What it means
When you use an app, the screens you see are the frontend. Everything behind them is the backend: the database that stores your records, the code that checks permissions and applies rules, the jobs that send emails and the APIs the frontend calls.
A backend is invisible when it works well. When it is poorly designed, it shows up as slow pages, data errors and features that are hard to add.
Why it matters for a business
Most of the long-term cost of software sits in the backend. A clean data model, clear rules and good security make every later feature cheaper to build. Shortcuts here tend to become technical debt.
A business example
Things to watch
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Enforce permissions on the server, never only in the interface.
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Design the data model with future reporting in mind.
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Plan for backups, monitoring and logs from the start.