custom software development Archives - RSI Concepts - Top IT Solution Provider Company in Dubai, UAE

March 11, 2024

Custom Software for Improved Business Efficiency

Businesses often struggle choosing between custom software development and commercial off-the-shelf software solutions. The off-the-shelf software are slightly cost effective and are much easier and quicker to implement. However, the commercial off-the-shelf software solutions or COTS doesn’t offer any out-of-the-box functionality and are not designed for exclusive and individual business needs. The COTS are designed for masses and are usually aligned with the industrial standards and benchmarks. The custom software on contrary are fully aligned with internal workflows and business processes. The custom software development offers automation of sophisticated and repetitive tasks, and offer intuitive interfaces which help boosting business efficiency.

In the highly dynamic and competitive business markets such as in Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi and other regions of UAE where the competition is rapidly increasing, the customer demands are always high and the new trends are reshaping the entire industries, custom software development is the only way forward. It will help businesses gaining groundbreaking edge over their competitors by accounting all minute details, incorporating features that empower existing processes and workflows and offering user-friendly tools and interfaces to employees to boost their productivity. In this blog we will discuss how custom software can greatly improve business efficiency and growth.

Custom Software for Improved Business Efficiency

What is Custom Software Development?

Before we discuss how custom software can extraordinarily enhance business efficiency, first let us understand what is custom software development? Traditionally the commercial off-the-shelf software solutions are designed for masses, with a one-size-fits-all approach in mind. However, the custom software are built from ground up to perfectly align with unique business needs, objectives and internal workflows and processes. This gives custom software a great advantage over the commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) software solutions. While implementing a commercial off-the-shelf software solution businesses might have to adjust according to the software structure and in some cases businesses might have to modify their important workflows and internal processes.

However, the custom software development is a process where the entire existing business structure, workflows, processes and culture is analyzed critically and then the custom software is constructed to align with everything including existing IT infrastructure. This make adoption easier and it enhance and empower existing processes, workflows and structure, ensuring minimum to no disruption at all. The custom software development offers excellent flexibility, scalability and customization, enhancing operational efficiency and performance, which could be a great competitive advantage. That is why businesses in Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi and all around the UAE are turning towards custom software development.

What are the Advantages of Custom Software Development?

Custom software offer great many advantages, and that is the reason the global market volume of custom software development industry is steadily growing every year. The market trends are shifting towards more customer-centric business models, businesses are also realizing the importance of customer satisfaction. The challenges are rising day by day, hence the business efficiency is a key to long-term and sustainable success. In order to achieve higher operational efficiency businesses rely on various software applications. Every business have unique goals, unique challenges, and completely unique sets of strengths and weaknesses.

A customized software can offer 100% solution to all challenges, addressing all pain points, and has capabilities to turn weaknesses into strengths while driving operational excellence. Here are some key advantages of custom software development which are crucial to optimizing and greatly enhancing the business efficiency, productivity and performance.

Tailored Solutions Enhance Efficiency and Productivity

One of the most impactful advantage of custom software development is that it deliver exclusive and tailored solutions to address the specific pain points and unique challenges individual business and its employees are facing. The commercial off-the-shelf software solutions might offer a wider range of features however, they fell short on addressing to the challenges that are unique for an individual business. Every business has its own unique organizational culture, customs, and long-term goals. Every business take a unique path to achieve their goals, this is what differentiate it from others and this is something that is very positive and healthy for competitiveness.

The unique business needs cannot met with a standard software solution that is not designed to address those needs, in fact a custom software is built from the scratch keeping those needs in mind. Hence a custom software solution is very capable of delivering exclusive solutions, optimizing and empowering internal workflows. Businesses can seamlessly implement a customized software solution and integrate it within their existing business process without causing any disruption and without requiring any modification to their existing practices. This is crucial as this eliminates the need of additional training, it reduces repetitive work and it empowers individual employees and teams. Consequently the business efficiency get raised drastically.

Tailored Solutions Enhance Efficiency and Productivity

Higher Scalability and Flexibility

In today’s fast-paced and dynamic business landscape, the scalability and flexibility are the most essential features of any software solution. The commercial off-the-shelf software solutions fell short on adopting to emerging market trends, since these types of applications are developed for masses, they have slower response towards market changes. It is this aspect of the commercial off-the-shelf software which result in inefficiencies and limitations down the road. However, the custom software development keep emerging trends and needs in mind, hence the custom software offer quicker and reliable solutions to emerging needs, growth and customization without causing any disruption.

Furthermore the custom software development offers more control and authority over your software application which enable businesses to quickly adopt to emerging needs and enable them to respond quickly to changing market trends and customer behavior. The custom software can be customized deal with new challenges, whether it is adding new features and tools, third-party system integration with a new solution, any change in compliance or regulatory requirements, or scaling up for rapid business growth, businesses can deal with such challenges with very less friction and disruption.

Personalized Experience and User-Friendly UIs

The user adoption and user experience are the most crucial factors to the success of any software application. Businesses often implement expensive and top-of-the-line commercial off-the-shelf software solutions but these applications fail to deliver the desired value. Despite having remarkable feature a software could still fail if it doesn’t have user-friendly experience and intuitive UIs. The UIs or user interfaces plays crucial role in user adoption. Using the familiar feature names, color schemes, information structure and navigation plays crucial role in user adoption. The custom software development provides ability to design user-centric applications, which are not only functionally superior but also easy-to-use and intuitive.

The custom software development allow businesses to involve end-users in the software designing and development process, enabling them to share their feedback at every stage and which help incorporating features and experience as per users’ needs. This minimizes the resistance to change and raises the adoption rate, which itself is very effective in raising business efficiency. The custom software development offers personalized experience and workflows along with user-friendly design and UIs which empower your employees and enable them to work more effectively and efficiently.

Personalized Experience and User-Friendly UIs

Enhanced Security and Better Compliance

With the rise of internet access the negative actors and cyber security threats are increasing concern of not only businesses but also customers. Businesses of all sizes and types are taking extra measures to ensure the security of their customers and valuable business data. A small security breach could drastically harm business reputation. The off-the-shelf software may poses a bigger security threat as most of the time these applications are hosted on cloud and another big disadvantage is that the application structure is well-known, which also makes it easier to exploited. The commercial off-the-shelf software are used by thousands of businesses which means they are more exposed.

The custom software on the contrary are not available for masses, their information structure and security layers are hidden and only known to the management team which makes them more secure and well-protected. The custom software development enable businesses to implement advanced encryption technologies, robust security and network protocols tailored to their needs and regulatory requirements. On top of that the application structure is hidden, which makes it very difficult for malicious actors to exploit or breach. Furthermore the data is also stored in your custody which also help enhancing the security of customized software application.

Easy Integration with Existing Systems

The modern day businesses rely upon several software application which forms the digital ecosystem and IT infrastructure of the entire organization. Finding a new software for the needs in a big challenge, however, integrating it with the existing software, databases, central information system and IT infrastructure could be even bigger challenge. This is something the commercial off-the-shelf software solutions are not very good at. The ready-made software have strict integration requirements and doesn’t always offer the required flexibility and compatibility required for a seamless integration. Eventually businesses end-up wasting time, paying additional costs for middleware and inefficient manual work.

However, building a software from ground up provides a chance to consider all possible integration scenarios along with considering all existing software, databases, IT infrastructure and integration requirements. This makes integration completely seamless and frictionless. This also enable customized software to consolidate information and data from different sources into a unified platform which greatly enhances efficiency and productivity. Integration help minimizing latencies, redundancies, and repetitive work driving higher business efficiency across entire operations.

Conclusion

Custom software development is a way forward in a very dynamic and fast-paced business landscape where the market trends are changing swiftly, the customer demands are increasing, the new technologies are emerging every day and the competition is rising exponentially. The commercial off-the-shelf software solutions (COST) might seem a cost-effective option at first, but in long term they are more costly, costing businesses in terms of efforts, money and inefficient business processes. The custom software development on the contrary seem expensive at first, but in long-term it is much more cost-efficient and reliable. The custom software development help businesses built tailored solutions that precisely address each and every pain point and are fully aligned with unique and exclusive business needs.

Furthermore the customized software offered tailored solutions through highly personalized user-friendly experience. With ability to integrate seamlessly with existing IT infrastructure, third-party software tools, databases and central information system, the customized software solutions are ideal for the present day’s needs and have potential to greatly enhance and improve business efficiency. In this blog we have discussed how custom software can improve business efficiency, if you want to learn more about the subject or if you want our help to develop a highly cost-effective tailored software solution for your business, please feel free to get in touch with us through our Contact Us page or leave a comment in the comment box below and we will get in touch with you soon.

February 26, 2024

Emerging Trends in Custom Software Development

Businesses are facing a lot many challenges, especially in rapidly growing markets like Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi and all across UAE where the competition is rising and the customer demands are also skyrocketing. In such conditions businesses need innovative solutions, efficient business processes, and out-of-the box approach to stay ahead of competition. The integration of software applications in business processes and workflows is not new, businesses all over the world are utilizing such tools and solutions and in fact most of the businesses are heavily relying on such tools for efficient operations and seamless process.

However, there is one most important thing to understand, whether you are a business owner, manager or technology enthusiast, when it comes to software there are always tons of options available in the market. Some software are industry specific, some are tailored and some are general purpose. On this bases, we can classify the software in two categories, one is commercial off-the-shelf software solution and the other is custom software development.

Emerging Trends in Custom Software Development

What Made Custom Software Development Superior than the COTS?

There are two major types of software implementation, one is acquiring a ready-made commercial off-the-shelf software solution and the other is custom software development for tailored solutions. Furthermore these software can be classified in many sub-categories on the bases of platform, technology stack, and various other factors. The commercial off-the-shelf software solutions or COTS are the ready-made software applications that are designed for a particular industry or a particular business function.

For example, the HRMS or Human Resource Management System is designed for HR department and team, however, the Patient Management System is designed for Hospitals, Clinics and healthcare facilities. However, the custom software development on the other hand is a different approach to software implementation, it offers tailored solutions, that can perfectly align with business need and this is what made them superior.

The COTS are designed for masses, which make them general purpose. Every business and organization at its core is unique and it is this uniqueness that distinguishes businesses from others. Over the time the internal processes evolve too, the organizational culture, high-level goals and strategic objectives are what set the path for an organization. Therefore generic software solutions that are developed on the bases on industry standards are not sufficient enough to align with the unique business needs.

Hence businesses need a tailored solution that fully aligns with their unique work-flows, processes and organizational culture to enable them achieve their unique business goals and objectives. This is where the COTS fell short and paved way for the custom software development. The custom software development begins with intensive requirement gathering, which ensures the final outcome 100% meets business’s expectations. These are some key factors that make custom software development superior.

What Made Custom Software Development Superior than the COTS?

What are the Future Trends in Custom Software Development?

The custom software development industry is rapidly growing in the country and not only in UAE but all around the GCC. However, most of the businesses failed to fully leverage the true potential of custom software development because of lack of knowledge and understanding of the future trends. The technology moves or a rapid pace, it quickly evolves with new technologies emerging every year. Therefore it is extremely important to have an eye on emerging trends in custom software development if you are planning a project soon.

In this blog we will discuss the top custom software development future trends which are rapidly gaining popularity and as per our understanding these technologies will going to lead the custom software development for many coming years in future.

Here are the top future trends in custom software development industry:

Custom Software Development Trends: 1. Progressive Web Apps (PWA)

Progressive web apps are basically a kind of hybrid application which leverages the full potential of modern web technologies and is known for their ability to deliver an app-like experience. Unlike traditional web-apps the progressive web apps or PWA are much more efficient, engaging, and reliable and can successfully deliver sophisticated and innovative functionalities. The progressive web apps can be installed at the home-screen like a native app, but with its advance technology it can deliver a seamless and unified experience across all compatible devices and platforms.

The progressive web apps (PWA) are also great at offering sophisticated functionalities such as exploiting the hardware or native features and you can also have push notifications, alerts and offline functionality, which is not available in traditional web-apps. Another great advantage of the progressive web apps is their cost-effectiveness, these apps require much less resources to develop, and are very easy to maintain and scale. These are some of the main advantages which are making progressive web-apps exceptionally popular.

Custom Software Development Trends: 1. Progressive Web Apps (PWA)

Custom Software Development Trends: 2. Internet of Behavior (IoB)

The internet of behavior or IoB has gained huge traction over past few years. With the advancement of analytical and data collection tools and the availability of modern technology frameworks, the internet of behavior has emerged as one of the most popular and effective technology. The internet of behavior or IoB is referred to very specific tools which enable collection of large-scale data with advanced analytical tools to extract insight which help businesses understand, predict and influence the human behavior.

We have witnessed in past few years the internet of things or IoT has emerged as a very solid and futuristic technology, the internet of behavior (IoB) is also built on the foundation of IoT, where the data has been collected from various software and hardware sources such as applications, UIs, cameras, sensors, and integrated data-gathering technologies. Based on various data sources, the IoB provides tools to assess and analyze human behavior which help gathering behavioral insights which are essential for strategic decisions and catering personalized customer experience.

Custom Software Development Trends: 2. Internet of Behavior (IoB)

Custom Software Development Trends: 3. Web 3.0

The Web 3.0 is the next generation of the internet, or you can say it is the next version of the internet. The Web 1.0 was all about the static websites, the Web 2.0 was and is dominated by the social aspects, and the Web 3.0 is all about decentralization, integration and interoperability, and superior user control. The Web 3.0 is aimed to empower user with more user-friendly data ownership protocols and policies and above all, it boost security and enhance connectivity. It enable different technologies and platform to seamlessly integrate and communicate with each other while offering superior control and security which is something that is not present in the current Web 2.0.

You must have heard of Crypto Currencies or Bitcoin, these are all based on blockchain technology which is a part of Web 3.0 and it is designed to streamline the transactions and to reduce the friction from various business processes. One of the biggest advantages of Web 3.0 is its ability to give ownership and control to the users. It offers excellent and very flexible scalability which means the businesses doesn’t have to worry about the systems going down or chocked networks. The Web 3.0 would revolutionized the internet for both consumers and businesses.

Custom Software Development Trends: 3. Web 3.0

Custom Software Development Trends: 4. DevSecOps

The DevSecOps is basically a new trend which focuses only on the importance of security of a software application, rather than putting security as an afterthought, the DevSecOps dictates that the security should be integrated at each and every step of the development process. Rather than a new technology type or platform the DevSecOps is more like a movement. With the internet piracy rising and the security breaches and cyber-attacks on personal and businesses are soaring, the need of security is paramount. Furthermore the security breach doesn’t only compromise a certain business function or its data, but it can completely ruin the business’s reputation.

Therefore businesses are investing more and more in security and protective measures to ensure data security and privacy. This is what led to DevSecOps trend, and it has become increasingly popular in custom software development. The DevSecOps emphasize on incorporating the security and data protection in all stages of custom software development especially in earlier stages such as planning and designing. By incorporating security features in the design and enabling testing at every step, the software development process become more effective and agile.

Custom Software Development Trends: 4. DevSecOps

Custom Software Development Trends: 5. Big Data

In the today’s digital world, where the internet and digital solutions are dominating our both personal and work lives. For any business to become more customer-centric the data has emerged as one of the most crucial asset, it provides deeper insights to customer behavior, market trends and much more which help businesses making informed and effective decisions. The Bid Data is a term referred to both structured and unstructured data but in very large quantity.

The Big Data is basically a compilation of data coming from various touch points and sources such as customer portals, online or websites, social media, customer service center, interactive solutions, and various different types of hardware sensors and much more. This data is coming in different forms and types which makes it difficult to analyze it and to extract actionable insight from it. The Big Data is a collection of tools and methodologies which help businesses analyze a large quantity of data coming from a large number of touch points and help them extract conclusive insight and actionable reports which help businesses to effectively incorporate data into their decision making processes.

Custom Software Development Trends: 5. Big Data

Conclusion

In today’s modern and digital market landscape where the customer demands are skyrocketing, the competition is rising and the technology is rapidly evolving, businesses need highly effective and efficient software solutions to ensure highest operational efficiency and quality of work. The customer satisfaction is crucial which is tied to the operational excellence, and the operational efficiency depends on the software solutions, tools and IT infrastructure that you have in place. Every business is different from others, even if two businesses are operating in a similar industry, they would still be different in a lot many ways. It is this uniqueness that developed over the year by the natural evolution of the organization.

In this fast-paced market landscape the commercial off-the-shelf solutions with their limited capabilities and slow growth are not enough. Businesses need a more robust solution which not only fully aligns with the unique and exclusive business needs, but also have capability to scale and evolve as the business grows. The custom software development offers an opportunity to tailor-made software applications for businesses which not only strengthen their internal operations and business processes, but also address all unique and exclusive challenges a business might be facing.

In this blog we have discussed some emerging trends in custom software development industry. It is important for a business to be familiar with latest trends and technology updates in order to leverage the full potential of the custom software development. If you want to learn more about the subject or if you want our help with your next custom software development project, please feel free to contact us through our Contact Us page or leave a comment in the comment box below and we will get in touch with you soon.

February 12, 2024

Benefits of Investing in Custom Software Development for Your Business in Dubai

The modern day businesses depends heavily on various software applications and digital tools. In fact the operation of today’s business is nearly impossible without utilizing technology. The software applications range from a simple accounts tool to a complex HRMS and a full-fledged complete Business OS (operating system). Different businesses have different needs, different industry sectors have different norms and standards, hence different level of software are required. However, one thing is sure that all modern day business are using some sort of software tool. It could be even a humble email client, like outlook, that too is a software tool. Or it could be a highly sophisticated ERP system to manage thousands of employees and huge business operations. Businesses in Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi and all around the UAE tend to be early adopter of the modern technologies. Furthermore businesses and companies from all around the world have presence in Dubai and all around the UAE which raise the competitiveness and diversity of the business landscape in the country. It is the strategic location of the country and its ports along with its highly business-friendly government policies which is and which will keep attracting more businesses, therefore it is important to make your business as much competitive as possible.

The Importance of Technological Advancements in Business

The technology help businesses boost performance and productivity, it streamline internal processes, enhance customer experience, improve product/service quality and it offers better monitoring and tracking capabilities. That is why it is crucial to leverage technological advancements to remain ahead of your competition. When it comes to the software solutions, there are two distinct ways to do that, the commercial off-the-shelf software (COTS) solutions and custom software development. Both have their pros and cons, businesses are using various different types of software on different levels and with different complexity and sophistication. For example, if you need an email client, you don’t have to reinvent the wheel, you can use any off-the-shelf email client. But if you need an ERP, HR System, or a document processing system or an intranet application, CRM, or other such tool, then you should seriously consider your requirements, goals and objectives and then decide which software solution type will serve you best. Every business evolved differently, and it is this difference which attracts your customers. This also means that every business have different goals and objectives with exclusive needs and requirements. Which can only be fulfilled with custom software development, the COTS are standardized applications and doesn’t offer much room for customization.

Key Benefits of Custom Software Development for Businesses in Dubai

When business owners, managers or decision makers go with the custom software development they are usually doubtful about the impact of this project. Most of the time businesses are reluctant to go with custom software development because it requires much more time, efforts and in some cases initial cost is also higher comparing to available commercial off-the-shelf solutions available in the market. Here are some key benefits of custom software development for business in Dubai, which will assure them higher success and greater impact than the counterpart COTS.

Key Benefits of Custom Software Development: Customization

One thing that businesses can never achieve from commercial off-the-shelf software solutions is the ability to perfectly align the software with their unique needs and ability to addressing to the very unique challenges they are facing. However the custom software development not only personalize the software solution as per your business needs but it also helps you to address the unique challenges you are facing and tend to deliver exclusive advantages which can gain you great competitive edge. The custom software development project starts with intensive requirement gathering drive, which help the development team to understand all your needs and challenges. That is why the custom software development can deliver more effective software solutions. Furthermore when a software solution is built exclusively for your needs it will also allow you to choose the features, technologies and work flows as per your needs. This also help integrating custom software with your existing IT infrastructure in a nearly seamless manner.

Key Benefits of Custom Software Development: Cost-Effective

It is a common misconception that the custom software development is expensive, however, that is not true at all. It might seem that the initial cost of the commercial off-the-shelf software solutions is less and they can setup immediately, even within a day or two, however, the COTS have recurring cost, which diminishes with long-term cost-effectiveness and even it makes them much more expensive than the custom software solutions. The initial deployment cost of the custom software development is quit higher, it also require a lot of time and efforts to breathe life into an idea. However, the customized software solutions offers better and cost-effective scalability, customization and very less maintenance cost. There is no recurring cost and you can always get them managed and customized from your internal IT team or any vendor of your choice, thus you are also not limited and stuck to a specific vendor. All these factors results in an exceptionally higher ROI and great future readiness.

Key Benefits of Custom Software Development: Security and Reliability

The security and reliability are few of the most important and crucial factors to consider while deploying a software solution for your business. One of the biggest advantage of custom software development is its ability to let you chose the features and technologies. With the custom software development businesses can chose the top-notch technologies and platforms to ensure highest level of security and reliability. Especially when you want to meet the highest industry standards and regulatory compliances, the custom software development is the best choice. Businesses can not only customize the features but also the frameworks, platforms and hosting environments which assures highest level of data protection. Any security breach or leak of customers’ data can completely ruin your reputation. As the custom software development involves intensive requirement gathering and rigorous testing which makes your custom software apps more secure, reliable and less sensitive towards common technology challenges.

Key Benefits of Custom Software Development: Flexibility and Scalability

In the modern fast-paced business landscape of Dubai, businesses needs are not fixed and businesses have to accommodate for the impact of ever-changing customer needs and technology advancements to remain competitive. The commercial off-the-shelf software solutions can provide a good quick fix to your current needs, but doesn’t offer the flexibility, development and customization that you might be needing in the coming years. On top of that the commercial off-the-shelf software (COTS) are designed for masses hence lack the personalization and ability to customization to address your exclusive challenges. However, the custom software development on the other hand can offer great flexibility and scalability. Whether you need to address your unique challenges, or you have sophisticated business needs, you can mold the customized software they way you want. As time pass and your requirements changes or your needs grow you can further add more features and increase the capacity of customized software.

Key Benefits of Custom Software Development: Seamless System Integration

In today’s modern world, the businesses and organizations have become more sophisticated and require a lot many different IT solutions and software tools. In order to effectively execute a task or to ensure seamless business processes for higher productivity and performance it is absolutely essential that all the different software, systems and solutions work in full harmony by enabling seamless communication between them. This communication means exchange of data, information and instructions. This is what is called system integration, it also known as integration or third-party integration. The custom off-the-shelf software solutions only provide limited integration capabilities. However, custom software development will enable businesses to build the software to be more compatible with their existing systems, databases, and IT infrastructure which makes them more compatible and integration friendly. Furthermore businesses can also customize them to achieve their integration objectives.

Key Benefits of Custom Software Development: Higher Productivity

The custom software development help businesses to achieve higher efficiency and productivity. There are several factors that help improving performance and efficiency, such as:

Custom software development let businesses build the user-friendly software solutions
Intuitive user interfaces (UIs) can greatly enhance user experience (UX)
Ability to customize the UI and workflows help employees easily adopt the new system
Customized feature help employees get their tasks done with higher efficiency
Different user groups can have exclusive features which further enhance their efficiency
System integration allow minimizing repetitive work and enhance performance
Ability to integrate mobile applications can greatly increase accessibility and convenience
Customized features and functionalities help improving workflows and business processes
Ability to monitor and track performance offers higher visibility

Businesses can greatly improve employee performance by deploying customized software solutions. That is not all, the custom software development offers businesses full control over the working of all features and help them get the desired outcome which can greatly improve internal processes, workflows and help businesses gain higher productivity.

Key Benefits of Custom Software Development: Higher Productivity

Why Businesses in Dubai should Invest in Custom Software Development?

As I have mentioned above there are several benefits of custom software development which makes it superior from commercial off-the-shelf software solutions. The custom software development help businesses digitalize their internal processes and maximize their efficiency by leveraging the automation. Furthermore when a software is exclusively designed for your business it will fully align with your needs, internal processes and strategic objectives. This makes it more impactful and productive comparing to commercial off-the-shelf solutions. Here is why a business in Dubai should invest in custom software development:

The commercial off-the-shelf software only partially match your business needs, however, the custom software development enables you to design and develop an exclusive solution which fully aligns with your business needs, integrates with your existing IT infrastructure and it also offers long-term service and support.
The development process of a commercial off-the-shelf software solution is slow, it only offers upgrades when a large majority of the users need it. However the custom software grows with business needs, any need can be met immediately either by customization or by adding more features and so on.
The commercial off-the-shelf software solutions are provided by a vendor or service provider, which offers very less control over various important aspects of the software. However with the custom software development businesses not only have full control over their data, storage and software but businesses also have full ownership rights for their customized software.
The commercial off-the-shelf software solutions are designed for masses and the vendor doesn’t have much interest in your exclusive needs or challenges, in fact the vendor follow the industry standards and market trends. However, the for the customized software solutions you get in touch with the software developers, designers and IT specialists who are designing your software application, thus they have better understand of you needs, concerns and challenges.
Although the initial cost of the commercial off-the-shelf software solutions is relatively lower, however, there are several recurring expenses. The COTS offer very limited customization but it is very expensive, moreover the scalability too is very expensive. The custom software development of the other hand have slightly higher initial cost, but in long term have no recurring cost, in fact it offers full ownership rights to the businesses and offer more flexibility, customization and easy scalability.

As the market landscape in Dubai is very competitive and dynamic therefore businesses need higher productivity, lower operational cost and better tools to gain greater competitive advantage. And the custom software development can provide all of these.

Why Businesses in Dubai should Invest in Custom Software Development?

Conclusion

In this modern and fast-paced market landscape in Dubai, where the customer needs are growing endlessly, rapid and sudden change are very common across all industry verticals, businesses need a proactive software development approach to mold and align their tools with the changing and growing needs. The custom software development is the way to design and develop software which are exclusively build according to the business needs and latest industry trends. Furthermore the businesses need to integrate various software and applications in order to improve their operational capabilities and to boost the employee performance. All this can only be achieved with a more flexible and controllable software development method which is only offered by the custom software development. The commercial off-the-shelf software solutions might offer lesser initial cost and are extremely easy to setup, however, in longer run neither they remain relevant nor cost-effective.

The custom software solutions on the other hand has incredible ability to grow as business grows and offer great ROI in long run. In this blog we have covered key benefits of investing in custom software development for business in Dubai and all across the UAE. If you want to learn more about the subject or if you want our help with your next custom software development project, please feel free to contact us through our Contact Us page or leave a comment in the comment box below and we will get in touch with you soon.

January 30, 2024

Custom Software Development for Healthcare Industry

Healthcare industry and organizations providing medical services are constantly seeking ways to enhance their internal processes, healthcare delivery, patient experience and management capabilities. In today’s digital era, where technology is transforming every aspect of our lives, the healthcare sector is increasingly dependent on digital solutions and IT tools to achieve its goals and objectives. Given that the importance of patient satisfaction and well-being is paramount in every healthcare and medical facility, the global demand for healthcare software development is massive. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) stands at the forefront of modernization and digitalization in the Middle East, the healthcare industry is no exception. Healthcare and Medical service providers in Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi, and across the UAE are well-known for their world-class services and the highest quality standards. This reputation has been achieved through the integration of cutting-edge technologies and IT tools, with healthcare and medical software leading this revolutionary change. In this blog we will discuss how the custom software development is completely transforming the healthcare industry in the UAE, leading to a new era of efficiency, modernization, innovation and patient-centric business approach.

What is Custom Software Development?

Before we dive into our main topic, it is important to understand the custom software development. There are two types of software solutions. One is COTs or commercial off-the-shelf software and the other is bespoke or custom software solutions. The commercial off-the-shelf software are ready-made tools, which are designed as per the best industry practices. These software and apps are widely available and are designed for masses. Thus chances are your competitor or industry rival might also be using the same software application, offering no competitive advantage from technology stand point. However, the custom software development on the other hand is not just buzz-word but a complete game changer. The custom software development is a process of customizing a software application as per your needs. This means the custom healthcare software will be designed exclusively by keeping your unique requirements in mind hence it would be able to address to the challenges you are facing while also helping you grab the opportunities no one else could get. The custom software development ensures that your healthcare software solution is exclusive and meet all your needs, which could give you a great competitive advantage and it is also very helpful in integrating innovative features that are fully aligned with your goals.

Why Custom Software Development is Important for Healthcare Industry in UAE?

The UAE healthcare sector is a rapidly growing and evolving industry with its diverse and dynamic needs. The government emphasize on high-quality standards encouraging healthcare and medical establishments to adopt more patient-centric practices. The adaptation of the cutting-edge software solutions in the healthcare and medical sector is not just a trend but an absolute necessity. Organizations in healthcare sector want to improve their efficiency, clinical workflows, hospital information system, appointment booking system, pharmacy management, telehealth tools, patient flow management and several other crucial business functions. Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi and all other regions of UAE have diversified population with a large amount of expats coming from all around the world. This means the healthcare service demands are increasing exponentially. In such conditions, offering easy access, and personalized experience could greatly increase patient satisfaction. The commercial off-the-shelf software solutions are designed for masses, however, only the customized software development can help healthcare and medical facilities to deal with their unique and exclusive needs. The customized software allow organizations to build solutions that align with their needs and are more efficient in solving their unique problems.

Advantages of Custom Healthcare Software Development

There are several advantages of custom software development for the healthcare and medical industry which makes them far superior to commercial off-the-shelf solutions. Here are a few key advantages or custom healthcare software development:

Tailored Solutions: Healthcare and medical facilities often have very unique needs due to their internal processes and business practices. With the passage of time hospitals, clinics, medical facilities and testing labs could develop quite unique workflows. It is very difficult achieve the highest possible efficiency with the commercial off-the-shelf solutions as they are made for general audience. However, the custom software development can solve this problem by delivering tailored solutions that 100% match with the unique and exclusive business needs.
Improved Service Quality: The healthcare and medical facilities often had to deal with a variety of different levels of priority based on the medical service urgency and criticality. Hence dealing every customer in a same way is not practical. Therefore healthcare facilities, hospitals and clinics and other medical establishments make policies and develop workflows to facilitate every patient while maintaining an optimum level of service quality. A customized healthcare software application can fully align with existing processes, boosting performance by lifting up employee workload and optimizing internal processes. This results in significant improvement in service quality and patient satisfaction.
Better Patient Experience: The healthcare and medical facilities often have to deal with a bulk of patient data which sometimes could make it difficult to provide information and communication in a timely manner. However, the custom healthcare software development enables organizations to integrate multiple communication channels such as online patient portals, mobile apps, WhatsApp, SMS, email and much more which can instantly provide patient with the updated information. These additional modules not only provide data and information but also help healthcare organizations to streamline several internal process, which can greatly improve patient interaction and journey, lifting up patient experience.
Improved Compliance: The healthcare sector and medical facilities are often subjected to comply with complex regulations and government policies. Most of the time several penalties are also associated with these compliances and regulations. A commercial off-the-shelf software often failed to facilitate the compliance process. However, a custom software development ensures that all your needs and requirements are incorporated in your healthcare software solution which can greatly improve the compliance and your ability to cater to emerging compliance needs.
Innovation and Automation: The innovation and automation are the two key aspects of digitalization. The custom healthcare software development help organizations to offer innovative features for both their patient and their employees which greatly improve patient experience and employee performance. The healthcare organizations and medical facilities can offer more control and freedom over healthcare plans, personalized services and much more by enabling patients to utilize self-service channels to perform various tasks by themselves. All such features enhance patient experience and also boost employee performance.
Flexible Integration: The integration is one of the most crucial and absolutely essential factor to consider while implementing a new software or solution. The commercial off-the-shelf software application usually lack at their ability to integrate with other third-party tools. Often additional cost and efforts are associated with integration. However, the custom software development enable healthcare and medical facilities to customized their software in a way that they can seamlessly integrate with existing software, systems, patient databases and central information management system.
Scalability and Adoptability: The healthcare industry and medical practices are constantly evolving. The commercial off-the-shelf software solutions fall short when it comes to scalability and adoptability. However, the customized healthcare software tools are very flexible towards scalability and adoptability. Businesses can easily incorporate more features or modify existing functions to scale them with their emerging business needs. The ability to add new features and customize the existing features as per the emerging needs can greatly enhance the adoptability and scalability, offering a great competitive advantage without raising the cost. Hence the custom healthcare software development offers much higher ROIs comparing to COTs.
Enhanced Performance: Most of the time the employees working in healthcare industry have to perform repetitive routine tasks and manual work. The customized software development help healthcare and medical facilities to add productive features which can handle most of the routine tasks for the employees, and with the help of digitalization and automation many errors can be prevented which are normally associated to manual work. Furthermore custom healthcare software tools also offer customized reporting and analytical data collection which provide great visibility and monitoring over the entire operations hence resulting in improved human resource planning and better management which can greatly boost the operational performance.

The custom software development offers great advantages. The healthcare and medical facilities can leverage the custom software development to build their own unique brand image while boosting performance, productivity and efficiency of the entire organization.

Advantages of Custom Healthcare Software Development

Conclusion

The healthcare industry and medical services are rapidly evolving and transforming into more patient-centric organizations in the world. The global healthcare industry software industry is rapidly growing showing the importance and effectiveness of the software solutions in the industry. When it comes to software development, the healthcare organization have two way to go, either choose the commercial off-the-shelf software or the custom software development. The custom software development has proven itself to be far superior with its ability to cater to unique business needs while supporting scalability, customization, and growth. The commercial off-the-shelf solutions are generic however, the custom software development offers exclusive tailored solutions. That is why the businesses in healthcare and medical industry are embracing custom software development. Furthermore the customized healthcare software and tools tend to have long lifecycle with ability to quickly respond to emerging needs. In this blog we have discussed how customized healthcare software application can help organizations gain competitive advantage, patient satisfaction and operational excellence. If you want to learn more about the subject or if you want our help to develop a tailor-made software solution for your healthcare organization or medical facility. Please feel free to contact us through our Contact Us page or leave a comment in the comment box below and we will get in touch with you soon.

October 18, 2023October 18, 2023

The Cost of Custom Software Development: Factors to Consider

Every business is unique, and it is this uniqueness that help them gaining competitive advantage and it also attracts more customers. It is very obvious that businesses belongs to same industry must be selling almost similar products, however, most of the business leaders are agreed that every business took a different evolutionary path which is why every business has a distinct organizational culture, internal processes, workflows, mechanisms to deal with obstacles, strategies, policies and even goals. And the markets in Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi and other cities of UAE are moving in a direction which will further amplify this diversification. Business leader all around the world encourage such evolution and encourage innovation. This proves that every business could have different business needs and internal workflows which demand a software solution that not only aligns with their unique business needs but also be supportive for their emerging needs and could remain relevant for coming years as well. The traditional off-the-shelf software solutions fell short in meeting unique business needs, as these solutions are designed for masses considering industry standards and popular trends. There is very little to no room for customization. However, the custom software development provides a tailor-made software solution which fully aligns with your unique business needs and requirements.

Why Businesses Prefer Custom Software Development over Off-the-shelf Solutions?

Over the time the custom software development have become an essential component of a business to support their growth by driving efficiency, performance and productivity. The custom software development is also considered more cost effective comparing to commercial off-the-shelf solutions. The off-the-shelf solutions offer very little customization, and that too is very expensive. However, a business can mold their custom software whenever they want and however they want. Unlike cloud-based or off-the-shelf solutions, the businesses owns the proprietary and full ownership rights to their customized software solution. Which also give them more security and allow them to host their crucial data with themselves. The off-the-shelf solutions evolve slowly, unless some requirement have become universal usually the vendors don’t include them However businesses can make any change any time to their custom software to maintain optimum level of efficiency and efficacy. All these advantages are turning most of the business in UAE to custom software development.

How much Custom Software Development Costs?

On an average a custom software tool could cost you from very humble AED 20,000 to a whooping AED 250,000 or it could be even more. The cost of a custom software development project depends on your requirements, needs, choice of platform, and even the choice of development team. Different experts charge on different rates, some would charge you AED 50 to AED 200 per hour, some might charge you even more, and it mainly depends on their expertise and level of experience and also on your technology choice. When it comes to custom software development, businesses often make several mistakes which later on cause them to pay more than they needed to. In this blog we will discuss the key factors that influence the cost of custom software development project and how businesses can be more mindful to minimize the cost and maximize the ROI of their custom software development project. Another important thing to consider is that you would be needing the maintenance service for your software as well. Usually business need at least one to three years of service, support, and maintenance for any particular customized software solution and that too should be considered during cost estimation.

Important Factors That Influence the Cost of Custom Software Development

There are several factors that can influence the overall cost of your custom software development. However, it is important to learn what those factors are and how you can optimize them to minimize your cost. Here are the most influential factors that would mainly determine the cost of your custom software development project:

Cost of Custom Software Development: Software Complexity

This is one of the major and most influential factor in determining the cost and planning of your custom software development project. If you are a small business or a startup, and you need to streamline an internal process, you would be needing a simple application, but if you are a large business, operating in many regions with multiple branches, then for the same purpose your software application would be much complex. The software complexity is usually determined by the software size, number of functions it has, number of users and user roles, and integration needs. For example, if you need to build a corporate website, it would have a homepage, some products/services pages and contact us page with a contact form and Google Map integration, however, if you need a SaaS ERP solution, that would be 100 times more complex and sophisticated than a humble website.

Usually the software complexity is classified in three groups:

Software Complexity – Basic: Fewer features, less users, and small size. It could cost you around AED 20,000 to somewhere around AED 40,000
Software Complexity – Medium/Average: Lots of features, user roles, multiple user groups, and comparatively large software size. It could cost your around AED 40,000 to AED 200,000
Software Complexity – High: Tons of features, dedicated dashboards, complex user roles, diverse user base, advanced technologies, highly sophisticated structure, large-scale integration and extremely large software size. It could cost your around AED 200,000 to AED 500,000+

Important Factors That Influence the Cost of Custom Software Development

Furthermore the user type of the software can also increase or decrease its complexity. For example, if a software is meant to be utilized by an internal team, let say the HR staff, that software might not be usable for a layman. However, if a business is offering some services from their online portal, that customer portal would be used by people with different levels of technical proficiencies and in some cases you might have to make it multi-lingual, however, for the HRMS or a tool for HR might not require that kind of simplicity. Therefore there are multiple factors that can add up to a software’s complexity or sophistication. The number of required functionalities could also make your custom software development lengthier and complex. It is not only about the number of functionalities but how these functionalities are working would impact the complexity of a software application. For example, a certain feature which requires a simple mathematical problems let say, calculating percentage is a simple function, however, a function that requires the software to communicate with other databases and interact with other software would be complex and complicated. So all these factors will determine the complexity of a software and the complexity of the software will influence the price of your custom software development project.

Cost of Custom Software Development: Software Complexity

Cost of Custom Software Development: Development Team

The software development team that you chose for your custom software development project could also make huge difference in the cost of the project. There are several factors that are important to understand the cost of the development team. For example, here in UAE businesses usually have two choices, on-shore team or off-shore team. There is a big difference between the pricing/rates of companies that are located inside the UAE or are from outside such as from India, Pakistan, or any other Asian country. This can make a huge difference, but it is also important that your agreement is only secured with the company or business that is located inside the UAE. Other off-shore software development agencies will most likely asked you for upfront. If you are hiring a team consisting of highly experienced developers then the cost would obviously be very high. This can be optimized based on the complexity of your software application. If you need a simple one you can chose a mid-level agency or team who can offer you best price without compromising on the quality. There is another most important factor, for example, if you need a CRM and the team you are hiring is specialized in developing webapps, then they cost would be high. The team is very much capable of building a CRM but they are not specialized in it, so they will take more time and they had to do more efforts to deliver it which will obviously increase your cost. So it is important to choose a team wisely and do some research to optimize the cost of your custom software development project.

Cost of Custom Software Development: Technology and Platform

Another most important thing to consider is the technology and platform that you are choosing. If we take an example of mobile apps, the native apps are always expensive and the hybrid apps cost you less. For native apps, you will have to have different developer for both Android and iOS. However, a single team can build a hybrid app for both of the platforms, this is why the native apps are expensive and the hybrid apps are very cost-effective. Similar if you need a web-app that would be cheaper than building a software tool for Windows OS or Linux OS. If you need a software solution then you must chose the platforms wisely because this could have a huge impact on the cost. Furthermore if we talk about the technology it is the tools and programing platforms. For example, the .NET and PHP are two widely used technologies for the backend development and widely popular not only in UAE but all around the world. Typically most of the developers chose to work with PHP this means the PHP developers are widely available in the market, however, the .NET developers are less. This also means that the per hour cost of a PHP developer would be lower than the .NET developer and this could have a huge impact on your overall cost. Therefore when you are choosing the platform and technology you should chose the ones that are more common and easily available in the market.

Conclusion

The customized software solutions are very common these days. Businesses in Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi and all around the UAE are turning towards custom software development to meet their exclusive and unique business needs. It is important for a business to stand out of crowd in a competitive market. And businesses tend to be different and unique from others even though they operate in a same industry or offer similar kind of products and services. This is the reason every business have their own unique needs, requirements, preferences, internal processes, workflows and even the entire organizational culture. The off-the-shelf software solutions are not designed for individual businesses, in fact these tools and apps are designed for masses based on industry standards and popular market trend. That is the reason the off-the-shelf software solutions failed to fully align with your business needs. Furthermore the businesses keep evolving and growing, a good software solutions must have to be able to support growth. That is only possible with a customized software solutions that is tailor-made for your needs and you have full control and authority over it. The custom software development is a crucial but expensive process. It requires a lot of research, patience and budget. However, some businesses due to lack of understanding of the custom software development process, eventually end up paying more for what they bargained for.

In this blog we have listed the most important and most influential factors that determine the cost of a custom software development project. If you follow the tips above and understand all these factors you can easily optimize the cost of your next custom software development project. If you want to learn more about the subject or if you want our help with your next custom software development project, please feel free to contact us though our Contact Us page or leave a comment box below and we will get in touch with you soon.

October 14, 2023October 14, 2023

Step-by-Step Guide to Planning Your Custom Software Development Project

In the today’s technology driven world, the businesses are dependent on software solutions more than ever before. Especially in competitive markets like Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi and other cities of UAE where the customers are also very demanding and tech savvy the software solutions have become absolutely essential to ensure greater operational efficiency, productivity and performance of the entire business. Where the integration of technology become deeper and raise new needs for software solutions, the custom software development industry have also evolved in UAE. Once software tools thought to be meant for high-value and large-scale enterprises are now in the reach of a startup, thanks to the advancements in the software development tools and technologies, now a days, building a great software solution is not a luxury anymore. Every business can build software tools to drive performance and productivity which can gain them the much needed competitive advantage and help them stand out of the crowd. The commercial off-the-shelf software solutions more often doesn’t fulfill all the needs, hence businesses are turning to custom software development. The custom software development not only offer exclusive solutions and tools that perfectly aligns with business needs but it also tend to offer better ROI in longer run. In this blog we will go through a step-by-step guide to planning and executing your custom software development project which can drive efficiency, improve workflows and processes and enhance customer experience for your business.

Why do You Need a Custom Software Development Project Plan?

When it comes to deploy a new software solution your project goals could fall in any of the three, operational improvements, customer experience improvement or improved management process and workflows. When it comes to the commercial off-the-shelf software solutions is relatively easier to carry out market research, done a competitive analysis and chose the right tool or solution as per your needs. However, when it comes to developing a custom software, the businesses must have to do in-depth analysis, research and due diligence to ensure the final product will fulfill their needs. Since comparing two or more existing products is easier, you can simply signup for trials or have demos to compete COTS, however, in case of custom software development, there is no product hence your project plan will help transforming your software requirements into a fully functional software solutions. That is why a proper and comprehensive project plan is absolutely essential.

Your project plan will help you understand the following very basic questions that will help you effectively executing your custom software development project:

What technology or tools you will be needing to develop your custom software?
Which department is the project owner and who are the main stakeholders?
Who will be managing the software and who will be the primary users of the software?
What skillset and resources do you need in your team?
What external resources you will be needing?
What your success will look like? What are your success criterions?
How much time is required to develop your custom software solution?
What is your budget limitations? What is the estimated cost including all assumption (if any) you are making to estimate the cost of your custom software solution?

These are just a few questions that will help you align your project with your timelines and budgetary limitations. A project plan for your custom software development project will mainly cover, requirement analysis, ideation, concept, development process, testing and deployment, post-launch processes and obviously documentation. Everything has to be documented properly to ensure an effective and successful project execution.

Why do You Need a Custom Software Development Project Plan?

How to Setup a Successful Plan for your Custom Software Development Project?

A successful project plan is essential for a successful custom software development project. It is important to understand that a business have to invest a lot of resources, efforts and time to develop a custom software therefore the stakes are very high and businesses must have to make sure that the final product resonates perfectly with the set success factors. Businesses often doesn’t pay much attention to the planning phase, overlooking its importance, which lead to unsuccessful custom software development projects and result in loss of a lot of resources, time and money. Here is a step-by-step guide to planning your customer software development which will raise your success probability to 100% if the plan is properly executed.

Custom Software Development Project Plan: Step 1. Define High-Level Workflow

The high-level workflow of your custom software development project will help you segment the entire project and understand how each stage transitions to the next stage. It is a common misconception among the businesses in Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi and in fact all around the UAE that only the launch is the most important stage of a project, however, a good high-level workflow for a custom software development project must look like the following:

Planning –> Designing and Development –> Launch –> Final Delivery –> Maintenance

Most of the time the key stakeholders emphasize much on the launch and delivery phase, while completely ignoring the importance of the previous stages. Which cause several problems and sometimes cause serious issues which require to make major changes in the software which also result in delays and increase the overall cost of your custom software development project. Therefore it is crucial to define a high-level workflow before starting your custom software development project.

Custom Software Development Project Plan: Step 1. Define High-Level Workflow

Custom Software Development Project Plan: Step 2. Define the Scope of Your Project Plan

The scope of the project plan is a pretty vague term, however, it can easily be understood. A good way to define the scope of a project is to first determine the project timeline, importance, and sophistication. Any custom software development project which is meant to last longer than 2 weeks must require a proper upfront plan in order to ensure success. However, some custom software projects might last longer than 6 months, for such projects it is difficult to plan for the entire project, hence the planning could be done for 4 to 6 months chunks. Because in custom software development projects most of the time after six months due to external, internal or some unexpected circumstances will most likely render your estimation inaccurate, if not fully inaccurate there would be some off-set, which must be accounted for. Therefore it is a good practice to plan for maximum 6 months and not longer than that and after 5 or 6 months revisit your plan and set course accordingly as per the current circumstances to ensure success.

Custom Software Development Project Plan: Step 3. Define Success Factors and Project Outcome

This is one of the most part of a project plan. Every project has a purpose and a business ultimately want to achieve something with their custom software development project, for that they business must have a criteria or expectations which will define the success factors. It is important to clearly define what the success of the project will look like, it could be from functional point of view or from performance point of view or it should be the improvements the software could bring to existing processes and workflows, or customer experience, whatever it is, your success factors should be clearly defined and listed. All the stakeholders must be taken onboard at this stage and all the success factors should be discussed thoroughly with all stakeholders and approval should be taken if needed to ensure there won’t be any surprise at the end for any stakeholder or user group. This cannot be done without considering the custom software development process, and for that most of the time some assumptions are made, which should also be discussed thoroughly with the stakeholders with the possible outcomes to ensure all goals are met and the target is achieved.

Custom Software Development Project Plan: Step 4. Estimate the Project Workload

This is the time when a proper blueprint of the project has to be written. For that the project manager should engage the development team whether it is in-house team or an outsourcing custom software development partner, the actual programmers, software developers and engineers should be onboard during this phase. As all the requirements are set, the final outcome is defined and the success factors are set, now is the time to estimate the actual workload of your custom software development project. This is the workload involving the software designing and development teams, who will be performing various different tasks. Furthermore the responsibilities of every team or team member can also be divided into individual tasks, and accordingly a timeline is set for each task which then should be accumulated to estimate the total project workload and estimate the time and effort required to deliver a successful project. It is important to take feedback from each individual team member on each individual task rather than asking only supervisor or team leads or managers to give an overall estimation. It is important to understand that the project workload estimation could have significant influence on the cost of the project that is why this stage is important.

Custom Software Development Project Plan: Step 5. Scrutinize the Estimation

The significance of the estimation of project workload is very crucial for a successful deliver of your custom software project. That is why it is absolutely necessary to scrutinize it thoroughly and repeat it many times if needed. But most of the time when project managers are repeating the estimation or cross-questioning the teams and team members their prime agenda is to minimize the timelines and encourage quicker deliver. However, that is not a correct approach. The project manager should provide full freedom to each individual team mate to let them express themselves freely, however, questioning their feedback will help refining the estimation and will also keep your team motivated to deliver good quality work. Here another important thing to consider is that the custom software development projects are often complex and sophisticated and a lot many assumptions are also made, which sometimes proven to be incorrect or slightly off-set. That is why it is important to keep some room for errors and mistakes and consider some gaps for the unforeseen circumstances and unexpected scenarios to ensure you don’t miss any milestone or even the overall deadline.

Custom Software Development Project Plan: Step 6. Setup and Define Milestones

Setting up milestone and clearly defining them is important, it will help the project manager and the development team to track the progress throughout the custom software development project. There could be a high-level milestones marking different stages or phases of the software development process such as design, development, MVP, completion, testing, delivery, etc. Or each of this milestone can further be divided into many more to improve the performance and progress. Some custom software development project teams follow a modular approach where the entire software application is developed in form of different module on a single platform. These kind of project management method ensure each module deliver all the needed features and fulfill all of customer’s expectation. Whatever approach you follow the important thing is that your custom software development project must be divided into several stages or phases with pre-set milestone marking different levels of progress to ensure the development process remains on track which is a key to successful project delivery.

Custom Software Development Project Plan: Step 7. Resource Forecasting

After estimating the workload, setting up milestones, and defining the success factors now a project manager can easily forecast resources required to deliver the project. As the entire custom software development project is divided into several phases and milestones are set for each phase, now it is easier to accurately forecast which resource or technical team and personals would be needed at which stage. For example, the initially phase is the designing at this stage, the design team would have to lift the heavy load and later on during the development phase only the software developer, programmers and engineer would be working on the project, and very little input would be needed from other teams. Similarly at the testing phase and deployment phase different teams and different resources would be needed, hence there is no need to engage the entire skillset throughout the custom software development project execution. This also help improving the project management and speeding up the entire process. It is important thing to understand that adding more resources to the team or engaging more people at a time won’t guarantee a fast-paced project execution, in fact it will further complicate it and could even slow down the progress.

Custom Software Development Project Plan: Step 8. Consider Changes and Obstacles

It is extremely difficult to ensure a seamless custom software development project execution, one way or another something will eventually go wrong which could cause revisions, changes and delays. Your custom software development project plan must have room for changes. That is a very simple process, it can be done by holding up a meeting or discussion with all stakeholders from the management and development side and asking everyone of their pinion thus concluding the most obvious things which could go wrong and at the same time defining a strategy and plan of action for mitigation. This step usually referred as pre-mortem session, even if you do not conduct a pre-mortem you should account the changes and delays in order to ensure the project executes smoothly and the deadlines are met successfully. A great way to dealing with such risks is to make a proper list of all expected risks, delays and obstacles along with a realistic mitigation strategy. This list could be very helpful for both the development team and the management throughout your custom software development project execution process.

Custom Software Development Project Plan: Step 9. Conduct a Thorough Post-Project Review

Businesses operating in Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi or anywhere in UAE doesn’t usually conduct a post-mortem or post-project review of their custom software development project. One of the biggest reason of neglecting the post-mortem review or post-project review is that the project teams and resources are immediately dismantled and appointed to other tasks as soon as a project got completed or delivered. The post-project review consists of discussion and feedbacks. The discussions and feedbacks are aimed to answer the following few important questions:

What lessons have we learned during this custom software development project?
Was the project successful or not or how much of project goals are achieved?
What actual value or benefits our business will get from this custom software development project?
What went as per expectations, what went well, and how this can be done in future projects?
What went wrong, why it went wrong and what can be done to avoid it in future projects?

These are some very simple open-ended questions and everyone should be able to share their opinion and thought freely. Which can be further processed and analyzed to make them a useable charter for future projects. If the post-mortem or post-project review is ignored your businesses will have to spend time and resources in learning this over and over again. That is why it is important to allocate resources for post-project review in the planning of your customer software development project.

Custom Software Development Project Plan: Step 9. Conduct a Thorough Post-Project Review

Custom Software Development Project Plan: Step 10. Service and Maintenance

Here in UAE it is common that large businesses have in-house teams who are developing custom software tools for their needs. However, acquiring services of a professional software development agency is also common for large-scale or sophisticated projects. Small and medium sized businesses usually outsource their software development projects as they usually don’t have sufficient in-house resources to be able to handle custom software development projects. Regardless of the size or industry of your business the either your will maintain the software in-house or you will outsource it to get the technical support and maintenance tasks done. When it comes to outsourcing businesses usually prefer to take AMCs (annual maintenance contracts) form the same software development agency who has developed the software or either they go for another vendor.

It is extremely important to include a proper plan for support and maintenance in your custom software development project plan. If you are choosing a maintenance and support service provider other than the company who developed your custom software then you should consider the transition of service requirements to ensure a smoother handover and transition to the service provider whether it is a third-party vendor, outsourcing partner or in-house team. Because it requires a lot of resources and time to handover a complete software solution to a team for maintenance and if that is not done, it could not only cause serious issues but it will also hinder the performance and impact of your custom software application.

Custom Software Development Project Plan: Step 10. Service and Maintenance

Conclusion

Businesses operating in Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi or anywhere in UAE are turning away from commercial off-the-shelf software (COTS) solutions and leveraging the remarkable potential of customized software solutions. This also empowered the software development industry in the country and further make tailored solutions more accessible all sizes and industries. Businesses are relying on custom software development to drive performance and operational efficiency which help them gaining competitive advantage and customer satisfaction. However, when it comes to developing a customized software solution most businesses overlooked the important of developing a proper project plan before starting the work. Businesses do have project plan but it is not as that comprehensive as it should have to be, which results in a complete failure or partial success. A well-crafted customer software development project plan is absolutely essential to ensure success, as it provides a complete roadmap to transform your unique business requirements into a fully functional software solution which can deliver performance and efficiency as per your goals and expectations.

This blog covers a complete step-by-step guide to planning your custom software development project and equally beneficial for small, medium or large custom software development projects. Regardless of the size, scope, duration or complexity of the project if you make a plan following the above mentioned steps you can easily execute a successful custom software development project. If you want to learn more about the subject or if you need our help with you custom software development project, please feel free to contact us through our Contact Us page or leave a comment in the comment box below and we will get in touch with you soon.

October 2, 2023October 2, 2023

Top Trends in Custom Software Development: What’s Shaping the Industry?

Any modern day business runs on a variety of different software and digital solutions. The software and digital ecosystem is considered to be the backbone of modern business landscape. Every business’s day-to-day operation depends on different kinds of software tools. That is true in some industries the software are more important than the others, but in modern day and age, no business can effectively and efficiently operate without leveraging any software tool, even the emails that you use daily are also through a software tool. That is why business invest a huge chunk of their profits in modernizing and digitalizing their various operational processes. When it comes to acquiring a new software solutions there are two ways, either businesses can go for a commercial off-the-shelf software solution or they can go for custom software development. The questions arises which one is better? Well, in short the custom software development is much better than the commercial off-the-shelf solutions (COTS) as it can fulfill your 100% of needs, it offers excellent ROI and enable businesses to mold their software and applications as per their emerging needs. In this blog we will discuss the top trends that are reshaping the custom software development industry.

What makes Custom Software Development the Ideal Solution for your Business?

The custom software development offers many benefits and advantages over commercial off-the-shelf software (COTS) solutions. The COTS are ready-made software which are designed for masses, the custom software development is dedicated to cater to the needs of a single business. The initial cost of COTS is low, it can be deployed even within in a day. The custom software development on the other hand is a lengthy process. However, the custom software are exclusively designed for the business after doing rigorous research on the business needs, and are fully aligned with the business requirements. The COTS are designed as per industry standards, and mostly failed to fulfill all needs. The custom software development allow businesses endless customization. Whereas the COTS doesn’t offer a flexible customization, in fact the COTS allow very limited but very expensive customization. Which is why businesses either end up using multiple software or they have to replace a software which is not ideal. The customized software are keep on evolving with emerging business needs and doesn’t have any restriction which makes them ideal for businesses. Similarly the customized software are more flexible with integration, upgrades and can evolve according to emerging business needs which make them much superior to the commercial off-the-shelf software (COTS) solutions.

Top Custom Software Development Trends that are Reshaping the Industry

In today’s fast-paced markets businesses heavily rely on data and information flow, in fact the information and data is considered to be the lifeblood of the modern technology-oriented business operations. Therefore most of the time when a business needs a new software or application it has to be integrated within their existing digital and IT infrastructure, just like a jigsaw puzzle, every piece should align with each other to form the perfect picture. Businesses utilize a multitude of software, tools, and technologies to drive efficiency and performance in their operations, day-to-day work, and data management. This further complicates the digital ecosystem as multiple technologies, platforms and software types are work collaboratively and in harmony to ensure the desired performance. For example, businesses tend to have ERP systems, performance management system, customer feedback systems, CRL or customer relationship management system, facility management system, inventory management system, accounting system and HRMS or human resource management systems are the few most commonly used software tools. Furthermore businesses use websites, mobile apps, and other digital channels for communication and even to deliver service and support.

All different software types, tools, technologies and platforms evolve and transform on a different pace. For example, the ERP systems may evolve quickly comparing to asset management system, and so on. All different software and tools are built on different technologies, different programming tools and with different platforms. Although this might not sound a big problem, but for large enterprises and organizations this could be a very challenging task, however, startups and small businesses who might not have as much diverse digital eco-system doesn’t face much problems with their IT needs. That is why when it comes to a custom software development, businesses must have to seriously consider the technology barriers and integration limitations. Therefore businesses who are planning to implement a new software solution or a business tools must have to consider these facts, or else they should be aware of the latest market trends. Because all top custom software development trends are influenced by all these technological advancements and all external factors which is why if you follow the top trends, you will get a perfect application which not only aligns with your business needs but also with the industry standards and your existing digital ecosystem and this will enable you to leverage your custom software at its full potential and maximize its ROI (return over investments). Here are some top trends in custom software development which dominated the year 2023 and are going to dominate the software development market for many coming years.

Businesses utilize a multitude of software, tools, and technologies to drive efficiency and performance in their operations

Top Custom Software Development Trends: Progressive Web Apps (PWA)

A progressive web apps or PWAs are developed using modern web platforms in a way that user can have a user experience like a native or platform-specific apps. Another great advantage of progressive web apps is that a PWA can run seamlessly on multiple platforms/devices, same like a modern websites while having only a single codebase. Thus the progressive web apps or PWAs enables the developers to utilize the native features and security of multiple compatible platforms while having only one codebase. Traditionally the software and apps are developed exclusively for the platform or are platform-specific. This means that if a business have users who are utilizing multiple platforms then they have to develop it separately for all these platforms, each platform will have its native codebase which is not usable on other platforms. This results in developing a similar app for multiple time which undermine the user experience, as each platform could have slightly different user experience, furthermore the business will have to pay for each individual platform which increase the cost too. With the progressive web app (PWA) the users can have a similar experience on all platforms, the business can get them in very less cost, the maintenance, upgrades, customization and updates are very easy and cost-efficient. That is why more and more businesses in Dubai and all around the UAE are embracing PWAs.

Top Custom Software Development Trends: Web 3.0 and Blockchain

The Web 3.0 or Web 3 is the third era of internet, it could be as disruptive as the first-age internet was and it could have great potential to completely transform the internet, software and web industry. The Blockchain is a Web 3.0 or Web 3 technology and it is currently in its infancy but businesses all around the world are exploring different ways to integrate it within their existing digital ecosystem. The primary different between the Web 3.0 and the Web 2.0 or what form of internet we are currently using is that the Web 3.0/Web 3 would be open-source, decentralized, and would offer highest level of network security. This means that the fraud and theft would be closer to none, as all the transactions, information and data will be distributed and open to all. The Blockchain is the perfect example of Web 3.0, although it may take it a few more years or a decade to gain significant market share, but it is evolving rapidly and tech giants like Google, Microsoft, Meta and other key players are already involved in it. The Web 3.0 not only have potential to integrate smart technologies, but it will streamline data flow and communication between people, devices and services which will help developers to overcome several security related problems and will also help businesses to boost automation and efficiency.

Top Custom Software Development Trends: IoB and IoT

The IoB is the internet of behavior and the IoT is the internet of things. The IoB or internet of behavior is the technology to connect physical objects/devices to the internet and monitor human behavior or how human interact with the environment around them. The IoB is majorly based on behavioral science, IoT or internet of things and edge analytics. The IoB platforms are designed to gather huge amount of statistical and analytical data from multiple sources and leveraging this data to enhance customer experience. The IoT or internet of things connect digital devices via internet and let them interact with each other and based on this interaction or human intervention, the connected devices behaves according to pre-programmed instructions or direct instructions from the human user. This is why it is very useful in IoB as the internet of behavior platforms utilize the data from digital devices, wearable tech, and user behavior on internet via mobile phones or laptop and then utilize this data to enhance user experience and help businesses to improve their communication and solutions according to customers’ needs. The major application of IoB is in customer experience management, e-Commerce, communication, self-service solutions, and SEO (search engine optimization).

Top Custom Software Development Trends: Microservices Architecture

The Microservices Architecture is a custom software development methodology where an application is developed in smaller modules or a collection of multiple smaller services. The Microservices Architecture is also referred as only Microservices. A Microservices software application can call on multiple microservices to perform the task as per user’s instructions. Another important thing to understand is that all the microservices that are used in a single software application are usually loosely coupled and can independently deployed too. This means that these services can be developed by different teams as well. The Microservices Architecture is very popular in custom software development as it allow developers and software engineers to utilize many pre-built or ready-made services and build their software application above these microservices, which speed up the development and delivery process and also allow businesses to get innovative features at a comparatively less cost. Another great advantage of microservices architecture over monolithic software is that businesses can independently upgrade or customize individual component of the software or individual microservice which also help optimizing the maintenance and customization cost and results in more stable product.

Top Custom Software Development Trends: DevSecOps

The DevSecOps is a short form of Development, Security and Operations. This method is majorly adopted in custom software development to improve security and performance of the customized applications. The DevSecOps is a method of custom software development where the security features are introduced and implemented at all phases throughout the software development lifecycle. Traditionally the security features are implemented at the end of the software development and usually by a different team who is specialized in software security. However, with the DevSecOps method, the security features are implemented from designing up till software delivery phase including from designing, development, integration and testing phases of the software development lifecycle. This method enables multiple security layers in your custom software applications while prioritizing the security as the primary goal of custom software development. The DevSecOps help businesses leverage the security features of the application and infrastructure while ensuring maximum performance and seamless operation of their custom software application. The DevSecOps method not only ensures ultimate performance but also ensures highest level of security while keeping the cost at the minimum and instead of slowing down the development process, it tends to speed it up.

Top Custom Software Development Trends: Artificial Intelligence (AI)

The Artificial Intelligence or AI is the buzz word in today’s world where the ChatGPT, Microsoft Bing Chat, Google Bard, Proplexity, MidJourney and countless others have become internet sensation over the night. Everyone is talking about these tools, especially the ChatGPT have taken the world like a storm. But what does this means for the businesses and how does businesses can leverage the power of artificial intelligence to boost their productivity, performance and quality of the work? Normally the artificial intelligence or AI is referred to a software tool or application which can perform tasks which are normally not performed by ordinary computer programs or which are normally performed by humans. Just imagine you can have a computer software which is capable of analyzing data and information, monitoring a situation and taking decision like a human in real-time, working non-stop and 24/7 with extraordinary ability of processing huge data and numbers which no human can does! This is what artificial intelligence is capable of, it is not just limited to chat bots or automated customer call center, the artificial intelligence or AI can do much more than we can imagine. Although it is still in its infancy, but sooner it will be everywhere, it will become an integral part of software development and its scope and ability to operate will be greatly enhanced.

How Top Trends in Custom Software Development can Help your Business Grow?

Businesses often are not familiar with the custom software development trends, which results in using technologies and platforms that are fading away or losing the edge they might have had a few years back. That is why it is important to know the latest software development trends as well as emerging trends so your bespoke software remains relevant for many coming years and yield you the best ROI. Mostly software trends comes and goes, but only a few stay, for example, the world is slowly adopting to AI and moving toward cloud computing, and it seems that in coming years these two technologies will grow exponentially, that is the reason major giant technology companies are investing huge in these two sectors and for the matter of fact many more such trends are here to stay for long. All the technological advancements in custom software development and enterprise solutions are aimed to streamline data and communication, drive automation and to boost performance. Businesses can gain a great competitive advantage by leveraging the latest trends and technologies in software development. Therefore it is important to follow the right trend and develop such applications which can evolve with your emerging and upcoming needs. Choosing technologies and trends that are fading away will limit your software’s ability down the road and will compel you to a point where you will have to replace it with more modern and efficient technology. That is why it is crucial for businesses to follow the popular trends in custom software development.

Conclusion

Businesses need customized software tools to boost their operational performance and capabilities. A good software tool can provide a great competitive advantage, however, it is important to understand that deploying a software is not the only part, in fact you should consider the future needs, customization and the technology you are using. It is important that the software you are implementing will remain relevant for coming years too, the technology and platform it is based on should also grow so it can support your future needs and it can support your growth. For that businesses should follow the latest custom software development trends. A custom software development requires a lot of time and resources, which means repeating the same after a year or two is not good at all. Therefore if the software you will develop based on latest and emerging trends can remain relevant for many years and offers you a great ROI over a longer period of time. In this blog we have listed top emerging custom software development trends which are not only emerging but gaining huge popularity and are meant to stay for many coming years.

If you want to learn more about the top trends in custom software development or if you need any help with your upcoming custom software development project, please feel free to contact us through our Contact Us page or leave a comment in the comment box below and we will get in touch with you soon.

September 18, 2023September 19, 2023

Why Off-the-Shelf Solutions Fall Short: Advantages of Custom Software Development

The customer demands are rising, the competition is getting tougher day by day. Businesses are seeking tools and ways to gain competitive advantage to stay relevant in the market. UAE in particular is a highly advanced nation, with almost 99% of the population having access to internet. Businesses operating in Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi and other parts of UAE are well-aware of the importance of the digital experience. Whether it is your customers or employees, the digital interaction and platforms are dominating the modern day business landscape. Businesses wants to grow continuously and they want to optimize their operations and expenses to maximize the performance. High performing businesses not only grow rapidly but also achieve higher profitability. With the rise of technology the software have become an essential part of a business’s day-to-day operations. It is hard to comprehend if a business can survive on manual paperwork and management practices in this modern day and age. Typically any business tool or a software requires updates or upgrades after a few years, in some cases some software applications are entirely replaced with new more robust and innovative solutions. This is an ongoing ordeal, businesses regularly have to face situations where they need a new software application.

What is the Difference between Custom Software and Commercial Off-the-Shelf Software (COTS)?

When a business needs a new software they have two options, either they chose a ready-made commercial off-the-shelf solution or they get a custom software exclusively developed for their business needs. The custom software are the software that are developed for a particular user group or for a particular business, these tools and apps are developed to meet the design and functionality requirements of the business. However, the COTS or commercial off-the-shelf software are designed for a broader user-base, typically these software are general purpose or designed for a specific industry only. This is why when it comes to aligning the business needs with the features of the COTS, the ideal scenario is to choose a software that matches your 80% of the needs. The COTS can be purchased as a one-time charge or on a subscription based plan. The off-the-shelf software have comparatively less initial cost, and they are can easily deployed. A business can have a commercial off-the-shelf software (COTS) solution running within a day or two. However the custom software solutions are difficult to build, require research, have longer development time and could require months to test and deploy for the end-users.

What are the Advantages of Customer Software Development?

Now the question arises why the custom software development is gaining popularity and why businesses are preferring bespoke solutions over the commercial off-the-shelf solutions? Here are the key advantages of the custom software development which make them superior from off-the-shelf solutions.

Advantages of Customer Software: Unlimited Customization

One of the biggest advantage of a custom software development is that it offers unlimited customization. The COTS offer limited functionalities and in some cases there are different packages and plans with a different set of functionalities. Sometimes for just one or two additional functionalities a business might have to purchase a higher tier which also comes with a lot many other features which are not required or never utilized, but still the business will have to pay for them. The custom software development on the other hand is very flexible and offers unlimited customization, a business can have any features they want and as many features they need. There is no limit or restriction with custom software development, which enables businesses to build innovative features and align their software applications with their needs. The entire solution is built around the very specific business needs and requirements. Hence there is no gape left and the business can leverage the full potential of their software application. Adding a new features, or customizing an existing feature is not a problem at all. Businesses have full control over customization and they can also make the GUI aligned with their needs which also increase effectiveness and performance of the custom software.

Advantages of Customer Software: Flexible Upgrade and Scalability

The commercial off-the-shelf solutions are owned by the vendor or service provider, they only update them when they want. If your business grows and you needs increases you will either have to pay additional cost for scaling your software up or in some cases you might have to switch to an entirely different solution. This could be very expensive and problematic. However, the custom software development offers a great advantage, the entire software is built exclusively for your business hence you are the one who owns it, the entire software, and source code belongs to you. So, a business can have full control over it, they can customize it, scale it up, expand features, and upgrade the software whenever they need or want. You don’t have to bear hefty fees or you don’t have to switch to entirely different solutions in order to meet the increasing demands. The COTS are designed for a large user-base and they are designed as per industry standards, hence unless there is a large demand from most of their customers, they usually don’t make huge changes in their software. That is why sometimes when businesses are growing their needs are expanding and they need certain features they will have to migrate to entirely new software. Which is very time and effort consuming and also have huge cost.

Advantages of Customer Software: Easy Integration

One of the biggest challenge in implementing any new software application is the integration. The modern businesses rely on a highly integrated IT infrastructure and digital eco-system where information and data can flow seamlessly and made available for all users when then need it. The integration allow different software applications to communicate with each other in real-time and ensure all the users have the information they need and whenever they need. This is why the integration is usually one of the most crucial aspect of software development. When a business goes for a commercial off-the-shelf software (COTS) solution the integration options are always limited. This is why businesses sometime have to migrate and synch data manually which slow down several internal processes and it can interrupt various work-flows. However, with the custom software development the entire source code is in your control, you can mold it in any way you want and you can customize it to align with your integration needs. The capability of easy integration makes custom software far more superior than the COTS. Furthermore businesses can also customize their software whenever they are adding a new tool or software to their digital eco system which increase the compatibility and lifecycle of your custom software application.

Advantages of Customer Software: Data Privacy and Security

In today’s modern world the data privacy and security is one of the most important aspect of any software application. Any data leak could completely destroy a business, and we have witnessed huge enterprises falling and bankrupting after serious data breaches. From the customer standpoint if a business is unable to secure their data and is vulnerable to security breaches, they will immediately lose trust. Which could be devastating for your business growth and even it could jeopardize your business’s survival as well. When we think about the commercial off-the-shelf software solutions, we know that these solutions are offered by large and multinational service providers, who have top-notch security experts and tools at their disposal. However, the history has proven this wrong, we have witnessed mega security breaches and attacks on large enterprises in past. This is not due to negligence or any wrong doing at their end, usually the biggest reason of such breaches is that these large software are available for masses all over the world, which somewhat exposes their structure and make them more vulnerable. However, the level of exclusivity offered by custom software makes them unique, which means no one outside your team will have access to the important sections of your software. Above all your data will be stored with you and will not be hosted on a remote server which might be located on the other side of the world. This is what makes custom software more secure and offer higher levels of data privacy and protection.

Conclusion

Software are an essential part of modern day business operations. No matter which industry you belongs to or what is your business model, you must be using some kind of software applications to boost efficiency and productivity. Even the Microsoft Office we used on daily bases is a commercial off-the-shelf solution. The modern day businesses need to be proactive in order to meet the rapidly changing markets and ever-increasing customer needs. For that businesses needs a lot of different software applications and digital solutions. With the passage of time the businesses grow, hence they need highly scalable solutions to support their growth. Furthermore every business have different needs, different preferences and unique culture which requires unique solutions. When a business decides to implement a new software, they have two routes either they can chose a commercial off-the-shelf software solution or commonly known as COTS, or the business can acquire the services of a software development agency in Dubai, and go for the custom software development project. The custom software development offers many advantages such as the software is fully aligned with the business needs, it is exclusively built for the business keeping the user-preferences in mind, and furthermore the custom software offers flexible integration, scalability and unlimited customization which makes them ideal for the modern businesses.

In this blog we have discussed a few advantages of the custom software development and why the off-the-shelf solutions fall short on certain aspects. If you want to learn more about the subject or if you want our help to build a custom software application for your business, please feel free to contact us through our Contact Us page or leave a comment in the comment box below and we will get in touch with you soon.

September 15, 2023

Common Mistakes to Avoid in Custom Software Development Projects

The modern businesses are highly tech-driven and rely on multiple technological tools and software programs. A modern business operating system can consists of 10s of different software programs. That is not all the technology moves on a very fast pace, the techs which are considered top-notch today might go obsolete in just 3 or 4 years. This means a constant demand for technology and software. Furthermore a common consumer in UAE is very tech-savvy. Above all, businesses operating in Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi or any other part of UAE know that the UAE is one of the most competitive market in the region. This is what compels businesses to build excellent customer experience, highly productive organizational culture and cost-efficient operation. The modern technologies and software applications help the management to improve performance. Businesses can greatly improve their performance and growth by implementing right software solutions. The technology not only help improving the work-flows and internal processes but a right software solution can greatly help you enhance customer experience and gain higher customer satisfaction, which is a key to long term success.

On an average a business might look up to replace or upgrade an existing software application after just 3 to 4 years of time. The upgrades and updates are a constant process, businesses regularly keep updating their software ecosystem by simply tweaking existing tools or adding new software apps. There are different types of tools that are most common for all types and sizes of businesses:

ERP – Enterprise Resource Planning Software
CRM- Customer Relationship Management Software
Inventory Management Software
Communication Management Software
Asset Management Software
Social Media Management Tools
Accounting Software
Production and Operation Management Software

These software tools and countless like these are used by millions of businesses all around the world to drive efficiency and productivity in the day-to-day operations. When it comes to implement a software solution, there are two ways to do so. One is to acquire a commercial off-the-shelf software or the other is to go for a custom software development project. The biggest problem with the commercial off-the-shelf software or COTS is that they are designed as per industry standards which means most of your competitors will be using them, above all the COTS never fulfill 100% of your needs. Mostly businesses have to compromise on the features they can get, the cost and many other factors. However, the custom software development allow businesses to find a 100% solution of their unique and very specific needs without compromising on anything. That is what made custom software development so popular. In this blog we will discuss the common mistakes that every business can easily avoid in their custom software development projects to maximize the impact and ROI of their software application.

These software tools are used by millions of businesses all around the world to drive efficiency and productivity in the day-to-day operations.

What are the Common Mistakes to Avoid in a Custom Software Development Project?

Although the commercial off-the-shelf software doesn’t always fulfill your all business needs, but these tools can be deployed very quickly, in fact most of the times the vendor can make them up and running within a day or two after acquiring them. However, the custom software development is a long process, it requires a lot of research, sufficient knowledge of technology stack and frameworks your software will be based upon and a lot of time to develop, test, and deploy them. That is a lengthy process and most of the times businesses can make a lot of mistakes which not only prolong the development process, but it also increase the cost and sometimes those mistakes can greatly undermine the performance and efficacy of your custom software application. Here are some most common mistakes that business can easily avoid in their customer software development project:

Poor or Incomplete Project Plan
Misinterpretation of Requirements or SOW Document
Lack of Knowledge of the Required Resources
Strict Deadlines and Rushing for Completion
Sub-Standard Project Management Practices
Poor Communication and Lack of Documentation
Lack of Feedback or Ignoring the Feedback
Lack of Testing Framework

Custom Software Development Mistakes: Poor or Incomplete Project Plan

Most of the time when it comes to custom software development projects, the biggest reason to failure is the incomplete planning. A custom software development is a lengthy and complicated process, each and every step has to be planned thoroughly in order to stay on track. A proper plan ensures the final product is delivered as per the expectations and in timely manner.

Custom Software Development Mistakes: Misinterpretation of Requirements or SOW Document

For every custom software development project the requirement document which is also known as the SOW or the Scope of the Work document is very crucial. It serves as the road map for the complicated applications and ensures all features are designed as per the expectations. Poor choice of words, lack of technical details and generic language in this document can cause serious problems at later stages.

Custom Software Development Mistakes: Lack of Knowledge of the Required Resources

It is software development agency or team who is majorly responsible for the research but most of the time the software development team doesn’t spend enough time on researching for resources rather they hurry to start the development phase as quickly as possible. It is extremely important that businesses have some basic understanding and knowledge of the resources, tech stack and frameworks to be able to ensure the development team is choosing the best tools for your custom software development project.

Custom Software Development Mistakes: Strict Deadlines and Rushing for Completion

This is one of the most common mistake businesses made by pushing the development teams to meet all the deadlines, and rush for the completion and delivery of the project. However, this could seriously undermine the quality and efficiency of the product. It is important that you prioritize the deadlines, but leave some space to accommodate delays to let the project complete in the most natural way possible. When the team will work comfortably they are most likely to deliver outstanding quality.

Custom Software Development Mistakes: Sub-Standard Project Management Practices

There are two most common reasons for poor project management for a custom software development project. First is that usually the development teams doesn’t include the project manager or coordinator in all communications, and the second is that the project managers from the business also doesn’t want to involve in such communication, this can undermine their visibility on the development process.

Custom Software Development Mistakes: Poor Communication and Lack of Documentation

The communication is said to be the backbone for the any successful software application. Most of the time there is not proper communication between the development team vendor’s and business’s project managers which seriously undermines the progress and also cause problems disputes and disagreements at the end of the project. Hence a proper communication framework and documentation at each and every stage has to be done to make the project execution smooth and aligned with your business vision.

Custom Software Development Mistakes: Lack of Feedback or Ignoring the Feedback

Most of the time both businesses and the development teams doesn’t pay much attention on the importance of feedback and incorporating it in the project. The custom software development project consists of multiple stages, at each stage the developers must take feedback and the business must provide detailed feedback to refine the product and to rectify the problems. This will keep your custom software aligned with your needs and it is much better than doing it afterwards or at the end.

Custom Software Development Mistakes: Lack of Testing Framework

The testing phase is the most crucial for any software application. Keep it in mind that later on the users of the software would be your employees or your customers and a bad user experience will directly impact your business. Furthermore the security and technical testing is also crucial as it may handle sensitive data. Most of the time businesses doesn’t have a proper testing framework, and by framework I mean, a proper plan for who will participate in UAT, who will use the beta version, how the feedback will be gathered and how it will be utilized to improve your customized software? All these things should be planned thoroughly to ensure the supreme quality of your customer software development project.

Conclusion

The UAE is considered to be technologically much advanced than any other nation in the region. This is due to the government efforts, tech-savvy population, technology-oriented work culture, and highly competitive markets. Businesses are on a constant need to improve their operations, processes, customer services, products and communication. That is not all, the performance and productivity is a key to a sustainable long-term success. A business does need improvements but at the same time it also needs to minimize it operational cost or to optimize the overall expenses. This is what can only be achieved with the right technology and tools in your arsenal. The software plays a crucial role in any modern-day business’s success. Businesses of all types and sizes use multiple software and application to perform their day-to-day tasks and to effectively run their operations. This means that businesses need up-to-the mark software and tools in order to effectively operate. When it comes to the software, there are two major routes a business can take, one is simply acquiring a ready-made commercial off-the-shelf software solution or you can have a custom software development project which can help you build solution for your very specific and unique business needs.

The custom software solutions are great at full filling the needs of the business and they can also provide a great competitive advantage due to their exclusivity. If we consider the long-term ROI the custom software solutions are proven to be much more cost-efficient than the ready-made software tools. However, designing and developing a custom software solutions is not as that simple, a business needs to team up with a professional custom software development company in Dubai, or anywhere in UAE and they need to have adequate understand of the process in order to develop a high-quality product. In this blog we have listed the most common mistakes businesses made during their custom software development projects. Avoiding these common mistakes will enable you to develop a high-performing and reliable tailor-made software for your business needs. If you want to learn more about the subject or if you need our help to take care of your custom software development project. Please feel free to contact us through our Contact Us page or leave a comment in the comment box below and we will get in touch with you soon.

August 22, 2023October 10, 2023

React Native Apps and Cross Platform Software Development

Every business wants to grow, for that they need a robust information and data structure which can be used by their employees and customers. Businesses need to ensure user satisfaction by offering them a great digital ecosystem which enhances the digital user experience. Businesses use various software and applications to improve their processes, operational efficiency and to drive productivity and performance. That is not all, businesses always have several challenges, the tough competition, the ever increasing customer demands, the low performing teams and employees, and what not. When it comes to custom software development, businesses chose the solution which matches their technical requirements and also fits in their budgetary limitations. Businesses in Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi and other parts of UAE are well-aware of the impact of digital tools, software and mobile apps. However, most often businesses do not realize that they don’t need to acquire different applications for different platforms (which is very expensive), in fact they can have a completely customized software using the technique of cross-platform software development, which is most cost-effective way of launching your software or app to multiple platforms.

What is React Native?

The React Native is a JavaScript based framework and library to develop the frontend UI for software and applications. It is an open-source platform, which means it is free to use and it is developed by Meta, formally known as Facebook. The reason why it is so popular is that it enable developers to utilize native capabilities of the platform and develop cross-platform software applications while utilizing only React framework. This simplifies the software development process and enable developers to develop excellent applications for multiple platforms with very less time and efforts. Furthermore the software developers can easily utilize their JavaScript skills to work on React Native framework which minuses the learning curve. The React JS and React Native often confused with one another, however, both are different. The React JS is majorly used for developing websites and web-apps however, the React Native is a cross-platform software development framework which is built on top of React JS and it allow developers to develop applications for Android, iOS, MAC OS, Windows and a few other platforms. Furthermore the React Native can also be utilized for both frontend and backend development which make it superior from other counterparts.

What is Cross-Platform App Development?

The cross-platform app development is simply a method of providing your software, mobile application or web-apps to a diverse range of audience who are using multiple different platforms. This means all users from different platform would be needing same user experience, features, UI, etc. The biggest challenge of cross-platform software development is that a business would be needing multiple different teams to work on different platforms. Here are some cross-platform development tools:

Popular cross-platform development tools:

JavaScript: For website and web-app development
Kotlin: For Android app development
Swift: For Apple iOS app development
.NET: For Windows software and tools development

If you want to make your software and app available for all above platforms, then you will be needing at least 4 different teams to work on your single app/software. This could be very expensive, moreover it is difficult to manage multiple teams working on a same software or app. Furthermore each platform team will have different costing mechanisms, hence it would be difficult to meet release date. Later on, when you will be needing any maintenance, update or upgrade, your efforts and expensive would be multiplied to the number of platforms you are working at. That is where the React Native comes to play, it allow businesses to hire a single team and make cross-platform software development seamless and very cost-effective. The maintenance/updates are also easier and very less expensive.

Lear More: What Is Cross-Platform App Development?

What are the Benefits of Using React Native Apps for Cross Platform Development?

The React Native is rapidly growing on Stack Overflow and GitHub. It is widely adopted by businesses and organizations not only in UAE but all across the world. This also means that a developer can easily find community support and a huge number of ready-made plugins and scripts all over the internet which help developer speeding up the cross-platform software development projects. Here are some key benefits of using React Native apps and cross-platform software development for your business:

Quicker Development Process

Since you don’t require to have different teams working on your software for different platforms and only a single team can do that, the development cycle becomes shorter which also enables you to launch your apps quickly. Furthermore the React Native offers several features which help the programmers and developers to quickly develop their applications, and also it enables quick debugging and testing which makes development process much quicker than any other available framework. Moreover the code is also useable at several platforms which make development fast, it also reduce efforts to write code for multiple platforms and making changes to it. That is why the react native can effectively reduce the time and efforts of developing cross platform software.

Reduce the Cost of Cross Platform Software Development

The react native can greatly reduce the cost of your cross platform software development projects. Thanks to its ability to provide a reusable and compatible code for multiple platforms and reducing the efforts the time required to develop such mobile apps, web-apps and software has become very low. This also help reducing the cost. As less time and efforts are needed to develop a cross platform software, the cost is also low and since only one technology stack is required for the entire team, it is easier to find the skilled teams or vendors who can develop such software, apps and tools. Here in Dubai and all around the UAE the software development agencies, such as RSI Concepts and many others are offering highly cost-efficient software development services, which also impact the cost of your software development and help business get a highly cost-effective solution.

Support Multiple Platforms

There is a common impression among businesses and non-coders, that the react native is only meant to be used for Android and iOS app development. However, that is not true at all. The react native is a very useful platform with a wider range of compatibility. Businesses can develop applications and software which can be offered on Android, iOS, Windows, MAC OS, Websites and a few more. There is a huge online community support for the React Native platform and above all it is rapidly evolving and growing adding support for newer platforms and technologies. This means businesses and developers both can expect a sharp rise in compatibility and efficacy of the react native and its expansion to various other platforms. That is what makes react native much more superior than other such frameworks.

Native-like Experience and Performance

When it comes to platforms like react native, the biggest concern of the businesses is experience and performance. That was also true, but a few years back, not now. Now a days, there are so many advancements made to the react native core, and furthermore the Meta (Formally known as Facebook) has introduced a new JavaScript engine, Hermes, which enables static optimization and help reducing the app size. Furthermore the React Native can also render components to the GPU which is achieved by eliminating the gap between the JavaScript and the native components and results in high-performing apps. This enables developers to offer a native-like experience and performance by simply using react native and its advanced components.

Quick Debugging and Changes

One of the biggest advantage of the React Native is its features like hot-reloading, live-reloading and fast refresh. When making changes to the application’s source code or debugging it the developers will have to recompile the application, however, with the react native this isn’t require anymore. It means that the developers can see their changes immediately, almost in real-time without the need to recompile the entire application, which is a time consuming tasks. That is why the developers prefer to use react native, as it helps them make changes and refine their work without any extra effort or repeated tasks. Furthermore the new features of the react native framework are extremely useful in debugging typos, syntax and other common errors in the code, which makes it more productive and ideal framework for the agile development teams.

What are the Drawbacks of Using React Native for Cross Platform Software Development?

The React Native is one of the best framework available to this day for cross platform software and apps development. However, same like other technologies, it also has some drawbacks, although these drawbacks usually won’t impact a business, but in certain and very few number of scenarios these drawbacks could become problematic. Here are some drawbacks of using React Native for cross platform apps and software development:

Unlike native technologies such as Kotlin or Swift the React Native is based on JavaScript which is a dynamically-typed programming language. This requires developers to follow certain standards and rules in order to avoid bugs form the apps.
There are certain native modules which are not available in React Native, especially those are related to interacting with device’s hardware, hence when dealing with such functionalities the developers must have to insert native codes, which could also affect behavior and appearance.
When using a framework like react native for cross platform software development, the developers can never achieve the level of performance and integration which can be achieved using the native codes and APIs.
The operating systems of different platforms keep updating very frequently. However, the react native or any other cross platform app development framework is slow on adopting to new changes and introducing new features which are instantly available for the native apps.

There is a clear difference between the native app development and cross platform software development. However, frameworks like React Native are rapidly bridging the gap between these two. The modern versions of react native have already minimized a lot of problems, which makes it ideal for more than 90% of the businesses, there are only a certain sectors or businesses who still need to build native apps because they need sophisticated features and intensive hardware integration with their apps. Otherwise the react native is best for cross platform software development.

What are the Drawbacks of Using React Native for Cross Platform Software Development?

Conclusion

When it comes to mobile app development or customized software tools, the first thing businesses should consider is their needs. Both react native and the native app development has its own advantages and drawbacks. However, cross platform software development can significantly reduce your cost, efforts and time of development which is why most businesses are preferring it. The react native is also preferred choice of software developers as it is convenient, easy to use, debug, and it offers a variety of features which enable them to add advanced features to their mobile apps, and software tools. Furthermore the react native offers almost native like performance and experience. The developers can reuse the code, they can easily debug it and update it, and the overall efforts and development time can be greatly reduced. The react native framework is rapidly gaining popularity all around the world, the Meta is also introducing new features to make it better and the community support is also growing. All these are signs of a very bright future for React Native and cross platform software development. In this blog we tried to cover everything important about React Native and cross platform software development. This blog will give you a better understanding of cross platform and native apps. If you want to learn more or if you want our help to develop a native or cross platform app, please feel free to contact us through our Contact Us page or leave a comment in the comment box below and someone will get in touch with you soon.