5 Big Challenges facing CIOs and IT leaders in Pandemic 2021

5 Big Challenges facing CIOs and IT leaders in Pandemic 2021

The atypical scenario experienced in 2020 left big challenges for business in 2021, especially for IT leaders and CIOs.  While teleworking is at its peak, the IT department is at the center of unprecedented crisis management. On all fronts, it must manage collaborative tools, security, and remote support. Whether temporary or permanent, these changes raise new questions and point to the challenges of the future. 

The pandemic highlighted technology as an essential resource to ensure the survival and sustainability of companies. Suddenly, IT managers needed to reallocate investments and people to adapt to the new environment of mostly virtual transactions, without a roadmap to follow. As a result of the unexpected events, companies had no choice but to invest in innovation – we have anticipated the digital transformation by five years, which has placed technology in a crucial place in adapting to the unstable and unpredictable scenario.

While IT departments are slowly starting to reorganize, some changes are here to stay and should continue to challenge CIOs and their teams this year. The pandemic changed people’s habits, as consumers and professionals, and brought permanent changes in the way we live and work. In response to all of these changes, companies started and continue to adapt, resulting in increasing demands on the IT sector.

Following are some challenges on the agendas of IT leaders and CIOs, including issues like digital transformation, adapting business models, and creating new work cultures.

Flexibility of work

One of the clearest impacts of the pandemic was the adaptation to new forms of virtual work. And in the post-pandemic, companies are expected to maintain this flexibility, with an increasing predominance of an environment with professionals working, totally or partially, remotely.

In addition to providing adequate equipment, security, and monitoring so that professionals remain productive, motivated, and connected from anywhere, companies began to face difficulties that they did not have in the offices, such as the ability to link data, link shared with the family, loss of energy in the home, among others. And to solve any problems, the IT teams also needed to adapt the service provided to employees, sometimes even working at their homes.

Digital Workplace: digital culture at the heart of the companies of tomorrow

After intranets, social networks, and corporate collaboration platforms, new forms of work are emerging, like the Digital Workplace. Thanks to these emerging models, the future CIO can anchor digital culture in the daily lives of employees in a concrete way. From production to finance, via marketing, the entire company is concerned and has access to a digital work environment, like a physical open space.

Faced with the growing migrations of companies to the Digital Workplace, the IT department must now prepare the ground by breaking down prejudices about digital technology and giving all the keys to companies and employees to experience change easily.

Dealing with security challenges and the lack of IT skills

Faced with technological advances, the IT department will also have to face new security threats. While AI is an ally in innovation, it can also be a source of new dangers. Added to this is the scarcity of expertise in cybersecurity, which is becoming increasingly valuable.

In order to face this challenge, the IT department must integrate security issues from the design of the tools. Anticipation is also required, in particular, to find professionals with the necessary expertise to deal with this issue. In the long term, it will be for the IT department to train the teams in these issues and to continuously improve skills in order to prevent attacks.

From digital transformation to digital culture

Under way in many companies, digital transformation is no longer a question of trends. It is necessary to be part of the world of tomorrow and has a direct impact on the sustainability of organizations. Over the next few years, the IT department will have to guarantee its viability by establishing a digital culture within the organization.

As its roles multiply beyond IT, the IT department is gradually becoming a pillar of the digital transformation of organizations. In order to don this hat, she must now understand all the workings of change management, starting with its brakes. Because if it is essential, this transformation must first win the support of all employees, otherwise it will never see the light of day.

Alongside the other departments, the IT department has a strategic role and rethinks the organization of work or even the evolution of processes, always having a user-centered approach. As a true guarantor of change management, the IT department becomes familiar with the agile method in order to best support the transformation. And for good reason, tomorrow the IT department will be as responsible for corporate culture as HR. 

However, to support this transformation, we must also be practical. It is up to the IT department to equip its employees with numerous applications. This is about anchoring the digital transformation in the daily life of employees, in particular by training them in new tools so that they fully appropriate them. In addition, the IT department will also face the heterogeneity of employees due to the arrival of digital natives on the market. 

Enhancing communication

Improved communication between IT and other departments, as well as a commitment to continuous improvement, can go a long way. Poorly implemented projects and solutions that are incompatible with your current framework, combined with poor communication, impede your company’s day-to-day operations.

IT specialists’ primary mission is to enhance and improve the company/client experience, to innovate and simplify processes, and to ensure that the company’s internal communication is streamlined. It is critical that your team works well together and that your daily activities are in line with your strategic goals.

Bottom line

Future CIOs and IT leaders must be well-versed in emerging market practices as well as the digital implications of their company’s transformation. These are just a few challenges and things to keep an eye on as the year progresses. The role of the CIO is gradually morphing into that of an IT leader. There are many things to keep in mind when upgrading legacy systems without sacrificing functionality or security, as well as managing data security and consumer piracy.

 

December 6, 2021 IT No comments yet
The Ultimate Guide on How to find a Low code/no code Platform for your Business

The Ultimate Guide on How to Find a Low code/No code Platform for your Business

With low-code and no-code development platforms, developers and non-technical users can create applications more quickly and cheaper than with traditional programming methods. See how to select the right low code or no code tool for the job.

With today’s low-code and no-code development platforms, teams of developers – and even non-programmers – can deliver, support, and develop a wide range of applications. They are used to build mobile apps, deliver customer experiences, streamline workflows, modernize legacy apps, automate data integrations, and support data visualizations, to name the most common uses.

The main selling points of low code development tools and no code are that they can be used successfully by less qualified developers and “users”; and that they can produce apps faster than using native SDKs ; and that they can produce apps for less money.

No-Code offers game-changing benefits

There are many benefits to a No-Code solution, the main one being that it allows a user to develop a complete application independent of other parts. It is important to understand all the benefits associated with a No-Code approach and examine how this solution can provide business users with security and increase productivity.

 

  • No waiting for developer resources

 

With no-code development, business users can handle many common applications on their own or with little IT support. Now, they no longer have to wait for the availability of developer resources.

 

  • Faster development at lower cost

 

No-Code allows you to reduce development time even more, to a couple of days in most cases. By not requiring the involvement of developers or a project manager, enterprise developers can iterate and build their own applications very quickly. Studies show that development time can be reduced by up to 80% with codeless development.

 

  • Update applications at the speed of business

 

As business requirements change, applications can quickly become obsolete as business needs evolve. Making even small functional changes to an existing application is complex and time-consuming in traditional development. A No-Code platform makes these changes quick and easy, allowing applications to evolve as fast as your business.

 

  • Replace shadow IT with enterprise IT

 

No-Code offers IT the ability to bring structure and sensible standards to the development of business users. When a company does not adopt a No-Code standard, business users will be tempted to introduce multiple SaaS solutions to help them manage their business processes. 

This can lead to an explosion of tools within the enterprise, problems with application security, and general difficulties in tracking data from multiple applications. Providing a platform that can be used to build the most common business applications helps eliminate the appearance of a shadow IT environment.

 

  • One product, multiple applications

 

Achieve significant cost savings by investing in a single product that will allow your organization to deploy multiple applications. You’ll also gain efficiency with single sign-on, sharing data between applications, and providing a consistent user interface while allowing divisions and departments to have their own branding.

 

Top low code and no-code development platforms

There were more than 400 no-code and low-code development vendors than the last time it was checked. Many of the vendors and some of the products cover several of the category definitions.

We’ve selected the following seven low-code and no-code development vendors as examples and listed them alphabetically. Please note that inclusion in this list is not a recommendation and exclusion is not a condemnation.

  • Alpha Software: Alpha Anywhere is an end-to-end, low code , rapid application development tool for desktop, web and hybrid mobile application development that is database oriented and can be used by developers with a variety of skills. Alpha TransForm is a low code tool ready for mobile forms development with offline features that include automatic synchronization when the connection is restarted.
  • Appian: Appian provides a codeless visual designer and low code tools for mobile and web application development with codeless enterprise data integration. Appian separately offers an automation platform for business process management (BPM) and robotic process automation (RPA)
  • Claris: Claris FileMaker is a low code development system for desktop, web and mobile application development that includes its own database. It features built-in templates, drag-and-drop design and an intuitive graphical user interface. Claris Connect is an automation platform built on the same core as FileMaker.
  • Mendix: Mendix Studio is a WYSIWYG browser- based development environment for user developers. Mendix Studio Pro is a desktop-based development environment that includes all the features needed for software development, including the ability to add custom code when needed. Mendix also offers an automation platform and a data hub.
  • Microsoft: Microsoft PowerApps is a low code app creator for Windows 10 that uses templates, drag-and-drop design, and PowerFx , an Excel-like programming language. Power Apps includes a language template that can generate PowerFx code from natural language descriptions. Professional developers can extend Power Apps with Azure roles and custom connectors. 
  • OutSystems: OutSystems lets you drag and drop visuals to create UIs , business processes, business logic and data models for your mobile and web apps and customize them with code as needed. It offers about 70 pre-built templates and patterns. OutSystems Forge contains thousands of pre-built code modules that you can place into your application and extend in the IDE (Integrated Development Environment) if you wish.
  • Salesforce: Salesforce Lightning is a low code drag and drop application development platform for the Salesforce platform. It can also connect to other applications and data. The Lightning App Builder allows business users to create applications and the Lightning web components help developers create reusable elements.

Final thoughts

We believe that large organizations should use both a Low-Code and a No-Code platform in their environment, as each addresses a different need and user group. Small and medium-sized businesses should, at a minimum, adopt a No-Code platform.

While there are many Low-Code/No-Code solutions available to businesses, No-Code solutions that enable business application development are hard to come by. Tigersheet was born out of that need. Our product offers a No-Code solution that enables users to develop enterprise grade applications in a simple and friendly way.

 

November 23, 2021 LCNC No comments yet
8 Essential Factors of Low-code/No code Software

8 Essential Factors of Low-code/No code Software

Everyone is talking about low-code development. There are many different platforms, allowing software more quickly and effectively than with traditional development methods to create.  

Forrester’s John Rymer wrote that low code has the potential to “make software development up to ten times faster than traditional methods.” When creating software, time to market can become one of the most important benefits for you.  

Regardless of the platform, you choose to use, there are a few rules that will help your company get the most out of low-code development. 

10 key elements to consider while opting for low code software : 

1. Get to know the platform and its possibilities. 

After you’ve decided on a low-code platform, make sure you and your team spend time learning about the platform. It is best to allow all team members, including business analysts and product owners, to invest time in exploring the platform. The time spent on this is not lost – it is well invested as it later increases the value of the solution. 

An example of this is when we gave our customers the opportunity to create a mobile app from a web application. Since the web application was built using responsive web design (RWD), it generated a hybrid mobile app that was usable with just a single click on Android and iOS. The customer was satisfied because the solution is used by more potential customers and the costs were very low. 

2. Avoid unnecessary personalization. 

One of the main advantages of low-code platforms is the predefined components. 

They are designed to be universal, but of course, not all of them will meet your business needs. In this case, you will need to customize or create your own components. This is probably time for development costs. If you are familiar with the predefined components, you can use these and shorten development time. In addition, the components can give you more value than you yourself at the beginning could imagine.   

3. Focus on the project’s business needs. 

Do you understand the general requirements to start a project? Discuss these with the team and try to identify similarities across the system, e.g. 30% of the application is a list view with a search function and a filter, etc. This way you can start the app development with a carefully chosen component that can be reused. 

4. Don’t overdo it with UX / Visual Design.  

Low-code platforms offer prepared UI libraries that can be used quickly and easily in projects. Their great advantage is that all of their components are consistent. 

From our experience, UX specialists and visual designers have a high priority at the beginning of the project, when the processes are defined in the software and when we discuss the first elements of the user interface. Over time, the support for these roles decreases significantly. After the first phase of the project, the low-code development team should already be familiar with the UX and visual design guidelines for the rest of the area and meet these requirements. 

There may be a situation later in the project where UX and visual design support is required. In this case, these experts can be asked to make a contribution.  

5. Product owners should be constantly engaged. 

Discuss this with your product Owner at the beginning of the project to emphasize how important their availability will be. 

Remember that communication between the development team and stakeholders must run smoothly in order to ensure success.

6. Get the solution tested as soon as possible. 

With the development speed of low-code, you can create functions very quickly. Normally, you have to present a demo of the completed work to your stakeholders. 

Occasionally, after testing, you have a list of changes that need to be implemented – and remember that the faster you can implement them, the more time-efficient your project will be. Nobody likes having to take into account changes during the user acceptance test phase at the end of the project, as this also entails other changes (domino effect). 

7. Ask for help from the low-code community

If you get stuck with your development, you can always ask for help on community pages. People who are active on such sites are enthusiastic about low-code platforms which means they may already have solved your problem and are ready to share the results. The low-code community also creates components that can be used to meet certain business needs. 

8. Remain positive.

If you have never tried the software with a low-code platform to develop, it can be a big change for you, your team, your customers and for the entire organization. Hence, you need to invest some time to get used to it first.

 Summary 

Market demand for software development will grow at least five times faster than IT in 2021. Low-code platforms were created to help companies increase the efficiency of development. However, to achieve its full potential, you need to be well prepared. Our toolkit is designed to help companies plan their software development strategies in advance and leverage best practices with little code, thereby reducing time to market. 

November 1, 2021 LCNC No comments yet
T he Best No-code Apps for Website Development

The Best No-code Apps for Website Development

According to estimates in this Forrester report, the global no-code business will grow to $ 21.2 billion by 2022.

Codeless platforms are a category of tools that level the playing field for everyone. Making it possible for freelance creators, artists, and entrepreneurs to build things they could only have dreamed of in the past.

The high cost of web development and the ever-greater need to be visible online has led to the creation of various tools for the rapid development of applications and websites. 

Being able to create your website, API, or mobile application without coding is an old promise. Today, this promise has become a reality thanks to the best no-code apps available on the market. In this article, we will define what characterizes these new no-code tools.

A new generation of website creation software: no code tools

The emergence of no-code tools

Developing traditional software is expensive, time-consuming, and requires ongoing maintenance. Projects often go over budget or experience delays for various reasons. For small businesses that work on tight budgets, this way of operating is simply unrealistic.

No code tools appeared as a solution, offering advantages of speed, affordability, and, above all, accessibility to the general public. Software like Wix, Jimdo, Shopify, Weebly, or Strikingly are no-code tools dedicated to website creation. 

Today, these players are no longer alone on the market: there are many no-code tools, each with a very specific objective.

Some characteristics of no-code website builder apps

Here are the main features associated with this new generation of website creation software:

  • Good momentum with growing market shares. Some – not all – older website builders like Weebly are losing ground. 
  • A very intuitive and visual interface (building the site in blocks)
  • Often very good templates. Integration of the latest trends in web design (minimalism design, etc.)
  • Interesting customization options. These new tools give you ultra-deep design control, which lets you control how your site looks down to the pixel. Webflow also allows you to create animated and visual interactions very easily to energize your site.
  • Functionality is often amazing. Bubble, for example, allows you to work in collaboration with up to 40 people on your sites and applications.
  • A (small) layer of artificial intelligence. Weblium, in particular, has an “AI Design Supervisor” which controls any punctuation errors, the size of your content, and visual consistency.
  • Design Responsive & Mobile Friendly

 Zoom on 5 no-code tools to create a website

Webflow 

Webflow, founded by two brothers in 2013, is a somewhat special CMS. 

It allows you to create websites without deep code knowledge. But unlike other no-code tools on the market, Webflow is primarily aimed at web designers. The great strength of Webflow, in addition to its intuitive interface, is that it allows you to create sites with an ultra-personalized design.

Because of its great functional richness, particularly concerning the customization of the design, Webflow is perhaps not intended for “great beginners.” The target of this CMS is web designers or, more generally, all people who want to create a website while having total control over design aspects – without being code aces.

The Webflow editing interface is a mix between a classic interface like Wix and Photoshop. We find the very intuitive side: the interface is WYSIWYG. You can modify any element of the content of your page by clicking on it with the mouse. But besides that, Webflow offers very advanced features for customizing styles, fonts, formats, colors, etc.

Webflow has been adopted to date by tens of thousands of users – demanding individuals, freelancers, web designers, agencies, startups. More than 500,000 sites have been created using this editor. Webflow counts among its customer’s large accounts like Groupon, Hewlett-Packard, Pinterest, MTV, IBM.

Offers & Prices

If you can build a website for free, the lowest price to get it live is $ 12 per month under Webflow’s “Basic” plan. This formula is suitable for simple sites that only need a few standard elements, such as image galleries, contact forms, or menus. The CMS plan focuses on blogging and content-driven sites, while the Business plan is, unsurprisingly, aimed at businesses looking to market and grow.

Webflow’s e-commerce plans range from selling a few products (standard plan) to effective wholesale (Plus plan), marketing, and managing your products to a global audience (Advanced plan). Webflow also offers a business plan, which is available on a quote basis. This is where Webflow will help you build your site and support you throughout the process. It’s a great service, but it’s only really suitable if you’re a large company.

Bubble.io started in 2012 in New York over a coffee between the co-founders Joshua Haas and Emmanuel Straschnov. Without outside investment and with the help of a few beta clients, the two men created Bubble in three years. From day one, they’ve been focused on building a business that delivers real value. Their goal is to build the best possible platform for their customers to build powerful web applications without writing code.

 

Today, Bubble has nearly 450,000 users and raised $ 6 million in 2019 to become the benchmark business creation platform. In the world of tools, no code Bubble is more than a simple product. She has created a strong community of builders and entrepreneurs who are united by the belief that everyone should have access to technology.

Therefore, a bubble is a tool for developing mobile and web applications without coding, without tedious HTML or CSS programming. The solution allows users to create and customize applications through a user-friendly interface using the technique of drag and drop. It makes coding obsolete and democratizes the creation of innovative applications. Bubble allows you to benefit from the following features:

  • Shared hosting
  • WYSIWYG Editor
  • Custom brand
  • Application models
  • Workflow
  • Data migration
  • Data synchronization
  • Data security
  • Customizations
  • HTML input

Offers & Prices

Bubble’s price list is based on 4 offers, one of which is free. All are billed monthly as part of an annual subscription.

  • Hobby: Free. Benefit from all the main functionalities of the platform with limitations in terms of personalization: domain and branding in particular. Storage is limited to 2GB. In our opinion a great way to experience Bubble.
  • Personal: $ 25 / month. Suitable for a freelance activity, for example. 10GB maximum storage and dedicated e-mail support.
  • Professional: $ 115 / month. Suitable for small business use. Increase the capacity of your server and up to 20GB of storage for 2 possible users.
  • Production: $ 475 / month. Includes the ability to get 10 additional servers, two-factor authentication, and up to 15 users.

Adalo

Adalo is a no-code tool that allows you to create websites and applications without having technical knowledge. Adalo is similar to Bubble and other no-code platforms in line with this new type of no-code tool. Its goal is to provide a platform to design and host websites and applications that include databases, workflow actions, and integrations. Adalo is compatible with Android and iOS, creating native mobile apps. This app builder tool makes the process fast, transparent, and cost-effective for creators. It allows users to build your websites and apps by simply dragging and dropping the specialized design components.

Adalo users are small and medium-sized businesses, freelancers, hobbyists, and startups. People interested in building a code-free mobile app or new to web development and developing their own app or site may be interested in Adalo. The tool automatically adds interactions and configures all databases without using any codes. If you already have an API, Adalo can integrate with it.

Adalo offers the following features:

  • Mobile development
  • Test management
  • Version control
  • Web development
  • Workflow management
  • Drag & Drop Builder
  • Application integrations
  • Manage integrations

Offers & Prices

Adalo’s pricing plans start with a free plan, limiting you to 50 data lines per app and requiring you to publish with the Adalo brand on an Adalo domain.

The next level up is the Pro Plan, at $ 50 / month, which allows you to publish to the Apple and Google app stores, access outside API integrations, create a custom domain, and get 5 GB of data storage.

Users who wish to build their website in collaboration with multiple team members should use the Business Plan, at $ 200 / month, which gives you 4 additional “spots” in your team, 20 GB of storage, and a manager. dedicated account.

Weblium

Weblium is an extremely easy-to-use, no-code website builder. The tool is designed to help people build quality websites that are mostly single pages. The platform is ideal for those looking for out-of-the-box models that work well on all types of devices. Additionally, Weblium can be a good solution for users who want to build and publish their sites from scratch.

The system also has an AI design supervisor to help you build a website using their blocks. Weblium offers several paid plans, although it does not offer an e-commerce module or improved integration capabilities, which is bad news for those who want to launch a complex digital store and manage their products online. When it comes to business portfolios, blogs, or small business websites, Weblium is a really good piece of software.

Offers & Prices

You have 3 main options:

  • The free plan allows you to test the main features as well as the Weblium builder.
  • The “Pro” plan costs $ 8.25 / month. Weblium will offer you a domain name for one year, and you can modify the code or have Google Analytics integration.
  • Finally, you have the “Landing Pro” package at the single price of $ 196. You will have access to the same features as with the Pro plan, without unlimited storage space and the free domain for the first year. It is still a very advantageous rate because it only has to be paid once.

WoCode

Wocode is an np code website builder software created by Muse-theme, a template editor for Adobe Muse. Adobe, having abandoned Muse in 2018, Muse-theme took the opportunity to launch its own site builder. As its name suggests – “Wocode” or “Without Code” – the software is one of the no-code tools offered on the market today.

The tool, therefore, relies on muse themes design skills with more than 150 templates available. As well as on the functional aspect to offer you an all-in-one platform allowing you to design your showcase and e-commerce sites. In terms of specific features, here is what you can expect from Wocode:

  • CMS edition by your customers. Wocode allows you to give more or less limited access to your customers so that they can make changes on their own.
  • Pop-Ups. Target visitors and collect leads using pop-ups and personalized notifications.
  • Integration of social networks. Post comments on Facebook and other social platforms.
  • Site statistics.  Analyze statistics about your visitors and how they interact with the website.

To enrich your site, you can use the following widgets:

  • Data: Googles sheets
  • Videos: Vimeo and Youtube
  • Calendar: Google Calendar
  • Instagram

The sites designed using Wocode are hosted by AWS (Amazon Web Service).

Offers & Prices

WoCode offers 3 formulas. Note that you will have to add hosting costs to each of them.

  • Basic: Free. Limited to 3 sites and the forum for support. However, you will benefit from unlimited storage capacity.
  • Professional: $ 99 / year. An unlimited number of sites, e-mail support, and access to all the features of the CMS for the personalization of your sites.
  • Enterprise : $ 499 / year. All the options of the previous plan plus chat support and a dedicated account manager.

You can also create your e-commerce site with WoCode: for $ 190 / year up to 100 products and $ 360 / year for an unlimited number of products.

Summary

Programmers and non-programmers rely on codeless development platforms to create software because of their efficiency. Consequently, you don’t need coding skills to develop websites.

As we come to the end of this article, we hope you now have a better understanding of this ever-changing ecosystem and choose the best app for building your website.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

October 19, 2021 LCNC No comments yet
Digital Transformation: 7 Important Questions for Your Organization

Digital Transformation: 7 Important Questions for Your Organization

While digital investment is almost unquestionably the right course of action for most companies, organizations struggle to create the desired results. Estimates of digital transformation failures range from 66% to 84%.

 Such a high failure rate is not surprising, as leaders are trying to create entirely new competencies and force them into an organization with solid cultures and existing operating models. While most executives are change management professionals, digital transformation is more profound than the usual system or process update.

 Of course, digital technology can improve or augment existing ways of operating. 

 So, as you go through your digital transformation, we recommend starting with a few questions that go deeper than “what talent do you need” or “how much money will you spend” and delve into broader organizational readiness.

 

Is it a digital upgrade or a digital transformation?

Digital transformation for most companies ends with digital upgrades, where digital technology is used to enhance the efficiency or effectiveness of something that your company is already doing. 

For example, increasing your marketing spend for digital channels or upgrading your internal communication systems. On the other hand, a digital transformation occurs when you use digital technology to change how you do business, especially around customer interactions and value creation. 

 If you find that you are embarking on an upgrade rather than a transformation, ask yourself whether this will be enough to stay competitive. 

 

Do you and your team agree?

Digital technology and business models are on every executive’s radar, and there is an expectation that most companies need to change to stay current. However, one situation we’ve seen repeatedly is a leadership team trying to lead a digital transformation that they’re not particularly enthusiastic about.

 We all have core beliefs about what creates value in the world, and they shape the way we allocate our time, attention and capital. Most leaders have decades of experience focusing on factories, real estate, inventory and human capital. Abandoning these habitual priorities requires self-reflection, openness, and a concerted effort to develop new patterns in thought and action.

 

Are you ready to share value creation with your customers?

 The latest technology-enabled business model, network orchestration, is based on the fact that companies can allow customers and other networks to share the value creation process. Uber depends on a network of drivers; Airbnb relies on a network of homeowners; eBay depends on sellers. These networks are essential for organizations and, by accessing external assets, these companies can achieve exceptional profitability.

Sharing the workload seems like a winning proposition, but many leaders are hesitant to relinquish control and rely on a network outside their chain of command. Working with these outside groups requires new and co-creative leadership styles, allowing organizations to tap into vast sets of underutilized capabilities and resources.

 

Have you protected your digital team?

A digital upgrade requires a well-defined team with a limited scope. A digital transformation requires a team with a cross-functional mandate and solid support.

 This becomes an essential point because organizations often do not change their internal structure as part of the digital transformation. So the teams working on these transformations fit into the existing system.

 Where the team actually “is,” both physically and on the organizational chart, can affect its ability to influence member cross-functional groups for true digital transformation. 

We’ve seen many companies limit digital’s progress by basing their team on marketing or IT.

 

Do you know how to measure the value you intend to create?

You manage what you measure. Most organizations focus on physical capital (to make and sell products) or human capital (to provide services).

These companies monitor inventory, productivity, utilization, and other traditional key performance indicators (Key Performance Indicators, KPIs).

 Digital transformations don’t always affect the KPIs a company is already measuring. The ultimate goal of a transformation is to affect revenue, profitability, and investor value. Along the way, however, it is helpful to track intermediate indicators.

 For many digital networking companies, this includes feeling and engagement and value sharing and co-creating networks. For example, in judging the success of the Developer Network, Apple can measure the number of developers who build apps for its app store, the amount of money generated by those apps that Apple shares with its community, and customer satisfaction with the apps. 

 

Are you ready to judge your team?

There’s an old saying: “It’s easier to change people than it is to change people.” In other words, sometimes, a new vision requires new people to create it.

 For many, the digital people you need on your team and board do not reside in your organization at all or at least not in the right amount. Many of your current employees will be dedicated to doing what they have always done and created resistance and obstacles to change.

 To make room for your digital transformers, make judgments at the outset regarding your team and board. In our experience, nearly half of your staff and board will have to be replaced in the course of a successful digital

transformation. While painful, it’s a good thing for the organization: creating a balance between the old and the new.

 

Will you be ready to derive your digital business?

Sometimes, the new company within the organization becomes more extensive and more valuable than the parent company that gave rise to it – it either runs the risk of not attracting the right talent or faces disputes between digital and existing.

 (A great resource on this is The Second Curve by Ian Morrison.) Often, separation is required to enable both the parent and child to continue growth.

 Google specializes in creating new ventures and enabling them to grow; see its recent reorganization on Alphabet to allow each of its core businesses to pursue their potential (including Google and YouTube). In other organizations, the new digital company will absorb and improve its parent. 

 Transforming an organization is complex, and research proves it. But even so, it’s worth it.

 Final thoughts

 As a leader, you probably already know the basics of change management, but a digital transformation goes deeper and thus places different demands on you, your team, and your organization. On the other hand, however, you have the opportunity to invest in the most profitable and valuable business models the market has ever seen.

 

September 24, 2021 IT No comments yet
7 Reasons Why Low code is the Ideal Solution for Business

7 Reasons Why Low code is the Ideal Solution for Business

No-code/low-code technologies enable anyone, from non-technical users to IT experts, to develop or modify applications quickly and easily using functions, drag-and-drop, or other visual tools.

Businesses that use low-code have the advantage of implementing new processes or applications very quickly. This advantage allows them to stay ahead of the competition by anticipating market demands.

So here are seven reasons why any organization should care about low-code:

1. Shortage of developers

According to a Gartner study, by 2021, the market demand for application development will be five times the capacity of IT departments. 

In order to face this lack of IT skills, adopting low-code application development platforms is proving to be a good solution. They are faster and cheaper to customize in-house, and they don’t require a multitude of programmers. 

As mentioned above, they allow all the employees of the company, whatever their functions and whatever their level of technical knowledge, to become a “developer-citizen”. How? ‘Or’ What? Quite simply by providing a set of visual development tools.

Thus, each function can design and optimize specific applications necessary for the development of their activity. This way of working finally allows real collaboration between the business lines and IT.

2. Boost your productivity with low-code development

Low-code platforms help empower non-development teams within large companies to meet their own need for business applications without relying on or waiting for IT to deal with it. 

With these capabilities, employees without development skills or information science experience can build functional business applications with modern user interfaces that can be integrated into their core business systems. At the same time, these platforms allow IT developers to complete complex tasks faster and more efficiently, thus increasing productivity.

3. Low-code promotes continuous innovation

The adoption of a low-code platform and the agile method makes it possible to involve each employee in the entire development cycle.

Low-code even establishes a new digital development environment that encourages collaboration. This new collaborative mode is not only at the heart of the continuous development of applications but is above all a driving force for innovation.

4. Co-design of applications

A question arises: How to get IT departments  and “developer-citizens” to work together without coding? Quite simply by relying on visual models. Low-code platforms have easy-to-understand language and visuals that don’t require any technical knowledge. Thus the end user can directly enter their needs, make updates and integrate feedback in real time.

5. Reuse and scalability

Low-code applications evolve according to your business needs and with your digital transformation. They are always up to date, ready for deployment, and easily editable. By involving your business teams in the development process, the low-code approach eliminates

shadow IT risks and helps IT development teams ensure compliant application innovation and optimization. 

This operational scalability is all the more flexible as agile cloud-based platforms offer:

  • the choice of the cloud platform,
  • the possibility of switching from one cloud to another,
  • the use of a hybrid cloud.

6. Rapid deployment across all channels and devices

If you are developing an enterprise app, you will likely need to deploy it through different channels, such as the web, a mobile app, a chatbot, or an online self-service portal.

In such a context, the possibility of “reuse” of applications has undeniable and relevant advantages. This contributes to the productivity and consistency of the applications developed, ultimately facilitating meeting the expectations of the users. 

By combining a single, open and flexible low-code platform with an agile and iterative approach, companies can design fluid, coherent applications capable of operating across channels and devices quickly and consistently.

7. Your competitors have probably already adopted low-code

A recent survey by Frost & Sullivan found that 81% of companies surveyed already use a visual or low-code approach.

However, there is low-code and low-code! Some platforms still offer disparate environments that perpetuate a slide development approach, where business and IT departments continue to operate separately.

Others, on the other hand, offer new generation development environments that focus on providing tools adapted to the roles of each within the company. They combine visual and intuitive design experiences of the low-code type intended for “developer-citizens”.

Conclusion

Slow, expensive, and inefficient development methods are a thing of the past. Encourage your teams to collaborate and quickly build apps with low-code development platforms like Tigersheet and help your business excel at a faster rate.

 

 

September 21, 2021 LCNC No comments yet
Database vs. Spreadsheet: what is the Best Option?

Database vs. Spreadsheet: What is the Best Option?

We tend to confuse databases and spreadsheets. Yet they are very different. To determine what best meets your needs, you need to understand how (and why) they differ.

Databases and spreadsheets are fundamentally different tools.

A spreadsheet is a well-known tool – and for good reason. It is remarkable, accessible and universal. In particular, it allows you to make calculations, balance a budget and organize information.

But as useful as it is, the spreadsheet is not always the most suitable tool. For example, a spreadsheet does not allow you to duplicate data or change views. In some cases (more complex use cases such as content calendars, inventory management etc.), the database offers much more flexibility and power.

Today, with the right tools, anyone who can use a spreadsheet can use a database. Understanding the differences between the two will allow you to make the right choice for your use case.

Defining Database:

Whether you know it or not, you are probably already familiar with one or two databases. Most business applications work with databases.

Your customer relationship management (CRM), for example, is a database. The websites you visit every day – like Amazon, Wikipedia, and Netflix – are powered by databases. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

A database can contain different levels of abstraction in its architecture. Typically, the three levels: external, conceptual, and internal make up the database architecture. The external level defines how users view data. A single database can have multiple views. The internal level defines how data is physically stored. The conceptual level is the means of communication between the internal and external levels. It provides a single view of the database regardless of how it is stored or viewed. 

There are many types of databases such as analytic databases, data warehouses and distributed databases. Databases (more correctly, relational databases) are made up of tables and contain rows and columns, much like spreadsheets in Excel. 

Each column corresponds to an attribute, while each row represents a single record. For example, in a database, which stores employee information for a company, columns might contain employee name, employee ID, and salary, while a single row represents a single employee. Most databases come with a database management system (DBMS) which makes it very easy to create / manage / organize data.

What is a Spreadsheet?

A spreadsheet is a computer software application that allows users to work in a GUI environment similar to an accounting spreadsheet. Spreadsheet applications display a 2-D grid (or matrix) of cells consisting of rows and columns simulating a paper spreadsheet. Each cell can be inserted into three types of content like text, numbers for formulas. 

The formula is a mechanism for calculating the value of a particular cell using the contents of several other cells. The formula value (displayed in the cell) automatically updates whenever any of the other cells (which are used to calculate the formula) change. 

This is one of the reasons why electronic spreadsheets are used for financial information, as the operator does not need to update all cells manually depending on a single change in the spreadsheet. Microsoft Excel, which is offered as part of the Microsoft Office suite, is the most popular spreadsheet application in the world.

Database vs Spreadsheet: Endgame

This battle may not be as epic as the ones we see in Endgame but it is equally interesting! Let’s take a closer look.

Simple and efficient use

At first glance, an Excel spreadsheet may seem simpler to use, but when you have a large flow of information to update every day, it is clear that for companies they may not be the most efficient option. Also, a spreadsheet becomes “heavier” with a huge amount of information and slows down.

Meanwhile, the business management system or database, if it works online, will not take up physical space on your computer, making it faster to search for information and add new data. But that’s not all, as it adapts to the needs of each company, its tables and other resources are already configured to receive the proper information.

Also, there’s no need for your employees to have advanced knowledge of databases. Even basic information about it is sufficient to use a company’s resources.

And in addition to being simple, a database is efficient not only because it allows more tasks to be done in less time, with no loss in quality, but also because it allows all your business data to be properly organized.

Integration of operations

Another point where spreadsheets lose to databases is interactivity. After all, the first ones, to be shared with other team members , must be sent as an e-mail attachment like any other file. A database also helps in managing systems for companies as everything can be processed within it.

There is no need to waste time sending emails and attaching files, as a database also connects the sectors of your company, sharing all the necessary information between the different departments. This means that working together becomes more efficient.

Information security

The security of existing data in spreadsheets will depend on the security of your computer, which is a serious matter that should be among the main concerns, even for micro and small business entrepreneurs. Today, businesses of all sizes can fall prey to malicious third parties.

In this sense, one more advantage of the database is to keep your company’s information safe, as the software can use the same security mechanisms as large banks. 

Therefore, you don’t need to hire professionals specialized in security.

Furthermore, access to data is restricted, and only those who know the correct password can view and manipulate them. You can authorize access or restrict anyone who wants to collect certain information about your company.

Prevention and problem reduction

With so much security given to your business data, possible problems that your company would be liable to are also prevented. However, even when a problem occurs, it is possible to seek assistance from qualified professionals who usually provide all the necessary support to the users of the database.

Therefore, it is important to hire a database from committed and experienced suppliers, who not only have adequate training but are also available whenever necessary. Also, another tip when choosing the ideal database is to check the frequency of updates.

Quality systems provide updates periodically so that your database always meets the new market and government requirements. Thus, your company keeps up with the tax authorities and offers the best service to your customers.

Long term investment

When it comes to software VS spreadsheets: which is the better option, you must also take into account the cost-benefit of each one. While Excel spreadsheets need tiny

investments, in part, since the law requires companies to use original programs that are not company copies, databases require investments a little more than spreadsheets.

However, as you can see, it is a complete system to manage your business, with numerous features, in addition to tables to register all the necessary information, such as customers, suppliers, products, and others. 

In addition to offering the most competent security for your business, a database is online, which means that it allows remote access from anywhere and anytime to your company’s system. Even so, only authorized people can use it.

Conclusion

This is only a brief introduction to the main differences between databases and spreadsheets. While spreadsheets are simple and accessible, the power and flexibility offered by databases are essential to creating internal tools.

Tigersheet is a new generation no-code platform that looks like a spreadsheet. It is therefore the ideal tool to make the transition from a simple spreadsheet to a more robust database.

 

 

September 1, 2021 General No comments yet

The 8 Best No-Code Platforms For Building Your App

Building applications for your business has become easier than ever with the introduction of low-code or no-code platforms.

Now, it is possible to create even more complex applications without spending a lot of money, waiting days or months, or employing multiple developers, all thanks to these technologies.

You don’t need to be an expert in coding to build an app. Modern no-code platforms make sure you write little to no code and still produce the applications that drive your business forward.

In addition to building applications, no-code platforms offer workflow automation, help improve business processes and provide other capabilities to support your operations and help you grow.

Now, let’s take a look at some of the best no-code platforms available on the market for small and medium-sized businesses, as promised!

 Zoho Creator

Zoho Creator is one of the most competent no-code platforms that helps you create applications quickly and extend and integrate their functionality seamlessly. 

It doesn’t matter what level of coding experience you have or how complex your coding requirement is; Zoho Creator makes everything fast, easy, and secure.

It helps you transform your business by offering customized solutions so you can build theapplications you conceptualized. You can build cross-platform applications ranging from minimalist call logs to heavy and complex ERPs capable of integrating with your current processes.

Accelerate your application development process with its rich and intuitive code editors, visual builders, pre-designed templates, and more. On top of that, you can easily configure and automate workflows in your applications with simple steps and iterations.

Caspian 

Caspian is another great option for building cloud applications without coding. This leading no-code application development platform is well suited for building scalable, reliable and secure online database applications.

The platform enables more than 15 clients in more than 150 countries, from government agencies and global corporations to small businesses, universities and non-profit organizations. Caspio can help you plan your database layout, user permissions, workflows, and more.

Tigersheet

Tigersheet is a new generation no-code platform that serves as a middle way between spreadsheets and business-specific software

It offers a way to everyone, not just developers to build custom business applications with everything tailored as per your business needs. The fact that millions of people out there use spreadsheets to manage their data is a good start for us.  So, we make the experience of application development a lot like using spreadsheets, something everyone knows.

Tigersheet is a no-code platform equally capable of handling all your business challenges effectively. A unified surface with infinite room to grow your ideas, from tables to CRM tracker.

With Tigersheet, your team can:

  • Track orders, projects, invoices, payments, employees, expenses, office assets, employee leaves, employee advances, and more.
  • Attach files and documents to rows.
  • Hide certain fields or rows from users easily with the powerful roles and permission system.
  • Set reminders for important dates like a deadline, a follow-up date, etc.
  • Access data from your Tigersheet’s mobile app.
  • Create reports, have different views to visualize your data better – like Kanban, timeline, etc.
  • Use Triggers to create workflows, send email notifications, and more. Now no need to resort to custom application development to automate your business.

Mendix

Create applications of your imagination from simple, time-saving tools to enterprise-grade applications that help businesses run smoothly with the help of Mendix.

It is a no-code platform that anyone can use to improve their business by delivering quality applications without involving code complexities. This application development platform helps you build impact-driven applications to deploy sooner and make them successful faster.

You can build applications to serve various industries, including SAP supply chain processes, high-value asset field service, digital insurance solutions, plant equipment maintenance, delivery management, analytics and reporting, logistics tracking, artificial intelligence, smart banking, facial recognition, etc. more.

Quickbase

Unleash the full potential of your business operations by incorporating Quickbase into your organization and create high-quality, results-based applications that can connect ideas, information, and people everywhere.

This application development platform helps you bring your business, IT teams, and developers together to innovate and build secure, sustainable, and secure applications. It also helps speed up your business processes to deliver quality applications with fast response times.

Quickbase frees you from legacy systems and gives you a set of built-in capabilities built to work together to enhance your applications without taking on the high cost of development, deployment, and maintenance in traditional ways.

Retool

Building internal apps and tools becomes remarkably fast with Retool. It saves you from struggling with user interface libraries, searching for access controls, and combining data sources. Instead, seamlessly build apps and ship them faster to speed up your business.

Retool provides you with solid building blocks like tables, charts, lists, maps, wizards, forms, and more essentials for building in-house tools. As a result, it is easy for you to work on your user interface and present them sooner without searching for libraries.

You can assemble your applications in just 30 seconds with the help of drag and drop of your pre-built components. Additionally, you can connect to major databases using a REST API, gRPC, or GraphQL.

Retool allows you to work with your data sources seamlessly in one application. One need not mention that they are the only person who stores your data. When a query is run, the Retool backend sends this request directly to your backend. This means that they never store your data.

Microsoft Power Apps

Building low-code apps and sharing them is no longer challenging if you have Microsoft Power Apps. 

It helps you quickly build applications that can solve challenges while revamping processes to increase business agility.

They offer pre-designed templates and a drag-and-drop feature so you can quickly start building applications. As a result, you can deploy immediately and then make quick improvements.

Power Apps gives your team the power of advanced features and functionality, including pre-built artificial intelligence components. 

Additionally, you can provide your developers with the essential tools they need to seamlessly extend application capabilities through custom connectors and Azure Functions to on-premises or proprietary systems.

OutSystems

 

OutSystems is transforming software development and helping you quickly create and deploy complex applications that can evolve with you. It enables you to create blazing fast model-driven development using the cloud, DevOps, and AI.

With OutSystems, it’s easy to manage application backlog, keep up with changing business needs, and deliver cloud applications to drive innovation. In addition, they offer many integrated tools and automation services to produce secure, scalable, easy-to-manage, and resilient applications.

AirTable

Create powerful applications by combining your imagination with the power of Air Table . It will help you get started quickly by offering the power of an impressive database with the familiarity of spreadsheets.

Airtable is trusted by more than 200 organizations that have developed applications on Airtable and modernized their business workflows while delivering effective results. It enables you to create solutions with greater capabilities and sophistication.

Conclusion

Let’s hope this information on no-code development platforms helps you understand these concepts and choose a platform based on your business requirements. Wishing you success in building your next product.

Don’t have the time to do IT on your own? Contact us and we’ll take care of the rest.

August 10, 2021 General, IT No comments yet