Business
How many people does it take to build an app?
It takes a village to develop an app.
Even basic applications have multiple integrated functions, from accepting input from the user to displaying information on the screen, that require different skill sets to develop and put together.
Even if just one person writes most of the code to run an app, that work is based on others’ efforts in designing user-friendly interfaces, mobile device platforms for it to run on, and creating behind-the-scenes systems to allow developers and others to learn from how people use the app.
The professionals accomplishing these tasks share the goal of a useful, usable application—but each has different ways to contribute.
Feats compiled a list of the roles behind app development from a variety of expert sources, exploring what their different processes are and how they contribute to an app’s success. It’s not an exhaustive list–some apps may have smaller or larger teams depending on their complexity and require supporting staff like lawyers and accountants. Read on to understand the core professionals who make up a typical app development team.
REDPIXEL.PL // Shutterstock
Mobile developer
Mobile developers are responsible for building, testing, and maintaining new and existing applications. These developers work to ensure that there are versions available for all phone users, whether in the Google Play store for Android users or Apple’s App Store for iOS users.
They also build or integrate with what are called “application program interfaces,” or APIs, to help apps work with websites and with other apps to provide whatever service is required. For instance, a ride-sharing app must communicate with a database of available drivers, an online map, and a credit-card payment system. That way, users have a seamless experience when accomplishing whatever task they are using the app for. They also need to test the app to identify potential problems or malfunctions and ensure that the app is updated as needed.
Elle Aon // Shutterstock
Backend developer
Much of the function of a mobile app doesn’t actually happen on the mobile device, which doesn’t have much computing power or capacity to store and process large amounts of data. Only very few apps do everything they need on the phone itself, and they don’t do much.
Most of the work happens on what is called the backend, usually hosted in a highly interconnected data center or ‘cloud’. A backend developer focuses on the systems the mobile app connects to—the servers that contain, say, the list of active drivers and the map. The backend developer also handles data verification, security, and storage: anything that doesn’t happen on the phone itself.
Backend developers’ behind-the-scenes work is critical to ensure the app actually functions as users expect.
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
Developer operations specialist
A developer operations specialist helps programmers collaborate with specialists on other technologies, like data communications or specific pieces of hardware the app will use. They often help create and maintain a smooth workflow across all members of the team, which makes app development faster and more reliable.
These people are critical thinkers who support the management and implementation of systems and tools that improve the workload and efficiency of developers. Many developer operations specialists are experienced software engineers who build on their own knowledge to improve the process for others.
Jat306 // Shutterstock
User experience specialist
User experience, or UX, specialists research and survey users and their behavior to more closely adapt the app’s services to people’s needs. Their focus is on improving how people engage with the app, how easy they find it to use, and how effective it is at accomplishing what people expect of it.
Much of their work revolves around testing to ensure an app will respond in meaningful ways when people start to use it. These tests are performed by sending out different versions of an app and then monitoring how people use it, adjusting and streamlining the functions over time. User experience specialists are primarily concerned with how the app feels to a user and seek a consistent interface. They also work with UI specialists who develop user interfaces and designers to make apps more usable.
Antlii // Shutterstock
Designer
The designer usually works with the user experience specialist to gather requirements from data analysts, business partners, and end users to determine what app functions will be most effective, most intuitive, and most likely to connect with users.
Designers work closely with developers to ensure their vision is realized as accurately as possible, both in terms of visual appearance and functionality. Beyond the appearance of the app on a screen, designers map out how the service the app is meant to provide fits together with database design, programming, and other tasks. Designers with more technical experience also determine the best programming solution to meet the app’s business requirements.
Konstantin Savusia // Shutterstock
Quality assurance specialist
Apps, like any software, are prone to bugs, malfunctions, and other problems like data breaches. Quality assurance specialists focus on minimizing these and other risks, which can save the company behind an app money, time, and face.
They work hand-in-hand with developers to seek out, identify, and fix any bugs or errors. They run continuous tests to ensure that all aspects of it perform properly and securely. This includes both manual testing by using the app on various devices, as well as automated tests that use software to simulate user behavior.
NicoElNino // Shutterstock
Project or product manager
Project management is essential to successful app development. In companies where the app is the product, the overall project manager is often a product manager, who may have one or more project managers working with them.
Early on, a project manager helps a team identify goals and focus efforts on specific tasks. Project managers also put together budgets of time and money that will allow for a smooth and efficient development process.
As an app is being developed, these managers ensure team members have the time, equipment, or training they need to meet the schedules and the overall work plan. And they adapt that plan to accommodate unforeseen problems or opportunities.
Project managers also have the responsibility of explaining why and how they planned and budgeted to corporate executives. They analyze and report on each stage of an app’s design, development, testing, and deployment, to improve future versions of the app and the process for any future apps the company might develop.
This story originally appeared on Feats and was produced and
distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio.
Whether a startup is successful in its first year depends on a variety of factors—from industry type and location to funding and money management strategies. PlanPros investigated what it takes for a business to make it through its first year—a milestone that 1 in 5 companies don’t achieve.
Entrepreneurship is a core tenet of American culture. As many as 55% of Americans have started at least one business in their lifetime, according to a 2019 survey by the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor consortium at Babson College. In fact, there are over 33 million small businesses—which have fewer than 500 employees—in operation today according to estimates from the Small Business Administration. However, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that since 1994, about 20% of new businesses have not survived their first year.
The success of a small business affects more than just the business owners’ livelihood. According to the SBA Small Business Facts Report, small businesses are responsible for 2 in 3 jobs created in the past 25 years. Additionally, the SBA estimates that small businesses are responsible for about 44% of all economic activity in the United States.
Market research
According to a 2022 Skynova survey of 492 startup founders, 58% said they wished they had done more market research before starting their business. Put simply, market research involves evaluating how likely a product or service is to be received well by its intended customers.
Where a startup is based can have a significant effect on its finances. Business taxes vary across states, as does the availability of various government grant and loan programs designed to aid small businesses. Residents’ purchasing power also ranges geographically. The first-year failure rate for small businesses by state ranged from 18.2% to 36.6% in 2019, the most recent data available—California had the lowest first-year failure rate, while Washington-based startups faced the highest first-year failure rate.
Startups can face certain advantages and disadvantages depending on the nature of their industry as well. According to the Small Business Funding lending agency, small businesses in the health care industry have the highest chance of surviving to at least their fifth year at 60%. Conversely, small businesses in the transportation industry have the lowest chance of surviving through their fifth year at 30%.
Funding and well-managed cash flow
The primary reason new businesses fail is due to a lack of cash or available financial support in its absence, according to the aforementioned Skynova report. In 2022, 47% of startup failures were attributed to a lack of financing or investors, while running out of money contributed to 44% of failures in the same year. A 2019 study funded by the SBA of 1,000 startup small business owners attributes 82% of startup failures to cash flow problems and mismanagement. These data point out the importance of adhering to a strict budget and limiting expenses as much as possible in the first year.
It is also important to identify potential sources of funding or support in advance of any immediate need. This can help prevent running into unsustainable growth. Many government programs exist to help startups survive, including state and federal grants, some of which are designated for certain demographics and industries.
Even after a business is fairly well established, it is important to monitor cash flow closely. Businesses need to survive well beyond just the first year. According to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, roughly half of small businesses fail within five years. After 15 years, about 3 in 4 small businesses will have failed.
But the end of a company is not necessarily the end of entrepreneurship for every small business owner. A study by University of Michigan and Stanford economists suggests that business owners who start a second business after their first failures are more likely to succeed on their second attempt.
Story editing by Jeff Inglis. Copy editing by Tim Bruns.
Spending for in-person and online goods and services has moderated over the past year after seeing outsized growth during the early years of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The decline in sales growth has forced some retailers to roll out discounts. Others warn sales could drop further as consumers feel the squeeze of college debt payments returning this fall and still-rising prices for everything from weekly groceries to back-to-school clothing.
Shopdog analyzed spending data from the Census to illustrate consumers’ reaction to inflated prices and higher borrowing costs in 2023.
Retail sales data can offer broad inferences about the spending habits of consumers in the U.S. economy and can serve as an indicator of economic health. Business leaders and Federal Reserve officials watch the data closely for signs that consumers could be struggling with their finances.
The COVID-19 pandemic and job loss caused the economy to contract rapidly and enter a recession, briefly hurting retail sales. With the help of stimulus checks and enhanced unemployment payments, Americans bounced back—and bought a ton of stuff: sporting goods, electronics, furniture, and new homes. And as COVID-19 vaccines rolled out, consumers shifted to spending on previously delayed travel.
Throughout 2021, a flood of stimulus money and rapidly rising profits contributed to a red-hot economy in which prices were rising faster than at any time since the 1980s. By 2022, Federal Reserve officials began raising interest rates in an attempt to cool down rising prices. So far in 2023, growth in sales has started to slow as consumers muddle through an increasingly expensive world.
Dom DiFurio // Shopdog
Pandemic boom in the rearview as inflation erodes spending power
Census data shows retail sales growth has slowed since federal officials began taking their fight against inflation seriously last summer.
Overall inflation was still elevated at 3.2% year over year in July, stubbornly higher than the 2% goal Federal Reserve officials want to achieve. The Fed began raising its benchmark interest rates in April 2022 to make it more expensive for consumers and businesses to borrow money for things like new business, a home mortgage, or a new vehicle.
When the Fed raises its interest rates, banks follow. A monetary policy like this aims to slow down an economy flush with cash so prices grow slower. It’s a policy experts argue causes necessary pain for consumers in the short term to avoid perpetual inflation in the long term.
So far, the Fed has seen inflation cool from a modern high of 9% last year, but in late August, officials said they need to see it decrease further before they pause rate hikes.
Dom DiFurio // Shopdog
Online retail spending is up 7.5% over summer 2022
Even as overall spending flattens, Americans’ online shopping habits have reverted to pre-pandemic trends. Consumer spending has steadily shifted from retail to e-commerce since Jeff Bezos had the idea to sell books online in 1994. That steady growth got a big boost in 2020 when online shopping often became the only way to spend money.
After correcting downward as shoppers ventured out of their homes, the portion of retail sales happening online is growing again at pre-pandemic rates despite the overall challenges faced by consumers.
However, signs are emerging from retailers that the typical American may be unable to keep spending on goods and services the same way in the second half of 2023.
QualityHD // Shutterstock
Stalled spending growth is cold comfort for nervous small retailers
Retail giant Walmart is raising its profit expectation through the end of the year, reporting gains in e-commerce sales. However, their projections starkly contrast with others in the retail space that are beginning to report gloomy forecasts.
Big sportswear retailers such as Dick’s Sporting Goods, which usually benefit from a surge in sales during back-to-school season, have cut their profit expectations for the rest of the year.
And optimism is low, according to a 2022 industry report by the National Federation of Independent Businesses, which represents the interests of America’s small businesses. Most small businesses believe the country is already in a recession despite no official call by the National Bureau of Economic Research, and they expect lower sales through the end of the year.
Story editing by Ashleigh Graf. Copy editing by Kristen Wegrzyn.
This story originally appeared on Shopdog and was produced and
distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio.
Entrepreneurship emerged in a big way over the past three years, and founders are not slowing down.
To get a more comprehensive view of where new businesses may have the most impact in coming years, PlanBuildr used Census Bureau data to find the county in each state with the most business applications per capita in 2022.
Business applications have fallen from highs in 2021 but remain well above pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels at over 400,000 applications per month. There were a little under 5.1 million business applications in 2022, compared to a record-breaking 5.4 million in 2021 and 4.4 million in 2020. Through June, there have been 2.65 million applications, meaning 2023 is on pace to rival the 2021 spike.
Prior to the pandemic, entrepreneurship had been in a lull for decades. In 2018 and 2019, a typical month would see fewer than 300,000 business applications, and in prior years the levels were even lower, Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows. Now, entrepreneurs aren’t letting fears of a recession stop them. In July 2023 alone, more than 469,000 people applied for employer identification numbers—the primary way the government measures small business applicants—marking a 0.5% increase from June.
Additionally, small businesses and startups continue to grow jobs, increasing overall employment despite high-profile layoffs at larger corporations. Nearly half of all workers have jobs at small firms, so continued entrepreneurship keeps the job market strong. What’s more, the pioneering spirit keeps overall economic productivity strong.
Business owners told the New York Times their experiences in the pandemic had “recession-proofed” their businesses. Now they know how to pivot and survive while financially strapped. But interest rates are up, and investors have pulled back, raising the stakes for new business owners.
Groundbreaking companies, like Uber and Airbnb, have emerged from past recessions. While consumers may be more hesitant, hiring is typically easier, and business costs are less expensive amid downturns. From offering new products to creating jobs to upholding economies, new businesses create ripples across their communities.
Read on to see which county in your state saw the most businesses set the groundwork to build their legacies. The data used on new business applications are tallied from applications for employer identification numbers from the Census Bureau. States and counties that allow business owners and operators to incorporate without residing locally may have inflated per capita numbers. Counties with fewer than 1,000 residents were excluded from the analysis.
Canva
Alabama: Mobile County
– 2022 applications: 9,792 (23.8 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 8,782 (21.3 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Alaska: Skagway Municipality
– 2022 applications: 29 (26.8 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 10 (8.8 per 1,000 residents)
Sean Pavone // Shutterstock
Arizona: Maricopa County
– 2022 applications: 83,305 (18.3 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 83,458 (18.6 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Arkansas: Phillips County
– 2022 applications: 328 (21.4 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 347 (21.9 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
California: Alpine County
– 2022 applications: 21 (17.6 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 23 (18.6 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Colorado: Pitkin County
– 2022 applications: 671 (39.8 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 727 (41.9 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Connecticut: Western Connecticut Planning Region
– 2022 applications: 11,118 (17.8 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: Not available: Prior to 2022, data were collected for Connecticut’s former counties rather than its new planning regions. (0.0 per 1,000 residents)
Nagel Photography // Shutterstock
Delaware: Kent County
– 2022 applications: 12,961 (69.3 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 11,552 (62.7 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Florida: Miami-Dade County
– 2022 applications: 127,895 (47.8 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 136,137 (51.0 per 1,000 residents)
Brett Barnhill // Shutterstock
Georgia: Fulton County
– 2022 applications: 50,118 (46.6 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 60,986 (57.4 per 1,000 residents)
pikappa51 // Shutterstock
Hawaii: Maui County
– 2022 applications: 2,778 (16.9 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 2,935 (17.8 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Idaho: Teton County
– 2022 applications: 298 (23.8 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 308 (25.1 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Illinois: Cook County
– 2022 applications: 93,690 (18.3 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 118,523 (22.9 per 1,000 residents)
Sean Pavone // Shutterstock
Indiana: Marion County
– 2022 applications: 22,226 (22.9 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 25,352 (26.1 per 1,000 residents)
stivanderson // Shutterstock
Iowa: Jefferson County
– 2022 applications: 221 (14.1 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 225 (14.3 per 1,000 residents)
TommyBrison // Shutterstock
Kansas: Lane County
– 2022 applications: 45 (28.9 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 22 (14.0 per 1,000 residents)
f11photo // Shutterstock
Kentucky: Jefferson County
– 2022 applications: 12,082 (15.6 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 12,973 (16.7 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Louisiana: Orleans Parish
– 2022 applications: 9,408 (25.4 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 12,809 (34.0 per 1,000 residents)
Joseph Sohm // Shutterstock
Maine: Cumberland County
– 2022 applications: 3,670 (11.9 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 3,803 (12.4 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Maryland: Garrett County
– 2022 applications: 748 (26.2 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 579 (20.1 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Massachusetts: Nantucket County
– 2022 applications: 433 (30.0 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 344 (23.7 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Michigan: Wayne County
– 2022 applications: 39,328 (22.4 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 47,565 (26.8 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Minnesota: Cook County
– 2022 applications: 94 (16.5 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 81 (14.4 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Mississippi: Coahoma County
– 2022 applications: 774 (38.3 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 754 (36.4 per 1,000 residents)
Sean Pavone // Shutterstock
Missouri: St. Louis city
– 2022 applications: 6,422 (22.4 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 7,803 (26.6 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Montana: Flathead County
– 2022 applications: 4,219 (37.7 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 3,521 (32.4 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Nebraska: Boyd County
– 2022 applications: 33 (19.0 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 18 (10.1 per 1,000 residents)
randy andy // Shutterstock
Nevada: Clark County
– 2022 applications: 49,369 (21.3 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 55,475 (24.2 per 1,000 residents)
Wangkun Jia // Shutterstock
New Hampshire: Rockingham County
– 2022 applications: 3,582 (11.2 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 3,559 (11.2 per 1,000 residents)
Mihai_Andritoiu // Shutterstock
New Jersey: Essex County
– 2022 applications: 18,114 (21.3 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 21,329 (25.0 per 1,000 residents)
Jimack // Shutterstock
New Mexico: Santa Fe County
– 2022 applications: 4,338 (27.9 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 3,683 (23.7 per 1,000 residents)
pisaphotography // Shutterstock
New York: New York County
– 2022 applications: 50,149 (31.4 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 53,217 (33.7 per 1,000 residents)
digidreamgrafix // Shutterstock
North Carolina: Mecklenburg County
– 2022 applications: 29,600 (25.8 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 34,052 (30.2 per 1,000 residents)
Traveller70 // Shutterstock
North Dakota: Dunn County
– 2022 applications: 88 (21.9 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 62 (15.4 per 1,000 residents)
Sean Pavone // Shutterstock
Ohio: Franklin County
– 2022 applications: 24,370 (18.4 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 26,733 (20.3 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Oklahoma: Oklahoma County
– 2022 applications: 14,955 (18.6 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 16,158 (20.2 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Oregon: Hood River County
– 2022 applications: 409 (17.0 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 352 (14.6 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Pennsylvania: Philadelphia County
– 2022 applications: 29,166 (18.6 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 42,298 (26.6 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Rhode Island: Providence County
– 2022 applications: 7,055 (10.7 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 7,450 (11.3 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
South Carolina: Charleston County
– 2022 applications: 10,138 (24.2 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 10,561 (25.5 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
South Dakota: Haakon County
– 2022 applications: 37 (20.3 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 19 (10.4 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Tennessee: Davidson County
– 2022 applications: 15,302 (21.6 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 15,871 (22.6 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Texas: Glasscock County
– 2022 applications: 30 (25.8 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 13 (11.4 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Utah: Summit County
– 2022 applications: 1,291 (30.0 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 1,457 (33.8 per 1,000 residents)
Joseph Sohm // Shutterstock
Vermont: Lamoille County
– 2022 applications: 374 (14.3 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 322 (12.3 per 1,000 residents)
OJUP // Shutterstock
Virginia: Petersburg city
– 2022 applications: 797 (23.9 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 1,017 (30.5 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Washington: San Juan County
– 2022 applications: 273 (14.6 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 356 (19.1 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
West Virginia: Jefferson County
– 2022 applications: 646 (11.0 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 569 (9.7 per 1,000 residents)
Canva
Wisconsin: Milwaukee County
– 2022 applications: 18,019 (19.6 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 19,542 (21.1 per 1,000 residents)
Ems Images // Shutterstock
Wyoming: Sheridan County
– 2022 applications: 22,389 (697.6 per 1,000 residents)
– 2021 applications: 17,043 (538.2 per 1,000 residents)
Data reporting by Paxtyn Merten. Story editing by Jeff Inglis. Copy editing by Paris Close.
This story originally appeared on PlanBuildr and was produced and
distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio.
-
Events2 months agoWhere will AI go next?
-
Business4 months agoHow to build company culture in a scale-up
-
Events5 months agoThe innovator’s mindset and the battle between Batman-v-Superman: mesh conference day 2
-
Business3 months agoHow to build and maintain a company culture among a remote workforce
-
Technology6 months agoHow are AI tools like ChatGPT deployed in retail?