Technology has miraculously changed our lives for the better and at an unimaginable pace. It seems like yesterday when we used to fight with our schoolmates in the computer class to play that 2D rookie racer game and exchange floppy drives to pass on the kb of information.
To now having a phone in my pocket faster than the laptop I am typing in. One of the core anchors for this rapid rise in tech is software and programming languages, which in the old days seemed like an alien dialect.
Today, live application or web application powered by APIs (application programming interface) has become a necessity rather than a luxury. I can't imagine any system where a simple line of code is not utilized in transferring a single penny to getting your health records, all work so effortlessly, without us knowing what's inside the hood. Besides, do we care?
We are now on an extreme edge of fascination with what we can develop with this kind of tech in the likes of AI. We have a video platform, we became an influencer, we have an e-commerce platform, we became a seller, we got cryptocurrencies, we became an investor, with many more tales, contributing as well to a heightened efficiency in getting good governance. And in India, fiat money seems to be a thing of the past with UPI.
But till now we are the consumers of the platform and create things in the purview and constraint of the offerings. What if, we move beyond consumerism to creation? What if we can create software by ourselves to make humanity live better?
Can we develop a web app, mobile app, and internal tools by ourselves without knowing anything about programming language or writing a single code?
Yes, today we can!
That's the next frontier of software innovation and an entire ecosystem is under rapid development to give power to the common citizen to develop something that they think is meaningful not the corporate or the government. These are simply called by the jargon - No Code or Low Code. The common citizen who uses this tech stack for development is either called a creator or famously termed a "Citizen Developer".
This will be the first real step towards software democratization and power to the common man and can be hailed as the next big revolution. Complimenting to the fact (38) that
Only 0.5% of the world’s population knows how to code.
But we still have a long way to go.
Content
The abrupt rise of Low Code No Code
Low code no code has seen a rapid rise in adoption in the recent past, mostly in and post-pandemic (COVID-19). With my current research, I found the following five most important factors pushing its growth.
1. Digital Transformation
We are on the cusp of the digital age, where everyone wants to be online, be it self or businesses. They say if you're not on the web then you probably don't exist. It quite highly resonates with corporations and firms of every size as they intend to pursue a digital dream while managing costs. Hence, 66% believe digital transformation to be the main motive behind low-code adoption (26).
2. Pandemic or COVID-19
Sounds so obvious! The pandemic has permanently dented the way we used to conduct our daily lives, maybe for the better. It created a new type of job type category - Remote or Hybrid. With new business requirements comes new business processes leading to the requirement of tools or system that can take care of these changes.
During the pandemic, there was an immediate requirement for new software applications. Many of these are simple, like apps that allow for self-reporting of COVID-19 symptoms. In other cases, companies and governments need apps for the new and temporary services that they’re offering or intend to.
A pandemic case for Low Code:
Web portals for New York City and Washington DC (34,35)
New York City and Washington, D.C., needed to create multiple web portals rapidly to provide services and take in information from individuals who have COVID-19 symptoms or who encountered symptomatic individuals. To speed up the creation of the portals, the cities used Unqork, a low-code application platform (LCAP). By using low-code and Unqork, New York was able to go live with its engagement portal within 72 hours. Besides, Unqork’s platform enabled over two million meals to be delivered to the needy in Washington, D.C., and New York. Without low code, it would have likely taken around one to three months to develop custom software with similar capabilities.
During the pandemic, manufacturers used low-code to connect to peripheral devices as well as to support logistics and quality assessment.
Lendr, a fintech company that worked with eSystems partner OutSystems (LCAP) to build an application that allows their small business clients to quickly apply for PPP (Paycheck Protection Program) loans to help them keep their workers employed during the pandemic (36).
Five years work in two weeks
Owen David of NDL Software, UK, said that in Warwickshire (UK) five years of transformation took place in two weeks after the lockdown began. At NDL we saw a big increase in the public sector’s need for simple applications, new e-forms, and tools to support home working. It was a case of ‘needs must’, and low code – through which many elements of service can be configured without the need for deep coding skills – provided the capacity for rapidly developing and deploying new re-usable solutions.
3. Remote Work
In continuation with our discussion, it's mostly the permanence of remote jobs as the new norm that has led to rapid changes in the way we conduct business. To accommodate these rapid changes businesses needed systems or tools that can help them track their projects, operations, finance, marketing, sales, and all but remotely.
4. Requirements ASAP
Pre-pandemic, businesses were mostly in the mode of using or testing low-code platforms to tackle their application's legacy issues but never considered critical work. But the cause of the pandemic, the business requirements were so extreme and fast in their requirements, that low code no code became the go-to solution.
5. Low Budget
With the entire lockdown situation, the entire world came to a halt with the economic activity almost at its near zero. Businesses facing this uncertain market requirement with an entire change in the way business activity is conducted need to adapt to these changes but with minimal revenue, spending for newer tech is risky and repulsive. Here the low-code no-code system came to the rescue with its cheaper solutions and faster deployment.
A case of Low Code in Vodafone, UK
Vodafone UK has used low-code development to elevate its customer experience. As per Pega Systems, to deliver new capabilities more quickly, and adapt to new technologies which will help Vodafone to innovate its products three to four times per year. Vodafone envisioned a platform that would empower the business to "self-serve" and create solutions with minimal IT support.
Vodafone looked for an agile environment that allows business users to work together to rapidly build and deploy processes, offers, strategies, and treatments. They chose low-code. Within four weeks of rolling out the app, Vodafone UK reported a 10% reduction in average case handling times, a 5% drop in first-call resolution times, and an 18% increase in their NPS score
Low Code No Code Market Estimation
As per Mordor intelligence research (1), the low code no code market for 2023 is estimated at 12.35 billion Dollars and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 30.9% leading to an estimation of approximately 50 billion dollars market by the end of 2028.
The research from "Research And Markets" has predicted a global Low Code Application Platform revenue by 2030 to be a staggering 187 billion dollars with a CAGR of 31.1%. This rise in market value is mostly because businesses globally are implementing or utilizing low code or no code in some or other form.
As per Gartner research (3),
By 2025, 70% of new applications developed by organizations will use low-code or no-code technologies, up from less than 25% in 2020.
"Being innovative" constitutes a major reason for a push to low code leading to the ready development of products which compliments the research that organizations with the best tools are 65% more innovative [4].
The adoption of low code is on a rapid rise in the US where 4 out of 5 businesses [5] are currently using low code while there are still 20% that do not. As per a study by KPMG [6], 26% of company executives say low-code and no-code platforms are their most significant automation investment. This makes way for approval and adoption from the industry veteran who generally accepts established tech.
In general, more than 65% of app development in 2024 is expected to be performed by low-code no code platforms [7]. We do assume that low code no code is simply for internal use cases for driving simple automation and is rightly implemented in that functionality but 30% of businesses prefer using custom low code no code for complex business logic in the future [8].
Case studies by KiSSFLOW, a low-code platform [39]
Caratlane (Jewelry Manufacturer of Tanishq, Tata Group, India) has created 21 apps inside KissFlow, a low-code platform. Most of them were created by their staff for the functionalities they need. Caratlane has been able to create apps for warehousing, quality checks, customer service, and more.
Jardine Matheson Holdings Ltd. is a retail and financial conglomerate that operates all over the world. With their dispersed clientele and offices in multiple geographies, they needed a solution that allows them to develop their applications, without needing programmer input every step of the way. Currently, Jardine uses a total of 109 apps on KissFlow Using the features of the platform, they’ve been able to create their applications, such as Reimbursement Requisition, System Configuration Request, Credit Requisition, and more. They found the low-code platform easy to use customizing their apps with functionality beyond ready-made apps on the market.
Sheenlac is an Asian-based paint manufacturer. With a wide selection of paints and paint-related products, and servicing a massive region, they needed a system that connected their different offices, provided apps that could solve these logistical issues, and enabled them to create apps as and when they required. Sheenlac uses KissFlow and has created 67 apps to streamline their processes and automate their workflows. Some of the apps they have developed through KissFlow’s low-code platform are Stock Audit (to analyze and verify stocks in different warehouses, factories, and stores), Vendor Payment (to pay vendors automatically for received items), and New Product Development (to provide a streamlined workflow when developing new products.)
Low Code No Code
If you search in Google for low code no code, a definition comes up from the SAP company's website [9] stating as
Low-code or no-code are methods of designing and developing apps using intuitive drag and drop tools that reduce or eliminate the need for traditional developers who write code.
And it is exactly as stated.
The user or developer gets an intuitive user interface where he can create an application in the manner of a form or page and further create multiple form-like structures. Then depending on the needs, the forms are stitched together to create a flow or navigation resulting in a working application.
There are things like databases, user management, security, etc generally taken care of by the platform itself. We are mostly concerned about the utility of the applications that can be developed not what's happening behind the hood.
The most common features that can be found in a low-code platform are:
A visual builder that serves as a graphical user interface
Ready-to-use code snippets are reusable, so you can create new applications quickly
Form and report templates to keep up with various reports
Pre-built integrations
Open APIs
Current applications for low code no code development sit somewhere between off-the-shelf and custom solutions.
Low code no code is innovating software development
The primary difference between low code and no code is in the name itself. No code is offered from the platform where zero coding knowledge is required or used, for the development of web or mobile applications. It's entirely based on the graphical user interface that we can see on the screen and is manipulated to get the desired requirements.
There are templates provided or developed for specific industries be it insurance, health, banking, logistics, etc. So that the user need not create an application from scratch and use the available template and build over it. Thus saving time and money.
But there are situations where you need to use complex logic to get a thing done. As every platform comes with its limitations hence low code becomes a savior where a custom code can be written to get the work done. The majority of the high-end no-code platform provides low code features to custom code-specific requirements.
A Low Code Case of PostNL, Netherlands [40]
PostNL is the national postal carrier of the Netherlands, serving 17 million customers and delivering an average of 8.1 million letters and 1.1 million parcels per day.
Their legacy order management system, developed with traditional programming languages, could no longer meet the business demand of PostNL as parcel volume and complexity increased with the rise of eCommerce.
PostNL rebuilt its core order management system with Mendix, a low code platform, and implemented a microservices architecture, which now processes over 1 million parcels daily. They also cleared their two-year backlog in six months and offered a 99.95% uptime guarantee.
The Rise of Citizen Developers
Citizen developers are subject matter experts who build business applications using low-code and no-code platforms.
The citizen developer refers to anyone who intends to develop a software application with no or minor knowledge of programming or coding. It is about the general public who are experts or knowledgeable in their domain like pharmacists, doctors, businessmen, accountants, or anyone. Someone who wants to develop applications to make the world a better place.
The people working in various business domains be it sales, marketing, operations, etc, who use these skills and low code to develop internal tools for enhancing their work are referred to as Business Technologists. Not just about internal tools, but also developing an initial MVP (minimum viable product) to test in the market if the idea is worth its value.
This is also giving rise to new kinds of job markets for freshers or professionals who intend to switch domains and work in the field of tech.
The idea of citizen developers is the path towards software democratization.
As we all know the power of the internet and its benefits. It can be put to better use via a low code no code platform, where anyone who intends to develop an application can do so without the intervention of IT engineers. Leaving a larger space for creativity to flourish without the constraint of programming knowledge & experience.
To add to the above note, Gartner, Inc. says the majority of technology products and services will be built by professionals outside of IT by 2024 [10].
By 2024, 80% of technology products and services will be built by those who are not technology professionals [11].
With citizen development becoming an important part of all organizations’ business strategy, the demand for workers with proficiency in low code no code app development is increasing. 41% of organizations now have active citizen development initiatives. 20% of those who don’t are either assessing or planning to start citizen development programs [12].
By 2023, citizen developers will outnumber professional developers by 4 to 1 [13].
Community Use Case: Mobile App "Support Upstate SC" [34]
An idea was pitched to develop a mobile application to drive business to local restaurants in upstate South Carolina that are open for delivery and takeout during the pandemic.
Developed in only seven days, Patrick Ford created "Support Upstate SC" as part of the #nocodeconnectsus challenge from NuCode and Adalo. The goal of the challenge was to prototype applications that could be created using low code to support people and communities.
Tools like Adalo are used primarily by makers and are gaining maturity quickly. It’s a startup that wants to transform application development (mobile and web) the same way WordPress transformed website development. Its UI is one of the more advanced ones available to makers and startups for a reasonable cost.
Apps like "Support Upstate SC" are examples of how citizen developers might be able to leverage low-code for community initiatives in the future.
Key Market Factors
As evaluated in the market estimation section, there is a consistent rise in the usage and adoption of low code no code platforms globally. Below is a snapshot of an estimation by Gartner on various categories of low code no code platforms;
Below is the list of primary reasons for increased usage of low code no code platforms;
1. Hyper Automation Projects
There are two ways of increasing profits for the company increasing revenue through sales or enhancing the process by decreasing waste hence increasing profit. Thus operational optimization is one of the primary areas of concern for automation. With handy, faster, and cheaper custom-made solutions provided by low code, no code has led to hyper-automation in this era of industrial 4.0.
2. Increasing economic pressures
As the world is becoming more volatile in the coming years be it cause of the pandemic or global recession increasing competition and dilution in margin has led enterprises to find faster solutions at cheaper cost. Here low code no code is one of the reliable pillars to be trusted with.
As per research by Statista, Companies that use low-code platforms to build customer-facing apps increase revenue by 58% on average [15]. Below is the list of benefits as per the industry veterans (Source: Statista).
3. Complex Business Initiatives
Complex business initiatives require lots of experiments and testing to conclude initiatives that will work for the firm. Requires quite an effort and money to get those initiatives streamlined. If we go by Gartner research, The demand for business-related apps is 5X higher than the available IT capacity [16]. Thus tools that can fasten this innovative initiation will be a big booster, and low code no code helps in that. Further complimenting it, Forrester's studies state that no code tools are 10 times faster than traditional app development platforms [17].
4. Shortage of skilled programmers or IT professionals
There are more than 500,000 computer science jobs open in the US, and it is projected to grow at a rate of 2x compared to other job fields [18]. There is a shortage of skilled professionals in IT even though it's one of the biggest employers globally. 84% of businesses are adopting low-code or no-code tools to fill the technical gap left by the shortage of developers [19]. Besides, Compared to conventional app-building platforms, no-code solutions consume 70% fewer resources [20].
5. Agile Environment
Agility has become one of the most important criteria for surviving in the current world order. So faster innovation with iteration and market delivery is required to be competitive. Organizations build solutions 56% faster using low code than companies that use traditional development technologies [21].
6. Digital Transformation
As discussed earlier, digital transformation is the primary reason behind the faster adoption of low code no code platforms. Further to reiterate, 66% of professionals believe digital transformation to be the main motive behind low-code adoption [22].
7. User Experiences
User experiences have become an important parameter to provide customer retention and revisit. With billions of data being crunched every minute, corporations intend to provide this data to customers on a readable screen, helping them make sensible choices, be it in the fields of finance, health, engineering, etc. Low code no code seems to be a tool of choice for many.
8. Upgradation of Critical systems
Critical systems in any organization face the iterative challenge of upgrading at regular intervals. With legacy software systems and processes, this affair become quite energy and money intensive. As low code no code is the antithesis of legacy systems, it helps in readily upgrading the critical systems at an extremely shorter interval at a cheaper cost.
9. Time to Innovate
Software in general has a life of three to five years, and taking several months to develop apps is not conducive to the competitive market. This is why it is no wonder that Gartner’s research suggests that over 65% of app development activity will be low-code or no-code by 2024. According to numerous reviews, low-code development is 60% faster than traditional development [21].
A case of Low Code by Schneider Electric
Schneider Electric, a global specialist in energy management and automation, wanted to continue innovating for customers. For this, Schneider needed more agility and efficiency in its business processes, capabilities, and operations, including smart and modern apps that could be developed, deployed, managed, and changed rapidly. The brand chose a low-code platform for the job and transformed its IT landscape by setting up a “Low-Code Digital Factory” that produced more than 60 new apps in its first 20 months.
Reasoning Behind Low Code No Code
The following is a probable list of the reasons behind the increased usage of low code no code as a mainstream platform for application development work;
Increased Productivity
Based on data collected from customer reviews on low-code platforms, many people use the words “Ease of use” to describe their experience [27].
Improved Accessibility
“Even in the best of times,” said Salesforce Chief Marketing Officer Sarah Franklin, “relying solely on traditional coding takes time, requires extensive developer resources, and strains IT departments.”
Low code helps you do what’s best for your teams — because it puts the power back in the hands of capable people and simultaneously lightens the load for IT [33].
Low Costs
Low code allows average companies to avoid hiring two software developers, saving them $4.4 million in three years [22].
Improve Agility
80% of organizations believe that low-code solutions can free developers time to focus on more business-critical projects [26].
Enhanced Collaboration
84% of enterprise businesses have adopted low-code solutions to reduce the tension of IT teams as of 2018. They also see low code as a promising investment to accelerate digital transformation [29].
Time to Innovate
Low-code solutions can reduce enterprise application development time by up to 60% [24].
Speed of Development
Organizations build solutions 56% faster than companies that use traditional development technologies [25].
Growing Demand for Apps from Enterprises
Cloud-made Tech Accessible
Legacy Systems
Utilizing Internal Resources
Almost 60% of custom enterprise apps are built by non-developers. 30% of them are built by employees with limited or no technical development skills [28].
Shortage of Developers
Compared to conventional app-building platforms, no-code solutions consume 70% fewer resources [17]. Whereas, 84% of businesses are adopting low-code or no-code tools to fill the technical gap left by the shortage of developers [19].
Economic Situation & Possible Recession
Job Satisfaction and Retention
85% of workers say that no-code tools add value to their lives [23].
Less Hustle with Maintenance
A Low Code Case of Kaneka, Malaysia [41]
Kaneka Malaysia, a manufacturer of vinyl, polymers, foams, and performance fibers, was facing challenges in its manufacturing operations due to a reliance on legacy systems and manual processes conducted in-person, over email, or with Excel.
The team adopted low code to digitalize their internal operations and improve their quality, reporting, and compliance systems. This resulted in fully digitalized solutions such as a Raw Material Management System and Quality Management System.
Over the course of 18 months, Kaneka rebuilt 55 manual processes and delivered 13 new systems with low code, yielding 80-100% time savings across various points of the manufacturing process.
LCAP Categorization Parameters
LCAP stands for Low code application platform. As per my understanding and research, the LCAP can be categorized into the following types;
Application Type
Web-based
Mobile-based
Desktop-based
Server-based
Deployment Type
On-premise
Cloud (Private, Public, Hybrid)
Organization Size
Small Enterprises
Medium Enterprises
Large Enterprises
End-user Verticals
BFSI
Retail
E-commerce
Information Technology
Energy & Utilities
Manufacturing
Healthcare
Government
Defense
Other End User Verticals
Pricing Model
Individual
Enterprise
Based on the above criteria, the end user can analyze and decipher from 100+ application platforms, the one that suits him, his requirements, and the firm.
LCAP Eco-System
The following lists or provides an idea of the ecosystem in development based on the industry-specific requirements. Currently, the best bet for any firm or startup working in the field of low code no code to create market share is to target specific industries and requirements and further develop it in the form of a template to be readily usable.
1. Business Intelligence
As the name suggests, it helps to collect data from multiple channels, filter out, and provide relevant actionable business data. The most famous application in this category is Tableau.
2. Customer Service 'or' CRM
The oldest use case of the software application. The low code platform allows to customize or develop a new one for the firm own specific use cases. Zoho, Salesforce, and Bitrix24 are a few of the famous platforms.
3. Enterprise Application Development
This platform helps develop end-to-end software applications for almost all the use cases. A snapshot of the magic quadrant by Gartner for the enterprise-grade Low Code Application Platform where few are chosen from 100s of platforms. It's an interesting combo of industrial pioneers with the newcomer, working towards powering the next stage of the software revolution.
4. Marketing 'or' eCommerce 'or' Design Tools
There are various low code tools available to assist in marketing or designing in the likes of Shopify, Hubspot, Pronto forms, Type forms, etc.
5. Machine Learning
Builder Ai, Ui Path, Runway, bigML, etc are low code tools used to develop and automate applications using machine learning.
6. Software Development Tools
Duplocloud, Xano, UI bakery, etc are low-code tools that help in software development.
7. IoT 'or' Industrial Automation
Datacake, Akenza, and NodeRed are low code tools specifically targeting the Internet of things and helping in moving towards industrial 4.0 with automation.
8. Web 'or' Mobile Application Development
These low-code tools are specifically designed to develop and launch mobile and web applications ASAP. This has a large user base and use cases as individuals and freelancers are highly involved in developing applications with a purpose.
Airtable, Bubble, Adalo, Wix, etc are very famous low-code applications.
9. Workflow Automation
As the name suggests, it helps in synchronizing and automating day-to-day work and projects. A foundational tool in the arsenal of efficient organization. Asana, Kissflow, Zapier, etc are famous low-code applications in this category.
The low code no code ecosystem doesn't work in silo, they all can be integrated to create an application as per need. For example, we can use Adalo to create a mobile application where Zapier is used for external automation or sending notifications with the payment portal taken care of by Stripe, and identity management is taken care of by Google with integration of backhand and flexible database with the help of Xano.
Low Code No Code Limitations
The following is the current list of limitations that industry players are concerned about. It will be most probable that the current LCAP platform must be working towards enhancing the applications to overcome these limitations.
Identification of the right tool
With an increasing number of platforms coming into existence, it becomes difficult for businesses to identify what suits their needs. 93% of IT leaders say they find the process of application modernization challenging and more than 30% of businesses claim that identifying the right tools is an issue [30].
Scalability
47% of organizations are concerned about the scalability of the apps created in low code platforms (31).
Application Usage
Only 12% of enterprises manage their business processes using low-code tools after buying them [26]. There can be multiple concerns here be it human or technical.
High-Value Applications
31% of enterprises that use low code no code have not used them to build and deliver any of their highest-value applications [29].
Security
25% of businesses have security concerns when it comes to low code no code apps [31]. The following is the list of probable concerns in cyber security for low code by the Open Worldwide Application Security Project (OWASP) [32].
Authorization Misuse
Account Impersonation
Data Leakage and Unexpected Consequences
Authentication and Secure Communication Failures
Security Misconfiguration
Injection Handling Failures
Vulnerable and Untrusted Components
Data and Secret Handling Failures
Asset Management Failures
Security Logging and Monitoring Failures
Intellectual Rights and Propriety information
The concern of sharing confidential information regarding the process and business with customer data is a deterrent towards the usage of low application for high-value work. It's the issue of trust that needs to be taken care of.
Code Refactoring
Code refactoring is either impossible or difficult. At the moment, no low code platform has refactoring tools that come close to the level of advanced IDEs (integrated software development).
Autotesting
Autotesting is impossible or extremely difficult. Without autotests, it becomes impossible to safely make changes, and the release of one feature requires a complete manual regression of the entire system. Certainly, that’s not something a reputable business needs.
Requisite of Technical Experts
High loads, custom integrations, and security. These tasks require qualified engineers and cannot be completely solved by visual programming, which focuses on solving typical problems.
Low Code Competitor Factors
Innovation
As for any products, to be relevant in the market you need to innovate consistently and with the highest possible speeds. Intense competition in this domain and the mere scale of the market make it a field of constant battle. The right innovations at the right time will help firms leverage one another.
Composable Integration
“Composability” is a business and IT philosophy. Gartner states that a composable business is an organization made from interchangeable building blocks.
What does that mean in practice for software development? Rather than starting everything from scratch, businesses use pre-built, reusable components that make it faster and easier to deliver solutions.
Integration within the application and with other tools will play a major role in being the most competitive in the market. As it's highly difficult for any platform to develop everything by themselves it's important to provide high-end integration options with other applications either via APIs or other means.
With the key to innovation and composability, I have further stated in the Low Code No Code Future Predictions and hopefully, we can see a few of the features or related products launched in the near future.
Low Code No Code Future Predictions
Specialized platforms for specific industries or use cases
The rise of citizen developers
The use of no-code and low-code platforms for data analysis and visualization
The integration of no-code and low-code with traditional software development tools
No-code and low-code for rapid prototyping and MVP development
The adoption of no-code low-code by small and medium-sized businesses
Integration with Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning
Integration with data analytics and business intelligence tools
Expansion of low code to complex applications
Integration with DevOps and Agile methodologies
Generative AI-Powered Coding
Greater emphasis on cybersecurity
I intend to end this simple study with a snapshot of the market estimation and the realization that the future of low code is here and not a distant future. All businesses globally have taken serious note of the possibility that low code no code platforms provide.
Sources and References
(12) https://www.pega.com/insights/articles/how-citizen-developers-are-improving-customer-experience
(24) https://www.statista.com/statistics/1254662/low-code-development-speed-compared-traditional-it/
(26) https://www.g2.com/articles/low-code-development-statistics#low-code-development-general-statistics
(39) Your starter guide to low code development by KissFlow