Host: Welcome to A.I.S. Insights, the podcast at the intersection of business and technology, powered by Living Knowledge. I’m your host, Anna Ivy Summers.
Host: Today, we’re diving into a fascinating area where business and IT are blurring lines: citizen development. We’re looking at a new study titled "Governing Citizen Development to Address Low-Code Platform Challenges".
Host: It investigates how companies can effectively manage employees who, with minimal technical skills, are now building their own applications using what are called low-code platforms. With me to break it all down is our analyst, Alex Ian Sutherland. Alex, welcome.
Expert: Great to be here, Anna.
Host: So, let’s start with the big picture. Why are companies turning to their own non-technical employees to build software in the first place? What’s the problem this study is trying to solve?
Expert: The core problem is a massive, ongoing shortage of skilled software developers. Companies have huge backlogs of IT projects, but they can't hire developers fast enough. So, they turn to low-code platforms, which are tools with drag-and-drop interfaces that let almost anyone build a simple application.
Host: That sounds like a perfect solution. Democratize development and get things done faster.
Expert: It sounds perfect, but the study makes it clear that this introduces a whole new set of serious risks that organizations are often unprepared for. They identified three major challenges.
Host: And what are they?
Expert: First is simply substandard software quality. An app built by someone in marketing might look fine, but as the study found, it could be running "slow queries" or be "badly planned," hurting the performance of the entire system.
Expert: Second is the rise of 'shadow IT'. Employees build things on their own without oversight, which can lead to security issues, data protection breaches, or simply chaos. One developer in the study noted they had a role that was "almost as powerful as a normal developer" and could "damage a few things" if they weren't careful.
Expert: And third is technical debt. An employee builds a useful tool, then they leave the company. The study asks, who maintains it? Often, nobody. Or people just keep creating duplicate apps, leading to a messy and expensive digital junkyard.
Host: So, how did the researchers get to the bottom of this? What was their approach?
Expert: They took a very practical, real-world approach. They conducted 30 in-depth interviews across two different firms. One was a company using a low-code platform, and the other was a company that actually provides a low-code platform. This gave them a 360-degree view from both the user and the expert perspective.
Host: It sounds comprehensive. So, after all those conversations, what were the key findings? What's the solution here?
Expert: The biggest finding is that simply having "developers" and "non-developers" is the wrong way to think about it. Effective governance requires a much more nuanced understanding of the roles people play.
Host: What kind of roles did they find?
Expert: They identified two key types of citizen developers. You have your 'traditional citizen developer,' who builds a simple app for their team. But more importantly, they found what they call 'low-code champions.' These are business users who become passionate experts and act as a bridge between their colleagues and IT. They become the "poster children" for the program.
Host: That’s a powerful idea. So it’s about nurturing internal talent, not just letting everyone run wild.
Expert: Exactly. And to support them, the study proposes a clear, three-part governance framework. First, strategically manage project scope. Don’t let citizen developers build highly complex, mission-critical systems. Guide them to appropriate, simpler use cases.
Expert: Second, organize effective collaboration. This means creating a central knowledge base with answers to common questions and using standard collaboration tools so people aren't constantly reinventing the wheel or flooding experts with the same support tickets.
Expert: And third, implement targeted education. This isn't just about teaching them to use the software. It’s about training on best practices, data security, and identifying those enthusiastic employees who can become your next 'low-code champions.'
Host: This is the crucial part for our listeners. What does this all mean for business leaders? What are the key takeaways?
Expert: The first takeaway is this: don't just buy a low-code platform, build a program around it. Governance isn't about restriction; it's about creating the guardrails for success. The study warns that without it, the benefits of speed are "quickly outweighed by escalating risks and costs."
Expert: The second, and I think most important, is to actively identify and empower your 'low-code champions'. These people are your force multipliers. They can handle onboarding, answer basic questions, and promote best practices within their business units, which frees up your IT team to focus on bigger things.
Expert: And finally, start small and be strategic. The goal of citizen development shouldn't be to replace your IT department, but to supplement it. Empowering a sales team to automate its own reporting workflow is a huge win. Asking them to rebuild the company’s CRM is a disaster waiting to happen.
Host: Incredibly clear advice. The promise of empowering your workforce with these tools is real, but it requires a thoughtful strategy to avoid the pitfalls.
Host: To summarize, success with citizen development hinges on a strong governance framework. That means strategically managing what gets built, organizing how people collaborate and get support, and investing in targeted education to create internal champions.
Host: Alex Ian Sutherland, thank you so much for breaking down this complex topic into such actionable insights.
Expert: My pleasure, Anna.
Host: And thank you to our audience for tuning in to A.I.S. Insights. We'll see you next time.