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With part of this name the magazine "Computing" published an interesting article on the web where it mentions the 5 key aspects for the digitization of the Utilities sector that are already coming. These 5 key factors were listed by Appian, a leading company in the use of low-code in digital transformation processes. The term Low-Code is very recent, first used by Clay Richardson and John Rymer, Analysts at Forrester, in a report published in 2014. These are platforms with which you can develop applications by minimizing code development manually, because it is already built. Through a visual interface, drag-and-drop-integrated features, professionals with a more business-like profile and less IT knowledge can build and deploy business applications with relative ease. Low-Code development platforms often require certain code-level adjustments to customize models and adapt them to the concrete reality of company processes. For that reason, IT staff support is virtually inevitable, but it's a quick job that allows the customer to have new applications for their business in minimal time. Some very successful low codes platforms in addition to Appian are Salesforce, OutSystems and Mendix. In our region, Uruguay and Sud America also feature Genexus which is a platform that presents all the benefits of this type of software and that has been very successful. Agile methodologies are closely associated with development with this type of platform as they propose to reduce time to market times, i.e. the period of time to put new functionality into production. To become truly agile, you need to move to a low-code application development approach. The main features of a low-code development platform are:

• To be able to easily create with visual tools the "User Interface"
• Have a "mobile first" approach to UI development, including handling "responsive" design
• Create a data services layer to access tables and isolate the user interface and business rules from database access details.
• Allow and support collaborative development.
• Allow one-click deployment, either on-premises servers or cloud environments. (put into production)
• Make it easier for developers to reuse components
• Provide a business rule engine to centralize tasks such as data validation and synchronization of data management across multiple deployments according to the best user experience
• Facilitate the creation of active prototypes, where this work is then used in real development
• And after it's in production, RAPID MAINTENANCE.

Below we transmit the 5 published trends:

Trend No 1: New Opportunities with Digital Innovation

According to a Gartner report, digital is the top priority for utility CIOs in 2019. In addition, it also believes that the rapid growth of "digital ambitions" is changing the operations of oil and gas companies. It is clear that the focus on digital presents new opportunities and new challenges across the energy value chain. The digital world is faster, smarter and more connected. To adapt to the new pace of change, energy and utility companies are adopting cutting-edge digital technologies to transform the way they operate, serve customers, and interact with their partners across the value chain. Digitization can mean automating cumbersome paper processes, creating mobile apps to increase the productivity of field workers, finding new ways to communicate with ecosystem partners, or improving the visibility of ecosystem workers projects and assets on the part of those involved. Digital is definitely an area to focus on in 2019, whatever it means to your business.

Trend No 2: The Value of Smart Automation

Today, companies can automate more types of work than ever before. With the evolution of robotics, artificial intelligence and machine learning, along with process automation, opportunities to apply intelligent automation (AI) across the enterprise are exponential. Energy companies are incorporating robotic process automation (RPA) to automate repetitive, laborious and high-volume processes and experience new levels of efficiency and quality. From supply chain to finance to compliance processes, freeing employees to focus on the work that adds value, and customer interactions are driving new efficiencies and savings. In fact, automation is saving businesses by 20 to 40%, and according to McKinsey, 45% of work activities can be automated using the technology available today. Therefore, reviewing your automation strategy is essential in 2019.

Trend No 3: The Possibilities of the Internet of Things (IoT)

Energy companies have the opportunity to improve decision-making and security by making better use of data from the Internet of Things, produced by networks, sensors and assets, all while improving the control and coordination of operations. The key is to connect fieldwork to the business. Applications that are created should be able to easily integrate the Internet of Things by expanding existing control process systems, aggregated sensors, and other critical data. Companies can then implement business processes, respond to sensor events, or issue notifications (including light signals in response to events or closing valves or security doors) to respond faster, communicate more quickly, communicate more quickly, communicate more quickly, communicate more quickly, communicate more quickly, communicate more quickly, communicate more quickly, communicate more quickly, communicate reduce risk. Exploring the possibilities of the Internet of Things is a must in 2019, from leveraging terabytes of data generated daily on a single drilling rig to driving innovation in energy grids and smart homes.

Trend No 4: Low-code Accelerates Value Production

With changing demands and competitive pressures, there is a need to deliver new, modern applications faster in field and enterprise facilities. And this is where low-code solutions can be used. Such solutions allow you to speed up the process by significantly reducing wait times. Businesses can deploy enterprise-grade applications in just 8 weeks with the speed, flexibility, and power to meet today's demands and tomorrow's challenges. Whether improving operations, complying with regulations or transforming customer service, low-code platforms are changing the rules of the game for energy companies.

Trend No 5: Improving the Customer Experience with Smart Contact Centers

Transforming the customer experience is essential for supply companies. As consumers and businesses have a greater variety of options to reduce their reliance on traditional energy suppliers, it becomes critical to improve how customer service is provided to retain customers and market share. But it often happens that manual processes and disconnected systems present significant barriers to providing a seamless experience, leading to frustrations for agents and customers. Now, utilities are turning to innovative platforms that support agents with a 360-degree view of customers, integrated knowledge management, and AI-assisted interactions, so they can resolve requests to the first and offer the best customer experience. Whether in billing and procurement, response in case of outages or field service inquiries, utilities are transforming the way they serve customers in 2019 and creating opportunities to offer new energy products and services.