Cross-platform development

As your business becomes more mobile, you’ll need applications that can manage your needs in and out of the office. There are multiple platforms options for your application, each with its own advantages and downsides. Our experts review your application development requirements and can then recommend the platform (or platforms) most suited to your needs.

Desktop

Despite the growth of web applications, desktop software is far too useful to disregard. Not only do desktop applications save on hosting costs, but they can work offline when internet service is unavailable.

Another key advantage is that desktop applications have more access to your system than web applications. This is especially important if you need to access data or processes that are stored on-premise.

And, because you control the network and devices your application is on, you have full control over security. That doesn’t mean your systems will be more secure than those that live in the cloud, but it may be better depending on your processes and requirements.

However, desktop applications typically cost more than web application development. They must also be manually installed on your computers or network. For this reason, it also takes a lot of time to update the application on all your system’s computers.

Mobile

Need to develop an application for employees in the field performing complicated processes or gathering data? Or maybe you want customers or stakeholders to have access to your services from the devices that they are most comfortable using. In such cases, you’ll want to look into mobile application development.

Mobile applications travel with your users wherever they are, with or without an internet connection. While mobile applications often connect to the internet, many of them work offline. It’s also possible to create mobile applications that collect information offline then upload it to the appropriate destination once the user has internet access.

Across web, desktop, mobile and tablet applications, U.S. users spend 50% of their digital media time using mobile applications. However, unique users are far more likely to access mobile web applications despite spending much less time on them.

It’s important to remember that, ultimately, users must approve permissions and manually install updates to your mobile application, unlike with applications accessed through the web.

Web

Applications hosted on the web are among the most versatile you can invest in. They are less expensive to develop, can be available on any device with an internet browser and can be updated automatically. Also, web applications are easier to find or market thanks to the ease of access that comes with anything that’s hosted on the internet.

However, web applications typically don’t have the same access to your device as desktop or mobile software has, although that is quickly changing. Still, If you want to access on-premise data or processes, a desktop application is still your best bet. And, while it’s often useful to access a web application anywhere via the internet, that application will be unavailable any time web access is disrupted.

Applications that work with your systems

You need more than just developers to deploy an application that works with your enterprise. We employ business analysts with technical expertise who analyze your IT infrastructure. With that knowledge, they help develop requirements for your application and integrate it with necessary systems.

Any new application runs the risk of creating another silo. Focusing on using the application to solve a single problem without looking at the big picture could cause greater expenses down the road. Thanks to our experience in application development, we build solutions designed to promote interoperability for current systems and opportunities that could present themselves as your operations evolve.

Application Lifecycle Management

We organize the processes, tools, and people involved in development services to follow the best practices of application lifecycle management. With our comprehensive management system, we are able to manage entire projects from governance and planning, through application development, and into maintenance then decommissioning the software.

With our application lifecycle management approach, we are able to provide a clear direction for the app before it is even built. We look forward to decisions that will need to be made about the software later in its lifespan and are able to map that lifespan before committing precious resources to the project.

Application Governance

This phase is where we make high-level, strategic decisions about the application. Through the governance phase, we make sure the application has a strong business case and is mapped to a strategic outcome. As enterprises typically manage multiple applications, we work with you to find a place for the new software in your application portfolio and to make sure it is able to operate within your enterprise’s IT framework.

Application Development

This is where your application starts to take shape. We start with identifying current problems in order to minimize roadblocks as developers work on the application. Then we plan out the application’s features and how the project will be managed. Design, building, and testing the application are the next steps in this phase. However, the Application Operations phase could merge with this one in cases where DevOps methodology is used. It’s one of the two main project management approaches we adhere to:

Agile

The Agile methodology was born from lean manufacturing principles. It focuses on small, multidisciplinary teams working together on small parts of a project. This methodology allows for problem-solving and requirement changes throughout development without the need for long testing periods once the entire application has been built. Mistakes are caught throughout this process and fixed before moving onto the next step. A popular subset of agile management is the SCRUM methodology, where development tasks are recorded as user stories and entered into the development pipeline.

DevOps

This methodology brings together IT professionals from development and operations teams to collaborate in a fully-integrated and continuous application development process. In traditional systems, deployment occurs once the entire application has been built. However, with DevOps, the application and its updates are deployed at checkpoints throughout its lifespan, allowing the team to catch problems throughout the development process. This way, the DevOps team catches issues before they add up and halt the development process.

Application Operations

Once we’ve developed an application, the next step is to deploy it into the production environment. This is where we make the application available for use by your employees or customers. In addition, we monitor the application’s performance and your changing business needs. With this information in mind, we plan, develop, and deploy updates that improve your application and keep it in line with your strategic needs.

Hosting Solutions

Where you host an application is a serious decision. The architecture, hardware, and services you use will determine the course of your application for years to come. At a high level, there are three general architectures for you to choose from:

On-Premises

These solutions are physically located on site at your enterprise’s office or at an external hosting location you control. The enterprise stores the application and all its associated data at this location. This means that you hold all responsibility for the application.

It’s a good option if you need to show full control of the application and its data. If you already have data and software based on-premises that you need your new application to interface with, it may help to host your application with the same architecture. The high cost of migrating data to the cloud can also be a prohibitive factor.

Cloud

Unlike on-premises architectures, cloud solutions are hosted by a third-party such as Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, IBM, or Oracle. Often, users can access the application from anywhere with an internet connection. These cloud providers manage your application’s data and provide for its security.  Though you will not have the same control over the data as you would if it were hosted on-premises, cloud providers invest more heavily in security than most enterprises are able to. Despite the strong security, you will have to implement a governance strategy that prevents unauthorized access.

Cloud provider’s considerable investments in infrastructure also allow them to provide storage that is cheaper than on-premises solutions. Because providers have an immense architecture on hand, their solutions allow you to build quick prototypes then scale your application according to demand. This speeds up your application development process and allows you to only pay for the resources you require.

Hybrid Cloud

Often considered the best of both worlds, hybrid cloud allows you to mix on-premises private cloud and public cloud services. You can host sensitive workloads and data on the private cloud in order to follow regulatory requirements. Then you can use the public cloud for public-facing or less sensitive workloads that require easy scalability. However, managing the two and providing the technology to allow the clouds to interact can be a costly endeavor compared to full cloud architectures.

Tools

Java

A language that writes programs that run on most operating systems, including Windows, Mac OS and Linux.

Swift

A general-purpose programming language developed by Apple for iOS, Mac OS, Watch OS, and other Apple systems.

Node.JS

A cross-platform environment that allows developers to execute JavaScript code that would otherwise be confined to a web browser.

Angular

A cross-platform language that allows developers to build applications that live on the internet, mobile devices, or desktops.

MongoDB

A document-oriented NoSQL database program that allows developers to work across platforms.

Microsoft .NET

A software framework developed by Microsoft that includes a large class library, provides language interoperability, and is executed in the Common Language Runtime environment.

Express.js

A web application framework for Node.js designed for building web applications and APIs.

Xamarin

A set of tools that uses a C#-shared codebase to write native Android, iOS, and Windows apps that can share code across major platforms including Windows and Mac OS.

Appcelerator

Provides cross-platform mobile application development using JavaScrip and performance monitoring tools to enhance quality assurance.

Onshore and offshore application development centers

We maintain delivery centers onshore and offshore in order to provide the mix of control, expertise, and cost savings you need. Our onshore development projects are better for projects with larger budgets. This option makes communication easier and gives you local expertise that offshore development doesn’t offer.

However, offshore development provides more opportunities for projects with lower budgets. We are able to manage offshore development projects that maintain the same quality as onshore applications. This is thanks to our experience developing our offshore development centers for over a decade.

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