In November last year, I published a blog on No-Code CRM and the digital skills gap following my participation in a No-Code Revolution event. Since then, no-code has become a buzzword in many areas of day-to-day business.
Most of the articles I read are clearly talking about corporate development. Enterprise solutions. Projects with long time scales that can be shortened by no-code/low-code technology. But what about SMEs?
What are the benefits?
Where are the benefits for businesses that do not have the extensive IT resources of global players? For me, the best way to look at this is to consider two words: independence and interdependence. But before we go there, let me define no-code.
No-code is a software development approach that requires few if any, programming skills to quickly build an application. It goes hand-in-hand with the ‘citizen developer’ concept. The citizen developer concept is explained well in the KPMG article ‘Opportunities and challenges in a low/no-code world‘.
Anyone can create a new business automation routine without having software programming (coding) skills. This is just like photography where today anyone can take high-resolution pictures, edit, and publish them, without having to engage a professional photographer, as would have been the case in the past. Modern digital photography liberates everyone and allows them to do it themselves. So too, no-code liberates people to automate their own business procedures.
Independence and No-Code CRM
Independence, noun, the state, condition, quality, or process of being independent.
One of our partners in CRM uses the word ‘Freedom’ to express the independence you gain by adopting no-code technology for CRM and business process automation. ‘Freedom’, in this respect, applies equality to global players and SMEs.
In the corporate world, business teams are often hampered by the delays inherent in business system specification, design sign-off, development time lags, testing, and quality management approval prior to go-live.
What does this mean for SMEs? It means the delays may be involved in briefing the third-party implementation partner, waiting for their resource availability, and then finding the time for overstretched members of your team to test the new system.
So – independence and no-code CRM. What does it mean? It means liberation in so much as it allows freedom and enables high-speed delivery of new business solutions. It accelerates time to value. But, for SMEs, that comes with the drawback of resource availability. Who has the time to do it in addition to keeping the lid on their day-to-day jobs? And that’s where ‘interdependence’ comes into play.
Interdependence and No-Code CRM
Interdependence, noun, the act of depending on one another.
SMEs need a dive buddy to help them through the change in mindset required to fully embrace the freedom and independence associated with no-code technology. Corporate governance is an issue whether you are a global player, a mid-size operator, or a start-up. You need to get it right. And in today’s world of data privacy, cybersecurity, and litigation, you need to get it right the first time and not learn by trial and error.
A relevant industry sector has grown up to supply the advice, guidance, best practice, and information security required by SMEs as they automate more and more of their operational procedures and commit more and more data to the cloud through software-as-a-service (SaaS) applications, like CRM, and online storage that comes with SaaS and with OneDrive, Google, Dropbox, and the like.
This industry, generally known as ‘business partners’ or ‘integrators’, relies on the fact that SMEs need top quality professional help as they embark on innovative changes to their business models, no-code applications for business automation and SaaS technology.
The independence that SMEs seek is inextricably tied up with interdependence on professional business partners. There is a symbiosis that benefits all concerned. And long may it last.
Collier Pickard has been providing mutually beneficial partnerships with organisations large and small for nearly two decades. We see the rise of no-code CRM as a welcome evolution in business technology that will benefit us all – SMEs, corporates, SaaS vendors and integrators.
Alan Joenn is an Account Director at Collier Pickard with 25 years of experience in CRM and marketing automation.
