Why Gen Z Is the Future of Citizen Development

When it comes to digital application development, many organizations are facing a demand issue – there’s simply too much to do and not enough people to do it. Rachel Brennan, VP of Product Marketing at Bizagi, shares how citizen development could be the answer and why GenZ would lead that change.

Citizen development can help alleviate the problem, and many companies have been reaping the benefits of an in-house citizen development program over the last few years. But it’s not a case of just handing tools over and letting everyone get on with it. Not every person in your organization can, or indeed should, be a citizen developer. So, who can you enroll? 

The answer lies with the younger, digitally native people in your team – Gen Z. 

What Makes a Good Citizen Developer? 

Individuals who have a combination of basic tech skills and analytical skills and work with the business so they can solve problems for themselves and their peers are vital candidates to take on this role. An essential characteristic of citizen developers is that they should also be subject matter experts. 

Citizen developers will have insight into exactly what the problems in their line of work are and the best way to solve them. This comes with time and experience, but it can be taught if individuals have passion and enthusiasm for their work. 

However, one of the essential features is a desire to drive change. That’s where Gen Z employees really fit the brief. 

The Drive of Gen Z 

The generation currently entering the workforce is set apart from any that have come before them. They are digitally native. They’ve always had unlimited information at their disposal and the technology to access it. Gen Z has grown up building drag and drop websites from school projects to social sites and may even have a basic scripting knowledge. 

Digital is the norm for them. With access to endless YouTube how-to videos, this generation is used to teaching themselves how to solve day-to-day tech problems. So, when they enter the world of work and are faced with the annoyance of seeing something done inefficiently, they can come in with a fresh take and the basic tech skills to do something about it. 

As junior employees, they will likely work closely with business managers. In turn, they will be the employees to seamlessly help with essential but often tedious tasks – such as reporting, collecting and distributing information across team members, etc. These tasks are prime for automation and can be aided by a citizen development program. 

Enabling the Enablers 

So, now that you’ve found the person, or people, for the job, how do you set them up for success? The main challenge is empowering them with the right tools and ongoing training and support. There are different tools to aid citizen developers. If you’re going to encourage these tools and grow talent within the business, providing access to the right technology is crucial. 

Most citizen developers will begin with a no-code platform, which consists of an easy-to-use interface, often with drag and drop features, to allow users to build their applications. Low-code applications are the next step and involve some scripting. Low-code is based on model-driven development for user interface process management and decision management. Eventually, citizen developers may even be able to make the leap to pro-code, but this development typically takes longer and can introduce complexity issues due to security and scale, so it’s often best left to the IT professionals. 

When enabling your fresh-faced citizen developers with a no-code or low-code platform, you need to clarify what options are available to them and set boundaries to ensure there are little to no grey areas and lines aren’t crossed. Citizen developers are setting out to solve a specific problem for themselves and their teammates, not rectifying all technological inefficiencies across the business – a critical concept all leaders and citizen developers must keep in mind. 

See More: The Great Resignation And The Unwanted Jobs in Fintech

Creating a Citizen Developer Program 

Creating an internal citizen development program is the best way to set your Gen Z citizen developers up for success. This program should include training on the tools they’ll be using and ongoing support and guidance of more senior staff members. It’s also essential for new apps to be reviewed and tested before launching them internally. 

As previously mentioned, an ideal citizen developer will be a subject matter expert. Someone who has only been working for a few years won’t be a fully-fledged expert yet, so pairing a Gen Z citizen developer with a business veteran is a perfect match. It sets the younger employee on the road to becoming a subject matter expert. More importantly, the institutional knowledge locked in the veteran’s brain can be documented and automated for all. After all, what better way to become a subject matter expert than getting into the weeds and solving integral problems across organizations? 

Above all, it’s essential to make a citizen developer program valuable to the business veteran and Gen Z individuals, or the program won’t be successful. Find the personal pet peeve of the veteran that they’ve always wanted to fix (I promise there will be a long list) and start with that. Even if it isn’t the most valuable to the business, you will earn their trust and gain buy-in in the long term. 

Reaping the Benefits 

Starting a Gen Z citizen developer program is a win-win scenario. Your Gen Z employees will feel empowered, engaged, involved and represented. It’s satisfying to know that you’ve solved a problem and automated the more tedious part of your workday. And, of course, it’s making the business more efficient and, therefore, more profitable.

Citizen development programs are becoming commonplace in large enterprises; they have the time and people to invest. But it’s also of benefit to smaller companies. Organizations that run lean operations will often outsource their IT work, but a citizen developer could help solve these problems in-house. 

Take the time to assess your latest intake of employees. They may hold the key to your future citizen development program.

How are you planning to reap the benefits and solve the challenges of citizen development? Share with us on LinkedInOpens a new window , TwitterOpens a new window , or FacebookOpens a new window . We’d love to know your thoughts!

MORE ON IT CAREER AND SKILLS

• The Tech Skill Shortage and the Rise of Low-Code/No-Code
• Supporting the Evolving Fabric of Women In Tech: Stitching the Gender Gap in Time
• Women In Tech: Battling All Odds with an Intrapreneur Mindset