A just-released survey from Oracle outlines just how difficult life is getting for enterprises committed to mobile, and the kinds of pressures IT departments and developers face in transitioning to the mobile future. And its results make clear that if you're going all-in with mobile, you need to take a long, hard look at your mobile app platform's development tools to make sure they're delivering what you need.
Some of the most eye-opening results have to do with the accelerating pace of mobile app development, and the resulting high cost that entails. It found, for example, that "release and maintenance cycles are increasing, with 87 percent of respondents updating or releasing mobile applications every six months or less." As a result, "spending on IT support of enterprise mobility will increase 54 percent in two years." As for the precise costs, the survey found that IT spending per mobile device is currently $157, and will increase to $242 in two years.
The Cloud and Security
The cloud and security are high on the list of business concerns, with 75% of respondents saying that the cloud/hybrid cloud is either "very important" or "somewhat important" to mobile deployments. Some 93% of respondents were worried about data loss and security breaches.
And you may be surprised at where development time is being spent. The survey found that 29% of development time is typically spent on front-end mobile app development, while more than 70% of time is spent on integration, security, quality assurance, and design work.
The upshot of all this? You need to take a close look at your mobile development environment. Is it one that allows apps to be developed and updated quickly and efficiently? It is built from the ground up for the cloud and for offline access? Does it offer the best tools possible for design and integration - in other words, not just for code jockeys? If not, it's time to look around for a better mobile app platform.
You can read more about the survey here, and you can download it here (you'll first have to register with Oracle.)
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