Trends in low-code development: Citizen development and the use of low-code platforms are on the rise in companies thanks to functions for even simpler operation
Low- and no-code development tools are becoming increasingly popular. This is because they speed up software development and enable users with little or no programming knowledge to create their own applications. According to Gartner analysts, more than 65% of all enterprise applications will be developed using low- and no-code tools by 2024. Forrester Research assumes that the overall market for these tools will grow by 40 percent over the next two years.
Currently, low-code tools are mainly used to create simple information apps, employee portals, CRM applications and customer portals. Low-code also has enormous potential when it comes to integrating logic into business processes. In the coming years, however, companies across all industries will increasingly use low-code development environments for business-critical applications. Even the public sector is increasingly focusing on this topic.
“A low-code platform belongs in every IT infrastructure. With our release 6.0 and the new features, we are following the trends in low-code development and making it even easier for companies to get started with low-code.”
Florian Rühl
CSO
The number of low-code users is growing continuously, not only among professional developers but also among “non-IT experts”. One of the main reasons for this is the lack of programmers who can implement applications in a timely manner. In many places, IT departments are no longer able to meet the increasing demand for software resulting from digitalization themselves. New IT specialists are hard to find and the market is empty. This gap can be closed with low platforms: Thanks to prefabricated modules that are relatively easy to put together, more and more users from specialist departments are able to create applications or participate in their creation.
Citizen development: close cooperation between specialist departments and IT
Another advantage is that the so-called citizen developers are closer to the customer and the processes and can implement business requirements and their own ideas directly in software. The IT department retains control over all applications created, provides appropriate support and ensures that governance and compliance requirements are met. However, implementation is increasingly taking place in the specialist departments themselves. This does not mean that IT and pro developers no longer create applications. On the contrary – they continue to do so. But they now have more capacity thanks to the support from the specialist departments and can concentrate on more complex matters and the essentials. In this way, collaboration between IT and specialist departments is intensified and everyone works together on solutions that benefit the entire company.
Agile software development, artificial intelligence (AI)
Currently, most apps based on low-code are still developed and provided by the IT department. By using visual, intuitive platforms with ready-made modules, such as ready-to-use connectors or app templates, they can save a significant amount of time in their otherwise very time-consuming work. And this is in line with agile software development, which hardly any company can do without these days. Artificial intelligence is also increasingly being used in the platforms to identify anomalies and reduce complexity.
AI is also used to learn how applications are built. In future, this will allow large parts of an application to be created automatically without developers having to intervene or program many lines of code themselves. And all this while maintaining a consistently high standard of generated code quality. In the learning process, the AI is supposed to draw relevant information from the procedure and sequence of individual steps in app creation that lead to a successful result in order to build up its own logic. Based on this, apps can be created even more efficiently and the app builder receives tips on how to achieve results even faster with a shortened procedure (shortcut). The first approaches of AI in low-code platforms can already be identified by using assistants that accompany and support the developer step by step in the individual processes. This makes the work of everyone who uses low-code platforms to create applications easier – whether they are citizen developers or professional developers themselves.
How Simplifier supports the trends
This is exactly where our new version comes in: Simplifier 6.0 is not only clearer and even more intuitive to use than the previous versions. Wizards guide you step by step through the app creation process – a clear trend towards AI-supported development. Since the new no-code features have made it so easy to integrate a connector, a table or a database, Simplifier 6.0 expands the circle of potential citizen developers and helps companies to relieve their IT departments and meet their growing software needs.
The new Simplifier update on 31.01.2021 brings new features that support many trends in low-code development. Look forward to our next blog post in the following week, in which we will present the new features in advance. Until then, keep on digitizing!
The Simplifier Team
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