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Rapid Mobile App Development RMAD Tools - Questions CIOs Ask

Rapid Mobile App Development (RMAD) tools let “citizen developers” develop and deploy powerful cross-platform mobile apps. More than half of all B2E mobile apps won’t be built by IT. Rather, they’ll be created by enterprise business analysts and citizen developers. They'll use rapid application software development such as low-code development platforms and drag-and-drop solutions.

Why are CIOs Reluctant to Use RMAD Tools?

This scares plenty of CIOs. Will the apps developed by citizen developers using rapid mobile app development tools be secure? Why bother with citizen developers, when CIOs already have highly trained developers on staff? Will these apps really run on a range of mobile devices?

George Mashini soothes the fears of CIOs and guides them in choosing the right rapid mobile app development tools. He publishes both in his blog, "The key questions CIOs will have about rapid mobile app development – and the answers." We summarize the questions CIOs ask about rapid mobile application development vs. native application development and the development process.

Knowing the Answers to RMAD Tools Questions CIOs ask can help soothe fears about how the technology will impact the organization.Are RMAD Tools Secure?

CIOs are concerned, above all, with security, and particularly data security. Native apps can have custom security features. CIOs worry that citizen developers without security knowledge will build web applications and mobile apps that risk t corporate data.

Mashini recommends, “As with any tool created to access enterprise data, an RMAD platform should use a closed security approach. A closed security approach ensures that only bits and pieces relevant to that person’s job will be accessible in the app’s user experience.”

Why Use RMAD Tools When There Are Plenty of Developers on Staff?

Many CIOs have a sizable development staff. They worry that they can face cutbacks if non-IT staff begin developing mobile apps. Mashini says that’s nothing to worry about. He says that RMAD tools can help IT staff, not hurt them.

Mashini writes: “RMAD platforms should be able to enable quicker creation of apps, but also have the flexibility and open architecture to integrate with standards-based approaches. It is unlikely that RMAD will replace all development in an enterprise. Rather, it should be viewed as a supplemental tool to help tackle the app backlog, increasing the pool of available talent that can create apps.”

How does RMAD Help CIOs prepare for future technologies and mobile devices?

In a fast-changing mobile world, CIOs want to make sure that they’re prepared for the future. How can they make sure that RMAD tools help build enterprise apps? Mashini says that they should make sure their enterprise choose the right RMAD tool, one whose code can be easily managed and that works with a wide variety of devices and platforms.

Companies are leveraging robotics, AI, ML and IoT more every day. It's important that CIOs, find new ways to build business applications faster than ever to take advantage of these innovative technologies. RMAD tools are one way to do that. The companies that innovate will be the ones that remain competitive and healthy.

What's the best RMAD tool?

The Alpha Anywhere low-code platform offers all the features that Mashini recommends in his blog post. It offers outstanding user interfaces, enterprise security and the future-proof ability to work with a wide variety of mobile platforms.

The Alpha Anywhere low-code software platform has built-in features that create web and mobile apps quickly. The apps can integrate to any data source, work with or without an Internet connection and leverage the latest mobile features. The apps speed work on smartphones and tablets and deliver outstanding user experiences. Developers can use Alpha Anywhere Community Edition for free to build all the apps they need.

Alpha Software also offers a no-code software development product: Alpha TransForm.  This app builder lets any user - even those without coding experience - craft data collection apps in minutes.  Users can turn any paper form or business process into a mobile app that works offline and captures images, audio and digital signatures on any smartphone.

The resulting data can integrate with any existing system, analytics software or even Excel or PowerBI. Try the Alpha TransForm mobile forms app builder for free.

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About Author

Amy Groden-Morrison
Amy Groden-Morrison

Amy Groden-Morrison has served more than 15 years in marketing communications leadership roles at companies such as TIBCO Software, RSA Security and Ziff-Davis. Most recently she was responsible for developing marketing programs that helped achieve 30%+ annual growth rate for analytics products at a $1Bil, NASDAQ-listed business integration Software Company. Her past accomplishments include establishing the first co-branded technology program with CNN, launching an events company on the NYSE, rebranding a NASDAQ-listed company amid a crisis, and positioning and marketing a Boston-area startup for successful acquisition. Amy currently serves as a Healthbox Accelerator Program Mentor, Marketing Committee Lead for the MIT Enterprise Forum of Cambridge Launch Smart Clinics, and on the organizing team for Boston TechJam. She holds an MBA from Northeastern University.

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The Alpha platform is the only unified mobile and web app development and deployment environment with distinct “no-code” and “low-code” components. Using the Alpha TransForm no-code product, business users and developers can take full advantage of all the capabilities of the smartphone to turn any form into a mobile app in minutes, and power users can add advanced app functionality with Alpha TransForm's built-in programming language. IT developers can use the Alpha Anywhere low-code environment to develop complex web or mobile business apps from scratch, integrate data with existing systems of record and workflows (including data collected via Alpha TransForm), and add additional security or authentication requirements to protect corporate data.

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