In the previous article, we discussed Key Concepts and Benefits of Citizen Development. In this article, we will be discussing the three different offerings provided by the Project Management Institute (PMI) for citizen development. As a reminder, citizen development is the process of non-technical individuals creating or contributing to the development of applications or software within their organizations.

PMI offers three different levels of education and certification for citizen development. The first level is the Foundation level, which provides an overview of what citizen development is and includes what PMI calls “idea generation 2.0.” This is because citizen development projects require a hyper-agile approach, which moves even faster than traditional agile methods. The Foundation level is a 90-minute course, and upon completion, individuals receive a Citizen Development Foundation micro-credential.

Moving up a level, the Practitioner level provides more in-depth education and tools for citizen development. This is the primary focus of our presentation, and it includes a 6-8 hour course that covers different methodologies for citizen development. It specifically teaches individuals how to manage hyper-agile software development projects and provides tools and case studies of successful citizen development projects. At the end of this course, individuals receive a Citizen Development Practitioner certification. A link to this course can be found in our presentation.

The highest level of education and certification for citizen development is the Business Architect level. This course provides a complete overview of the citizen development process, including a governance model for organizations to implement citizen development, a maturity model for assessing the level of development within an organization, and a scalability method for expanding citizen development projects to fit other business needs. This course is also 6-8 hours long, and individuals who complete it receive a Citizen Developer Business Architect microcredential. A link to this course can be found in our presentation as well.

It is important to note that in our third session, we will be discussing how to drive digital transformation in your organization. We will be referencing the citizen development maturity model that is a part of the Business Architect course, so be sure to watch Digital PMO (3 of 3) – Driving Digital Transformation in Your Organization.

Exploring PMI’s Practitioner Course

As a citizen developer myself, I find the PMI website to be a great resource for learning more about this topic and advancing my skills.

First, let’s take a look at the PMI citizen developer page. This page offers a lot of valuable information, including an overview of citizen development, what “low-code” and “no-code” mean, and how you can become a part of the low-code, no-code (LCNC) movement. The goal of this presentation is to show how anyone can pick up one of the project management courses offered by PMI and start becoming a citizen developer.

If you want to learn more about citizen development, PMI offers a video that provides a better overview of how you can become a citizen developer. Additionally, they offer tips and tricks for citizen developers and leaders, as well as information on their citizen development courses.

One of the courses that PMI offers is the citizen developer practitioner course, which I took myself. This course is six to eight hours long and consists of eight modules. The first module gives an introduction to what citizen development is and how you can become a citizen developer. The second module covers the hyperagile life cycle, while the third module is about the idea of 2.0, which is used in this hyperagile life cycle.

The fourth module, the suitability assessment, is particularly important, as it helps determine whether your project is suitable for citizen development. This module will ask you the right questions to determine whether you should move forward with your citizen development project or not. If it is suitable, the module will help you determine whether it is best to develop the project yourself, hand it off to IT, or use a hybrid approach.

The remaining modules cover topics such as business analysis and design, project risk, and enterprise requirements. These modules help ensure that your citizen development app works well with your organization and meets all necessary requirements.

The last module provides guidance on how to successfully deploy your app. The goal of all these apps is to help you not only in your day-to-day work but also in your personal life.

Finally, the citizen developer practitioner course includes a review section to help you prepare for the micro-credential exam. Passing this exam will validate your citizen development skills and demonstrate your expertise in this area.

PMI’s Suitability Scorecard

One of the resources we would like to highlight is the focus on project management citizen development projects. PMI provides information on how you can get started with citizen development and how easy it is to become a citizen developer. Additionally, they offer a step-by-step guide on how to get started with citizen development, which can be a useful tool for those who are new to this field.

One of the most important resources that PMI offers is the suitability scorecard, which is found at the end of the Project Management Resources page. This scorecard is particularly useful for those who are taking the citizen development practitioner course, as it helps to determine whether the project they are working on is suitable for citizen development.

The suitability scorecard is a simple and easy-to-use tool that asks a series of questions related to your project. Based on your answers, you will receive a guide that tells you whether your app is strong for citizen development, in the middle (which means that citizen development can work hand-in-hand with IT), or not suitable for citizen development at all.

This guide can be a great help to those who are just starting out with citizen development and are unsure whether their project is suitable for this type of development. By using the suitability scorecard, you can quickly and easily determine whether your project is a good fit for citizen development, which can save you time and effort in the long run.

This article contains highlights from Rich Weller’s webinar – WebNLearn: Digital PMO (2 of 3) – Power Platform Overview – being provided by MPUG for the convenience of our members. You may wish to use this transcript for the purposes of self-paced learning, searching for specific information, and/or performing a quick review of webinar content. There may be exclusions, such as those steps included in product demonstrations, or there may be additions to expand on concepts. You may watch the on-demand recording of this webinar at your convenience.