More than a decade ago, Mark Zuckerberg wrote a letter to potential investors outlining core values, one of which was \u201cmove fast.\u201d The letter stated, \u201cWe have a saying: ‘Move fast and break things.’ The idea is that if you never break anything, you’re probably not moving fast enough.\u201d<\/p>\n
In a modern technology landscape, businesses must evolve quickly. The need for rapid development and continuous improvement, along with cloud technologies and artificial intelligence all spurred citizen development<\/a>. As companies introduced low-code and no-code tools, such as Microsoft\u2018s Power Platform Copilot<\/a>, citizen developers became the solution for all innovative businesses who wanted to stay ahead of the competition.<\/p>\n But digital transformation doesn\u2019t just happen organically. It requires a solid change management<\/a> strategy and adoption. In this blog, we outline citizen development and change management best practices that can provide a systematic approach to deployment and ease the concerns of your team \u2014 which will ultimately increase your likelihood of success.<\/strong><\/p>\n First, a quick recap \u2013 what is citizen development? Simply put, it\u2019s a platform that allows users (citizen developers) to automate tasks, workflows and processes using low- or no-code, often drag-and-drop development tools.<\/strong><\/p>\n Citizen developers, then, are non-professional software developers who use low- or no-code platforms<\/a> to create applications. These incredibly powerful yet relatively simple-to-use tools put work automation into the hands of the average business user.<\/p>\n Tools such as Microsoft\u2019s Power Automate, part of the Power Platform suite<\/a>, and Microsoft 365 Copilot<\/a>, which combines artificial intelligence with your organizational data, allow business users to automate repetitive, manual tasks and increase organizational productivity. Even if they reach across multiple systems and processes, these tools enable people to focus on more meaningful, rewarding work.<\/p>\n So how can you harness the power of your team, obtain high levels of engagement and adoption, and get true business value from these tools? Below are the top 10 change management best practices<\/a> we\u2019ve learned from successfully deploying these tools for our clients.<\/p>\n Both the business and IT sides of your company need to know you view citizen development as a priority, and that you support the effort needed to make it successful. People also should understand your IT organization is behind them, and you or IT won\u2019t brand their efforts as \u201cgoing rogue.\u201d<\/p>\n When you\u2019re armed with answers, it makes it easier to communicate your purpose to your team in a way that engages both hearts and minds.<\/p>\n Transparency about your strategy and goals also informs your metrics strategy and ensures the application of the tools aligns with your purpose.<\/strong><\/p>\n One important note is to make sure you don\u2019t only focus on the IT solution. Though citizen developers should not tackle problems that affect your most strategic, critical business applications, such as your ERP, they will help in high-impact areas that touch employees every day. Communicate that value to build buy-in and identify potential pilots.<\/p>\n If your team is worn out, stressed, and has change coming at them from multiple angles, then they will likely, passively support your citizen development initiative at best, and you will have poor adoption. Ask these questions to help determine if your organization is ready for a change initiative:<\/strong><\/p>\n Don\u2019t forget to look at IT and assess whether your team is willing to deploy citizen developer tools and place ownership outside of IT.<\/p>\n Governance<\/a> is a critical element for any change management project. Establishing standards, structures and security before you start will set the scene for success and make it easier to manage your citizen development framework down the road.<\/p>\n We\u2019ve outlined governance from an AI perspective<\/a>, but many of the best practices remain the same:<\/p>\n Use both formal and informal communication channels<\/a> to prepare your team and keep them informed about your citizen development strategy and progress. Answer the following questions, and be open to answering more in-depth questions as they arise.<\/strong><\/p>\n You should outline the answer to each of these questions in your overall strategy and goals. It\u2019s important not to overlook open and honest communication. Poor or insufficient communication can lead to confusion and disillusionment.<\/p>\n A good rule of thumb: Whatever your impression related to how much communication is necessary \u2014 double it. This applies whether it\u2019s a small pilot team, a department or the whole enterprise.<\/p>\n Understand that deploying automation tools has the potential to change business processes and tasks significantly. People often have to retool or at least do things differently when a company automates repetitive, manual tasks.<\/p>\nThe Basics of Citizen Development<\/h2>\n
Change Management for Citizen Development<\/h2>\n
1. Ensure you have visible and engaged executive sponsorship.<\/h3>\n
2. Be clear about your goals.<\/h3>\n
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3. Assess your business environment.<\/h3>\n
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4. Ensure you have effective governance in place.<\/h3>\n
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5. Keep the lines of communication open with your team.<\/h3>\n
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6. Understand the impacts.<\/h3>\n