The global health crisis has truly affected the state of all industries — forcing various sectors and organizations to re-evaluate their operations, services, and products. Few organizations were actually prepared for the changing dynamics brought upon by COVID-19, so the first few months of the pandemic were filled with various reforms and restructuring to weather these tough times.
One sector that has been boosted by the health crisis is software development. As organizations and enterprises closed their physical doors, software developers helped companies transition into the digital space. Indeed, an impact analysis report by specialist recruiter, Randstad, notes that software development roles saw an 8% increase in volume — a true testament to today’s demand for digital solutions.
With that being said, let’s discuss two key trends in software development that we’ll encounter in a post-COVID-19 world.
More Organizations Will Outsource Software Development Tasks
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed how numerous enterprises and organizations don’t have the IT infrastructure and preparedness required to survive in a purely digital world. And as we’ve mentioned, many businesses have employed the services of software developers to create dedicated applications and programs.
While most enterprises would think to add software developers to their IT staff, it would be more beneficial for them to outsource their software development needs. Aside from being cost-effective, outsourcing software development means that your organization can access various industry experts for one-off projects. Furthermore, you can mitigate risks associated with developing applications. This is because most outsourcing companies already use superb project management systems, have efficient workflows, and can show solid proof that their products generate ROI. This is all the more important for businesses now, as any wrong decision can lead to devastating consequences.
Big Data Will Further Advance the World of Software Development
Big data’s contribution in ushering the convergence of products, competencies, and technologies has been extremely valuable, and the software development industry is one that can benefit the most from this technology. With quantitative analytics, developers can better understand what will work in a post-COVID-19 society, by studying existing data. The data produced during these distressing times will help developers create software that is tailored to current and future trends. Indeed, it's no surprise that many of the top careers in data analytics right now overlap with big data — with one of the most popular ones being big data engineers. These professionals are tasked to evaluate data solutions in companies and build data processing systems and warehousing solutions. They are also equipped with extensive knowledge in different programming and scripting languages. Big data engineers earn an average salary of $137,776 — a testament to their value in the industry and beyond. With big data’s ability to expose strategic changes that can raise the effectiveness and influence of software, it goes without saying that we’ll see more software developers work closely with big data engineers in the near future.
Software development has proven to be a key player in helping enterprises across all industries adapt to these challenging times. While we can never be sure of what we will encounter in a post-COVID-19 era, businesses can raise their chances of thriving in the "new normal" by making sure that their digital tools, software, and apps are suited to their customer base. For more articles on how the pandemic has altered key sectors like education and tech, be sure to visit our blog.