Meeting Customer Needs with Product Line Management Services

The advent of  technological innovations has changed the technology landscape of the business environment. Today's software market with its  rapid transformation provides customers with cloud computing systems, mobile computing and consumerization of technology.  Further, the changes in technology also brings about demands for development of world-class software applications reshaping the industry horizon.  As a result software developers are continuously re-evaluating strategies and business models,  product line delivery channels and partnerships to ensure increased profits and a competitive edge.

A good way for enterprises to stay ahead of their competitors is to make innovations work on the similar product lines than diversifying.  A product line – a portfolio of closely related products with variations in features and functions,  rather than just a single product is what the customer-driven enterprises  target today. Product  line management  refers to the method of using  innovative marketing procedures to the existing product line and works as a powerful technique towards profit generation.  By managing a software chain and other allied products together, the enterprises ensure retention of their customers even with new products and services available in the IT market.

With enterprises driving towards maximizing profits, they tend to juggle between priorities such as maintaining current products or investing in new product range.  Sound advisory services can help enterprises take on these decisions based on  the technical abilities,  resources available, effectiveness of the process and the product lifecycle. Product line management relates to delivering products separately while maintaining a line of similarity.

The ever-changing customer demands and technological innovations facilitates development of new products. However, as new products or newer versions become available and are used by the customers, enterprises   need to eventually phase out the older versions or old products. As part of product lifecycle management , the end-of-life or end-of-service of any product is dependent on the economic requirements of the organizations, its business strategy to re-balance the resources or make products more cost-efficient. Leading service providers have developed software product line management services that can help the enterprises painlessly phase out the older versions of the products while maintaining the service bridge for end-users of the same.

Use of  product line management services benefits  enterprises in a number of ways. Besides  facilitating to manage the end-of-life initiatives of their products, it also helps to  reduce the costs in migrating to newer versions. Moreover, these services benefits the enterprises to maintain their revenue and profits of the product line, maintain end-user relationships through cross-market opportunities, reduces management issues, mitigates risks and eliminates the need to focus on product engineering and technical support.  With a focus on revenue optimization and modernization these services ensure enterprises have stepped up to retain their  customer.

Related Links: ecommerce solutions, distributed agile development

eCommerce Solutions to expand Retails through Online Channels

The eCommerce markets have come a long way and today it is more than just the simple B2C and B2B shopping portals. The explosive growth of Internet accessibility and the widespread adoption of social networking have changed the eCommerce scene for good. In the traditional online shopping model, the customers were silent participants. However, in the new shopping model, the consumers actively participate in the marketing and selling of products. Hence, the global eCommerce market is growing steadily with Goldman Sachs predicting a growth rate of 19.4% by the end of 2013. As per Goldman’ latest reports, the U.S. market will witness the growth rate of 12.4% during the next three years to reach $235.3 billion in online retail sales. According to Imran Khan, the managing director of Goldman Sachs, “E-commerce is benefiting from several positive trends, including the continued roll-out of broadband, increasing user comfort shopping online and the decline of certain brick-and-mortar retailers.”

Besides social media and social networking, the advancement of mobile application technologies has also brought a new channel to the retail sector. This is because the proliferation of mobile devices and mobile applications has allowed customers to shop directly from their phones. With eCommerce becoming the next frontier in global expansion, there is increased competition in the eCommerce market. Hence, a great customer experience becomes the key to gain a competitive edge in the growing eCommerce markets.

Today the eCommerce arena comprises of online, social, & mobile commerce, web portals for specialized services, and interactive advertising, to name a few. Therefore, to ensure increased customer experience, there is the need of a sharp user interface, secure data management, a solid POS, rapid performance and the ability to handle large amounts of traffic. Hence, enterprises must collaborate with product development services expert who can provide eCommerce software product development services that are fast, reliable, and cost-effective. Here is a look at some of the eCommerce solutions that they provide.

·         Online storefronts, catalogs and shopping carts
·         Web-based administration products for managing inventory, coupon codes and gift certificates
·         Point of sales (POS) and payment processing solutions
·         Web portals for travel, ticketing and event management
·         Online auction engines based on open source libraries
·         Websites optimized for user content generation
·         Location-based shopping services for mobile phones
·         Robust, scalable platforms for digital content delivery
·         Next-generation ad servers

Though today eCommerce sales are skyrocketing, there is the need of innovative eCommerce solutions to gain maximum advantage. Hence, enterprises must collaborate with reliable eCommerce solution providers to expand retails through online channels.


Related Links:  product lifecycle management, open source software development

Benefits of Innovative eCommerce Solutions

Online shopping and the eCommerce industry has boomed over the past few years with majority of consumers shopping online from books to bags. Previously, online shopping took time to thrive owing to the fact of authenticity. However, today consumers are no longer inhibited about this aspect as most shopping sites have been able to prove their product authenticity in the recent years. Therefore, what most consumers are looking forward today is an unique online shopping experience from the eCommerce and online sites that is simple, intuitive and user friendly. eCommerce companies hence are looking forward to innovative ways and solutions to enhance their service guaranteeing maximum customer satisfaction.

Today eCommerce means much more than the B2C and the B2B shopping websites. Owing to the prominence of social networking sites the conventional online shopping model has undergone a transformation and integrates active participation from the customers in selling and marketing of products. Furthermore, with the advent of mobile application development and advanced technologies a new channel has been introduced to the retail vertical that enables customers to directly shop from their mobile phones. The main objective of the eCommerce brands here is to gain a competitive advantage over other market players and ensure a satisfying consumer experience. This comprises of secure data management, sharp user interface, quick performance and the scope manage huge amounts of traffic.

Today leading product engineering companies have introduced advanced eCommerce solutions by working with various BPM workflow modeling (Appian, JBPM, OS Workflow) and reporting tools(Jasper, BIRT, Appian, Kettle, Microstrategy). This helps in offering eCommere software product development services that are cost-efficient in nature, consistent and fast. Other features of this solution include the following:

·         Offers online storefronts, catalogs and shopping carts
·         Enables a web-based administration products for efficiently managing inventory, coupon codes and gift certificates
·         Provides point of sales (POS) and payment processing solutions
·         There are web portals for travel, ticketing and event management
·         Provides online auction engines that are based on open source libraries
·         The websites are optimized for the user content generation
·         There is location-based shopping services for mobile phones
·         Provides a reliable, scalable platforms for digital content delivery
·         Offers advanced and next-generation ad servers

Leading solution providers of eCommerce solutions today have been working with leading industry players and developed innovative retail productions. The main focus areas comprise on online, social and mobile commerce, interactive advertising and websites for specialized services.

Related Links: product lifecycle management, retail store solutions

Delivering Predictable Quality through Independent Testing

Maintenance and delivery of quality products or services is the core ingredient that builds and upholds the reputation of your business. The quality assurance tests are critical processes that have to be dealt with precision and proficiency to ensure that the final product is foolproof. The engagement of inexperienced evaluators and engineers for quality testing is a risk that can jeopardize your business fatally. Standardized industry processes have to be followed and maintenance of high levels of integration and security is mandatory to qualify a product and consider it fit for use.

You will not be able to achieve your goals if you do not have professionals with industry expertise on board who use the latest technologies to perform the quality and testing process as per the market trends and give you a competitive edge. As the requirements and specifications of each industry is different these experts exhibit skills and knowledge that are approved by the industry for product development. They have the capability to provide comprehensive advisory services and constant support for the development of automated solutions.

They provide you with fully equipped labs for quality and testing activities. They have a vital responsibility of analyzing the requirements of your business and developing strategies, selecting the testing techniques and making adaptations, deciding the time frames and providing an estimate of the outcome of the process. They provide platforms for certification purposes. They determine the coverage and statistics metrics, set up the test environments, analyze use cases and create test cases, execute the test cases and analyze the results.

They are skilled in detecting defects, providing reports and solutions to fix the defects effectively. They analyze the test cycle results and collect the statistics. They prepare the test cycle status reports. These industry approved testing advisors impart valuable inputs in the areas of unit, multi-unit and system testing, user acceptance testing, functional testing, performance testing, user interface and usability testing, installation and configuration testing, security testing, localization and internationalization testing, products integration testing, regression testing and  technical documentation testing. They recommend innovative and improvised product development services with highly collaborative capabilities for an encouraging result.

The specialized advisory services are a strong support in your endeavor to achieve your business goals as they help identify opportunities that can render valuable effects. Their contributions towards the development of a competitive and quality product without any cost escalations help in leveraging the potentials of your business and ensuring productive returns.


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Software Product Development: From In-house to Outsourcing

A technological innovation that results in economic growth, business expansions and globalization occur as hardware innovations and development as well as software development. Software development, application development, software application development or enterprise application development, as it is commonly referred to is the development of a software product. Though the term is used to for the process of writing computer programs and maintaining the source code, in a broader sense, it includes all that is involved between the conception of the desired software through to the final manifestation of the software, through a planned and structured process.

Developed for a variety of purposes, Software product development includes the stages of research, new development, prototyping, modification, reuse, re-engineering, debugging, testing and maintenance, all of which result in a software product. Software can be either custom software for specific client or business, open source software for potential users. Embedded softwares are developed for integration into any physical product or activity.  Depending on the expanse of the software development cycle, organizations have also taken up near shore development services to facilitate the development process.  

However advanced the computer’s hardware and peripherals be, it relies almost entirely on the software for functionality and maintenance. The device driver is software that is installed on the computer to enable it to interact with the peripheral devices. Further, softwares are installed on computer systems to enable end users access. The software product development being a very innovative sector, there are a number of IT organizations that have forayed into software development.

The leaders in this sector develop computer software solutions for hardware and peripheral such as Networks, storage and value-added adapters, USB devices, Protocols, Operating systems and kernels, processor, Boot loaders, File system drivers and Printers and scanners.  The strong team of software professionals with their knowledge of embedded technologies and understanding of media processing, have earned credits for developing software solutions for all levels of the consumer electronics from Digital cameras, DVD to WiFi routers and android application services for mobile processors.

Irrespective of the industry sector, software product development has become a necessity. Be it the financial services, market which uses Business intelligence tools and dash boards for trading, investment planning and CRM applications or the Hospital industry’s Hospital information systems. With a wide range of organizational requirements, most organizations   prefer outsourcing the software development to teams conducting offshore development services. This not only ensures the client organizations innovative software based on cutting–edge technologies, but also provides home team to concentrate on more critical business issues.

Also read on -  ecommerce solutions, Advisory services

Developments in Mobile Application Development Industry

The mobile phone has become more than a necessity today. It has multiple utilities than just simple calling and texting. The internet boom and the growth of mobile technologies have added to the development of mobile application development. This means, today mobile workers are able to work from their mobile phones or smart phones when they are moving from one place to the other. Not only that, the online gaming industry depends on innovative mobile application technologies and makes business on the maximum download percentage.

Most consumers look out for high –end mobiles than just a basic model. They want a phone that would help them in computing when they are not in front of their desktops or laptops. This has resulted in several MNC’s to foray into mobile application development solutions. The scope to create better solutions and applications is increasing each day, as any software that is discovered today needs to be updated after a span of time.  As you venture into the market, you will come across several mobile operating platforms for instance Java, Symbian, Android, Windows, Blackberry and the like. The process of mobile application development works toward increasing the productivity level of a mobile.

Top software product development brands nowadays are equipped with the methodologies, tools and the required experience and knowledge that enabled them to establish mobile applications faster and in a cost-effective way. The focus areas are listed below-

• Location-Based Services (LBS)
• Mobile Media Streaming
• Presence & Social Networking
• Messaging & Syncing
• Mobile Advertisement & Ad Engines
• Mobile VoIP
• Gaming

Apart from these, the service providers also have the skill and experience of working with Level A companies and assist them with effective product lifecycle management solutions. Some of the selected mobile application support and development facilities provided by them are listed below-

• Developing mobile applications in J2ME, BREW, Android, iPhone, Symbian, Windows Mobile and BlackBerry
• Conceptualizing mobile applications and eliciting requirements, for instance UI design, prototype, wireframes, user stories
• Designing, developing and testing applications
• Porting mobile applications between platforms and devices
• Developing server-side and infrastructure, including for location & mapping services
• Integrating third-party components on the server side, for instance SMS/MMS, billing, feeds, ads, content and many others
• Integrating carrier, SMSC and billing systems, for instance LBS platform for location determination
• Coordinating with carriers and device manufacturers for mobile application testing and certification, for instance NSTL, Java Verified
• Launching and distributing mobile applications
• Carrier Catalogs and Storefronts
• Providing maintenance and support services

Today the mobile application development industry is a million dollar industry and is only expected to flourish and expand in the coming days, which will serve as a platform fort other companies to make profits.

Also read on - ecommerce solutions, Customer research

How to Efficiently Manage Distributed Software Development

Until management insists that product development work be planned and properly managed, effective software process improvement will not start. With an increasing number of system developments made from distributed sub-system software projects, this becomes even more challenging. Distributed software development has become omnipresent in modern enterprise environments. A software configuration management (SCM) system needs to include a common, dependable repository, be tolerant to network outages, support various environments with negligible administrative overheads, to maintain collaboration. It is difficult to visualize any considerable development project managed without a fundamental software configuration management (SCM) tool.

As early models of software development were centralized, every developer working on a project worked in the same place. Today there are global teams consisting of thousands of users, combined with newer methodologies such as agile development, resulting in processes that are both geographically dispersed and exceedingly interactive.  This requires a real-time exchange of source code, documents, and images between team members. To efficiently manage distributed software development, there are techniques and active participation required by team members.  Some of the other requirements for a distributed software development are;

Mutually Shared Repositories
Most of the software management tools that are available are internet enabled. These tools make it increasingly feasible for distributed software developers to get up-to-date information with shared repositories. The mutually shared repositories need to provide a consolidated, real-time view of all assets, their current states, and their development histories to all users. repository- centric tools like, product lifecycle management, change management, project management help to manage processes and offer integrated collaborative characteristics like messaging, threaded discussions, etc.  

Competent Network
The system needs acclimatize to provisional network outages in order to reduce the effect of the network as a restriction on performance and availability. For this the connection between users and the repository ought to utilize nominal bandwidth. To ensure that users do not feel the need to circumvent SCM procedures due to the amount of time required to check in or check out files, bandwidth efficiency is essential. For a user to work productively during an outage, network outages should be minimally disruptive and be simple for users to resolve changes made offline when connectivity is reinstated.

Adequate backing for multi-platform milieu
It is characteristic for large organizations to have numerous development groups working in cross-platform milieu. Additional challenges to deployment also arise from the need to integrate code, as organizations grow. There is also a surge in the data between groups that follow different development methodologies and use different tool sets. It is therefore necessary for a SCM tool to support all major hardware platforms and operating systems.

Latest forms of information exchange are offering inventive ways for distributed developers to collaborate. Distributed software development can be managed efficiently by utilizing the various tools that are available.

Also read on : advisory services , Ecommerce solutions

The Benefits of Open Source Software

Typically, the most reliable, secure and efficient software is usually under an open license and not owned by a company. Open source software was developed with the source code freely available to the public. It may be a unique way of developing software, but it is surprisingly common and effective. It can be downloaded by anyone, and the necessary changes can be made with the hope that any improvements made by individuals will be committed back to the main source tree, thereby benefitting everyone by the modifications.

The commercial replacement cost of free software is high and to deploy a commercial solution it would be necessary to trim back for a significant buy. Not all of the benefits of open source software deployment are in the form of cost savings. Most of the benefits are is in terms of capabilities gained. Some of the other benefits are

Security
Open source allows anyone to examine software for security flaws. The incessant and broad peer-review enabled by publicly available source code enhances security through the identification and elimination of flaws that can be missed. Gartner, recommends the open source Apache Web server as a more secure alternative to closed source Internet Information servers. The availability of source code also facilitates in-depth security reviews and audits by government customers.  

Fast deployment
With open source software consumers needn't wait years to deploy a solution. Open source software is predominantly apposite for inter-agency collaboration, rapid prototyping and experimentation and can be “test driven” prior to procurement. Both known and unanticipated users can be swiftly provisioned.

Reliability
As open source is peer reviewed software, it is more reliable. The infrastructure of the Internet is largely composed of open-source programs such as DNS, send mail, Apache and languages such as HTML and Perl. They have proven to be both reliable and robust under the most strenuous conditions, like the fast growth of the Internet.

Low-cost
Open source software is often developed through community forums and collaborative. Developers volunteer their time and expertise, and are coordinated by fewer paid programmers. The lower overhead costs translates into substantial savings, as does the fact that open source software typically does not have a per-seat licensing cost. According to Gartner, open source is even more attractive to businesses during tough economic times.

Lower virus vulnerability
Traditionally, an open source OS's have fared better than other operating systems. A virus infection on a network server can be devastating in terms of data loss, down time, and staff time required for reconstruction. Open source servers that are less vulnerable to virus infections provide cost savings in terms of diminished liability in these areas.

Open Source Software may not provide a solution for every computing requirement, but it is a well established part of the computing ecosystem that plays a critical role in Internet and business infrastructure that enables companies to access expert resources and components that accelerate software product development  and release processes.

Also Read on:  Ecommerce solutions, Mobile application development

The Benefits of Open Source Software

Typically, the most reliable, secure and efficient software is usually under an open license and not owned by a company. Open source software was developed with the source code freely available to the public. It may be a unique way of developing software, but it is surprisingly common and effective. It can be downloaded by anyone, and the necessary changes can be made with the hope that any improvements made by individuals will be committed back to the main source tree, thereby benefitting everyone by the modifications.
The commercial replacement cost of free software is high and to deploy a commercial solution it would be necessary to trim back for a significant buy. Not all of the benefits of open source software deployment are in the form of cost savings. Most of the benefits are is in terms of capabilities gained. Some of the other benefits are

Security
Open source allows anyone to examine software for security flaws. The incessant and broad peer-review enabled by publicly available source code enhances security through the identification and elimination of flaws that can be missed. Gartner, recommends the open source Apache Web server as a more secure alternative to closed source Internet Information servers. The availability of source code also facilitates in-depth security reviews and audits by government customers.  

Fast deployment
With open source software consumers needn't wait years to deploy a solution. Open source software is predominantly apposite for inter-agency collaboration, rapid prototyping and experimentation and can be “test driven” prior to procurement. Both known and unanticipated users can be swiftly provisioned.

Reliability
As open source is peer reviewed software, it is more reliable. The infrastructure of the Internet is largely composed of open-source programs such as DNS, send mail, Apache and languages such as HTML and Perl. They have proven to be both reliable and robust under the most strenuous conditions, like the fast growth of the Internet.

Low-cost
Open source software is often developed through community forums and collaborative. Developers volunteer their time and expertise, and are coordinated by fewer paid programmers. The lower overhead costs translates into substantial savings, as does the fact that open source software typically does not have a per-seat licensing cost. According to Gartner, open source is even more attractive to businesses during tough economic times.

Lower virus vulnerability
Traditionally, an open source OS's have fared better than other operating systems. A virus infection on a network server can be devastating in terms of data loss, down time, and staff time required for reconstruction. Open source servers that are less vulnerable to virus infections provide cost savings in terms of diminished liability in these areas.

Open Source Software may not provide a solution for every computing requirement, but it is a well established part of the computing ecosystem that plays a critical role in Internet and business infrastructure that enables companies to access expert resources and components that accelerate software product development  and release processes.

Also Read on:  Ecommerce solutions, Mobile application development

Challenges in Outsourced Product Development

The initial challenges which a company looking to outsource product development for the first time faces and tries to put to rest some of the myths associated with these challenges.

Longevity of the product team with the development partner

Myth:It is difficult to motivate and retain crucial team members for long in the team. They tend to move out by the time they acquire enough expertise to contribute effectively.

Reality: Yes, and No. No if you choose the right product development partner. Offshore companies focused on product engineering services have realized that longevity of team members in the team is a very crucial factor in making any relationship successful. In contrast to companies doing traditional outsourced software; these companies understand that the onus for a long term commitment lies with them and not the customer. They understand the fact that a team member who has spent 2 years with the product becomes nearly inseparable with it. For this reason, they have their compensation and bonus policies focused on retaining key team members for long in the same project. Moreover, with employees in different cultures being driven and motivated by different factors, it might also help to retain a project/people manager offshore so that he/she can take the right actions to motivate the team and keep it intact.

Processes used for development and project management
Myth: The software engineering vendor would have separate set of processes than we have, and we would have to embrace them to effectively work with the vendor.

Reality: It is the software engineering vendor who aligns it with the partner's processes so that the partner does not
feel any difference while working with them Outsourced Product engineering companies make it possible by create mini organizations inside called VODCs (Virtual Offshore Development Centers), one for each partner that they work with. The processes and functioning of this VODC is exactly similar as the vendor would have done onsite on its own, including processes for development, project and people management and time and expense reporting.

Visibility in product roadmap
Myth: Vendor teams are better managed by providing work on daily basis

Reality: Providing a long term visibility in the product roadmap helps the vendor teams to focus on work effectively and utilize resources better. Moreover, this reduces the overhead of the management team member at the partner's location.

Communication
Myth: With the product visionary team onsite and the implementation team with the Ecommerce solutions vendor, it is difficult to communicate and share product ideas and vision. Day to Day project related communication may not be interpreted or captured correctly.
Reality: Product Engineering vendors realize the challenges that exist in doing distributed product development. To ensure quick and accurate communication, they are geared up with the state of the art facilities when it comes to E-mail, IM, phone, VOIP, fax, integrated development environments and Video/Audio conferencing. Product Engineering teams are available most of the time on published hours on Email/IM and Phone. All project related unstructured discussion (on phone/IM) is always followed up with a more formal and structured manner on email, so that the teams are in sync with each other.

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product lifecycle management