Why You Should Embrace Citizen Development for Business Transformation
Harness the power of the citizen developer to achieve true agility and collaboration
What is Citizen Development?
Citizen development is a business process that encourages non-IT employees to develop software. They create custom business applications using intuitive low-code/no-code platforms. By 2017, 32% of organizations were offering training to non-IT employees, allowing them to gain software development skills.
Who Are Citizen Developers?
Citizen developers are employees with little to no coding experience who create new applications or customize existing business applications for use by themselves or others. They don't replace IT, rather, they help organizations create effective apps faster and relieve software developers of simpler tasks.
Good citizen developers understand what their organizations need and have a passion for solving business problems. They can customize apps for specific business tasks and often use technology to simplify their work.
The Rise of Citizen Development
By 2023, active citizen developers in large organizations will outnumber professional developers by four to one. Why has citizen development become so popular?
A Growing IT Backlog
77% of IT leaders agree that their teams have a huge backlog of requests which aren’t being worked on. This strains IT resources and slows down the app development process, overburdening IT teams.
A Shortage of Developers
According to Mckinsey, the IT industry is the second-largest area with a growing skill gap. The shortage has increased software developer salaries, making an already bad situation worse.
Greater Business Context
IT teams usually have tunnel vision. On the other hand, business users have a better understanding of business operations. So it’s only logical for those who know the specifics of business operations to build the apps themselves.
How Citizen Development Has Become Necessary
The constantly changing business environment is moving faster than software developers can keep up. IT departments are also under immense pressure to modernize IT infrastructure and digitalize their organizations with new business-critical apps. They don’t have time to work on new apps and deliver them on time.
Citizen developers use low-code/no-code solutions, lowering business operating costs. They take pressure off IT and create the apps they need to enhance operational efficiency and business productivity. Citizen development helps IT work together with other departments and solve problems more effectively.
The Benefits of Citizen Development
According to Gartner, 61 percent of businesses either have or plan on having active citizen development initiatives. But just how does citizen development benefit organizations?
Trends in Citizen Development
Organizations must deliver high-quality products fast. A shortened development cycle affords an organization competitive advantage while helping them develop more effective solutions.
Enabling innovation
80% leading companies prefer software developers who can power business activities with task-based apps.
Marketplace adaption
73% organizations use digital tools to automate and streamline operations; quickly adapting to the evolving marketplace.
Retaining skilled personnel
40% of organizations suffer from a skills gap and a majority find it difficult to retain software engineers.
Enabling business users
80% of IT products and services will be built by non-IT professionals with low-code/no-code tools by 2024.
Enabling innovation
80% leading companies prefer software developers who can power business activities with task-based apps.
Marketplace adaption
73% organizations use digital tools to automate and streamline operations; quickly adapting to the evolving marketplace.
Retaining skilled personnel
40% of organizations suffer from a skills gap and a majority find it difficult to retain software engineers.
Enabling business users
80% of IT products and services will be built by non-IT professionals with low-code/no-code tools by 2024.
Get on a Citizen Development Platform Today
There are multiple benefits to citizen development—it marks the beginning of an organization-wide culture of innovation. In fact, many business leaders believe the future of software development lies in citizen development.
But acing citizen development depends on the platform you choose. A solution like Kissflow can go a long way in not only implementing citizen development but can truly make it a company-wide philosophy. Kissflow’s citizen development platform can also help your organization reduce expenses, increase productivity, and optimize operations with citizen developers.
Hear from our Customers
I designed it, tested it, and. had it ready in a week. The platform is simple and highly intuitive so anyone can use it.
Ajit Singh,
Chief Product Manager
Our needs are fulfilled by Kissflow. We are able to use the platform its maximum potential.
Kelvin Kwok,
Business Analyst
