Paving the Way for Project Success Using Citizen Development

Paving the Way for Project Success Using Citizen Development

In any organization, successful project completion relies on overcoming certain constraints. Limited budget, scope limitations, and time pressure are just some of the main challenges that can impact the feasibility of the project.

The greater the scope or speed of a project is, the more likely it is to overlook some details. It is especially true when using manual processes and outdated tools.

PMI’s reports indicate that poor project performance can waste up to 11.4 percent of the investment, increasing the likelihood of project failure.

The Project Management Triangle

The Project Management Triangle, also known as The Triple Constraints, is a well-known concept that every project manager is familiar with (and frequently dreads).

The Triple Constraints of Project Management Time: When must the output be delivered?

Scope: What exactly is the expected outcome?

Cost: How much money is available to achieve this result?

The triangle’s three sides are interconnected, so changing one element will affect the others. For instance, expanding the project scope may cost more money and time, while shortening the project’s timeline may save expenses but increase its scope.

The triple constraint is a critical part of a successful project, but it is not the only factor. Many other factors contribute to a successful project, and the Triple Constraint is just one piece of the puzzle. 

That is why some project management experts have added three more constraints to the model to better reflect the most critical areas of a project—quality, risk, and benefit.

IT Skills Gap

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in many businesses needing to digitize their operations rapidly. It has created a demand for more applications to address the changing needs of both consumers and employees. 

Yet a shortage of highly trained software specialists and an overworked IT department can create significant challenges for businesses. 

We have also seen the impact of the pandemic ripple through the job market. The ongoing skills shortage among developers continues to pressure businesses to cater to these sudden changes.

Research by Forrester stated that by 2024, the U.S. alone will have a deficit of over 500,000 software developers. Globally, the number is significantly higher.

On top of that, according to Gartner, IT executives see the talent shortage as the most significant adoption barrier to 64% of emerging technologies.

Enter Citizen Development.

Today, citizen development plays an important role in the enterprise software landscape as more organizations look to empower non-technical users to build business applications using no-code or low-code platforms.

Research by Gartner stated that by 2024, citizen developers will build 80% of all technological products.

With the citizen development approach, project managers now have a larger resource pool as non-technical employees turn into citizen developers to help build the enterprise software solution without any programming skills. It will also help to reduce the dependency on highly-skilled IT professionals.

Citizen developers will help not only to build solutions but to ensure the delivery and adoption of the applications as well. It is because citizen development empowers a more flexible and results-focused way of working rather than being bogged down by requirements documentation. 

This allows things to move faster and at a lower cost, so project managers can focus on delivering results rather than being held up by the IT backlog. 

Furthermore, project managers are in a great position to leverage Citizen Development to help their organizations succeed. They have a deep understanding of the three project constraints and can use this knowledge to time citizen development initiatives ideally. Additionally, their experience and expertise can be instrumental in helping the organization navigate the citizen development journey to success.

The Game-Changer

Project managers are crucial to driving organizational change. They are responsible for ensuring that projects are aligned with the organization’s strategic goals to deliver top-quality results within the approved budget and timeline.

However, some changes are inevitable as the projects change and evolve constantly. The key is to identify and understand every project’s constraints and how they interact with one another. This allows them to course-correct when necessary to keep the project on track. 

As a head start, project managers can download this simple tool — Project Management – Citizen Development Evaluation Tool to evaluate if your project is a good fit to get started with Citizen Development. This will also give you insights on what are the key considerations that a project manager should be looking for to bring in Citizen Development within their organization in a successful way.

Ready to jump into the world of citizen development?

Download Joget Project Management – Citizen Development Evaluation Tool now!