Why Low-Code Should Be Part of Your Strategy

What was on your list of IT development projects for 2020? If your list is like most businesses, it is no longer valid. Priorities have changed, but limitations have not. There still isn’t enough time or resources to complete the development projects. You can extend a project’s deadline or try to hire more programmers, but delaying projects may not be a viable option.

Hiring more programmers is even more of a challenge. Software developers are in short supply. In the U.S. alone, there are over 200,000 job openings with a growth rate of about 20% per year. Only about 30,000 students graduate with a degree in computer science each year, making it nearly impossible to find needed talent.

With a limited supply of developers, most organizations are looking for alternatives for completing their technical projects. Some companies may outsource their development while others prefer to keep projects in-house. For in-house development, low-code solutions are one way to fill the skills gap.

What is Low-Code?

Low-code is a development suite of tools designed to deliver applications by non-developers. The platforms use a drag-and-drop interface instead of lines of code, and automation replaces manual development efforts. When used by developers, low-code can significantly increase the speed at which applications are developed. With citizen developers (non-technical staff), apps can be created with little to no programming skills. Incorporating low-code solutions into a post-COVID strategy creates a more agile organization that can deliver solutions more effectively.

Accelerating Development

Developers write lines of code, which takes time. They may have to go through code iterations before a project is complete, which requires more time. With the economic landscape changing overnight, organizations may simply run out of time if they can’t accelerate their development.

Low-code platforms let developers build applications without writing code. With its drag-and-drop interface, developers can rapidly build and deploy applications. Development cycles that once took months can now be completed in weeks or even days.

Leveraging Resources

Low-code solutions let organizations use non-programmers to build applications. By using an IT-sanctioned solution, citizen developers can create solutions without jeopardizing the integrity of the system. Leveraging non-technical resources allows IT to focus on mission-critical tasks such as network performance and security.

Offloading a percentage of application development to citizen developers helps businesses realize:

• Faster deployment of software applications
• Better use of limited IT resources
• Lower development costs

Given the economic constraints of Covid-19, businesses should consider a low-code solution that can lower costs and speed up delivery.

Developing Agility

Becoming agile has been on most companies’ to-do lists for years. Recent events have moved agility to the top of that list. No one is asking why a business needs to be agile. Everyone can see what agility means to corporate survival. The problem becomes how to pivot a business strategy in a matter of days.

Low-code platforms contribute to a company’s agility. Citizen developers can create short-term, COVID-specific applications that help customers navigate the new ways of doing business. At the same time, IT resources can focus on reconfiguring systems for remote workers and increasing security. A cloud-based platform allows employees to use low-code tools remotely.

Building a Strategy

A short-term strategy cannot ignore its long-term impact. Careful allocation of resources can create an infrastructure that moves a company towards a digital transformation. Low-code platforms are just one of the ways to deliver short-term solutions without jeopardizing long-term viability.