you to virtually ‘try on’ clothing, using an image of yourself and a product image. You can pay with your favorite payment app, using integrated payment platforms and you can track shipping with integrated shipment apps that provide updates on the status of your shipment. Forbes reports that an impressive 37 of the Top 50 retail apps in America are hybrid.
Before you consider hybrid mobile application development for your business, it is important to understand why mobile app development is important and the advantages of hybrid mobile app development as well as the tradeoffs. There are many reasons that a hybrid mobile application can be valuable to your business, so let’s start with the benefits of hybrid mobile application development.
Advantages of Hybrid Mobile App Development
Single Code-Base – The ability to design, develop, maintain and upgrade only one code, means that you don’t need as many resources, or as much time to complete a project or to fix bugs or upgrade a solution.
Reduced Cost – By using common code, the business can reduce costs for resources and time to market.
Availability of Resources – Taking the hybrid mobile application approach means that developers do not need to learn and stay abreast of training on separate languages.
Easy Maintenance – Hybrid mobile apps are easy to maintain, and the business can avoid maintenance of two native apps, because the hybrid app uses only one code base. Hybrid apps do not require versioning, so general maintenance and support is easier and less complex.
Scalability and Loading – Hybrid mobile apps work well, even with a slow internet connection. These apps load content faster than their native app and web app counterparts, and can accommodate graphics, images, video, etc. These hybrid apps function on iOS and Android devices and support third-party plug-ins.
Integration – Hybrid mobile apps allow easy synchronization and integration with other applications, so users can leverage GPS, messaging and camera apps without issue.
App Stores – Both the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store allow hybrid mobile apps, meaning you can reach users with both Android and iOS devices, thereby expanding your market and reach.
Disadvantages of Hybrid Mobile App Development
Here are a few examples of the issues you may encounter when developing a hybrid mobile application:
Restrictions of Operating System – Because the Hybrid Mobile App development environment utilizes one code base, some of the native features for iOS and Android are not available. For applications with complex features, this means that the development team cannot capitalize on native features to ensure quality and stable performance. Developers may not be able to access and leverage the specific features of one or both of the operating systems (OS).
User Experience (Ux) – Designing and developing for hybrid mobile apps can mean that a developer must balance how the user experiences a feature or function in iOS vs. Android. When using the same code base, one operating system (OS) may provide a better user experience than the other.
Limitations of Plug-Ins – Third-party plug-ins for hybrid mobile apps may fall short of what developers want to accomplish when compared to native operating system plug-ins.
Performance – For complex mobile applications, the performance of a hybrid mobile app may be a bit slower. Simple, small applications are rarely an issue. Hybrid mobile apps do not handle 3D graphics well, though developers can use third-party plug-ins to resolve this issue.
Bug Fixes – Unless your development team has experience and skill in both iOS and Android operating systems (OS), it can be difficult to find the exact cause of an issue in the single code base for a hybrid mobile application. There are many reasons to choose the right IT partner to help you with your hybrid mobile application. Not the least of these is the skill and experience required to identify and fix bugs in a hybrid mobile app.
Now that we have discussed the advantages and disadvantages of hybrid app development, let’s look at the factors that will affect your decision to choose hybrid mobile app development.
As with any software or technology project, the decision to take a particular approach should be based on your requirements, your target audience and your market. Here are a few of the factors you should consider, before choosing the hybrid mobile app development approach for your project.
Requirements – Does your project lend itself to hybrid mobile app development vs. native mobile app development? What are the features and functionality you require? You will need to develop a detailed feature set and have a good understanding of how the native vs. hybrid approach will impact your ability to meet these requirements. Work with your IT partner to determine whether the hybrid mobile app approach is best for your business needs.
Target Audience/Users – Who will be using your solution? Do you have a good understanding of what they expect and want and an understanding of their skills and buying or user adoption behavior? If you don’t know who will be using your hybrid mobile app, how they will be using it, or whether they are likely to adopt your solution based on gaps in the market, competitive strategies and your own branding and market position, you should gather this research. It will inform which approach you take and how your development team chooses to address your users to provide the right user experience (Ux) and user interface (UI).
Upgrades, Development, Time to Market – What is your expected schedule? Is it reasonable to expect that you can complete your project using the hybrid mobile app approach? What is your time-to-market estimate? Do you have a plan for upgrades and a roadmap to get your product to its completion? Does this roadmap involve more than one major release?
Devices, Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) and Operating System Considerations – Does your market strategy involve compliance with Android AND iOS? If so, are you better served to take the hybrid mobile application approach or are you considering the development of your solution in both native operating systems (OS)? If so, have you planned for the extra resources, training, expenses and time to complete two separate versions of your application? If yours is a business application, do you have a bring-your-own device (BYOD) environment where you will be required to comply with both Android and iOS? What market advantages can you enjoy by creating a hybrid mobile app that is suitable for both operating systems?
Budget, Schedule, Resources – Once you have an idea of your requirements, your market and your needs, you must carefully plan your budget, and lay out a reasonable schedule for completion and launch. Will you use in-house resources to develop and launch your solution? If so, are you certain that you have the right training and skills to choose the best hybrid app development platform, hybrid mobile app development frameworks, and tools and languages, and to execute the project on-time, and perform maintenance, bug fixes and upgrades? If you are choosing an expert IT partner to help you with your project, be sure you have a comprehensive understanding of your requirements and your customer needs before you select your partner. This will help you and your chosen IT consultant to develop and execute a strategy.
When you are ready to consider an IT partner for your hybrid mobile app development solution, be sure that you select a partner with a rich set of skills and experience in cross-platform app development frameworks. Cross-platform mobile app development requires a specific and particular skillset, and that skillset can dictate project success or failure.
Skills and Experience in Cross-Platform Mobile Development
Hybrid mobile application development requires numerous skills and team focus including:
When considering an IT partner, be sure that the partner has experience in all popular hybrid mobile application development frameworks and tools. Cross-platform app development requires that the partner carefully examine your requirements and choose the right frameworks and languages to suit your needs.
‘A business cannot isolate and dictate the devices its consumers and/or business users prefer. Even if your business provides its team members with an Android or iPhone device, that user is likely to have more than one device and those devices may not use the same operating system.’
A recent Statista survey lists the top hybrid mobile app development frameworks as: Flutter, React Native, Cordova, Ionic, Xamarin, Unity and NativeScript, while Sitepoint lists Ionic among the top selections.
There are many options for hybrid mobile app development, and it is crucial that your selected IT partner understand all of those options and that they can accurately and effectively advise you on the best option for your project. Be sure that the vendor you consider has knowledge and experience with all the top frameworks, including:
Flutter – The Flutter environment is a rich hybrid mobile application environment. To understand the Flutter advantages, read our free article, ‘Understand Flutter Programming: What Is It and Should Your Business Use it for Mobile App.’
Ionic – Ionic allows developers to choose from a variety of technologies like CSS3, JavaScript and HTML6. To understand Ionic cross-platform technology, read our free article,’3 Things You Should Know About Ionic Framework.’
Apache Cordova – Cordova provides robust support for developers and ensures that the business app will meet organizational and customer requirements. To understand how Cordova can support the cross-platform approach, read our free article, ‘3 Benefits of Cross-Platform Mobile Application Development.’
React Native – React Native is a Facebook product that supports high-performance hybrid mobile applications and third-party plugins. To understand React Native and hybrid mobile app development options, read our free article, ‘4 Great Hybrid Mobile Application Development Tools to Help Your Project Succeed.’
It is important to note that there are other frameworks and skills that are crucial to the hybrid mobile application market and domain. If you want to succeed with your hybrid mobile application project, be sure you consider the skills and experience your prospective IT consultant brings to this project and whether these services and skills will be dedicated to your project throughout its lifecycle.
Find out if Hybrid Mobile Application Development is right for your mobile app and/or smart watch project, and Build Your Software Team with dedicated resources. Discover the benefits and components of mobile application development technology, and the hybrid mobile app development environment, with these complementary articles: ‘Mobile App Development is Important to Business, So Are Mobile App Programmers,’ and ‘What are the Pros and Cons of Flutter Programming?,’ ‘Hybrid Mobile Application Development: The What, Why and How,’ and ‘What is MEAN Stack, What MEAN Stack is NOT, Why Choose MEAN Stack Development and How to Hire MEAN Stack Developers.’
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Studies reveal that Digital Transformation (Dx) in business supports Performance Management, Productivity and Improved Customer Satisfaction. But these same studies also reveal that there is resistance to the implementation of a Dx strategy. The results of business surveys revealed that resistance came from several sectors: 37% CEOs and/or Board of Directors, 32% C-Suite Senior Executives, 26% Department Heads, 18% Middle Managers, 10% Line Employees and 32% said ‘no one.’
‘The Dx strategy is not limited to large organizations. Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and start-ups are also engaging in this strategy to improve results and to create an agile, flexible organization that can respond to changing customer behavior, competitive markets, and the need for team member technology skills and use.’
Given the reported benefits and advantages of Digital Transformation (Dx), it is important that your business consider the concept, and develop a plan to overcome resistance. It is not unusual for businesses to face resistance to culture change, updating or altering popular business processes and upsetting the status quo, or… the way we have always done it.’
When addressing concerns at the management level (which is where most resistance to Dx lies (see survey results above), it is important to use metrics. If you have a chance at changing minds, measurable results and the experiences of other businesses can be an important factor in convincing reluctant managers and executives to spend the time and money to make a change across the organization.
The following results illustrate the benefits of Digital Transformation (Dx) as reported by businesses that implemented the Dx strategy:
It is important to note that, as with any other meaningful enterprise change or upgrade, the organization will not change in a day! Technology changes, including artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing, the integration of data repositories to democratize analytics for business users, the integration of the Internet of Things (IoT0, low-code, no-code development and other technology upgrades take time. The organization must address culture, business processes, approval loops, and access to critical hardware, software, networks and mobile devices in order to capitalize on the prospective benefits of Digital Transformation (Dx). This is an investment in the future!
The Dx strategy is not limited to large organizations. Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and start-ups are also engaging in this strategy to improve results and to create an agile, flexible organization that can respond to changing customer behavior, competitive markets, and the need for team member technology skills and use.
‘Studies reveal that Digital Transformation (Dx) in business supports Performance Management, Productivity and Improved Customer Satisfaction.’
To successfully integrate Digital Transformation (Dx) into your enterprise strategy, your business will need a trusted IT partner to work with your in-house IT team, managers, end-users and others to understand requirements and develop a roadmap to roll-out the strategy, meet expectations and stay within budgetary and time constraints. Engage a skilled, experience IT partner today Digital Transformation (Dx) services, Augmented Analytics For Digital Transformation (Dx), and support for your development and technology needs.
Original Post : How Do I Convince Management to Adopt Digital Transformation?
If your business is considering MEAN Stack as a development environment, or If you have already decided on MEAN Stack, and wish to ensure that you are using the best resources for your project, there are numerous issues and considerations to include in your IT partner review.
‘When reviewing the references, capabilities and services of MEAN stack developers and IT partners, the enterprise must ensure that the prospective partner and its team is capable of overseeing the full development lifecycle.’
While some businesses may wish to consider tackling a MEAN Stack project using in-house resources, there are numerous issues with this approach.
While it may seem less expensive to take on a MEAN Stack project in-house, engaging an expert team will ensure that the project is done without a lot of rework, and that all resources and capabilities are in place to achieve success. In the end, the cost and time required to complete a project using professional MEAN Stack developers is much more likely to meet enterprise requirements and produce outcomes that satisfy end users, customers, suppliers, partners and stakeholders.
Here, we have included some of the factors you should consider to illustrate how to hire MEAN Stack Developers.
First, let’s look at the general list of skills and experience your IT partner should possess.
Other related, applicable skills include:
There are some specific skills your IT partner and MEAN Stack development team should have, as well. It is important to consider this specific skill set to be sure that the IT partner team can address all of your requirements and accurately and effectively work with the MEAN Stack development environment to accomplish your goals.
Here is a brief list of MEAN Stack developer skills and MEAN Stack partner services and experience:
MEAN Stack Development Guide
In summary, when reviewing the references, capabilities and services of MEAN stack developers and IT partners, the enterprise must ensure that the prospective partner and its team is capable of overseeing the full development lifecycle.
In addition to the list above, it is important to note that the IT Partner should also have a robust partnership program, and detailed Service Level Agreements (SLA) to define the project. This is true of any technology project, but we mention it here to identify the issues related to hiring individual or independent MEAN Stack developers who may not have resources, programs or methodologies behind them and may therefore be incapable of providing comprehensive support for your project.
If you wish to obtain a detailed list of experience, skills, support and resources to achieve a seamless outcome, explore: ‘Offshore Outsourcing Company White Paper On How to Select an Offshore Development Partner,’ ‘The Cost vs. Value Equation for Offshore Software and Technology Projects,’ and ‘Top 3 Considerations for In-House Software Product Development vs. Expert Assistance Decision.’
‘There are some specific skills your IT partner and MEAN Stack development team should have, as well. It is important to consider this specific skill set to be sure that the IT partner team can address all of your requirements.’
For a comprehensive explanation of MEAN Stack, its uses and advantages, read our article: ‘What is MEAN Stack, What MEAN Stack is NOT, Why Choose MEAN Stack Development and How to Hire MEAN Stack Developers.’
Explore these complementary articles: ‘MVP Software Development: Everything You Need to Know (The What, Why and How), ’ ‘What are the Pros and Cons of Flutter Programming?, ’ ‘Mobile App Development is Important to Business, So Are Mobile App Programmers, ’ ‘What is Laravel Programming; What Are Its Benefits and Challenges,?’ and ‘Hybrid Mobile Application Development: The What, Why and How.’ ‘Understanding Mean Stack,’ ‘MEAN Stack Development Provides Many Benefits to the Organization and Development Team,’ ‘Using MEAN Stack Development to Achieve Results in the Business Enterprise,’ and ‘What is MEAN Stack, What MEAN Stack is NOT, Why Choose MEAN Stack Development and How to Hire MEAN Stack Developers.’
Contact Us to find out how our skills, experience and services can benefit your enterprise, and how our technology resources can support your needs. Discover the many Enterprise Software Services available and get started today on your business or consumer software, web application or mobile app project.
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