Much like the rolling boulder in the depth of Hades with which Sisyphus was ‘bestowed’, the digital world too has a Sisyphean task. It involves keeping up with the constantly rolling in trends across the enterprise software development front.

The only difference, in this case, is that while what Sisyphus had was a bane, the trends in the development of enterprise software are nothing but a boon. What else is it but a blessing considering how it helps businesses stay ahead of the game as compared to their competitors!

As each year rolls by, the trends undergo some updates. Some trends continue with their pre-set popularity, while some new ones are added to the list. As per the pros in the field, for the year 2021, the enterprise software genre will be zooming in on the following trends –

Enterprise Software Development Trends To Look Out For In 2021 Low-code / no-code development Artificial Intelligence (AI) Native and progressive apps Human augmentation Cloud computing Big Data Blockchain Continuous Integration And Deployment

While top software technology trends 2021 are the target of the read, there is just one stop that we need to make before that. It includes gauging the state of enterprise software in 2021. Let’s get rolling!

Status of  Enterprise Software Development in 2021

The enterprise software realm is ever-changing – yearly, monthly, or sometimes daily. By 2021, entrepreneurs can be dead-sure for some defining shifts that will shape the industry.

The 2020 predictions regarding enterprise software –

1. Enterprise application software (EAS) worldwide revenue of 2020 = 209.4 billion USD.
2. ES spending forecast for 2020 = 426 billion USD.
3. EAS worldwide revenue is expected to show an annual growth of 10.9% (CAGR 2020-25) leading a revenue market volume of USD 26723.9 million by the year 2025.

-all came true, giving way for the businesses to start thinking about how well they need to start investing in the enterprise software development front.

One of the major considerations in this aspect is to consider the promising trends that would star the show for 2021.

Here’s a lookout for the top 8 of such trends – heads up entrepreneurs!

Trends to Look Out For In Enterprise Software Development

Post the pandemic scenario, digital transformation evolved to become highly accelerated. More and more companies are urgently adopting the work from home facilities. And, hence, they are looking for technologies to support the same in the hope of an uninterrupted workflow.

Fact check 01: As many as 76% of the companies surveyed in the Coding Sans report admit that they allow their employees to work remotely.

Organizations are looking ahead to creating prominent attention on digital platforms. Simultaneously, there has been a significant shift towards developing applications with the help of –

1. Software as a Service (SaaS)
2. Platform as a Service (PaaS)
3. Serverless

Hence, we are looking forward to technical innovations that will play a crucial role in detangling the complexities. This is easily carried out by offering additional layers of abstraction.

Fact check 02:  According to the StackOverFlow study, JavaScript is the most popular programming language in 2020 followed by HTML / CSS and SQL.

The year will witness the surfacing of cutting-edge technologies that will power up the industry battle.

Here are some of the hailed trends across the enterprise software development front in 2021 –

#Trending 1: Low-Code / No-Code Development

Heard of drag-and-drop editors? They seem to fetch quite the popularity these days!

Fact Check 03: As per the State of software development report, an estimated 35.05% of the respondents said they’re not planning to use any new programming languages in the upcoming 12 months.

Much of the reputation of these kinds of editors is on account of the low-code development or the lack of it. Such non-programmers can develop and implement applications without any dependence on coding.

Walking into 2021, these kinds of apps and their development will gain further grounds. As of 2020, people with limited or minimum knowledge of programming are creating large projects via low or no coding methodologies.

The market for these kinds of non-programmers will possibly grow by 28.1% YoY. As per forecasts, this market will touch an estimated 45.5 billion USD by 2025 from its current generated revenue of 13.2 billion USD.

With low code app development of enterprise software, organizations can expect cost-cutting and less complicated projects.

#Trending 2: Artificial Intelligence (AI)

By 2020, the revenue of AI will possibly reach $156.5 billion, which is a 12% growth as compared to last year. Multiple businesses now, irrespective of the genre of their trade, have found their anchor in AI. The most prominent of the fields is cybersecurity because

1. It can spot malicious software and activity patterns to identify threats.
2. Conveniently detect questionable IP addresses and data breaches.

For firms targeting cybersecurity as their priority, AI is one of the major software development trends. This is also crucial when considering hyper-automation to boost the quality of day-to-day life and functionalities. Then there is also the topic of conversational IT providing benefit to the sales, marketing, and customer support teams of an organization.

#Trending 3: Native and Progressive Apps

Native apps were, are, and will be on the enterprise software development trends radar because of how businesses target smartphone users. The idea here is to enhance brand performance and hone the client experience significantly over native apps development in both iOS and Android platforms.

The wild card entry into this app development genre is that of the Progressive Web Apps or PWAs. Built upon the latest APIS, the PWAs designs are meant to offer a honed CX. Approach any of the top web app developer companies and they will tell you that PWAs come with a bundle of benefits that include –

1. Faster loading time
2. Ability to work on a device as a standalone window
3. Possess greater capabilities
4. Mitigate bounce rate
5. Enhance the possibility of the apps which become free from the restrictions of their browser versions.

As technology gets more bewitching in 2021, Progressive Web Apps – the future of app development will start to star the show in the coming years and reign the app world. In case you are a budding entrepreneur, or one looking to make a great return, post the pandemic outbreak, this might be just the approach for you.

#Trending 4: Human Augmentation

As and how time progresses, it is becoming steadily evident that augmentation has a promising future. Considering how it acts as an extended version of the humans (since it integrates with the human body), this is not surprising.

As enterprise software development trends go, human augmentation in its various forms – VR, AR, and MR are sure to get its peak of fame by 2021. Here’s a brief glimpse of what they are and their probable potential.

Virtual Reality (VR)

Have you noticed how the video and gaming industry seems to have had a mushroom-like growth over the last few years? Well, the growth rate has been an exponential one.

Much of this growth is owing to the enhanced boon of Virtual Reality. VR offers its users a 1st-person perspective and immersive experience from the advanced computerized visions.

As expected, multiple enterprises have already started tapping into their potential to overcome diverse challenges and issues in their genres of trade. VR is no longer the monopoly of the video and the gaming industries. It has found its utility across diverse genres that include the education and the training sector. Schools and other educational institutions have started making ways for introducing VR into their classrooms.

As far as the corporate houses are concerned, the story is no different there! 2020 showcased how the game plan for all organizations is all about user-centrism. For corporates, this is all that they require as an incentive to adopt VR in 2021!

Augmented Reality (AR)

Augmented Reality has been a hit in the year 2020 and is predicted to continue its hold in 2021 as well. Much of this technology’s success is owing to its utility across a majority of the architecture industries like retail, navigation, and manufacturing.

As and how Facebook and Instagram get layered with AR in the ad formats and filters, the trend has become undeniable and holds much potential for 2021. While the virtual makeover brings forth a completely different dimension, how can enterprise software development fall behind on this trend?

Mixed Reality (MR)

The perfect combination of AR and VR, Mixed Reality, or MR holds considerable prospects in the field of enterprise application development. As per predictions made in an Industry ARC market research report, the MR market will witness a CAGR of 73.% from 2018 to 2023, while its market size grows from $1.054 billion in 2017 to $9.982 billion in 2024.

MR brings out the best of the two human augmentation forms of AR and VR –

1. AR – the blending of digital content with the user’s actual surroundings
2. VR – the immersive experience created for the users.

As of now, multiple companies involved in the sectors of

• Tourism,
• Gaming,
• Defense,
• Healthcare,
• Architecture,
• Construction, etc.

-are tapping into the potential of the MR.

#Trending 5: Cloud Computing in Enterprise Software Development

When it comes to the topic of cloud computing, 2020 was pretty great. It is because there was an increased dependence of businesses on cloud servers for data safekeeping.

As the years roll in, cloud computing, will, well, let’s say it won’t be collecting moss under its rock. It will be evolving rapidly, catering to the changing requirements of its users and their expectations from cloud computing. This will enhance the functionality of diverse industries.

As and how enterprises opt to digitally transform their businesses for 2020 and beyond, the shift to the cloud becomes more mandatory as the best possible method to store data. However, with such migration to the cloud platforms, comes the evolving expectations that require new Cloud Technologies and enhanced robust security features.

Hence, Cloud Computing is surely taking that last stride as one of the top enterprise software development trends and walking into 2021.

#Trending 6: Big Data

Big Data has forever been the ‘elephant in the room’ a.k.a Great Power, Great Responsibility, for the enterprise all around the globe. As data became the all-powerful tool for all organizations, they experienced a substantial hurdle. This issue focuses on the proper tapping and utilization of data to gain the upper hand in business dealings.

However, recent times have taken consumers on an awareness journey wherein they are more updated about the security of their data and how they are utilized. It brings in the much-needed question of data security, sans which brands can never reiterate their credibility.

Taking into account this, Big Data has new plans for 2021, it seems – the inclusion of DaaS (Data-as-a-Service). The purpose of DaaS would be to eliminate redundancy by ensuring that businesses have access to the precise data required by users and at the exact time.

#Trending 7: Blockchain

Remember when Bitcoin caused the noise in the digital floor and made users sit up? Well, that was just the tip of the iceberg. Blockchain has much more to offer than just Ether and Bitcoin. Hence, a majority of the web development and designing companies are looking ahead to designing for Blockchain.

With Blockchain in the list of your chosen enterprise software development best practices, the peer-to-peer (P2P) network can offer

1. Decentralization
2. Transparency
3. A distributed ledger, and
4. Multiple robust security features.

The contracts that bank on blockchains are bestowed with a tamper-proof network, thereby reflecting credibility and transparency. Honing the quality of these contracts is the irreversible execution that leads to convenient administration.

As per a Cision PR Newswire report, the blockchain market, owing to its queued up benefits that include –

1. Disruption through decentralization
2. Identity management
3. Securing the Internet of Things (IoT)
4. Improving supply chain management
5. Better analytics

-is looking at a booming market spike to $57.641 billion in 2025 and a 69.4% CAGR between 2019 and 2025.

#Trending 8: Continuous Integration And Deployment

With this among the top 8 current trends in software development for enterprises, the latter has a shot at –

1. Making bug or glitch fixing extremely effective.
2. Enabling increased experiments and leniency in software development.

-and in a domino effect, mitigate the cycle of feature delivery by significant numbers. In –

1. Continuous delivery, there is processing of apps through testing.
2. Continuous deployment, updating of apps is an automatic process.

The testing of the code (the one added to a shared depository) ensures agile delivery. Such a speedy delivery process and the testing of the code relevant to the purpose is crucial because it helps the development team to chisel the functionalities and delivers products or services in a swift manner across a continuous cycle.

So, there you go, the top 8 trends across the development of enterprise software all sorted for you! While each of these trends come with their own set of unique perks, one needs to choose among them and settle for a few chosen ones that best cater to their business vertical. It would suggest accelerated enterprise software development in a post-pandemic world.

Such trends gift-wrap a brand for its impending success. However, there is still the final step – implementing the development trends. The best way forward with this is to opt for a web application development company that holds experience and expertise in this field. Here’s how the pros carry out the implementation process!

How to Go About Implementing Enterprise Software Development Trends?

For implementing the top software technology trends 2021 in enterprise software, the seasoned experts think of a customized approach to cater to specific business requirements. In this, they have the support of a well-thought-out blueprint of a strategy.

Step 1: Discovery

This is the ice-breaker step. Here, the R&D experts and BA of your chosen leading enterprise software development company meet up without your enterprise and stakeholders. The aim is to

1. Layout market research,
2. Conduct competitive analysis,
3. Think through the feasibility of the product.
4. Develop a multi-platform strategy that facilitates the convenient spotting of bottlenecks.
5. Settle upon the perfect tech stack to develop scalable apps that cater to your budgetary layout.
6. Sorting the perfect trends for the development of enterprise software.

Step 2: User journey mapping

The designers create user personas that offer an accurate representation of the business or technical constraints and the targeted audience. Post this, it is time for IA defining of the product to help prepare for the low fidelity sketches.

As our subject experts state, low fidelity sketches come in handy when dealing with accurate feedback to reiterate the strong points a  nd work on the weaker counterparts. This makes it convenient to go ahead with the high fidelity sketches and the prototyping stages.

Such a detailed, step by step approach, or agile sprint equipped endeavor ensures a lightning-fast UI. It aids users in making informed decisions considering their consistency across diverse devices.

Fact check 04: Scrum is the most often Agile Software Development methodology in 2020.

Step 3: Development

With the user journey mapping, the visualization part comes to an end. Now, the third step is all about the development of the software and the integration of the preferred trends for enterprise software development. The idea here is to develop a flexible backend and frontend that is equipped with robust security features.

To ace this step, our experts have dug up the utopic amalgamation of the Scrum/Agile software development methodology and the Waterfall software development methods to bring on the perfect software solution.

Step 4: Testing

The penultimate stage of the development cycle is all about testing. Considering the kind of importance that this step holds in creating glitch-free software, we consider a wide range of testing. It includes manual, unit, security, regression, and Google webmaster testing. As a result, we guarantee enterprise software solutions that surpass the preset benchmark.

This helps us in with our guarantees of an approved and bug or glitch-free application. Such enterprise software is potent enough to appeal to the users and offers easy maintenance and management.

Step 5: Ultimate Deployment

Coming to the final step of the process, what is a priority is a clear, transparent, and organized plan. Catering to this, we have designed a checklist comprising the best-possible practices leaving very little room for errors.

Our developers acknowledge the complexity involved and the crucial role played by KPIs in this step of uploading the developed enterprise software and live testing it.

Therefore we select a team of developers who are famed in their expertise over the suitable deployment tools and in the integration of servers. Despite the complete faith in our proven approaches, our team always keeps a Plan B to reverse any chance at adversities!

Fact Check 05: As of 2018 there were approximately 23 million software developers in the world, a number that is about to reach 27.7 million by 2023.

Conclusion

“It’s a bright, breezy Sunday morning. You wake up, cat-stretching all across your room, hug a cup of your favorite beverage, and pick up the newspaper. This is your time to skim through the front page reiterating a normalized global business flow and economy. Reading the paper cover to cover, now it is time to stretch your legs. You leave for a stroll, sans mask, sanitizer, and the incessant COVID-19 panic. The trauma has left the glove for some months now.”

That’s the post-pandemic world that we all dream of and touchwood. However, in that ‘Old Normal’ world, how will your enterprise software perform?

While the damned pandemic took away our social lives, it failed to have any impact on the trends for enterprise software development! They still keep rolling!

So, while you daydream about those procrastinated plans, here’s something you might want to start considering soon. Start acting on the implementation of the trends!

Reach out for expert consultations!