{"id":15306,"date":"2020-08-06T09:30:20","date_gmt":"2020-08-06T09:30:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/staging-mondaycomblog.kinsta.cloud\/?post_type=builders&p=15306"},"modified":"2023-11-01T12:04:13","modified_gmt":"2023-11-01T12:04:13","slug":"3-ways-citizen-developers-can-achieve-your-digital-transformation-goals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/monday.com\/appdeveloper\/blog\/3-ways-citizen-developers-can-achieve-your-digital-transformation-goals\/","title":{"rendered":"3 ways citizen developers can achieve your digital transformation goals"},"content":{"rendered":"

We\u2019ve been hearing about digital transformation for years now \u2014 and IT hasn\u2019t had a break since.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Developers are overwhelmed by an unending IT request pipeline, keeping up is impossible.<\/span><\/p>\n

Enter “citizen developers” – who have the potential to alleviate the massive burden on IT, increase speed, and boost innovation.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

How can citizen developers, combined with low-code\/no-code software help you achieve your digital transformation goals? Read on for more.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Get started with monday.com<\/a><\/p>\n

What is a citizen developer?<\/span><\/h2>\n

Citizen developers are individuals who don\u2019t have formal development training and who aren’t in IT or R&D departments. They are called \u201cdevelopers\u201d because they create new web or mobile applications that are functional and fit into their digital environments, without heavy coding.<\/span><\/p>\n

Low-code\/no-code platforms: Must-have citizen developer tools<\/span><\/h2>\n

Low-code and no-code <\/span>platforms<\/span><\/a> are essential to a citizen developer toolbox. These platforms use a visual Integrated Development Environment (IDE), where users drag-and-drop app components to create new apps.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Compared to the traditional method of app development, with low-code\/no-code platforms, users can create functional apps in days or even hours with minimal code (opposed to weeks or months of coding).<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

When used together, low-code\/no-code platforms allow enterprises to churn out new apps quickly for precise business needs with their current talent and resources.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Low-code vs. no-code: What\u2019s the difference?<\/span><\/h3>\n

Low-code<\/b> platforms require some coding, but much less than the traditional development process. Often, programmers use low-code solutions to create the foundation for an app. Non-developers can then finish and customize it with no-code.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

No-code <\/b>platforms allow users with no coding experience to put together apps with reusable, functional building blocks on a visual IDE.<\/span><\/p>\n

In both, IT must maintain complete governance over which users have access to data, functionality, and systems. This keeps data secure, according to the company\u2019s policies.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Without citizen developers, you\u2019ll face a sludgy digital transformation<\/span><\/h2>\n

IT simply can\u2019t do everything alone \u2014 not if you care about speed, meeting key business goals, and keeping your employees happy.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

When your IT is overwhelmed and unable to deliver new solutions fast enough, both developers and employees get frustrated. Developers will get irritated that their pipeline never ends – and employees will get annoyed waiting developers to create apps. Moreover, slow response times makes it harder to compete in a rapidly evolving market or meet key business objectives.<\/span><\/p>\n

With the added power of citizen developers, you can overcome these challenges and achieve more benefits:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

1. Unlock unprecedented levels of speed at a lower cost<\/span><\/h3>\n

Digital transformation is supposed to be fast<\/a>. Keeping pace with the competition and staying relevant in the eyes of your customers requires continual and rapid progress.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But as we\u2019ve discussed, the strain on IT to routinely develop, customize, and prepare the enterprise for new apps is too strong to be fast enough.<\/span><\/p>\n

But citizen developers can help.\u00a0 By democratizing valuable and expensive development capabilities, you can spread out the work of creating innovative, time-saving apps across a broader group of employees. According to <\/span>451 Research<\/span><\/a>, integrating low-code\/no-code tools can increase development efficiency by 50%-90%.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Moreover, the cost of developing more apps at a faster rate will ultimately go down.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Developer time is expensive \u2014 programmers in \u201cbig business class\u201d software companies earn an average of <\/span>$200-$300 per hour<\/span><\/a>. By ensuring your developers focus their time and talents on the most complex development projects and allowing citizen developers to fulfill their own needs, your organization will save money and move faster.<\/span><\/p>\n

2. Improve the employee digital experience<\/span><\/h3>\n

The \u201c<\/span>employee digital experience<\/span><\/a>\u201d refers to the impact of technology on employees\u2019 everyday lives at work. The current backlog of requests for new IT solutions, the lack of necessary apps for employees, and the unyielding pressure to get more done faster makes employees stressed and less productive. <\/span><\/p>\n

For many employees, the result is a poor employee digital experience.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Imagine every week you need to build a report on your team\u2019s performance. To do this, have to pivot between different apps and manually input all of the data. <\/span><\/p>\n

This alone is a bad employee digital experience \u2014 it\u2019s time-consuming, error-prone, and contributes to digital fatigue. <\/span><\/p>\n

And what makes it even worse? The fact that you know there\u2019s a solution that can automatically create your reports, but you can\u2019t get your hands on it because IT is swamped and won\u2019t get to it until next quarter.<\/span><\/p>\n

Allowing citizen developers to participate in the app development process can drastically improve the digital experience for employees within and outside of IT. Citizen developers help lift some of the work off IT\u2019s plate, which reduces stress and enables them to work faster and more effectively on tasks that demand their full expertise.<\/span><\/p>\n

For non-developers, having the ability to build apps will boost their sense of <\/span>autonomy<\/span><\/a>, enabling them to fulfill their own needs, and reducing delays. Also, by allowing non-developers to participate in this process, they will better understand technology capabilities and limitations, which can empower them to come up with more innovative ideas.<\/span><\/p>\n

3. Increase user adoption and efficiency<\/span><\/h3>\n

User adoption<\/span><\/a> is one of the most important parts of digital transformation. <\/span><\/p>\n

You purchase tools with the most advanced capabilities. You deploy them. And then they sit on the shelf because your employees can’t integrate them into their work. Sound familiar?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But imagine your employees could build exactly what they need to do their work. They’d use that software more – and that’s why empowering citizen developers is so important. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0When employees can build apps that fulfill their own unique needs \u2014 without the complexity and added features of off-the-shelf solutions \u2014 they won\u2019t need any convincing to embrace the software. On the contrary, they will be eager to adopt the tool and expand its usage over time.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Citizen developer problems & the broad threat of \u201cshadow IT\u201d<\/span><\/h2>\n

There are many benefits of having citizen developers in your organization, but there are also pitfalls to be aware of.<\/span><\/p>\n

While developers may be eager to lessen their workloads, many may worry about enabling citizen developers who may not understand the data, security, and IT infrastructure. Some of the biggest citizen developer problems fall under the umbrella of \u201c<\/span>shadow IT. <\/span><\/a>\u00a0Shadow IT refers to the use of software or hardware by a department or individual without the IT or security’s knowledge or permission.<\/span><\/p>\n

Common shadow IT examples include the unsanctioned adoption of tools like Dropbox or Google Drive, which employees can easily download and use to share private documents or data. <\/span><\/p>\n

Even the use of Instagram and Skype on corporate devices without the permission of IT falls under the realm of shadow IT. What seems harmless to employees can be completely undermining your organization\u2019s security posture. If Instagram is problematic, giving employees the ability to create their own apps and put them to use probably sounds like your CISO\u2019s worst nightmare.<\/span><\/p>\n

Main consequences of shadow IT include:<\/span><\/p>\n

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