"Enterprise low-code is philosophically different from what other companies are doing with low-code." Host your applications anywhere, run them on any device, access your data anywhere. It's reliable, secure, and global."
That's how Appian Founder and CEO Matt Calkins summed up the magic of Appian's Enterprise Low-Code Development Platform in his plenary keynote at Appian Europe 2018, which kicked off in London today.
Calkins' keynote capped an action-packed agenda of track sessions, solution showcases, and AI and Blockchain Innovation Labs.
So, in case you missed the keynote the first time around, here's a quick recap of Calkins' remarks.
He called for a better alternative to the high failure rate of traditional custom-coding approaches to enterprise software development. He mentioned data from a soon-to-be-released Appian survey of senior executives which reveals that in the U.S. and across Europe:
- 50% of all new custom application development requests end in failure
- 40% of development time is spent dealing with technical debt'
- 55% of respondents said this led to higher operational costs
We Make It Easy to Do Bots and AI
Calkins also noted that the application layer is becoming an orchestration layer, and that Appian makes it easy to delegate jobs to bots, AI and other technologies in the intelligent automation spectrum.
Which mitigates the problem of technical debt, the implied cost of choosing the wrong approach to custom software development.
According to Appian research, organizations lose about two-fifths of their application development time to "technical debt," and this is reflected in the opportunity cost of not developing an app it needs to take advantage of a market opportunity, or by creating an app that does not meet business requirements.
"Technical debt means you develop something (an application) and it lives in the past," said Calkins. "The opposite of technical debt would be when the application goes into the present along with you. It's secure, it's something you can count on."
Faster Delivery of Custom Software
In highly-regulated industries, speedy delivery of enterprise-class application software can be especially difficult. But it doesn't have to be that way.
"Appian is fast to deploy," said Calkins. "OCC (federally-regulated Options Clearing Corporation, the world's largest equity derivatives clearing organization) built their first app in 6 weeks. Now they can build an application in a day."
"That's the power of enterprise low-code," said Calkins. "DFW (Dallas Fort Worth International Airport) built 40 apps in 18 months. "And I mean their first 18 months. From day 1 to 18 months later, they built 40 applications."
First-Day Agenda Roundup
Privacy is a hot topic in Europe. So, prior to Calkins' keynote there was a special session on how running KPMG privacy apps on Appian can help organizations turn personal data into a competitive advantage, while protecting consumer privacy.
There was also an exclusive International Partner Forum and a series of hands-on innovation labs on AI and blockchain, where participants could incorporate blockchain technology into an Appian application.
On top of that, Innovation Lab attendees also received a free 14-day cloud trial and access to a cloud-based blockchain environment to support software development.
Following Calkins' presentation, attendees heard welcoming remarks from Paul Maguire, Appian VP of Europe. The session ended with remarks from Nick Curle, Managing Director - Head of Audit Strategy & Change, Barclays; and Ama Ofori - Systems Director, Operations, Barclays Internal Audit.
Amazing Way to Kick Off Conference
As usual, Appian "shut it down" with an amazing Welcome Reception at the fabulous Underglobe, which is part of Shakespeare's Globe Theatre.
It was an amazing way to kick off the conference, in a venue where attendees could catch up with peers, network with friends and make new connections over food, fun and music.
Stay tuned to this blog for more on Appian Europe 2018.
