If the world is eating software, who's doing the cooking?

Instead of relying entirely on IT departments and SaaS providers, people are creating their own enterprise software using low-code tools like Microsoft Power Platform . What will that mean for the software industry?

Having worked as a database programmer, MBA, tech journalist, custom publisher, marketing writer for large consultancies and small startups, humanities scholar, and guest services attendant, I'd now like to share some thoughts about my latest passion, the world of low-code software development.

1. Low code is shift-left. Instead of waiting in the queue for an operator, consumers now overwhelmingly rely on self-service options. Similarly, low-code platforms give business users the tools to build custom solutions without having to wait in the endless queue for the attention of the IT department.
2. Instant gratification. If you have a Microsoft 365 account (Business Basic and up), you already have Power Platform. You can try it out, build apps and dashboards, and even use the premium capabilities through a Developer environment.
3. It's still programming. Even given (1) and (2), you shouldn't expect everyone in your organization to start building their own apps. With low-code tools, you may not have to deal with the syntax and compilers of a traditional programming language, but the underlying principles for how to build logic machines are unchanged. The good news is that logic is easier to learn than the obscure syntax of legacy programming languages.
4. Power tools can be dangerous. You can go farther and faster than ever before, but it's also easier to go in the wrong direction, drilling holes where you shouldn't and otherwise making a mess of things. For example, I figured out how to build automated flows to (a) log into secure accounts; (b) save all attachments to a SharePoint folder; and (c) send customized emails to entire lists. Without careful planning, I hasten to add, these use cases are Extremely Bad Ideas.
5. IT architects may be skeptical. More than anyone, it's the IT architects who can foresee all the ways that low-code platforms can go wrong. (I heard some of that skepticism at a recent O'Reilly Software Architecture Superstream.) These are people who've seen it all before and have had to pick up the pieces. They're concerned about design, reuse, collaboration and testing, and they have confidence in their capabilities using the most extensible tools. But I expect that whether they like it or not, IT architects will have to get ahead of the push to low-code platforms.
6. It's the next sleeper hit in the programming world. You won't find Power Platform on the TIOBE index of popular programming languages. But how many of those languages are pre-installed with every Microsoft 365 installation? And how many people working at an enterprise would be interested in writing their own Python, C++ or Java programs for work? And how many people can convince their IT department to install a homebrew solution using a stack of components sourced from one framework or another?
7. Low code, high leverage. Which lines of code have the greatest potential effect on business results? I would suggest that it's the code written directly for (and by) people actually doing the work at big companies, who typically have extensive Microsoft 365 deployments. For this round of the software industry, my bet is on the home team to win.
8. A cooking-school analogy. I'm currently taking a class called Food and Cooking Through Science at Seattle Community College. On the first day, we baked cookies in the Seattle Culinary Academy student kitchen, which is modeled like a professional kitchen. I had never spent any time in a professional kitchen before with its three-sink dishwashing systems, professional ovens, professional stoves, racks of utensils, and giant tubs of flour and sugar. But once we got started, it was the same KitchenAid stand mixer that I have at home, and the eggs looked the same as the eggs from the market. And with just a bit of oversight and instruction, we soon had delicious cookies. Pro coders work in the equivalent of pro kitchens using pro tools. But they're not cooking fast enough. And they're not cooking to order. That's why we've been getting reheated slop for software. We need more cooks in more kitchens. That means better kitchens, safer tools, and instructors standing by. (What this analogy means: "Better kitchens" means "better development environments." Easy onboarding for anyone who wants to experiment with low-code tools. Set up environments for development, sandboxes, test, and production. Prepare for application lifecycle management with command-line tools and utilities. Figure out training plans and how you're going to ensure compliance.)
9. AI is the necessary catalyst for low-code tools to flourish. Two years ago, you might have tried low-code programming, but I'm guessing you wouldn't have gone far without being pushed. It was all just a bit too complicated and fiddly. Now, with Copilot built into just about every part of the solution stack, you can get results quickly. And if you run into a problem, just ask Copilot. Error message? Ask Copilot. Advice on how to structure tables for a database? Ask Copilot. It's a matter of confidence. You know that if you run into a problem, you can get an answer sooner rather than later. If you're a professional coder, you're also getting the benefits of AI. But unlike the citizen developer, you were already inclined to write code. Now, you're just going to do it faster, along with every other coder on the planet. (And if you're a professional malware writer, you're going to be able to write better malware. This will make IT departments less willing to trust external code libraries combined in unpredictable ways. The trend will be towards integrated platforms where new capabilities are developed within secure, auditable frameworks that require fewer -- or if you prefer, lower -- lines of code. Anything not developed through these channels will be subject to a considerable amount of scrutiny.)
10. An order-of-magnitude increase in supply meets a backlog in unmet demands.

Trends in the supply for IT services

• AI makes it easier to write, debug, test, document, and deploy code.
• Everyone's ready for remote work, so there's more supply.
• Entire industries are being disrupted, so there's more supply.
• The IT industry itself is being disrupted, so there's more supply. Ridiculously competent professional supply.
• With just a bit of training, plus AI, citizen developers can build, let's say, 80 percent of what professional developers once did. Therefore, more supply.
• De-globalization trend in progress, so there's that. (Depending on where you live, more or less supply.)

Trends in the demand for IT services

• Digital-native businesses can keep running with what they've already built. (See: X.) Now working on moonshots. Limited demand.
• Large enterprises have digital transformation projects complete or underway. Steady demand for analytics and optimization, and for line of business apps to deploy AI to front-line workers.
• SMEs rely on SaaS providers for bulk of operations, with large backlog of unmet needs due to high expense of customization. Large demand for apps, workflows, analytics, website enhancements.
• Under-served organizations including government agencies, quasi-government agencies, companies that feel like government agencies, neighborhood institutions, associations, clubs, gathering spots, non-profits, not-for-profits, low-profits, small profits, no profits, and charities. Enormous pent-up demand for modern digital experiences, efficiency improvements, and knowledge-sharing. Unlimited demand.

Put it all together, and you have opportunity.

There's opportunity wherever someone wanted to build an application but there wasn’t money in the budget, or the IT department had other priorities, or there never was an IT department, or they found an off-the-shelf solution that handled 80 percent of their needs; or someone built a website 10 years ago that hasn’t been updated since.

No matter what job you have, you'll be able to use the tools you already have, hiding just inside the waffle menu at the top left of your Microsoft 365 homepage, to do things that previously would have required either a dedicated team of professional developers, the budget to hire an external vendor for a long-term sourcing contract, or any number of other expensive and time-consuming propositions.

I'm excited by the scale of this opportunity.

That's why, after a couple decades away from hands-on programming, I've been learning Power Platform through the Microsoft Power Up program for career switchers.

I'm currently seeking to put these new skills to use.

If you're inspired, let's talk!