It’s easy to have an idea. But it’s not so easy to turn that idea into an app when you lack the right resources. Enter low-code, no-code (LCNC) solutions, transformative tools that allow employees to build apps — with minimal coding skill.
Gartner estimates that 70% of new applications built by organizations will use LCNC technologies by 2025. So as not to fall behind, it’s important that business leaders embrace LCNC tools, democratize their software development, and empower teams as a result.
In this blog, we'll highlight the benefits and potential of LCNC platforms, focusing on Microsoft Power Platform.
What are low-code, no-code solutions?
Low-code, no-code platforms are software development tools designed to speed up the creation of applications by reducing the need for extensive coding. Their primary goal is to:
- Make software development more accessible
- Reduce the time to market for applications
- Empower business users to innovate without waiting for IT support
But aren’t low-code, no-code platforms the same? Well, sort of. Despite obvious similarities that they have in their end goals, there are a few little differences that set them apart:
Low code platforms are usually used by IT professionals with coding skills, offering a graphical user interface with drag-and-drop capabilities that allow developers to build complex apps quickly.
No code development solutions, on the other hand, enable non-technical users to create applications using pre-built templates and simple logic flows — ready-made and customizable graphical representations that are simple to understand.
Microsoft Power Platform overview
Let's look under the hood of Power Platform — a suite of LCNC tools designed to empower users to create, automate, analyze, and optimize business processes.
Microsoft Power Apps
Power Apps allows users to build custom apps tailored to their business needs. With a variety of templates and a drag-and-drop interface, users can create web and mobile applications without extensive coding knowledge. Whether you want to modernize legacy applications or build new solutions from scratch, Power Apps helps you solve business problems across a variety of use cases.
Microsoft Power Automate
Power Automate enables users to automate workflows between various applications and services. From streamlining repetitive tasks, integrating systems, and improving productivity, this end-to-end cloud automation platform optimizes business processes across your company so you can save time and direct attention to higher value work.
Microsoft Power BI
Power BI is a business analytics tool that provides interactive visualizations and business intelligence capabilities. Bringing all your data together as a single source of truth, Power BI allows users to create detailed reports and dashboards that facilitate data-driven decision-making. Everyone, regardless of data analysis skills, can explore it with easy-to-use interfaces and resources.
Microsoft Copilot Studio
Copilot Studio empowers users to create intelligent chatbots without coding. These chatbots might be able to handle customer inquiries, automate responses, and improve your customer service. Plus, you can customize Copilot for Microsoft 365 with extensions and more.
Microsoft Power Pages
Power Pages helps your broader teams build and manage secure, data-driven business websites. It is designed for users to create portals that can be accessed by external stakeholders, providing a seamless interface for interactions with customers, partners, and employees. With easy drag-and-drop design and no-code components, it is super simple for non-technical teams.
Benefits of Microsoft Power Platform
Here are the main reasons why your company should consider Power Platform:
Empower users
Power Platform bridges the gap between business, IT and power users, ensuring collaboration and innovation across organizations. While IT departments benefit from reduced development workloads to focus on more complex tasks, general business users can become power users by learning to apply Power Platform to solve business problems independently. This kind of empowerment fosters a culture of innovation, leading to a more proactive workforce.
Increase agility
In the rapidly changing digital world, agility is essential to remain on top. Power Platform is one of many tools that can help. Its ability to allow rapid application development and deployment accelerates business automation, so processes become more efficient and adaptable to change.
Reduce costs
Traditional custom software development can be very expensive, involving high costs for skilled developers, long development cycles, and multiple platform subscriptions. Not only does Power Platform reduce dependency on external developers, but it eliminates the need for multiple subscriptions to various other platforms. The suite of tools sits within a single ecosystem.
Integrate with other platforms
Power Platform integrates easily with Microsoft 365, Azure, and other services and applications.
This means you can leverage your existing investments in Microsoft technology and allow for easy data sharing and process automation across different systems — enhancing overall efficiency of your operations.
Using Microsoft Power Platform across different organizations
Big or small, every organization can benefit from the transformative capabilities of the Power Platform. Here’s how:
Small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)
SMEs are in a great position to harness the Power Platform. Why? Because constraints on teams and budgets are sharply pronounced. You might not have the cashflow to justify multiple platform subscriptions or to bring in an external team. Power Platform enables SMEs to save money and resources so that teams can build apps and optimize processes without assistance.
For example, departments like HR often operate with small budgets and limited team members. In fact, a recent study indicated that 77% of HR employees are feeling fatigued and overworked. Power Platform can enable HR professionals to build solutions themselves to automate manual and time-intensive tasks like onboarding, payroll and performance management. If a HR team wanted to improve their onboarding process, Power Apps can help them harness workflow automation to guide new employees through a more efficient process.
Large enterprises
Large enterprises, by contrast, have bigger teams and a wider scale of operations. However, even they can be restricted in budget and resources across their IT operations. This is problematic if they are considering enterprise-wide digital transformation initiatives. Given the vast amounts of data they manage daily, and the complex processes taking place across many departments, a comprehensive tool like Power Platform becomes a more satisfying option.
For instance, a large healthcare provider can use Power Platform to drive digital transformation across its entire operations. Healthcare providers handle sensitive patient data, comply with strict regulatory requirements, and need robust security measures.
Whether they’re using business intelligence tools like Power BI to provide comprehensive analytics on patient outcomes and operational efficiency, or Copilot Studio to enhance patient engagement with 24/7 chatbot support for appointment scheduling and medical inquiries, Power Platform empowers the provider's departments to take ownership of automating critical processes. This not only improves patient satisfaction but also ensures compliance with healthcare regulations such as HIPAA.
What to consider before implementing low-code, no-code solutions
Before you implement LCNC solutions like Microsoft Power Platform, it's crucial to address the following:
Shadow IT
Shadow IT can emerge when LCNC tools are adopted without proper oversight, leading to a sprawl of unsupported applications that pose significant security risks and maintenance challenges. Establish a governance framework to manage the adoption of LCNC tools effectively.
Lack of scalability
Although LCNC platforms are inherently designed to be scalable, they may not always be suitable for complex scenarios that demand robust traditional development approaches. It's essential to thoroughly evaluate the scalability requirements of your applications to determine if an LCNC solution is appropriate.
Documentation issues
Without proper documentation, applications created by individual developers can become unsustainable. To mitigate this, organizations should set clear documentation standards and ensure compliance to maintain the longevity and maintainability of LCNC-developed applications.
Choosing the right data source
This is a crucial decision in the development and operation of applications on Power Platform. It's not just about having data; it's about having the right data available in the right way. Consider:
Data volume: Ensure the data source can handle the required volume of data. A data source that can handle your needs today but fails to scale with your growth will become a problem.
Access speed: Choose sources that offer fast data retrieval to enhance user experience. Remember, a few seconds of delay can frustrate users and lead to decreased engagement.
Compatibility: Ensure compatibility with Power Platform and other integrated systems. This ensures that data flows smoothly between services without the need for costly and time-consuming data transformation or migration projects.
Security: Select sources with robust security features to protect sensitive information. With the increasing prevalence of cyber threats, security cannot be overstated.
Microsoft Power Platform best practices
By adhering to these best practices, organizations can create a robust information architecture on Power Platform:
Standardize data models: Using standardized data models simplifies the development process and enhances the reliability of data analytics. They ensure that data is organized and understood in the same way across the organization.
Establish data governance: Governance plays a pivotal role, ensuring policies and procedures are implemented to maintain high standards of data quality and security across the platform. By doing so, your organization can safeguard data assets and manage risks effectively. Plus, you can keep costs under control and resolve accountability issues with a clear oversight of users. Rencore Governance helps optimize costs by identifying premium licenses at scale.
Use modular design: This design principle supports the creation of reusable components that can be easily maintained and updated, facilitating agile responses to changing business needs. It also enables a more efficient use of resources, as modules can be developed and tested independently before being integrated into larger systems.
The future is low-code, no-code
As businesses continue to seek agility and innovation, LCNC solutions like Microsoft Power Platform will play a pivotal role in digital transformation efforts across industries. With the global low-code, no-code market projected to grow from $28.75 billion in 2024 to $264.40 billion by 2032, he future of LCNC solutions looks more than promising.
Are you looking to implement Power Platform in your organization? Then you need proper governance around it. Rencore Governance can help you empower and guide your Power Platform users, setting the right guardrails around your Microsoft architecture.
