Citizen developers on the rise says Gartner

Citizen developers are end users that create their own applications for use in their organisations, using development and runtime environments sanctioned by corporate IT. The trend is being driven by a number of factors, including limited IT budgets, simplification of development procedures, more tech-savvy work force and cloud computing.

"EUAD is being transformed by several converging forces, including changing workforce demographics, the mass customization and maturation of service-oriented architecture, simplified tools for new development and the power of cloud computing for delivering IT capabilities to end users with no IT assistance," said Eric Knipp, innovation director at Gartner. "Fighting these forces is a losing battle, nevertheless a citizen developer program can reduce the risks and unlock potential in EUAD.

"If end-user developers are ignored, and they build applications without help or knowledge from the IT organization, at the time there is a real risk that they will fail miserably and create an unplanned burden for IT. When an application is mission-critical - as often is the case with unmonitored tools used in business areas - the pain for the IT staff is furthermore acute. IT leaders must be proactive in managing citizen developer initiatives by providing tools that enable transparency in monitoring, change control and analytics. Even if IT is not at the wheel, it should keep a close eye on the dashboard," he said.

Finley added: "A citizen developer support program that includes sanctioned platforms, just-enough governance, access to enterprise services, and IT guidance and monitoring can create a safe environment for end-user AD. By engaging with end users and helping them help themselves, IT can accelerate the exploitation of new innovation and help end users create competitive advantage and build closer links with their business peers, during managing the risks of EUAD."