Enterprises in the Nordic countries are using next-generation application development providers to transform their IT infrastructures, stabilise their operations and improve customer satisfaction, according to a report published by Information Services Group (ISG), a leading global technology research and advisory firm.
The 2019 ISG Provider Lens Next-Gen Application Development & Maintenance (ADM) Services Report for the Nordics finds companies in the region embracing automation in their application development processes, with an increasing use of Machine Learning (ML) helping to identify and predict incidents. As the number of incidents decrease, ADM service providers are pushing the benefits to their enterprise clients by optimising costs and focusing on continuous quality improvements.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning algorithms are also generating cognitive and predictive analytics insights for Nordic enterprises, including automated business modelling and business process migration, the report states.
Nordic enterprises also are interested in agile development processes, but service providers must show differentiated capabilities to attract attention in the market, says the report. Many service providers are scaling their agile practices to drive organisation-wide agile transformation for their clients. Distributed agile teams are becoming popular in the Nordics, with distributed teams often delivering higher productivity and levels of commitment than collocated teams, the report adds.
“Application outsourcing has evolved from a traditional development approach into one using disruptive, agile-based operating models, making the core development model a direct competitive advantage for many enterprises,” said Jan Erik Aase, Director and Global Leader, ISG Provider Lens Research. “Enterprise client requirements are currently led by mobile and other emerging technologies, which are fuelling the transformation of the application services landscape.”
The report also sees a growing interest in low-code development among enterprise clients in the Nordic region. While low-code development is still new in the market, clients are interested because it enables faster prototyping and rapid deployment. Many service providers are partnering with or acquiring niche low-code vendors to enhance their agile development capabilities.
Nordic enterprises also are gradually moving towards continuous testing methods as agile development, DevOps and automation are becoming the new norms in the IT industry, the report says. Continuous testing is gaining ground as Nordic enterprises are demanding quicker delivery of applications. Enterprises are seeking service providers that can provide end-to-end continuous testing as a service, and many providers are investing in AI and Machine Learning technologies to enhance their continuous testing services.
