Enterprise developers looking to create valuable micro-solutions faster, while driving value to the broader business objectives, can benefit from from low-code app development to rapidly solve business problems while also reducing the bottleneck that is created in many enterprise development teams that struggle to find resources for smaller, custom development projects, when they are committed to long-term project roadmaps.
Low-code concepts and practices present a way to free developer teams to focus on larger and more complex projects and solve business problems by allowing users to use a visual and automated approach to software development which allows them to define desired tasks at a hight level and then relies on back-end tools to generate most of the underlying code.
Low-Code vs Traditional Software
Traditional software development requires programmers to write individual lines of code which are subsequently organised into functional modules and routines that provide the features and functionality.
To be a broad and effective code-driven software developer requires a wide range of knowledge of concepts across the entire software development spectrum including software development languages, development environments, compilers, deployment and testing tools, along with the various practices and policies used to handle coding, testing and deployment.
Low-code platforms, in comparison, usually allow users to select from a range of reusable functionality components using a drag-and-drop visual interface with much of the programming needed to create the software encapsulate in the back end.
By providing access to a low-code visual interface supported by permission-based back-end data access, users can easily add, move or delete functional components in order to develop the process flow. Low-code application platforms also support testing and deployment and can enable enterprises to deliver a range of micro-solutions faster and at a lower cost.
Low-Code vs No-Code
No-Code platforms aim to provide a range of pre-determined features and functionality that eliminate the need for users to modify components and often provide simple point-and-click interfaces to select data, connections or layout and means that users need no knowledge of application programming or design.
No-Code application development platforms are usually considered to be the more user-friendly, easy-to-use subset of low-code solutions which still require some basic programming knowledge to either modify existing functional components or to create new custom functions.
Low-code solutions can simplify and accelerate many everyday business programming tasks; however low-code is not intended to eliminate all coding.
Low-Code App Development
While low-code makes it easy to experiment with new or different features and functions, it can still be valuable to have a project plan and roadmap to keep low-code development on-track.
Although low-code development processes contain a high degree of automation, they are not automatic and do not do all the work for you.
It is important to rigorously evaluate, select and use a suitable low-code platform for your enterprise. The time invested to learn a low-code platform features and capabilities will deliver a return on investment in future projects.
Benefits of Low-Code Development
Low-code development can offer a range of benefits to the enterprise, including:
- Wider staff availability
- Caters to niche projects
- Improved efficiency
- Lower-cost innovation
- Accelerated development speed
Low-Code Use Case Examples
There are a wide range of low-code tools and platforms available, and the market continues to evolve.
If the technology and business use case align the business goals with enterprise requirements then there are a range of common low-code applications that could be implemented within the enterprise including:
- Business systems
- Business processes
- Micro-service apps
- iOT-based apps
- Web portals
- Mobile apps
Businesses can choose from various cloud-native and third-party low-code platforms for uses that range from simple websites and mobile apps to enterprise-class application development.
Businesses should evaluate the specific capabilities of the low-code platform before commencing to ensure that packaged models, functionality and components align with the project objectives with a minimal amount of customisation required.
Enterprise low-code app development, if implemented as a solution to solve appropriate use-cases, has the potential to deliver a rapid return on investment.