The Perils of ‘Lo-Code’ in a Complex Domain

tldr; Naively using ‘lo-code’ to support a complex business will erode ROI faster than expected.

Giving business people the ability to create software has been a long-standing goal of technology vendors.

We’ve seen the evolution of tooling since the 1990’s, such as:

• Desktop database applications, like Microsoft Access
• Desktop spreadsheet applications, like Lotus 123
• Microsoft LightSwitch, and now Power Apps
• Cloud based ‘lo-code’ solutions

These tools work best when a business has simple goals. But when the complexity starts ramping up, these tools become increasingly difficult to work with. 

This is due to factors in the real world – either internal operational changes, or external environmental changes.  Changes that require the software to evolve, which lead to data schema changes, database migrations, UI changes, API changes, and anything else that is connected.

The problem is:
Non-programmers are not equipped to manage an evolving technical solution. They do not see the deep complexity inherent within their business domain, and won’t have the expertise that Systems Thinkers or Data Model Designers have.

We’ve seen this scenario play out over the decades. Today’s ‘lo-code’ tools are the equivalent of the desktop Access and Excel solutions from decades ago. Those tools may be effective at getting initial ideas working, but ongoing enhancements will become painstakingly slow and expensive.

Maybe a business isn’t that complicated, in which case these tools could be a perfect fit.
Then again: maybe that business is complicated.

But without understanding through exploration, one cannot know for sure.