If you’ve ever found yourself in a kitchen with the wrong ingredients, limited utensils or no instructions, cooking a meal can be difficult. The same can be said for creating automation. Without the knowledge of the structures that make up a meal, or in our case, the code that makes up an automation, you can get stuck.

But what if you have a no-code recipe kit to help?

Technology is more accessible than ever before. The rise of no-code tools helps business users with little to no coding skills to build, design and publish technologies they’ve made from their very own desktops. And thanks to the success of automation, we now have no-code automation too.

What is No-Code Automation?

Coding is at the heart of every automated piece of technology, but not everyone who wants to create automation knows how to code. That’s where no-code automation comes in. No-code is a tool or platform that helps users build applications without using programming languages. Instead, you see a graphical interface to help you build out functionalities. This can be as simple as drag-and-drop interfaces.

With no-code automation, you can empower your teams to automate business processes regardless of technical expertise or coding knowledge. This means you can process workflows more efficiently and with more agility. You can think of it this way: No-code automation serves as a powerful and accessible entryway into the larger realm of business process automation.

Citizen developer

Citizen developers are non-IT employees (non-technical people) familiar with the business objectives and processes, trained to create no-code or low-code automation using simple, drag-and-drop features to develop more efficient end-to-end processes in an organization. They work to develop enterprise-grade applications to be used by themselves or other business teams.

Low-code automation vs. no-code automation

You might have also read about low-code automation and thought, what’s the difference? While no-code requires users to have absolutely zero coding skills, low-code involves some level of knowledge.

Generally, this can mean that users use simple, pre-built features to build out their automations on a platform, but for anything more complex or specific, some level of programming knowledge is required. For example, in low-code automation, your workflow might need a specific trigger unavailable as a pre-built option.

	No-code	Low-code	Traditional approach
Ease of use	No coding skills or technical knowledge is required.	Some basic coding and technology skills are required.	Employees are trained in programming and scripting knowledge.
Learning curve	Shallow learning curve with understandable visuals and pre-built interfaces and functions.	Depending on who’s using this tool, there’s a slightly steeper learning curve due to code and platform knowledge.	Steep learning curve. Employees spend years learning and training in programming languages.
Speed	Rapid development thanks to easy-to-use functions.	Slightly longer development process due to coding requirements.	Laborious design process and development processes may take significant time and effort.
Target users	Non-technical users and citizen development	Developers, IT professionals and coders.	Developers, IT professionals and automation experts.

Whether you decide to use no-code or low-code automation (or even a traditional approach) will depend on your automation goal in mind, as well as the users involved in creating and triggering these events. You can also learn more about different automation software beyond no-code and low-code that help your business streamline operations.

Types of no-code automation tools

Each no-code automation tool will have different essential features, depending on your chosen platform. In general, features can include:

• Prompt-based tools: These are tools that receive prompts to start automations. You simply tell or type what you need to be done and it will act as a digital assistant to complete the prompt.

• Pre-defined text tools: These tools use a text-based approach to create automations. They provide pre-built templates or structured text components that users can select and arrange to trigger events and actions. A trigger and follow-up example would be: When a new order is placed, send an invoice to the contact.
• Visual tools: These tools offer a visual interface for building automation processes, such as drag-and-drop interfaces or graphical user interfaces (GUI). This makes it easy to understand how steps are connected or carried out. Examples of visual support include color-coded lines, arrows and paths.

Here are some common types of no-code automation tools that use some of the above features:

Workflow automation

Workflows let you create and automate how tasks flow by connecting various triggers and actions. They help automate repetitive tasks and manual processes by integrating popular business applications (such as Microsoft Excel). Often, workflow automations offer pre-built templates to make it even easier to automate tasks.

Robotic process automation

Robotic process automation (RPA) is an easy-to-use type of automation software that deploys RPA bots that mimic human actions. You teach these software robots to perform business processes by giving them step-by-step actions. This frees your employees from monotonous tasks and saves businesses hours of labor time. You can learn more about RPA and its foundational importance for intelligent process automation and cognitive automation in our comprehensive guide. 

Why Should You Use No-Code Automation Tools?

No-code automation brings a wealth of benefits to your organization. Some of the most significant ones include:

• Agility and speed: As no-code automation only requires knowledge of how to use the tool and platform, automations can be spun up in minutes, saving precious time. When market conditions change, users can almost immediately address evolving needs.
• Productivity: Employees can better focus their time on higher-value tasks rather than repetitive tasks and mundane jobs. No-code automations can help employees streamline their workflow, so resources are more efficiently used.
• Scalability: Without needing a team of programmers or IT staff, departments can scale operations themselves and generate automations they need quicker. No-code empowers employees to take opportunities without IT bottlenecks and get more value from their work.
• Experience: Users who are experts in their operational field can now leverage no-code tools to formulate automations that work. Without needing to consult IT, they can address bottlenecks, inefficiencies and improve processes they know are holding up business processes. In this way, a no-code approach also helps build better customer experiences.
• Implementation: You can really hit the ground running with automations, as no-code can be learned and implemented with a few easy steps. Its user experience (UX) also makes this even simpler. This means less training is required for employees to use the platform and accelerate its value.
• Cost: There’s a misconception that starting automation will require heavy investment in infrastructure and labor. No-code automation eliminates these theories with its agility, accessibility and simplicity. In fact, it can actually save you costs and business hours as employees become more self-sufficient and efficient in their tasks.
• Governance: No-code automation tools grant secure access. This includes differentiation between users, access levels and approval structures. You can keep track of all changes or updates through digital breadcrumbs and stay accountable with minimal effort.

Examples and Use Cases of No-Code Automation Tools

Through its features and benefits, no-code automation tools have enhanced the accessibility of automation for a diverse range of business functions. Ultimately, employees can use no-code tools to help relieve their mundane and repetitive tasks, freeing up their precious time to focus on more strategic work.

By building automations on their own, you’re empowering employees to take control of business processes and automate their tasks. This enhances their autonomy and allows them to adapt and customize their work based on their specific needs.

Here are some examples of automation capabilities and applications across business units that can be easily built through no-code automation:

Finance

• Billing and invoicing
• Expense management
• Financial reporting and analysis

Customer service

• Ticket management and routing
• Automated email responses
• Order status and shipments
• Chatbot support

Business analytics

• Automated reporting and dashboards
• Predictive analysis
• Real-time alerts against business objectives

IT

• Service desk and ticketing
• Monitoring and alerts
• Software release and deployment

HR

• Onboarding processes
• Employee document processing
• Leave and attendance management
• Training and development

Many businesses also use no-code automation platforms alongside their existing SAP systems to further enhance their resource planning and automation capabilities. They easily integrate to help optimize processes without relying on custom coding or tech expertise as there are pre-built accelerators. Learn more about how AGCO, a global manufacturer of farm equipment, increased their efficiency here.

What does a great no-code automation tool look like?

When looking for a no-code automation tool, think of your business goals in mind and look for the following core features to ensure you have an effective tool:

• An intuitive user interface: It should be easy to navigate and build automations; otherwise, it becomes another frustrating type of software, and its full potential won’t be applied.
• Advanced features: No-code tools are only becoming more powerful with evolving functionalities. To get the most value from your tool, find one with powerful automation capabilities.
• Pre-built connectivity and integrations: It can be frustrating to integrate new tools into legacy systems. This is simplified if your tool already comes pre-configured to a wide range of business applications you already use.
• Governance: It’s imperative that the tool keeps your data safe and secure. Find a tool with high levels of governance and great security features such as role-based access, audit log functions and authentications.
• Support: Although a great no-code automation tool is simple and straightforward, a tool offering comprehensive support and tutorials will help business users go the extra mile and utilize their automations effectively.

From Recipe to Reality

The rise of no-code tools has opened up a world of possibilities for businesses that previously didn’t have the automation capabilities. It has essentially leveled the playing field. Employees across various roles and skills don’t need to know code to streamline their roles.

If you’d like to learn more about no-code or low-code automation solutions to help you get started, reach out to us for a friendly conversation.