[2026 System Development Vendor Selection Survey] 97.3% Prioritize 'Balancing UI/UX and Technology', Nearly 60% Seek Separate Post-Release Improvement Partners

Engineerforce Inc. (Headquarters: Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, CEO: Yoshiaki Iida), an IT company with strengths in UI/UX design, announced the execution of an actual state survey on the selection criteria for system development vendors [2026 Edition]. The survey targeted 111 company employees at enterprises with 500 or more employees who have been involved in decision-making regarding the outsourcing of system development and design within the past two years.

Note that this survey partially compares results with a similar survey conducted in 2025 (*1).

01 | The most emphasized factor in competitions is 'technical capability and development track record' at 59.5%, topping the list but decreasing by 9.9 points year-on-year.

02 | 97.3% emphasize 'the coexistence of UI/UX design and technology', with 'very important' increasing by 4.5 points year-on-year.

03 | Over 80% responded that they want to 'change the selection criteria' for the next vendor selection.

Download this survey here: https://engineerforce.io/resources/vendor_research_2026/

Survey Overview

Survey Name: [2026 Edition] Actual state survey on the selection criteria for system development vendors

Survey Method: Internet survey planned by research marketing 'ResearP®︎' provided by IDEATECH

Survey Period: April 22, 2026 - April 23, 2026

Valid Responses: 111 company employees at enterprises with 500 or more employees who have been involved in decision-making regarding the outsourcing of system development and design within the past two years

*1 | [2024 Edition] Actual state survey on the selection criteria for system development vendors | https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000076.000068877.html

*2 | Since the composition ratios are rounded to the nearest first decimal place, the total may not necessarily equal exactly 100.

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URL: https://engineerforce.io/

Elements emphasized in competitions: Last year's #1 'Technical capability and development track record' shifted from 69.4% to 59.5%, 'Cost performance' surpassed 'UI/UX' to rise to 2nd place

When asked 'Q1. Please tell us the elements you emphasized during competitions or vendor selection in your most recent system development project (up to 3 responses allowed)', in 2026 (n=111), 'Technical capability and development track record' was the most common at 59.5%, followed by 'Estimated amount and cost performance' at 47.7%, and 'Quality of UI/UX design and user perspective' at 40.5%.

* The options for Q1 partially differ between the 2025 and 2026 surveys. The 2025 survey included 'Certainty and speed of delivery time', and the 2026 survey added 'Post-release operational improvement and continuous support system', so please refer to the figures for both years as reference values.

Q1. Please tell us the elements you emphasized during competitions or vendor selection in your most recent system development project. (Up to 3 responses allowed)

<2026 (n=111)> - Technical capability and development track record: 59.5% - Estimated amount and cost performance: 47.7% - Quality of UI/UX design and user perspective: 40.5% - Specificity and feasibility of proposals: 31.5% - Project management ability: 24.3% - Company scale and reliability: 16.2% - After-sales support system: 15.3% - Post-release operational improvement and continuous support system: 12.6% - Compatibility and communication skills with the person in charge: 10.8% - Other: 0.0% - No elements emphasized: 0.9% - Don't know/Cannot answer: 1.8%

<2025 (n=111)> - Technical capability and development track record: 69.4% - Quality of UI/UX design and user perspective: 60.4% - Estimated amount and cost performance: 55.0% - Specificity and feasibility of proposals: 54.1% - Project management ability: 37.8% - Company scale and reliability: 27.0% - Compatibility and communication skills with the person in charge: 20.7% - After-sales support system: 19.8% - Certainty and speed of delivery time: 17.1% - Other: 0.0% - No elements emphasized: 0.9%

97.3% prioritize 'Balancing UI/UX design and technology', 'Very important' increased by 4.5 points year-on-year

When asked 'Q2. How important do you think 'balancing UI/UX design and technology' is when selecting a system development vendor?', in 2026 (n=111), 62.2% answered 'Very important' and 35.1% answered 'Somewhat important', while in 2025 (n=111), 57.7% answered 'Very important' and 37.8% answered 'Somewhat important'.

Q2. How important do you think 'balancing UI/UX design and technology' is when selecting a system development vendor?

<2026 (n=111)> - Very important: 62.2% - Somewhat important: 35.1% - Not very important: 1.8% - Not important at all: 0.0% - Don't know/Cannot answer: 0.9%

<2025 (n=111)> - Very important: 57.7% - Somewhat important: 37.8% - Not very important: 3.6% - Not important at all: 0.9% - Don't know/Cannot answer: 0.0%

Over 90% experienced proposals for 'function reduction/requirement review', the ratio of 'proactively proposed' increased by 4.5 points from the previous year

When asked 'Q3. Have you ever received proposals for 'function reduction' or 'requirement review' from vendor companies during the proposal stage of recent system development?', in 2026 (n=111), 51.4% answered 'Proposed as necessary' and 41.4% answered 'Proactively proposed'.

Q3. Have you ever received proposals for 'function reduction' or 'requirement review' from vendor companies during the proposal stage of recent system development?

<2026 (n=111)> - Proactively proposed: 41.4% - Proposed as necessary: 51.4% - Rarely proposed: 5.4% - Never proposed: 0.9% - Don't know/Cannot answer: 0.9%

<2025 (n=111)> - Proactively proposed: 36.9% - Proposed as necessary: 55.9% - Rarely proposed: 5.4% - Never proposed: 0.0% - Don't know/Cannot answer: 1.8%

59.5% factually 'searched separately' for a partner for UI/UX improvement after release

When asked 'Q4. Have you ever separately searched for a partner for continuous UI/UX improvement and operation after the release of a product or system? If you have experienced this multiple times, please answer about your most recent experience.', in 2026 (n=111), 59.5% answered 'Have searched' and 18.9% answered 'The development vendor handled it as is'.

Q4. Relea