Top 9 Challenges of Enterprise Applications Development and How to Overcome Them

Enterprise applications development has to satisfy the requirements of a business organization rather than an individual. That’s a challenge to come up with this type of tool. It takes more than delicate planning and expertise. So it is no surprise that expectations are sky-high. If you’re about to join enterprise applications development, let us guide you in the right direction with this hands-on checklist we’ve prepared. Today OpenGeeksLab will show you how to handle various difficulties associated with enterprise apps.

Defining Corporate Apps and Mobility: Why Do They Matter?

Business applications development is crucial in solving different problems or accomplishing tasks more effectively. Enterprise apps (EA) are the heart of any company. Such tools should interact with each other and exchange data necessary for performing business needs. It makes enterprise software development a real challenge for many. However, these apps can boost productivity and efficiency.

Enterprise application development is the process of creating these tools. App examples include billing systems, customer relationship management (CRM) systems, and supplier relationship management systems. So in enterprise-level application development, each of these tools requires a flexible architecture. Staff can use various apps in different departments to maximize productivity, and some are used throughout an organization.

Enterprise applications development should involve mobile optimization. As Statista fairly admits, by 2021, there will be roughly 7 billion mobile users worldwide. That is why enterprise application design and development mobility matters. It enhances productivity by providing key info on the go. Corporate mobility is focused on client experience and employee performance.

Phones or tablets are popular in modern organizations. That is because of the new trend called Bring Your Own Device (BYOD). By integrating gadgets with cloud services, it is possible to reply to any query at any time, anywhere. It stands for increased time efficiency. The main pros of BYOD include:

1. Real-Time Data Analysis

It implies more effective decision-making. One can access the previous day’s outcomes, as well as real-time results from the preferred device.

2. Improved Resource Distribution

It involves order tracking in real-time. Workers obtain more assignments that boost efficiency and assist with meeting client needs. It increases overall profitability.

3. Effective Partner Participation

Corporate tools for mobile provide data that helps with the decision-making processes. It can boost productivity across the set value chain.

There are always two sides to the coin. As for pitfalls, BYOD is not associated with a high level of security and safety. The company loses visibility as its teams use a combination of apps to share or save corporate information. You need some well-protected enterprise applications development solutions so that none of your employees can steal important pieces of data and share them with third parties. Another drawback is that many organizations carry out enterprise application development slowly.

Interesting fact: Experts expect the global shared mobility market to reach 238.03 billion USD by 2026. Just for comparison’s sake, as for 2019, this figure was 99.08 billion USD. As you can see, it makes perfect sense to make mobile optimization an integral part of the entire enterprise applications development process. Other statistics prove its significant role, too:

• As reported, 67 percent of staff apply their devices at workplaces.
• In the United States, 69 percent of IT decision-makers share that BYOD is a benefit.
• Finally, 59 percent of organizations adopt BYOD.

Now that we’ve figured some basics, it’s high time to explore which tools come in handy to solve your company’s particular targets. Several types of corporate apps exist, and you should realize their purposes and perks before joining an enterprise applications development. Let’s have a look at each of them and reveal renowned competitive market players.

Basic Categories of Apps to Consider

Multiple factors impact enterprise application development and tools performance. From a software vendor to a tech stack, there are many decisions to make while building an app. Type of a project, time to market, scalability, maintainability, overall cost of development—you should consider everything before developing enterprise applications. The tools also differ by their features or purposes. What is the right choice for your business? Let’s disclose major types of corporate solutions to help you better understand that.

1. Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)

Many corporations maintain client bases, process orders, and do other routine things that encourage almost no info flowing between systems. As a result, you may obtain data with delays or mistakes so enterprise application developers should solve this problem. Hence, fast exchange of information is reasonably what every company needs for agile decision-making to satisfy customers. That is when ERP steps in. An enterprise applications development team aims to design a single database that minimizes and troubleshoots problems so that all teams can access the info even when entered once.

Enterprise applications development specialists design ERP systems to guarantee a full overview of the client base, automate various processes and streamline tasks across different departments. It is possible to integrate it with solutions like business intelligence (BI), customer relationship management, point-of-sale data. The most known providers include SAP, Oracle, NetSuite, and Sage.

2. Customer Relationships Management (CRM)

Marketing or sales are both bound by customer relationships. Meanwhile, human specialists can hardly keep an eye on every deal, opportunity, and client. What’s more, sales representatives might miss some crucial points. Here are enterprise application development experts who can help keep in touch.

What they need is a powerful CRM for tracking everything that relates to any interactions with clients. With a system at hand, you can see and manage all contacts in one place. Such an app displays any customer-related data and specifies communication channels that were used (for example, live chat or social media). Accordingly, technology allows planning and launching ad campaigns. And, what is most important, CRMs keep your leads safe, which makes business applications development a must. Other critical features include:

• Invoicing
• Task management
• Customizable reports for administrators
• Custom modules for the needs of individual unions
• Finance and accounting system integrations
• Facebook (FB) Messenger chatbot
• Full email integration

Also, remarkably, 91 percent of organizations with more than 11 employees are using CRM apps actively. The most popular providers cover Salesforce, Oracle, Hubspot, and Zoho.

3. Business Intelligence (BI)

Organizations should pay attention to and analyze data coming from different sources, such as human resources (HR), sales, marketing. It might take a while to evaluate data manually without tools like BI – another product of enterprise applications development. Thanks to inserted smart algorithms and data processing, business intelligence apps offer more-or-less accurate predictions.

The results pop up in the shape of visuals like charts and graphs. Experts should interpret them for further decision-making. Enterprise apps development solutions are often used in such fields as information technologies (IT), medicine, HR, and more. The basic providers include Microsoft, Tableau, Qlik, and Salesforce.

4. Human Resource Management (HRM)

Some companies underestimate the role of human resources. Recruiting talents is not that easy, especially when the applicant pool is extensive. Recruiters can minimize time and efforts yet maximize efficiency by applying special HRM tools. They help with more than estimating wages and hiring people. Developing enterprise applications in such a category is also a must because these tools assist with task planning and management, performance assessment, motivation programs, training, retention, and many more.

HR automation prevents specialists from wasting time surfing thousands of sites. They can, for instance, look for the specific buzzwords specified in the job vacancy to find suitable resumes, LinkedIn profiles, and/or cover letters. Smart HR tools speed up the process of creating job descriptions. It helps with setting up individual and team KPIs. The most distinguished providers of enterprise apps development in this category include Workday, Oracle, and SAP.

5. Supply Chain Management (SCM)

The basic phases of product life involve procurement, storage, shipping, and distribution. Many teams have to manage and control these processes to ensure successful product/service release and delivery. More suppliers stand for the higher chances are that teams will not cope without good supply chain management tools.

Enterprise applications development pros design SCM instruments to make sure everything is okay with supplies by assisting with collecting, saving, and managing info about manufacturing processes, orders, logistics, and other factors. These apps allow facilitating interaction between various links of the supply chain. The main providers are SAP, Oracle, Logility, and E2open.

With this impressive list of solutions, picking one tool can be quite challenging. But the truth is, every business needs all of them. A win-win strategy lies in picking a system based on your original processes and goals, both short-term and long-term.

Startups and small businesses, for instance, may benefit from free or cheap corporate tools. In most cases, it’s possible to try a demo version before buying a package.

Still, most companies have to make a vital decision: to come up with a custom tool or adopt third-party apps to modify how a business operates. To choose, it’s necessary to know the pros and cons of enterprise application development. So let’s take a bit of a deeper dive.

Why Enterprise Applications Development Matters: Its Benefits

By implementing various solutions, you can significantly improve business performance. Several time-tested ways to use such applications exist. Before discussing them, allow us to show you how you can benefit from developing enterprise applications:

• Increased business efficiency
• In-depth insights and analysis of staff and processes
• Detected opportunities and threats
• New effective ways to improve weak points
• Automated internal procedures
• Enhanced company’s flexibility
• Better staff performance and motivation

Enterprise web apps unite employees, encouraging all departments to function as one team and get involved in the lives of each other. Collaborating in real-time allows solving arising issues on the go with zero chance to procrastinate.

Business application software development is critical for building strong relations with customers and partners. They might expect you to answer within minutes as everyone hates to wait. Equipped with communication apps, you will have the necessary information stored in one place, allowing you to exchange data with your clients at any time.

As mentioned previously, certain challenges may arise during the enterprise application development process. Find out what you may face and how to cope with it.

Possible Obstacles on A Way to Effortless Custom Enterprise Application Development

Those who wish to get a new app for their corporate goals should bear in mind potential challenges. Get armed to teeth by reading our solutions to the most common problems.

1. Engaging Staff for Mobility

Many companies forget to place employees in the first place, leaving the objectives aside. They set up multiple targets, having no idea how to achieve them. Because of that, workers may not know their responsibilities. They may don’t get why they should use the products of enterprise applications development.

Solution: Find out what prevents staff from being more productive and motivated. Provide them with apps that will troubleshoot their problems. Show what your colleagues may achieve by using extra tools of enterprise-level application development. For example, the marketing department might be interested to discover how CRMs can speed up and improve work with clients. Developers, in turn, will find CMS tools useful to make the process of website building simpler. Overall, solutions enterprise application developers deliver can be beneficial in every department with the proper integration and training.

2. Changing Business Needs and Environment

It is hard to imagine a business that would be stable all the time. Some modifications take place as updates or new products are released. New staff also impact the way the company operates.

Solution: During the enterprise applications development process, one has to be both scalable and flexible. Think about possible modifications that could shape your project. Mention them during the process of enterprise custom software development so that a developer can add corresponding features. Remember: planning for failure helps sometimes!

3. Knowing Your Return on Investment

According to the IBM Services report, 62 percent of leaders in the IT industry achieve a return on investment (ROI) in less than 12 months if they choose and implement a proper mobile strategy. It means that 38 percent fail to do so. So what’s the thing?

Solution: To cover your expenses, define the top Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). Those are measurable values that show whether a business is achieving its targets effectively. While high-level KPIs stand for general performance, low-level ones deal more with separate teams and their goals (human resource, client support, accounting). Once you highlight KPIs at all levels, you will succeed in ensuring ROI.

4. Higher Level of Security and Safety

Security and data protection are an integral part of enterprise mobile application development. As new tools are added to business processes, you need novel safety measures. With each app integration, it becomes more challenging to defend corporate information.

Cyberattacks turn many organizations into a ruined image or even bankrupt. To avoid them, make sure that:

• All information is encrypted.
• Hacking detection instruments are in place.
• Anti-malware and authorization methods are used.
• Data is properly backed-up.
• Access to confidential info is restricted and protected.

Your enterprise app developers should guarantee the fulfillment of each of these points. Even more, you may need other tech experts, too.

Solution: A professional developer should be able to handle bugs within minutes. It should not be a problem for an expert developer to set up and activate the necessary protection elements and examine the systems to exclude any risks of cyberattacks. Thus, you shouldn’t expect less from developing enterprise applications.

5. Need for Scalability

Scalability is the basic advantage of enterprise web application development. Companies should avoid using too many instruments at once as it makes them dependent on third-party providers. Instead of combining the existing solutions, try to come up with your own one.

Solution: Ask your enterprise software developer to develop systems targeted to specific business needs based on your short-term and long-term goals. Such applications should integrate with any tools that you already use. If an enterprise app development team does its job well, it results in high scalability.

Solution: Ask your enterprise software developer to develop systems targeted to specific business needs based on your short-term and long-term goals. Such applications should integrate with any tools that you already use. It allows for high scalability.

6. Processing and Storing Large Amounts of Data

It is not enough to collect data; your company should also evaluate it to make certain conclusions. Another question is where to store those pieces of information. Two ways are known: in the cloud or locally.

The first one stands for keeping information on the manufacturer’s servers. This data can be discovered online by anyone with an access key. The company does not receive full control over the information stored. When stored locally, data is kept on the organization’s native servers. It costs more but is way safer.

Solution: Your company should choose a business applications development solution based on its demands. Most firms pick cloud-based data storage as it allows for higher mobility and speed.

7. Integration with Other Systems

How well do mobile enterprise application platforms interact? Is enterprise apps development properly integrated? If not, your company risks losing its chance to optimize performance and increase productivity. An outdated structure, which is a monolithic one, implies that functionally distinguishable nuances (for example, data input/output) are interwoven, without any architecturally separate elements. In case your company depends on such systems, integration seems an issue.

Solution: Examination and coding must cover new apps and a complete integration testing plan with every further modification. ERP might be the solution when implemented at the stage of enterprise-level software development. Another way to overcome this challenge is to initially lay the chance of integration.

8. Inexperienced or Unskilled Enterprise Web Development Team

Job applicant pools keep on extending. It becomes more difficult to choose people for your business, especially experts in enterprise mobile app development. Some companies hire individuals while others prefer teams of pros. When ordering ready solutions from enterprise application development services, you may get programs that will have many odd or useless functions. Third parties lack motivation to meet your business requirements in full. Without custom enterprise web software development solutions, you won’t get a perfect match for your company.

Solution: Partner with a trusted enterprise app development company. You may turn to offshore specialists after comparing rates in various countries. Also, you can reach out to someone your colleagues know or use freelance enterprise apps development services. The main idea is that your enterprise mobile app developers must demonstrate in-depth knowledge of the necessary programming languages, UI/UX design, and other things that make final products successful. Also, this company should provide you with an enterprise app development team that has decent experience in your specific industry and relevant technical and professional backgrounds.

9. Need for Quality Post-Release Support

Enterprise development software will fail without proper post-release support and maintenance. Many companies do not allocate sufficient funds for this stage. Without thorough examination, your app may contain bugs. Without testing and fixing them, it’s impossible to achieve success in developing enterprise applications. Other vital steps include regular content and tool updates, as well as new features implementation

Solution: By having a constant team of experts or one dedicated developer to maintain your enterprise apps development, preventing this problem is possible. Those who used to design and develop an app should understand how it works, so they are in charge of testing, fixing any bugs, and updating your system. Hire pros from enterprise application design and development services that provide a code warranty, obligating them to support your application.

Find Out How to Get Your App Fair and Square!

Business applications development assists with engaging and motivating staff, managing business, handling tasks, and boosting productivity. Given certain challenges exist, you can overcome them. The best way to achieve that is by hiring a professional enterprise mobile application development team.

We at OpenGeeksLab are known for delivering end-to-end enterprise applications development services. After all, our company has existed for six years and has long proven its reputation as trusted enterprise app developers. Are you looking for prompt, quality solutions for your business? Contact us today or click this link to schedule a free online consultation with our vetted specialists.