Automation tends to widen the number of people able to create output that formerly might have been the province of specialists. Those of you with long memories might remember mainframe computing; content creation before desktop publishing; secretaries; travel agents or bank tellers. Lots of tasks you would formerly have had to ask another department to execute we now do ourselves.
No-code software development, a way to create software applications without writing any code, is probably going to bring that sort of change.
Using a “drag and drop” visual approach (instead of typing lines of code), users assemble products using pre-built components such as buttons, forms, and data fields. Some might liken the process to building something with Legos, but the objective is to enable non-coders to create websites, mobile apps, business process functions or databases.
As always, the hype will be greater than the typical results will validate. Simpler use cases developed by non-coders will work better, but more-complex apps will likely remain the province of specialists. Word processing means we all can “write,” but word processing doesn’t make a poor writer a good writer.
“No code” software development might wind up enabling something like word processing or spreadsheet or desktop publishing outcomes. Non-specialists will be able to create outputs that were provided by specialists in the past, at least at a simpler level. Many forms of analysis and problem solving can be pushed forward towards the edge of organizations; closer to customers.
In principle, innovation should happen faster, as work groups can create faster than when relying on support from other parts of the organization. Workers always worry that new automation capabilities will eliminate their jobs, and the danger is not imaginary. Robotics, self-driving vehicles, chatbots and algorithmic trading have clear potential to--or a history of--eliminating at least some jobs in many fields.
But other important changes also tend to happen when any form of automation is applied.
Almost always, routine tasks are replaced by higher-order tasks. Also, specialist capabilities tend to filter out to the edges of organizations and away from specialist support groups.
In other words, automation often enables people to accomplish tasks themselves that once were performed by other specialist units within an organization.
Automation often can take over repetitive, manual, or time-consuming processes, allowing workers to focus on more strategic and creative work.
Such effects often are overlooked when looking only at job loss. To be sure, self-checkout kiosks in retail or computer-generated graphics clearly allow stores and content producers to reduce the number of humans required to produce a given level of output.
But tasks also can shift to higher-order activities. In accounting, software automates routine bookkeeping tasks, enabling accountants to focus on financial analysis, forecasting, and advising clients on growth strategies.
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