Karsten Noack, founder and Managing Director of Scopeland Technology GmbH, has been involved in Low-Code – which is known today as a key technology of digitalization – since the mid-1990s. He has extensive experience in using Low-Code platforms in large companies and government agencies, knows how IT projects can be successfully implemented, and which team members are needed.

Whether Cloud Architect, Data Scientist, or IT Auditor: In IT, new job profiles are created every day due to the ongoing development of the industry. In light of the continuing digitalization of countless work processes and the switch to more nimble practices, the requirements for employees both present and future are also different. Already today, many major companies and public institutions are using Low-Code technology. It is one of the fastest growing areas of IT and thus also requires the right experts: Low-Code developers.

 

Mr. Noack, what exactly is a Low-Code developer?

Low-Code developers are application developers who professionally develop software using so-called Low-Code platforms, without writing any of their own programming code. Low-Code platforms are tools or services that use visual or narrative methods instead of code. Low-Code developers have to understand and master the principles and tools of the respective Low-Code platform. This can be quickly learned with some basic IT know-how. But they are not required to have any programming knowledge.

Unlike programmers, who are all about the underlying software technology, for Low-Code developers the focus is on implementing the content. So expertise relating to the relevant industry is more important than in-depth computer know-how.

 

What skillsets are Low-Code developers required to have?

The requirements for Low-Code developers are fundamentally different from those of professional programmers. While Low-Code developers are also application developers, coding knowledge and in-depth IT know-how are not the primary concern. Instead, they must be capable of understanding complex models, control-based systems, and other types of narrative specifications. And because they are far more productive than programmers and have more flexibility, they also tend to communicate more with the eventual users. Another important aspect is their ability to quickly get accustomed to the technical contents of the client.  

 

How do you become a Low-Code developer?

I am not aware of any publicly funded retraining courses or manufacturer-independent trainee programs. The field is too new for this. But almost all manufacturers offer suitable introductory courses that are tailored to the specific tools of the provider.

At Scopeland Technology, we regularly hire suitable candidates and immediately send them out to a 1-week training workshop. What we require is basic database modelling knowledge. However, this can be quickly learned in the run-up to the training. Then we assign an experienced Low-Code developer to them for mentoring, with whose help they are integrated in real-world projects in the quickest possible way. After a period of technical work they can get the ‘Certified SCOPELAND Developer’ certification, which enables them to become mentors for newbies themselves.

By the way, the training to become a Low-Code developer is the same for IT professionals and career changers. It’s just that some training contents are easier for some than others.

 

So even career changers can do it?

The Low-Code technology is almost made for people who are getting into IT. In our experience, for qualified specialists from completely different professions it is remarkably easy to get accustomed to the job of a Low-Code developer. And in many cases newcomers prove to be better Low-Code developers than IT professionals. The reason for this is because they are completely unbiased. And because narrative thinking is generally easier for non-IT persons compared with trained programmers, who are usually trained for years to think in a procedural and algorithmic manner. IT specialists also have to be retrained to become Low-Code developers.

Many Low-Code developers come from the fields of business informatics, geoinformatics, or bioinformatics. Many are actually mathematicians, physicists, engineers, or other natural scientists. A degree in business administration can also be a good foundation for a Low-Code software developer. The most important requirement is the ability to think in a structured and abstract manner, which is generally taught best in regular study courses. The field of study is secondary.

 

 

What is a citizen developer? Is it the same as a Low-Code developer?

The term ‘citizen developer’ was coined to describe employees of the specialist departments who develop smaller software solutions for their own needs in addition to their actual specialist activities. This has its roots in what has been called “shadow IT” in the past, but now with more modern tools. To us, Low-Code developers are people who have deliberately chosen a career as professional application developers.
These are often former citizen developers who are now turning their experience as developers into a career.

 

So what makes the perfect team for IT projects?

Low-Code developers are recruited from both IT and non-IT fields, who then work together as a team to develop professional applications for the departments of the companies.

Scopeland Technology has been operating and supporting many such Low-Code teams for several years, with a remarkably high proportion of women at over 60%. We favor a mix of one IT specialist each per four non-IT people (business developer, citizen developer).

 

Can Low-Code developers counteract the current shortage of skilled workers?

Yes, it opens up great job opportunities for academics of all disciplines. And not as second-class computer scientist, as was the case in the past. The earning potential is just as great as that of ‘real’ computer scientists, if not even better, thanks to the industry knowledge they bring with them. Even today, customers pay significantly higher daily rates for Low-Code developers than for Java programmers and other ‘normal’ IT specialists. For end customers and IT companies, this trend represents an interesting perspective on the rampant shortage of skilled workers in IT. There are at least as many potential newcomers to the job market as trained computer scientists. This development thus also impacts the overall job market.  

 

Will Low-Code developers also be in demand in the future?

Yes, even more so than today. In Germany, there is a shortage of about 60,000 IT staff. US analyst IDC is currently talking about a massive increase in developers. By 2024, a new class of professional developers who produce code without self-written routines will increase the number of developers by 30 percent and accelerate the digital transformation (source https://www.computerwoche.de/a/die-it-trends-bis-2024-von-idc,3592203). And with this higher development potential combined and the high productivity of Low-Code, it is expected that in the next five years more software solutions will be developed than in the last 40 years combined. So it's not just a matter of a few new jobs. It’s about multiplying the developer pool with external and internal people who are not IT specialists.