In the field of enterprise digital transformation, citizen automation is a relatively "strange and familiar" vocabulary, which has caused quite a stir in the citizen development movement. So, what is citizen automation? What is citizen development? What is the difference between them?
what is civic development
Since the birth of low-code, citizen development has become a thing that many enterprises talk about. Citizen development is a trend that covers all non-technical personnel in the enterprise. They can use low-code development platforms to quickly create solutions or applications that meet business needs, thereby improving work efficiency and at the same time Reduce the burden on developers and reduce the cost of learning and use. Citizen development is carried out within the framework set by IT to ensure that the built software meets IT requirements, and this is one of the foundations for citizen developers to develop software using low-code platforms.
What is Citizen Automation
As mentioned above, citizen development refers to individuals building applications for smaller use cases and department-specific needs, while citizen automation focuses on organization-wide automation. This process will involve a more complex technology stack, and requires more in-depth technical review, because its impact is long-term and will affect the future direction of the company's digital transformation.
Citizen Automation is the process of democratizing technology, meaning enabling non-technical, non-IT employees, even without technical expertise, to learn and build Advanced software system.
Whether it is citizen development or citizen automation, their common goal is to build enterprise business systems more efficiently to meet market demand. At the same time, this method can also reduce development costs, improve resource utilization efficiency, and bring competitive advantages to enterprises. Therefore, citizen development and citizen automation are a viable and efficient option for the needs of enterprises to build business systems.
How citizen automation can benefit businesses
The benefits of citizen automation have both short-term and long-term impacts, and sometimes intangible values that are difficult to measure. Some important advantages of citizen automation include:
More efficient software lifecycle
It is beneficial to organizations when business analysts and users are able to build software that suits their needs. In the process, they can sharpen their skills by familiarizing themselves with the latest technologies shaping the company's future.
Improve business and IT collaboration
Shadow IT, or the use of technology without IT approval, is a problem for many organizations. This is mainly due to overburdened IT teams or communication barriers in IT processes. A company-wide citizen automation plan approved by the IT department not only eliminates shadow IT but also improves the time to rollout of automation software.
Cost savings - technical and operational costs
Citizen automation can solve the IT staffing shortage by empowering non-technical people to build world-class software. Not only does this reduce the burden on the IT team, it also reduces the working capital required to hire developers.
Taken together, citizen automation brings many benefits to businesses. It can increase the efficiency of software development and delivery, improve business and IT collaboration, and save costs at the same time. By building the skills and engagement of internal employees, Citizen Automation provides businesses with greater flexibility and innovation, allowing them to better adapt to changing business environments.
Low-code platforms are at the heart of citizen automation
Citizen automation initiatives in large enterprises all run on low-code platforms with a variety of features and benefits. So, what is a low-code platform?
Low-code is an approach to building applications that bypasses the bottlenecks that typically accompany software development. These platforms enable graphical application building and provide guided scripting to bridge software development skills gaps.
Some reasons why low-code platforms are suitable for citizen automation include:
Privacy and Security
The low-code platform complies with the latest global security and privacy regulations. This keeps data safe and reduces the risk of a breach, which could otherwise have significant consequences for the company.
Zero backend configuration
Low-code platforms are cloud-based and require no backend configuration. Providers already have integrated IDEs and servers set up on their end, making integration a one-click process. These platforms are also scalable and can run on a variety of devices and platforms.
short learning curve
Visual build environments provided by low-code platforms use drag-and-drop capabilities to make software development more accessible to citizen developers.
Support the latest technology
Low-code and no-code platforms are equipped with the latest technologies such as robotic process automation, artificial intelligence, machine learning models, augmented reality, etc., and offer a range of built-in features that support localization.
Zoho Creator - Powerful Citizen Automation Platform
Zoho Creator, the low-code citizen automation platform in Zoho's enterprise suite, empowers developers of all skill levels, from citizen developers to professional code experts, to build business solutions of all sizes. As an efficient solution building tool, Zoho Creator is packed with robotic process automation, artificial intelligence-based features, and business process management tools, making it a top choice for businesses and organizations.