Apps are everywhere. The average smartphone user has 60 to 90 apps on their phone. While there is no denying that mobile and tablet usage is poised to continue its growth, research shows that 55.9% of time spent online still comes from a desktop—and desktop users love their apps, too!
In 2020, due in no small part to the worldwide increase in remote work and telecommuting, the way we use the Internet has changed. As more people are working, schooling, and gathering virtually from home, the desktop computer is getting lots of attention these days. With attention comes innovation.
As companies were forced to rethink workflows, the demand for new and rapidly deployed applications rose. Luckily, businesses have options from major platforms such as Microsoft, as well as independent companies such as Unqork, which just raised $207 million in Series C funding. Outlets from TechCrunch to cryptocurrency blog CoinJournal all have their eyes on no-code and low-code development as “the next blockchain.” But what exactly is no-code development?
What Is No-Code Development?
No-code or low-code development platforms enable business analysts and other non-programming users inside companies to create sophisticated apps for their unique business needs, all without writing a single line of code. No-code platforms use drag-and-drop interfaces and visual grids to create relationships, actions, and dependencies to trigger automations within a business’s data warehouse.
Microsoft showcased the impressive capabilities of their low-code platform, the Microsoft Power Platform, during the virtual 2020 Ignite technology conference. The Ignite session showed how a single developer at T-Mobile with a background in business process management created and manages a software platform that is central to T-Mobile’s digital infrastructure, including submitting, approving, tracking, coordinating, analyzing, and reporting on all projects within the company that are valued at more than $100,000.
Microsoft’s Ongoing Investment in Low-Code Platforms
While 2020 seems to be the year of the no-code or low-code platform, with Amazon and Google each entering the ring, Microsoft’s involvement in this space dates back much longer. Microsoft developed the Power BI (business intelligence) service in 2011 as a desktop application, which launched to the public in 2015. Microsoft took the service even further in 2016 with Power BI Embedded, which is built into the Azure cloud platform. Since then, the Power Platform has grown to encompass Power BI, Power Apps, Power Automate, and Power Virtual Agents for building intelligent chatbots faster and easier than ever.
In 2018, Microsoft acquired GitHub for $7.5 billion in stock, betting big on the promise of a younger generation of coders and open-source development. This year, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella applauded the growing democratization of software development, offering this about the GitHub-Microsoft partnership:
“I’m particularly excited about how we’re bringing together Power Platform and GitHub. For the very first time, both pro and citizen developers can contribute to the same repo, so they can build apps together, instead of stitching apps together.”
In addition, the Microsoft Power Platform offers integrations and connectors to over 350 third-party cloud apps and services, contributing to one of the most robust, user-friendly platforms on the market today.
Gartner Inc., a research organization that publishes ratings on low-code application platforms, named the Microsoft Power Platform a leader in the field, in both 2019 and 2020.
Excellence Is No Accident
As Microsoft has invested heavily in the democratization of programming through the Power Platform, Microsoft Dynamics 365, and integrated Azure cloud services, Windows Management Experts maintains the highest level of commitment to helping your business get the most out of your Microsoft investment.
From virtual agent chatbots to custom client management solutions, you can build it on the Microsoft Power Platform. And from custom automations to licensing to strategic staffing, you can make the most of your Microsoft experience with Windows Management Experts. Call (888) 307-0133 today to unlock your business’s potential using the power of Microsoft.
