Phases of the app development life cycle at Airteam

The mobile app development life cycle can be complex and requires careful planning, design, development, testing, deployment, and maintenance. To ensure that mobile app projects are completed to a high standard, it is crucial to engage a development company with a proven process and experience.

We have a team of experts dedicated to delivering secure and robust mobile apps that meet your requirements, exceed expectations, and provide a positive experience for users.

App development phases

Read on to learn more about how we approach mobile app development and how we could work with you to turn your app idea into something real.

1. Requirements gathering

The first step in any software project is to establish clarity. We look to understand the problem you are setting out to solve and how the proposed solution might meet your user’s needs. We like to start projects with a comprehensive kick-off workshop where we set expectations and establish clear goals and objectives, along with measures of success.

2. Research, discovery, and ideation

We follow a human-centred approach to involve users and stakeholders in the early phases of our projects. We work collaboratively to understand your users, their behaviours and needs, the surrounding market landscape, and technical requirements that may impact the design or build of your app. After we have set this context, we dive into ideation sessions where we follow a structured process of idea generation, which is then distilled and prioritised to form core features or value propositions to take into the design phase. Anything that does not make it into the design phase is captured as a backlog of future ideas which can be drawn from in later iterations.

3. Design, prototyping, and user validation

Once we have identified the core needs that your app is intending to solve, along with the core features that will solve those needs, we start making our ideas tangible through a design process. We start off with rapid ‘low-fidelity’ design allowing us to quickly sketch out the basic components of the app, moving through to ‘mid’ and ‘high-fidelity’ where we iteratively add more detail and aesthetic.

As we progress through the stages of design, we may build a prototype to demonstrate the app and its functionality in a more interactive manner. We may also conduct a series of user testing sessions in parallel with our design sprints to make sure we are validating our app with real users - this allows us to pivot as needed to make sure we are solving user needs, and gives the app more certainty of market adoption when it is released.

4. Development

We like to keep our development team involved during the early phases of project definition. This way there are no surprises when development begins. Once designs and scope have been finalised and approved, the development phase really starts to gather momentum.

First, we ensure the requirements and expectations are clear and that an appropriate framework is chosen to support the project. Our preferred framework, React Native, is an active framework developed by the community and can write code that runs on iOS and Android. We utilise an extensive development framework that ensures that quality, security, and maintainability are always built-in from day one.

Security is essential, especially when developing mobile apps that involve user data or any features behind a login. We adopt the OWASP Mobile Application Security Standard, which offers different security controls depending on the inherent risks in the app’s data. To ensure security and quality are always front-of-mind, we use an operations framework that is certified to ISO27001:2013 for information security management and ISO9001:2015 for quality management.

5. Project delivery

We have a highly skilled in-house delivery team who will handle your project from start to finish with the utmost care and diligence. We believe that transparency and open communication are key to a successful working partnership. Our project rituals are tailored to suit individual project and client needs, to ensure we find a way of working together that suits everyone and guarantees delivery of a successful outcome.

6. Testing and quality assurance (QA)

During development, security and testing are at the core of our work. We understand that security principles must be considered, particularly when saving user data.

A testing & QA process is also necessary to ensure the app meets your objectives. We conduct a rigorous testing and quality assurance process throughout development. This involves testing the app on different devices, operating systems, and networks to ensure it performs as intended.

7. Deployment

Planning deployments of an app is critical to ensure there is no delay or last-minute rush. It is essential to plan how to deploy the app, whether there is automation involved, how to submit the app for Android and iOS, and follow the policies for each.

8. Maintenance and updates

Once your app is launched, the process doesn’t stop. Consideration needs to be given to maintenance and updates because, as with any technology, app development standards evolve.

It is important we create a solid plan for how you are going to push updates. This includes fixing bugs, adding new features, and updating the app to comply with changes in operating systems or app store requirements.

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Core tenets of our mobile app development life cycle

We follow a few core tenets when working with you through the app development process.

We understand that communication is key
We believe in over-communicating rather than under-communicating, and we establish regular communication channels with you to be used throughout the mobile app development process. Whether that is in written form, daily stand-ups, or weekly progress check-ins, we keep you informed throughout the development life cycle.

We strive for complete alignment‍
We understand that any good mobile app development process should involve clear and effective communication between you and our development team. Our development team uses the language of our clients, explaining technical concepts in a way that everyone can understand and are always responsive to questions and concerns.

We know that your input is the most valuable

We listen carefully to you, give you access to test new features, take feedback at every step, and ensure you are an active part of the app development life cycle.

We believe in being adaptable

Business needs can change, and it is important to consider how adjustments will be handled. Our team is always ready to react to situations and can change the project plan or scope when needed. We are an agile company that emphasises flexibility and responsiveness to change.

We focus on human-centred design

We put the user front and centre at every stage of the development process. This means designing and developing the app in a way that is easy to use, intuitive, and visually appealing.

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Choose the right app development company for your needs

Hiring a business with a clear, well-developed, and proven process that can be adapted to your needs is vital. If you are considering working with a mobile app development company, we are here to help. Get in touch via our contact form here to book a call.