A recent global survey titled 'Human-Centered Software Design: A State of the Marketplace Report', conducted by Progress, an application development and infrastructure expert, exposed interesting insights in the area of human-centric app development in Australia.
In the extensive study, involving business and IT decision-makers across multiple countries, a significant key finding identified that while 100% of Australian respondents believe that human-centric app development is crucial, only 24% are currently implementing measures such as tools, training and policies to address this concern.
The data highlighted some of the major barriers inhibiting uptake. A lack of in-house skills in human-centric app development was expressed by 38% of respondents, while 36% identified complexity and lack of agility as hindrances. A further 34% acknowledged difficulty measuring whether software is truly 'human-centric'.
John Yang, Vice President, Asia Pacific and Japan, for Progress laid out the importance of prioritising human-centric design. "Investing in human-centric design and development of digital solutions is no longer a nice to have option but a necessity if private and public organisations want to stay competitive and retain and attract new customers." Yang also noted that many organisations have already set foot on the path to overcome these challenges.
App development with a human-centric approach aligns with the Australian government's data and digital strategy, aiming for a "simple, secure and connected public service for citizens and businesses by 2030." A surge of 64% Australian respondents asserted the added importance of building human-centric applications, compared to two years ago. Moreover, 38% plan to invest in human-centric applications in the upcoming 12-18 months.
Australians demonstrate a desire to design digital products that contribute to social good (32%) and believe their organisations have a societal responsibility to develop human-centric software (22%). However, the study found that an estimated 78% of Australian respondents find it more challenging to retrofit inclusion and accessibility into existing applications than to inject these features in new applications from the outset.
For Australian businesses and IT leaders, driving factors behind the adoption of human-centric software include rapidly changing user needs/increasing user expectations (62%), a strong increase in digital interactions (54%) and a broader company focus on diversity and inclusion (34%).
Yang emphasising his point further added, "Delivering compelling, people-first digital solutions and experiences is a major driver of success for organisations today. A human-centric design approach can enable technological progress and innovation through unearthing new software capabilities and connecting with users in new ways."
A majority of Australian participants revealed plans to increase their investment in human-centred software design in the coming year, as revealed by the Progress Research Study.
The report's findings confirm the inundation of the tech industry with a new generation of workers seeking opportunities to impact society positively, potentially leading to increased job satisfaction and talent retention. Human-centric software design and development certainly appear to be the next big wave in the tech industry.