Organizations have been extremely dependent on IT for the development and functionality of new applications. But meeting the ever-changing demands of users in the fast-paced environment was next to impossible for the IT department alone. As a result, IT projects started lagging while some even stalled for months.
In an attempt to reduce developer backlogs and develop applications faster, organizations began adopting citizen development. With the citizen development movement, the backlog issue got resolved, application development became faster, and business transparency was improved.
Now let’s have a look at the differences between a citizen developer and a professional developer.
Citizen Developer vs. Professional Developer
A citizen developer is someone with little to no coding knowledge but can design custom applications. They develop software without writing code by employing low-code/no-code platforms with drag-and-drop features and visual interface. According to VentureBeat, citizen developers should have outnumbered professional developers by 2023.
On the contrary, a professional developer is an individual who can write code to develop, maintain or upgrade software as required. They are well aware of the concepts of software development and mostly have coding knowledge.
Other Things That Differentiate Citizen Developers from Professional Developers Are
In the following lines, we are going to cover these aspects in their entirety and learn more about them.
App Development
With citizen development, the time for developing apps is cut down by 50%-90%. It is far better than what was possible in traditional development through professional developers.
Cost
Hiring a professional developer requires a million-dollar investment. But you can save those millions by hiring a citizen developer. It is one of the reasons why most organizations employ low-code/no-code tools for software development.
Collaboration
Traditionally, professional developers were responsible for handling software development alone. However, since citizen developers use low-code/no-code tools, they can collaborate with other departments and meet app development needs easily and quickly.
Productivity
Professional developers usually take months to design, create and deploy apps as they will be doing everything from scratch. However, citizen developers can complete the work in less time as they rely on low-code/no-code tools, which in turn enhances productivity.
To Conclude
When it comes to citizen developer vs. professional developer, the former seems to have a future and is likely to stay for a while. What’s more, citizen development will continue to innovate and evolve in the years to come. So, the organizations embracing it will accelerate digital transformation and increase efficiency.