Because every business is becoming a software business, digital transformation has become a vital initiative for sustaining a competitive edge. Though the demand for modern software affects every industry, there is a limited supply of developers with the abilities needed to program applications from the ground up.
More businesses are turning to low-code/no-code platforms to tackle the scarcity of technical talents, which lower the entry barrier in app development.
The use of low code has ramped up recently — due in part to the COVID-19 outbreak as well as the mounting pressure on IT to deliver value to businesses and their end-users. According to the leading technology research and consulting firm, Gartner Inc., the use of low-code and no-code technologies will triple by 2025, up from less than 25% in 2020.
According to Gartner, the rise in low-code application platforms accounts for the rise of citizen developers — particularly business technologists who are not part of their firms’ IT departments but create app capabilities for internal and external business needs.
What are the benefits of low-code technology?
Hiring developers with the right skills is increasingly becoming one of the most demanding business challenges. This developer shortage has led to a rise in software developer wages — the median computer programmer salary in the U.S. is over $100,000 per year (double the average regional wage in some states). This makes hiring software developers even more challenging for businesses.
One of the advantages of low-code technology is that it allows businesses to deal with the developer shortage by allowing business professionals and IT to build apps with fewer or no developers at all. As a result, using low-code platforms makes it much easier for businesses to design specialized software.
Other advantages of low-code technology include:
Faster development cycles and innovation.
Low-code development makes it easier for businesses to design modern business apps because it allows them to adapt and respond to dynamic business needs quickly.
Businesses can build apps faster with low-code development since what used to take months can now be done in days (and even hours or minutes). As a result of using low-code development, time is no longer a barrier to innovation and growth. Furthermore, low-code development platforms accelerate development by reducing the demand for technical resources and expertise.
Because low-code development does not rely on highly sophisticated programming languages, even non-technical folks without strong coding skills can build lightweight apps using visual point-and-click tools.
Low-code development allows for quicker development cycles and innovation by:
- Allowing feedback earlier in the development cycle can encourage innovation when there is still time to make improvements.
- Developers can learn precisely what end-users want from an application when they can share ideas with each other.
- Opening development potential to a broader spectrum of talent can help to accelerate delivery schedules in the long run because responsibilities are not tied to one set of people.
Lower cost
Low-code development platforms also help businesses cut costs by lowering recruitment costs.
Businesses face major challenges in recruiting, hiring and retaining developers. Low-code development tools, however, enable non-technical staff to develop applications.
Furthermore, providing developers with access to low-code tools can help streamline their jobs by relieving them from tedious and repetitive tasks that hinder development and allowing them to focus on more value-added responsibilities.
The Bottom Line
With a low-code test automation solution businesses can build automated tests without writing code and quickly move from manual to automated testing.
If you want to maximize the benefits of low-code test automation, contact us today!