Low-code or no-code platforms have emerged as a development environment for cloud and on-premise applications. They should also be able to be operated by personnel without specialist knowledge. Visual and declarative methods are used instead of programming. They are seen as a promising technology that can effectively counter the shortage of skilled workers. This is an extremely tempting offer in view of the 137,000 shortage of skilled workers in the IT sector alone in Germany.

In addition, a third of all companies with more than 500 employees consider low-code or no-code platforms to be highly relevant, as the study "ERP in Practice 2022/2023" by the consulting firm Trovarit shows. However, 16% of SMEs with 20 to 99 employees also think this is the case. This figure is likely to increase very quickly, as the low/no-code phenomenon has enormous potential for ERP development. So what will the future of ERP look like if development tools for non-programmers are used?

Low/no-code platforms shake up ERP

Low/no-code platforms enable employees with less advanced technical skills to build cloud and on-premise apps for specialist departments - or so the theory goes. However, it should be borne in mind that while pure development may seem trivial, the whole thing takes place in an environment of complex enterprise applications. In practice, this is therefore often carried out by service providers or the platform providers for the customer. The various modules of ERP systems - for warehouse management, document processing or project management, for example - are located in a central database and interlinked there. In order to be able to meet the respective requirements and needs of the specialist departments in companies, these need to be adapted. This usually requires expert knowledge; and depending on the type of development, it can also involve a great deal of programming. For example, it makes a difference whether complete processes or just access to a data source is to be designed. Low/no-code platforms give rise to the justified hope that workflows, extensions and new developments can be created by expert users in the specialist departments and without the intervention of IT professionals. Theoretically, even complete ERP systems can be set up on a low-code console.

Two low/no-code approaches

In practice, there are two types of low/no-code approaches: One is as an integral part of an ERP system, where the development platform is primarily used to individually adapt the modules to the process landscape and to digitize certain processes in the company. All necessary interfaces and connectors are already on board, simplifying operation for non-specialist personnel, but the complexity should still not be underestimated.

On the other hand, low/no-code platforms are offered as external extensions for legacy systems - these can be used to create applications that extend the range of functions. This approach is pursued by the leading low/no-code providers, but has the disadvantage that the adaptation to a company's circumstances is complex: Connections and interfaces have to be organized and set up by the user themselves, even if the platforms already automate many steps.

What both variants have in common is the risk of uncontrolled growth: applications of all kinds quickly emerge, beyond the control of IT and therefore potentially dangerous for the company network. However, this proliferation can be kept in check with monitored governance rules.

Is low-programming suitable for non-professionals?

Can untrained specialist users, also known as "citizen developers", actually write sensible applications with low/no-code development environments? And can they be used to define workflows?

Experience at proAlpha shows that there is still a long way to go. The operation of low/no-code platforms today is by no means "foolproof" and goes beyond simple "drag & drop" of code snippets. In most cases, IT laypersons still need the help of an IT specialist to (re)define workflows, especially if an external development platform is used. In any case, a company-wide set of rules must be introduced and enforced so that uncontrolled app proliferation does not put a dent in a company's security framework. This is why these developments are often carried out by providers of low/no-code platforms or external service providers.
However, another development will massively change low-code programming: Generative AI, in the form of chat GPT, is mastering more and more development languages and generating code in the blink of an eye. It is only a matter of time before artificially intelligent low/no-code platforms take a company's ERP to a new level. They can be connected to the ERP and other business applications via a standard interface - and can then free up significant and valuable IT resources. The specialist department, on the other hand, gains considerable flexibility, as the implementation of specific process requirements in functional extensions and adaptations can largely be initiated independently. Nevertheless, as already mentioned, the issue of app proliferation should not be underestimated.

The author: Michael Finkler is Managing Director Business Development at the proALPHA Group.

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For providers of ERP systems such as proALPHA, such complementary platforms are therefore among the most exciting developments in the industry. They are well on the way to connecting this or any other low/no-code platform to their ERP as soon as their development is so far advanced that users can design forms, individualize evaluations, set up intercompany processes or replicate master data practically without outside help. Bitkom's ERP working group recently put it in a nutshell in a discussion paper: "Low-code is certainly not the end of the classic ERP world. It is more a redistribution of tasks."