Collaboration efforts improve development processes

Creating a piece of software is a challenging process, but one that is necessary for businesses to grow and innovate operations. If developers attempt to build an application solo, it could lead to significant problems and may not meet user needs. However, by allowing collaboration efforts in app development, organizations can not only ensure that they are suiting employee demands and streamlining procedures, but also reduce the time to market and lessen the amount of bugs within the program upon release.

Whether building programs with HTML5 widgets or Jquery components, there will always be some limitations as to what a developer can and cannot do with their coding knowledge. This gap could make developers miss out on substantial opportunities to create an app that can be leveraged effectively in the business environment. According to a report from the Linux Foundation, more companies are using an approach that shares resources to broaden code bases and, in turn, enable unique products to be developed. These methods were a strategic part of many business operations for nearly 80 percent of respondents. The advantages of a collaborative effort can be easily seen with faster market releases and experimentation with new tools. As these benefits become more of an asset, developers must be able to work well together and be willing to utilize different practices than they may be used to.

"This is the new way the industry works together," Foundation executive director Jim Zemlin said, according to InfoWorld. "We don't go to standards-setting bodies. Interoperability comes from working code built under the auspices of large- scale development projects."

Deriving agile from collaboration
With new tools and skills in hand, developers that are working together can better react to potential issues and create an agile development environment. However, some decision makers believe that agile processes are more risky than waterfall methods, according to FierceGovernmentIT. The fact is, waterfall approaches can often end in failure if deviations need to be made from the project requirements, making agile more likely to be successful as it doesn't rely on preordained rules. While some developers may start out with a more traditional strategy, as budgets dwindle and the deadline approaches, most tend to switch over to an agile approach that will help see the project through to the end.

"Requirements risk is one of the biggest categories we have in our programs, and Agile approaches are designed to mitigate that risk," industry expert Mark Schwartz told FierceGovernmentIT.