Low Code Application Development Tools Can Save IT From Being Swamped

As demand for mobile apps skyrockets, IT can barely keep up—and things are only getting worse.  However, a new report from Forrester research offers hope to developers struggling to meet business demand for digital transformation. 

In its report "5 Scenarios for Low Code Choices," Forrester warns: "The initial swells of a tidal wave of customer-facing applications are arriving on tech management’s (TM) shores.  These are the new generation of applications to meet enterprise needs to win, serve, and retain customers, and the driving force behind every enterprise’s BT (business technology) agenda....Most tech management organizations already have more demand for business apps than they can handle; how can businesses expand their app delivery capacity to meet this exploding demand, which includes new and unfamiliar technologies?" 

The report concludes that low code development tools can go a long way towards solving the problem.  Low code development refers to software solutions that allow developers to build applications with very little hand-coding.  While they dramatically speed the building of mobile apps, these development platforms also allow for custom coding, when required.  These innovation solutions allow companies to build more mobile and web applications faster, without requiring the specialized expertise of more mobile application developers. 

Why Low Code Application Development Tools Help Enterprises

Low code development does more than speed work for experienced developers.  They also dramatically expand who can develop web and mobile business apps to include far more people than those who typically write applications in enterprises - they're called citizen developers.  According to Forrester, "Low code platforms enable a broad range of developers, including data and process specialists, business-domain experts, 'power users,' and students who aren’t proficient with hand-coding environments."  This is incredibly important to companies that must turn hundreds of legacy desktop applications, as well as paper-based and manual business processes into modern business apps that work on mobile devices. 

The report recommends that enterprises incorporate low code tools into the IT portfolio.  Forrester analysts say that the platforms aren't likely to replace all other methods of application development, but will instead augment them.  Forrester also advises IT leaders to "identify what level of data and system integration you expect the low code platform to handle and whether you will need a third-party integration tool to handle deeper integration."  And the report suggests that companies clearly define which apps should be built using low code, and which shouldn't.  The report calls-out customer-facing apps as being particularly well suited. 

About Author

Dion McCormick

Dion McCormick, Lead Solutions Engineer at Alpha Software, is a recognized expert on agile application development.  He helps enterprise development teams around the world transition from slow legacy approaches to high-performance mobile, web, and desktop development using the Alpha Anywhere platform.