Build or Buy Is Passe - The Low Code Revolution Is Here to Stay

The year 2017 so far has been the year of digital transformation with cloud, IoT, APIs and low-code application development gaining focus. Companies that build Low Code Platforms and help organizations build business applications are beginning to see these technologies scale up. The low-code platform market is expected to scale up to $20B by the end of the decade, says Forrester.  So since a lot of business enterprises across the globe have been talking about this low code revolution we will delve deep into the realms of this application development methodology and its role in digital transformation.

Let’s look at some of the common queries that surround low-code platforms and their usability.

• How are low-code platforms solving enterprise IT challenges and   help in ushering digital transformation?
• What is making this space click the right boxes among enterprise IT leaders?
• How are low-code platforms scoring over traditional development platforms?

I will be throwing some light on these topics in-depth below.

Main Drivers for Using a Low-Code Platform
One of the biggest motivations to adopt low-code platforms has been that it was able to resolve the issues of time, control and customization in app development.  Let’s dig into a little history on how enterprises dealt with custom business app development.

Figure 1: Evolution of custom business app development approach

Empower Your Employees
Emphasising on what has been shown in the image above, low code development platforms has empowered the citizen developers, by letting them build apps without coding.  In this way, enterprise leaders were able to harness the huge innovation potential among their employees, especially among those who did not have the technical skills to create or build a professional app.  This innovation revolution enabled the citizen developers to quickly create an app from an idea.

Lower Total Cost of Ownership
Low-code platforms also became alluring for very simple business reasons.  They save you time, money and effort and in turn lower your total cost of ownership  These reasons being the most important for all businesses to grow and be profitable, enterprises  choose it over others. . It is possible to build an app at half the cost and time with a low code platform as compared to traditional platforms.  The overall TCO is far lower and is a straightforward decision for enterprise IT and business leaders.

Business-Centric Development
Traditional app development focus too much on technology while keeping the the analysts, business development managers and product managers sparingly involved in bits and pieces of the project. However, low-code development approach is a business-first approach, where you build your app with the end user experience in mind with the technology teams helping out only in case of a need for custom coding. In a nutshell, with low coding, business imperatives take precedence over technological imperatives.

Low-Code Platforms: Buy - Build - Deploy
Low code platforms being simple and user friendly without the complexity of coding - can solve one of the biggest issues of engaging business users and enabling them to work in congruence with the technical teams.Low-code platforms follow a method of development that is visual in nature. What you build using the simple drop and drag features will be exactly what the end customer would want it to be.  The positive effects of this are far-reaching. For instance, the focus remains on the business and customer experience rather than on technology. The auto generated code is based on enterprise standards and best practices and hence eliminates the risk of human errors during coding.

The Low code platforms use simple drag and drop functionality , it uses out of the box themes and templates are than be used as per requirement. This can be used easily by citizen developers to build custom apps and meet business requirements.

Integration testing is a common term associated with traditional development, wherein, disparate app components are built in silos and then, when the code is ready, it is merged and undergoes multiple rounds of integration testing. Data from disparate sources can be easily integrated to create an application using low code platform. This integration when done using low code platforms is expected to provide a visual approach to developers who can bind data from sources like APIs, external cloud sources etc. Developers can also design data models and configure business logic into a low code application.

Finally, when we are finished developing the app , it can be effortlessly  moved from development to staging to production environments. Features like DIY cloud and containerisation make modern low code platforms easy to use and deploy.   In these cases, the underlying app and its dependent software stack are not changed and are moved easily to environments with different hardware configurations.  Therefore, you will never encounter a situation, common in traditional development approaches, in which QA says, “It’s not working” and the developer replies “It worked for me in my system.”

With the entire app lifecycle from development to deployment accelerated and standardized in the low-code development approach, it’s no wonder that big-IT enterprises and leaders are banking on it .

Low-Code Platforms:  What Lies Ahead
There are a lot of mergers and acquisitions happening in the application development market. Google, Microsoft, Oracle and Salesforce is here and everyone's aware of it. There are speculations about consolidation of small market players too. To exemplify , a few years back, Progress acquired Rollbase and VMWare acquired WaveMaker. But, VMware sold it back. Big players like Google, Microsoft and Salesforce are getting new apps created and integrating them with cloud services. But expect them to deny your request for any customised or extended service beyond database services, analytics services, deployment services to name a few.

One interesting point is that the biggest of the ecosystem players, AWS, is not yet armed with a  great RAD platform  It is just a matter of time before that is going to happen. Smaller players and the  the pure-play vendors will not have much to worry about.  Most of the pure-play vendors cater to the enterprise market, which is an on-premise play.  Existing  platforms such as Google AppMaker and Microsoft PowerApps have some way to go before they become full-fledged enterprise low-code platforms.  A lot of market consolidation in the area of  Low Code App development is thus expected in the coming days.

In a Nutshell
Just more than half of the year 2017 has rolled off and one thing is clear - Low-code platforms have truly taken root and are here to replace, in a variety of use cases, traditional approaches to app development and speed up application development greatly.

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DevOps at Cloud Expo taking place October 31 - November 2, 2017, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA, will feature technical sessions from a rock star conference faculty and the leading industry players in the world.

Must Watch Video: Recap of @DevOpsSummit New York Javits Center

The widespread success of cloud computing is driving the DevOps revolution in enterprise IT. Now as never before, development teams must communicate and collaborate in a dynamic, 24/7/365 environment. There is no time to wait for long development cycles that produce software that is obsolete at launch. DevOps may be disruptive, but it is essential.

Nutanix DevOps Booth at @DevOpsSummit New York Javits Center

DevOps at Cloud Expo will expand the DevOps community, enable a wide sharing of knowledge, and educate delegates and technology providers alike. Recent research has shown that DevOps dramatically reduces development time, the amount of enterprise IT professionals put out fires, and support time generally. Time spent on infrastructure development is significantly increased, and DevOps practitioners report more software releases and higher quality. Sponsors of DevOps at Cloud Expo will benefit from unmatched branding, profile building and lead generation opportunities through:

• Featured on-site presentation and ongoing on-demand webcast exposure to a captive audience of industry decision-makers.
• Showcase exhibition during our new extended dedicated expo hours
• Breakout Session Priority scheduling for Sponsors that have been guaranteed a 35 minute technical session
• Online advertising in SYS-CON's i-Technology Publications
• Capitalize on our Comprehensive Marketing efforts leading up to the show with print mailings, e-newsletters and extensive online media coverage.
• Unprecedented PR Coverage: Editorial Coverage on DevOps Journal
• Tweetup to over 75,000 plus followers
• Press releases sent on major wire services to over 500 industry analysts.

For more information on sponsorship, exhibit, and keynote opportunities, contact Carmen Gonzalez by email at events (at) sys-con.com, or by phone 201 802-3021.

Most Popular Video: Sheng Liang's Containers Talk

@DevOpsSummit at Cloud Expo taking place October 31 - November 2, 2017, Santa Clara Convention Center, CA, and is co-located with the 21st International Cloud Expo and will feature technical sessions from a rock star conference faculty and the leading industry players in the world.

@DevOpsSummit 2017 Silicon Valley
(October 31 - November 2, 2017, Santa Clara Convention Center, CA)

@DevOpsSummit 2018 New York 
(June 12-14, 2018, Javits Center, Manhattan)

With major technology companies and startups seriously embracing Cloud strategies, now is the perfect time to attend 21st Cloud Expo, October 31 - November 2, 2017, at the Santa Clara Convention Center, CA, and June 12-14, 2018, at the Javits Center in New York City, NY, and learn what is going on, contribute to the discussions, and ensure that your enterprise is on the right path to Digital Transformation.

Track 1. Enterprise Cloud | Cloud-Native
Track 2. Big Data | Analytics
Track 3. Internet of Things | IIoT | Smart Cities
Track 4. DevOps | Digital Transformation (DX)
Track 5. APIs | Cloud Security | Mobility
Track 6. AI | ML | DL | Cognitive
Track 7. Containers | Microservices | Serverless
Track 8. FinTech | InsurTech | Token Economy

Speaking Opportunities

The upcoming 21st International @CloudExpo | @ThingsExpo, October 31 - November 2, 2017, Santa Clara Convention Center, CA, and June 12-14, 2018, at the Javits Center in New York City, NY announces that its Call For Papers for speaking opportunities is open. Themes and topics to be discussed include:

• Agile
• API management
• APM
• Application delivery
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• Configuration automation
• Containers
• Continuous delivery
• Continuous integration
• Continuous testing
• DevOps anti-patterns
• DevOps for legacy systems
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• Kubernetes
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• Monitoring
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• Serverless
• Scrum
• Service virtualization
• Teaming
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• WebOps, CloudOps, ChatOps, NoOps

Submit your speaking proposal today! ▸ Here

Cloud Expo | @ThingsExpo 2017 Silicon Valley
(October 31 - November 2, 2017, Santa Clara Convention Center, CA)

Cloud Expo | @ThingsExpo 2018 New York 
(June 12-14, 2018, Javits Center, Manhattan)

Download Show Prospectus ▸ Here

Every Global 2000 enterprise in the world is now integrating cloud computing in some form into its IT development and operations. Midsize and small businesses are also migrating to the cloud in increasing numbers.  

Companies are each developing their unique mix of cloud technologies and services, forming multi-cloud and hybrid cloud architectures and deployments across all major industries. Cloud-driven thinking has become the norm in financial services, manufacturing, telco, healthcare, transportation, energy, media, entertainment, retail and other consumer industries, and the public sector.

Cloud Expo is the single show where technology buyers and vendors can meet to experience and discus cloud computing and all that it entails. Sponsors of Cloud Expo will benefit from unmatched branding, profile building and lead generation opportunities through:

• Featured on-site presentation and ongoing on-demand webcast exposure to a captive audience of industry decision-makers.
• Showcase exhibition during our new extended dedicated expo hours
• Breakout Session Priority scheduling for Sponsors that have been guaranteed a 35-minute technical session
• Online advertising in SYS-CON's i-Technology Publications
• Capitalize on our Comprehensive Marketing efforts leading up to the show with print mailings, e-newsletters and extensive online media coverage.
• Unprecedented PR Coverage: Editorial Coverage on Cloud Computing Journal.
  
• Tweetup to over 75,000 plus followers
• Press releases sent on major wire services to over 500 industry analysts.

For more information on sponsorship, exhibit, and keynote opportunities, contact Carmen Gonzalez by email at events (at) sys-con.com, or by phone 201 802-3021.

The World's Largest "Cloud Digital Transformation" Event

@CloudExpo | @ThingsExpo 2017 Silicon Valley
(Oct. 31 - Nov. 2, 2017, Santa Clara Convention Center, CA)

@CloudExpo | @ThingsExpo 2018 New York 
(June 12-14, 2018, Javits Center, Manhattan)

Full Conference Registration Gold Pass and Exhibit Hall ▸ Here

Register For @CloudExpo ▸ Here via EventBrite

Register For @ThingsExpo ▸ Here via EventBrite

Register For @DevOpsSummit ▸ Here via EventBrite

Sponsorship Opportunities

Sponsors of Cloud Expo | @ThingsExpo will benefit from unmatched branding, profile building and lead generation opportunities through:

• Featured on-site presentation and ongoing on-demand webcast exposure to a captive audience of industry decision-makers
• Showcase exhibition during our new extended dedicated expo hours
• Breakout Session Priority scheduling for Sponsors that have been guaranteed a 35 minute technical session
• Online targeted advertising in SYS-CON's i-Technology Publications
• Capitalize on our Comprehensive Marketing efforts leading up to the show with print mailings, e-newsletters and extensive online media coverage
• Unprecedented Marketing Coverage: Editorial Coverage on ITweetup to over 100,000 plus followers, press releases sent on major wire services to over 500 industry analysts

For more information on sponsorship, exhibit, and keynote opportunities, contact Carmen Gonzalez (@GonzalezCarmen) today by email at events (at) sys-con.com, or by phone 201 802-3021.

Secrets of Sponsors and Exhibitors ▸ Here
Secrets of Cloud Expo Speakers ▸ Here

All major researchers estimate there will be tens of billions devices - computers, smartphones, tablets, and sensors - connected to the Internet by 2020. This number will continue to grow at a rapid pace for the next several decades.

With major technology companies and startups seriously embracing Cloud strategies, now is the perfect time to attend @CloudExpo | @ThingsExpo, October 31 - November 2, 2017, at the Santa Clara Convention Center, CA, and June 12-4, 2018, at the Javits Center in New York City, NY, and learn what is going on, contribute to the discussions, and ensure that your enterprise is on the right path to Digital Transformation.

Delegates to Cloud Expo | @ThingsExpo will be able to attend 8 simultaneous, information-packed education tracks.

There are over 120 breakout sessions in all, with Keynotes, General Sessions, and Power Panels adding to three days of incredibly rich presentations and content.

Join Cloud Expo | @ThingsExpo conference chair Roger Strukhoff (@IoT2040), October 31 - November 2, 2017, Santa Clara Convention Center, CA, and June 12-14, 2018, at the Javits Center in New York City, NY, for three days of intense Enterprise Cloud and 'Digital Transformation' discussion and focus, including Big Data's indispensable role in IoT, Smart Grids and (IIoT) Industrial Internet of Things, Wearables and Consumer IoT, as well as (new) Digital Transformation in Vertical Markets.

Financial Technology - or FinTech - Is Now Part of the @CloudExpo Program!

Accordingly, attendees at the upcoming 21st Cloud Expo | @ThingsExpo October 31 - November 2, 2017, Santa Clara Convention Center, CA, and June 12-14, 2018, at the Javits Center in New York City, NY, will find fresh new content in a new track called FinTech, which will incorporate machine learning, artificial intelligence, deep learning, and blockchain into one track.

Financial enterprises in New York City, London, Singapore, and other world financial capitals are embracing a new generation of smart, automated FinTech that eliminates many cumbersome, slow, and expensive intermediate processes from their businesses.

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More than US$20 billion in venture capital is being invested in FinTech this year. @CloudExpo is pleased to bring you the latest FinTech developments as an integral part of our program, starting at the 21st International Cloud Expo October 31 - November 2, 2017 in Silicon Valley, and June 12-14, 2018, in New York City.

@CloudExpo is accepting submissions for this new track, so please visit www.CloudComputingExpo.com for the latest information.

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SYS-CON Media (www.sys-con.com) has since 1994 been connecting technology companies and customers through a comprehensive content stream - featuring over forty focused subject areas, from Cloud Computing to Web Security - interwoven with market-leading full-scale conferences produced by SYS-CON Events. The company's internationally recognized brands include among others Cloud Expo® (@CloudExpo), Big Data Expo® (@BigDataExpo), DevOps Summit (@DevOpsSummit), @ThingsExpo® (@ThingsExpo), Containers Expo (@ContainersExpo) and Microservices Expo (@MicroservicesE).

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