Transforming business value creation with Citizen Development

In today's fast-paced digital landscape, organizations face increasing pressure to innovate quickly, streamline processes, and adapt to ever-changing market demands. However, traditional software development often struggles to keep up with this need for speed and flexibility, burdened by resource constraints, slow time-to-market and high costs. These challenges can restrain innovation and leave organizations unable to fully capitalize on opportunities.

In response to these pressures, a relatively new approach has gained traction: “Citizen Development”. At its core, the Citizen Development model empowers non-technical employees to create applications using low-code or no-code (LCNC) platforms, offering a way to bypass traditional barriers and foster a culture of agility and innovation.

First introduced by Gartner around 2012, the term “Citizen Development” has sparked both excitement and skepticism over the past decade. The bold promise it makes naturally raises questions, as IT departments and service providers clearly continue to play a crucial role in navigating the complexities of modern technology. However, as digital transformation accelerates and enabling technologies such as cloud computing, API integrations, LCNC platforms, automation, and AI mature, Citizen Development is steadily evolving from a concept to a practical reality worth serious consideration.

Understanding  |  Benefits  |  Six key drivers  |  Case studies  |  Challenges  |  How to get started?

Citizen Development refers to the practice of empowering less technical^[1] employees to create applications and automated workflows using visual development tools. Unlike traditional software development, which relies on professional developers and extensive coding knowledge and experience, Citizen Development leverages intuitive platforms that simplify the development process. This approach enables a broader range of employees to contribute to digital transformation initiatives, bridging the gap between business needs and technological capabilities.

Citizen Development can play a critical role in addressing value creation for areas that do not necessitate the extensive large-scale solutions that CRM, ERP, or HRM suites offer. These major systems are traditionally high in value but cover a large complexity and are therefore implemented by professional IT departments to meet broad organizational needs. However, there exists a multitude of smaller, niche requirements—team-specific, line-of-business (LOB) applications, and personal productivity tools—that can be effectively addressed through Citizen Development.

By leveraging low-code and no-code platforms, employees without formal programming skills can develop customized applications to enhance their workflows and solve specific problems unique to their roles. Based on a recent KPMG Low-code survey^[2], the top 5 areas where low-code development is significantly in use today are:

1. development of less-complex apps;
2. workflows;
3. optical character recognition;
4. automation; and
5. AI/machine learning.

A variation of platforms can cover Citizen Development needs, depending on business requirements and the existing IT landscape. In the status quo, for most use cases – one could say that Excel is (still) king. But we’ve come to see that it lacks capabilities in terms of scalability, integration, security, and governance, which become more and more desired – if not expected - in an enterprise context. Fortunately, modern low-code and no-code platforms now offer these functionalities as part of their core capabilities.

A successful Citizen Development program starts with (1) a clear strategy and vision. Organizations must define how Citizen Development aligns with their broader business goals and digital transformation initiatives. This strategic foundation should ensure that all efforts are purpose-driven and contribute to long-term objectives.

Additionally, (2) engagement of citizen developers is key to fostering participation. Employees need the right tools, training, and motivation to take on development tasks. Complementing this is (3) supportive governance, which provides clear policies that safeguard security and compliance without stifling innovation.

The program must also be (4) driven by IT, with IT teams providing technical oversight, ensuring integration with existing systems, and maintaining scalability. (5) Strategic buy-in and support from leadership is crucial to ensure that the program is well-resourced and prioritized within the organization. Together, these elements create a balanced and sustainable Citizen Development framework.

Now, let’s list some counterintuitive implications of the above points:

• Although IT's role is advisory and supportive, the rising need for their help in establishing a Citizen Development environment will necessitate more IT resources at the start.
  
• Even with supportive governance, the widespread use of low-code/no-code tools can inadvertently lead to more shadow IT if employees bypass approved platforms or protocols to expedite development.
  
• Strategic buy-in from leadership could lead to tension between traditional IT departments and business units if leaders prioritize rapid citizen-led solutions over longer, IT-led projects that require more time and resources.

As you’ll notice, the true complexity of Citizen Development doesn't lie in building the applications or setting up the governance frameworks. Rather, it’s about recognizing that all these elements—engagement, governance, IT support, and strategic alignment—must be continuously steered and adapted based on ongoing feedback. Only through a dynamic and responsive approach can Citizen Development truly deliver on its promise while maintaining balance within the organization.

Which brings us to the final key driver: the (6) incorporation of continuous feedback. Regularly gathering input from citizen developers, IT teams, and business stakeholders ensures that governance frameworks, strategies, and IT support are responsive to evolving needs. This feedback loop allows for the constant refinement of both the tools and the processes, helping to identify challenges early and adjust course as necessary. By making feedback an integral part of the program, organizations can ensure that Citizen Development stays aligned with business goals in a durable manner.

While the potential benefits are significant, recognizing the obstacles early on helps set realistic expectations and enables organizations to better plan for long-term success. By understanding these limitations, businesses can create more resilient strategies that address risks proactively and ensure sustainable growth in their Citizen Development initiatives.

Here, we’ve listed relevant challenges, each accompanied by a fictive example:

• Too complex to maintain or implement: Low-code platforms can be difficult to manage and implement effectively without proper knowledge and resources, leading to maintenance challenges.
  
  Example: Over time, as the number of applications and users grows, an organization may struggle to manage the platform's maintenance and address issues, such as updating applications or fixing bugs. This results in frequent downtime and increased dependency on external consultants, reducing the platform’s value.             
  
  
• Not applicable for complex questions/solutions: These platforms may not be suitable for overly complex applications, limiting their use in certain scenarios.
  
  Example: An organization decides to go for a Citizen Development initiative for a use case that is not yet truly clear but seems very promising based on a first brainstorm. While a LCNC platform may be effective for moderately complex workflows and user interfaces, it could fail to support highly customized logic, complex data management, compliance, and complex user interface requirements. At some point, the organization might need to turn to more traditional IT implementation tools and/or teams to handle these complexities, limiting the business case of the solution in development.
  
  
• Difficulties in integrating into the existing landscape: Integrating new low-code solutions with existing systems can be challenging, potentially causing compatibility and workflow issues.
  
  Example: The existing IT landscape of an organization includes legacy systems with bespoke APIs – or even no APIs at all, integrating the new low-code applications with these systems might prove difficult, and could result in synchronization errors and performance lags. This might then trigger workflow disruptions, leading to delays in operations and customer dissatisfaction.

Good governance, ranging from idea-intake to operational responsibilities, architectural alignment, and a decommissioning strategy, combined with building on a scalable architecture with IT involvement, helps to counter these risks. 

• Lack of employee acceptance: Employees may resist using low-code platforms due to unfamiliarity or a preference for traditional tools and methods.
  
  Example: A marketing team is introduced to a low-code platform to automate campaign workflows. However, many employees are accustomed to using Excel and manual processes. They perceive the new platform as overly complicated or unnecessary, and some team members refuse to use it altogether. As a result, adoption is slow, and those who do use the platform often revert to traditional methods when they encounter challenges, leading to inconsistent processes and incomplete automation.
  
  
• Lack of management acceptance: Management might be skeptical about the effectiveness and reliability of low-code solutions, hindering their adoption.
  
  Example: A company’s IT department proposes adopting a low-code platform to accelerate the development of internal applications. However, upper management is skeptical about the platform’s scalability and security features. They are concerned that it will not be able to handle mission-critical applications or meet regulatory requirements. Despite positive proof-of-concept results, the platform is not fully implemented due to management’s reluctance, stalling the potential benefits of faster application development.
  
  
• Lack of skills in IT: There may be a shortage of IT skills necessary to support and oversee the implementation and maintenance of low-code platforms.
  
  Example: An organization deploys a low-code platform to create internal tools quickly and exposes it to business users for Citizen Development. However, while the platform enables rapid development, the company’s IT team lacks the necessary knowledge to integrate the platform with existing systems and manage its governance and security features. This lack of expertise results in poorly configured applications, increasing the risk of data breaches and creating an over-reliance on external vendors to provide ongoing support and maintenance.

To mitigate risks related to employee and management acceptance, as well as IT skill shortages, organizations should adopt a clear low-code strategy with leadership buy-in, provide extensive training for both citizen developers and IT teams. Continuous feedback to address this lack of commitment, but also to share achievements, may help in steering the organization on an ongoing basis.

• Lack of transparency across Low-Code platforms: The opacity of how low-code platforms operate can lead to trust issues and hinder widespread adoption.
  
  Example: A financial institution adopts a low-code platform to accelerate app development but soon realizes that the platform's internal processes and data handling mechanisms are not fully transparent. Without clear insights into how data is processed, stored, or transmitted within the platform, the institution struggles to assess compliance with industry regulations, leading to hesitancy in fully adopting the platform for sensitive financial applications.
  
  
• Danger of shadow IT: Unauthorized or unsanctioned development activities can lead to security vulnerabilities and governance issues.
  
  Example: In a large retail company, various departments start building their own applications using a low-code platform without involving the IT department. These unsanctioned apps lack proper security measures and don't align with the company’s data governance policies. As a result, sensitive customer data is exposed to potential breaches, and the IT department is forced to step in to resolve the security vulnerabilities created by these shadow IT efforts.
  
  
• Security concerns: Low-code platforms can introduce security risks if not properly managed, as non-technical users may not follow best practices.
  
  Example: A healthcare provider allows non-technical staff to use a low-code platform to build tools. However, due to a lack of training on security best practices, an employee uses the app for storing patient data and unintentionally misconfigures the app, exposing sensitive patient information to unauthorized users. This breach not only violates data privacy regulations but also compromises the organization’s trust and reputation, leading to costly remediation efforts.
  
  

To increase transparency of processes and data related to the visibility of Citizen Developer activity and potential data security concerns, it’s key that the selected platform has adequate data management and security capabilities, and that they are configured correctly by the IT platform team. On top of that, by training the Citizen Development teams on how to work with sensitive data and by setting up the necessary guardrails in the platform and onboarding processes, the security risks can be managed.

In conclusion, while Citizen Development offers exciting potential for transforming how organizations innovate and operate, realizing its full value requires a thoughtful and strategic approach. KPMG can assist at every stage of the journey, from tactical to strategic initiatives. Our services range from a Citizen Development readiness quick scan to assess your organization’s preparedness, to tactical Center of Excellence (CoE) support and use case quick scans that help identify high-impact opportunities. KPMG can also collaborate on the co-development of use cases, providing hands-on expertise.

On a strategic level, KPMG can help with strategic leadership alignment services, set up an effective CoE, and ensure long-term success through change management and comprehensive training plans.

With our guidance, organizations can navigate the complexities of Citizen Development and unlock its true potential.

Any questions? Contact us!

_{Disclaimer: This article has been thoroughly proofread, augmented, and refined with the expert assistance of Microsoft CoPilot and KPMG AdvisoryGPT. Any remaining typos, questionable metaphors, or curious turns of phrase may be purely human, machine, or a delightful collaboration between the two. Feel free to share any remarks, and we’ll make sure to pass them along to either the human author or the supporting AI models for continuous improvement.}