Our work / Heijmans Employee App

A site worker looks at the Heijmans app on his phone

Heijmans Employee App

A secure, enterprise-compliant employee app. PoC to App Store and Google Play Store in four months.

Sector

Construction & infrastructure

Region

The Netherlands

Timeline

March–July 2026 (~4 months)

Platform

iOS & Android

The outcome, up front

4 months

From proof of concept to App Store and Google Play Store release

1 login

Single sign-on across the entire workforce

iOS + Android

One shared codebase for iOS and Android, with platform-specific native development where needed.

Zero-touch

Employee accounts are created and removed automatically

01 — The challenge

Bringing everything into one app, on a hard deadline

Heijmans wanted a genuine employee app: one home for company news and everyday tools, with a single login instead of a separate one for each connected tool.

Security is a core value at Heijmans, and the company manages its mobile applications through its enterprise device-management platform, with role-based security measures across the organisation. The deadline was real: the replacement had to be live before 1 August. That meant building something entirely new, in a way that matched how Heijmans’ other tools already worked.

Hard deadline

Live before 1 August with no room to slip, requiring go-live by the beginning of July.

Single sign-on from day one

Employees needed one secure login across every connected tool, from day one.

Parallel dependencies

The team had to coordinate hosting partner setup, identity-provider registration and store approvals alongside development.

Security requirements

The app had to support both managed devices and BYOD, with secure sign-in and controlled access to corporate data, and revoke access the moment an employee left.

02 — Business value

Why it matters to the business

One login, no exceptions

The new app uses employees’ existing corporate identity: the same account they use for email, chat and every other work tool. For a workforce moving between sites, devices and systems all day, that removes a daily friction point.

IT compliance without compromise

The app meets Heijmans’ compliance requirements from day one, covering device management, role-based access, and governance. It registers with their identity provider and operates inside their existing governance model without compromise.

Zero-touch user management

An automated identity integration removes device access the moment an employee leaves, with no ticket, no manual step, and no gap in security.

A foundation, not a destination

A deliberately lean scope on tooling and architecture set up to iterate: personalisation, a broader apps catalogue, role-based content and richer notification logic.

03 — Our approach

Front-loading the hardest decisions

We moved fast by tackling the hardest decisions first. Before writing any production code, we ran dedicated proof-of-concept work on the two most uncertain areas: SSO and device-management behaviour, and intranet news integration. Each proof of concept produced a concrete decision document. The SSO work in particular surfaced meaningful differences between iOS and Android and led to a clear set of options for the client.

From there we ran a lean definition phase to settle the scope, then moved into three-week development sprints with a lightweight Scrum model that cut ceremonies and sped up decisions. Infrastructure, CI/CD, the CMS and automated testing were all set up in parallel with feature work, and we kept Heijmans’ product owner closely involved throughout.

Our in-house knowledge of what both app stores require gave us confidence in the go-live date. Building compliant from day one meant avoiding the delays that late app-store surprises can cause.

04 — How we worked

How we worked together

Dual-track delivery

Lab Digital handled app development and backend while the hosting partner provisioned hosting and database infrastructure in parallel.

Leightweight product team

Cross-functional team of app developer, backend developer, cloud engineer, BA/PM, QA and engineering manager with Heijmans' product owner closely in the loop throughout.

Accelerated with AI

Developers leveraged AI for code standards documentation, while the BA worked with Claude to support backlog management and produce a comprehensive go-live runbook.

05 — How we delivered

Four phases, four months

Proof of concept: reduce risk on single sign-on, device management and intranet news. Each ends in a clear decision document.

Definition: settle a lean scope around the features employees use every day.

Development sprints: three-week sprints with lightweight Scrum, while infrastructure and automated testing are built in parallel.

Testing and release: security testing and user-acceptance testing, then release on the App Store and Google Play Store.

06 — Key features

Key features

The scope was deliberately lean — the essentials an employee needs every day, without the noise of everything else.

Personalised home screen

A time-aware welcome with the employee’s name and profile picture, plus four shortcuts for the most common daily tasks.

Company news

The four most recent company news articles, pulled in automatically from Heijmans’ intranet.

Apps overview

A dedicated screen presenting the full set of Heijmans tools, organised in a grid.

Single sign-on

Employees log in once with their existing Heijmans account through single sign-on.

Push notifications

Timely notifications for important company updates, built on Lab Digital’s existing push notification expertise and validated within Heijmans’ enterprise environment.

Profile & data control

View profile info and delete local app data directly, in line with GDPR.

07 — Who uses it

Built for people who aren’t at a desk

The app is built for the full Heijmans workforce across its construction, living and connecting business streams. The daily pattern is short and purposeful: check the news on the way to a site, report a safety incident in real time, book hours at the end of a shift, launch email or HR tools without a separate login. That shaped every decision about screen structure, tap targets and task-driven navigation.

The communications team is the other user group, working behind the scenes: they publish news to their intranet as they always have, and the app picks it up automatically. There’s no new system to learn and no extra work for them.

Two employees using the Heijmans app in a warehouse

08 — The outcome

The outcome

Lab Digital delivered a production-ready iOS and Android employee app in a single development cycle, going from PoC to App Store and Google Play Store acceptance in under four months. Employees log in once with their existing account and reach the tools and news they need every day, with no separate password or login screen. The automated identity integration keeps access in sync with HR as people join and leave, and the app meets enterprise device-management requirements from day one.

common questions

Frequently asked questions

What did Lab Digital build for Heijmans?

Lab Digital built the Heijmans Employee App, a native iOS and Android application that gives Heijmans employees single sign-on access to company news, key tools, and their personal profile.

What was the goal of the project?

Heijmans wanted to give employees a single, secure login and full device-management compliance before 1 August, replacing separate logins for each tool with one connected app.

How was the app built?

The app runs from one shared codebase across iOS and Android, with native development for platform-specific capabilities. It connects to secure cloud infrastructure that handles identity and device management.

What results did Heijmans achieve?

Heijmans launched a production-ready employee app on both the Apple App Store and Google Play Store within a single development cycle, with single sign-on, device-management compliance, and automatic account setup and removal in place from day one.

How long did the project take?

The project ran from initial Proof of Concepts in March 2026 to App Store and Google Play Store release in early July 2026 — approximately three to four months end to end.

Who were the technology partners?

Lab Digital led design and development. Heijmans’ hosting partner ran the infrastructure, and its enterprise technology provider handled identity, device management, and intranet integration. Due to company policy we can't disclose the full list of technology partners.

Why did Heijmans choose Lab Digital?

"Their pitch and demo showed a strong understanding of our needs from the very start. Combined with their technical expertise and ability to look beyond the initial question towards a future-proof solution, this gave us great confidence that they were the right partner." Mollo Jongbloed, Product Owner, Heijmans

For us, Lab Digital is much more than a supplier — they are a true partner. Their proven track record with the Heijmans corporate website gave us great confidence from the start. Throughout the project we particularly valued the short lines of communication, the clear and reliable way of working, and excellent project management. We are genuinely proud of the result.

Mollo JongbloedProduct Owner, Heijmans

Thinking about a secure employee app?

We help organisations build mobile experiences that fit their enterprise environments and their security standards from proof of concept to the App Store. Let’s talk.

Heijmans Employee App

Bringing everything into one app, on a hard deadline

Why it matters to the business

Front-loading the hardest decisions

How we worked together

Four phases, four months

Key features

Built for people who aren’t at a desk

The outcome

Frequently asked questions

Thinking about a secure employee app?

Get in touch

Bringing everything into one app, on a hard deadline

Why it matters to the business

Front-loading the hardest decisions

How we worked together

Four phases, four months

Key features

Built for people who aren’t at a desk

The outcome

Frequently asked questions

Thinking about a secure employee app?

Get in touch