While the Covid-19 crisis wreaked havoc with many corporate IT plans -- pushing many, at least temporarily, into survival mode -- API development either remained constant or even expanded. APIs also have been playing a pivotal role in helping organizations operate on a more virtual level.
That's the word from a recent survey[1] of 13,500 developers and other IT professionals, released by Postman. While Postman, an API development platform, obviously has a horse in this race, the sheer magnitude of this study makes it worth a deep look.
The role of APIs in digital transformation efforts cannot be understated, as they are the building blocks for organizations becoming both producers and consumers of software. As observed in previous posts[2]. Even the most mainstream of enterprises (say, retailers or toy manufacturers) are behaving more and more like software companies, increasingly reaching out to customers with APIs and digital services.
The need to behave more like software companies really became critical as the crisis took hold of the world. In fact, the shutdowns created barely a bump in API development activities, the survey finds. While the crisis put many IT activities on temporary hold, API development continued to surge. In fact, APIs helped enterprises manage through the mess. For those working on digital transformation initiatives, 85 percent say APIs are playing a significant role in those initiatives. Nearly a third, 31 percent, say that APIs are playing a role in their organization's ability to respond to Covid-19 for customer communications, powering remote work options, and quickly responding to regulatory changes and government initiatives.
Close to half of respondents stated that investment of time and resources into APIs will increase over the next 12 months, while another third stated that