The Internet of Things (IoT) is driving an application development sea change as organizations work to ramp up their app creation capabilities in response to the trend. Essentially, the IoT offers innovative new ways to gather and use data within an ecosystem of connected devices. However, those benefits will only impact operations if organizations develop apps that get data into end-users' hands in the right context so they can act on it. Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) cloud systems are emerging as a vital tool in this area.
"Gartner - More than half of IoT apps to be developed using PaaS systems by 2020."
PaaS and IoT becoming intertwined
A recent study from Gartner found that the practice of using PaaS cloud systems as the foundation for rapid app development is rising as a way to keep up with the demands created by the IoT. Gartner expects more than half of IoT apps to be developed through PaaS systems by 2020.Benoit Lheureux, research vice president at Gartner, explained that the IoT will likely drive PaaS adoption moving forward.
"IoT adoption will drive additional use of PaaS to implement IoT-centric business applications built around event-driven architecture and IoT data, instead of business applications built around traditional master data," said Lheureux. "New IoT-centric business applications will drive a transformation in application design practices that focus on real-time contextually rich decisions, event-analysis, lightweight workflow and broad access to Web-scale data."
As the IoT and and PaaS deployment trends evolve, there will be a growing need to ensure that PaaS platforms can support bimodal methodologies. This means that PaaS solutions will be able to handle slow, tightly controlled development cycles and rapid, agile app creation. Gartner expects this demand to take shape in 2019.
Maximizing PaaS value opportunities
The PaaS cloud model is, in many ways, still getting off the ground. However, the technology has evolved to a point where organizations can use it to fuel business flexibility and efficiency. This is especially true when application development platforms are aligned withbusiness process management software. In this situation, the PaaS architecture provides the foundation users need to create apps quickly, customize interfaces and ensure they always have the right solutions to meet operational demands. At the same time, the BPM software is providing the process visibility and automation features needed to ensure those apps operate within the right context for business users.
As data from sources like the IoT inundate the enterprise, apps that add a layer of visibility into the context around information are key. BPM provides the broad perspectives into process management needed to ensure apps created within the PaaSplatform are able to offer this insight.
