Why is the Software for Domain Experts business model a good idea today?

Here’s 7 reasons,

1) One of the most exciting is the recent growth of ‘low-code’ tools, which make the task of building a useful ‘app’ much easier – you can do it with 2 programmers rather than 50. A 2014 Forrester study cited 3 different sorts of ‘low -code’ platform vendors – business process management tools (AgilePoint, Bizagi, K2, Nintex, MicroPact, Software AG); App platforms (Alpha Software, Alphinat, Mendix, OutSystems, salesforce.com); and Web content platforms (Acquia Adobe). There is some cross over between the sections. (see here for more). We’ll also add data search tools (such as Maana).

2) From the user’s point of view, most business / government professionals are now treated with massive amounts of data and expected to take all of the organisation’s knowledge into account when making decisions. They need as much help via automated tools as possible to bring them the right data and case studies, search and process it. And most of the time this means customised tools, because every specialism has different needs – different language, different risks, different context, even if the processes seem art first similar. Most professionals are trying to do everything with Microsoft Office a very generic set of tools, or perhaps some ERP package servicing thousands of large companies in the same way.

3) Add to this the ‘internet of things’ – including entering and reading data via mobile phones, collecting data with sensors, drones, and body sensors, and using controllers. You can let your imagination go wild thinking about what you can do with it – but making the software to build it requires some expertise!

4) There do seem to be many underemployed domain experts around these days, who can assist in putting tools and services together. Many people have taken early retirement from stressful jobs in big organisations, but still prefer to work (just something less stressful meaning less doing more thinking)

5) We hear that software engineers around the world are getting frustrated with working with big companies. Perhaps all the initiatives to keep programmers motivated, like ‘hackathons’ and ‘agile’, are all a response to the demotivating force of feeling like a tiny cog in a big company. Rather than invent more clever initiatives, why don’t programmers start their own companies – nothing is more motivating than that?

6) Of course it is much easier for a small company to develop and provide specialist software if it can use the cloud

7) Add in the growing numbers of cost efficient outsourcing companies for data and knowledge processing, particularly in places like India and the Philippines