Understanding Citizen Developer: Microsoft Power Platform

Microsoft Power Platform is a suite of tools that allows organizations to create custom business solutions, automate workflows, and analyze data. It consists of five main products: Power BI, Power Apps, Power Automate, Power Pages, and Power Virtual Agents. One of the main benefits of Power Platform is that it allows organizations to empower citizen developers, or non-technical users, to build custom solutions without the need for coding skills. This can save time and resources by enabling employees to solve business problems independently rather than relying on IT departments or external developers. However, organizations need to provide mentoring, support, and learning opportunities to ensure that citizen developers are using the tools safely and effectively. In this article, we will explore how Power Platform can help organizations onboard citizen developers and extend their expertise, as well as the steps organizations, can take to implement security and governance for their solutions.

Power BI : This is a business intelligence tool that allows users to visualize and analyze data from a variety of sources. It includes features like dashboards, reports, and data modeling.

• Citizen developers can use Power BI to create dashboards and reports that visualize and analyze data from various sources. This can help them better understand their business operations and make more informed decisions.
• Using the low-code interface and pre-built templates, citizen developers can create custom reports and dashboards without programming skills.
• Citizen developers can also use Power BI to create data models, which allow them to combine and transform data from multiple sources into a structured format for analysis.
• Power BI also offers a range of customization options, such as custom visuals and themes, which allow citizen developers to tailor their dashboards and reports to meet the specific needs of their organization.

Power Apps : This is a low-code platform for building custom business applications. It allows users to create apps for various purposes, such as data collection, process automation, and collaboration.

• Citizen developers can use Power Apps to build custom business applications that can automate tasks, collect data, and facilitate collaboration.
• Using the low-code interface, citizen developers can create custom apps without needing programming skills.
• Power Apps offers a range of templates and connectors that allow citizen developers to easily integrate with other tools and services, such as Office 365, Dynamics 365, and SharePoint.
• Citizen developers can also use Power Apps to create custom forms and screens, which can be used to collect data or facilitate processes such as approvals and requests.

Power Automate : This is a workflow automation tool that allows users to create and automate processes and tasks across a variety of applications and services. It includes features like triggers, actions, and connectors.

• Citizen developers can use Power Automate to automate tasks and processes across a variety of applications and services.
• Using the low-code interface, citizen developers can create custom workflows without needing programming skills.
• Power Automate offers a range of triggers and actions that allow citizen developers to create workflows that are activated by events or conditions, such as the arrival of a new email or the completion of a task.
• Citizen developers can also use Power Automate to create custom connectors, which allow them to integrate with other tools and services that are not natively supported.

Power Virtual Agents : This is a chatbot builder that allows users to create and customize chatbots for customer service, support, and other purposes. It includes features like natural language processing and integration with other tools.

• Citizen developers can use Power Virtual Agents to create custom chatbots that provide customer service, support, and other functions.
• Using the low-code interface, citizen developers can create chatbots without needing programming skills.
• Power Virtual Agents offers natural language processing capabilities, allowing chatbots to understand and conversationally respond to user input.
• Citizen developers can also use Power Virtual Agents to integrate chatbots with other tools and services, such as CRM systems and knowledge bases.

Power Pages : Quickly create secure, low-code business websites and do more with less by enabling all your teams, not just developers, to create professional websites—so you get to market faster at a lower cost.

• Citizen developers can use Power Pages to create custom websites that provide customer service, support, and other functions.
• Using the low-code interface, citizen developers can create websites without needing programming skills.

Mentoring your Citizen Developer

One of the main benefits of Power Platform is that it allows organizations to empower citizen developers, or non-technical users, to build custom solutions without the need for coding skills. This can save time and resources by enabling employees to solve business problems independently rather than relying on IT departments or external developers.

However, there are also some potential drawbacks to consider. One potential issue is that allowing non-technical users to build custom solutions can increase the risk of errors or security vulnerabilities if they are unfamiliar with best practices. Organizations need to establish guidelines and provide training to ensure that citizen developers are using the tools safely and effectively.

While Power Platform can be a valuable tool for empowering citizen developers to build custom solutions, organizations must provide the necessary resources and guidance to ensure that these solutions are made safely and effectively. Here are some steps that organizations can take to extend the expertise of their citizen developers:

1. Provide mentoring and support: Citizen developers may have a different level of technical expertise than professional developers, so organizations need to provide mentoring and support to help them build and maintain their solutions. This can include one-on-one guidance from technical specialists, as well as access to documentation, tutorials, and other resources. You can take a look for some All consulting services – Microsoft AppSource for training that will help, find some Microsoft Certified Trainer or vendor\contractor to resolve this matter.
2. Establish guidelines and best practices: To ensure that citizen developers use the tools safely and effectively, organizations must establish guidelines and best practices. This can include recommendations for how to design and build solutions, as well as guidelines for security and data protection. Maker support strategy - Microsoft Power Platform - Power Platform | Microsoft Learn
3. Offer training and learning opportunities: Organizations can offer training and learning opportunities to help citizen developers expand their skills and knowledge. This can include online courses, workshops, and other resources that teach best practices and advanced techniques.
4. Encourage collaboration and sharing: Encouraging citizen developers to collaborate and share their knowledge and experiences can help to build a community of learners and experts within the organization. This can be facilitated through forums, user groups, and other collaborative platforms.

By providing mentoring, support, and learning opportunities, organizations can help citizen developers build the skills and expertise needed to develop high-quality solutions with Power Platform. This can ultimately lead to more efficient and effective business operations, as well as increased innovation and agility.

Security and Governance

Governance is the set of policies, procedures, and practices that are used to manage and control the use of an organization's resources, including its technology and data. When it comes to Power Platform, governance is essential for ensuring that solutions are built and used in a way that is consistent with the organization's goals, policies, and standards.

Citizen developers can play a crucial role in implementing governance for Power Platform by following best practices and adhering to established guidelines. Here are some critical considerations for implementing security and governance for Power Platform:

1. Data security: One of the main concerns with any business solution is the security of the data it handles. Citizen developers need to follow best practices for data protection, such as encrypting sensitive data, using secure storage and transmission protocols, and tracking data access controls.
2. Solution design: The design of a Power Platform solution can have a significant impact on its security and governance. Citizen developers should follow established design guidelines to ensure that solutions are built in a way that is scalable, maintainable, and compliant with relevant regulations and standards.
3. Change management: To ensure that Power Platform solutions are stable and reliable, it is vital to have a process for managing changes. This can include testing, review, and approval processes to ensure that changes are made in a controlled and documented manner.
4. User management: Managing user access to Power Platform solutions is an important aspect of governance. Citizen developers should ensure that user accounts are properly configured and that permissions are assigned in a way that is appropriate for the user's role and responsibilities.

By following best practices for security and governance, citizen developers can help to ensure that Power Platform solutions are built and used in a way that aligns with the organization's goals and standards. This can ultimately lead to more efficient and effective business operations, as well as increased trust and confidence in the solutions being built.

Power Platform and Microsoft 365 provide various tools and features to help organizations implement security and governance for their solutions. Some of the key tools and features include:

1. Data Loss Prevention (DLP) : This is a feature of Microsoft 365 that allows organizations to detect and prevent the accidental or intentional sharing of sensitive data. DLP can be configured to identify and block the transmission of sensitive data through email, cloud storage, and other channels.
2. Azure AD : This is a cloud-based identity and access management service that allows organizations to secure access to their applications and data. Azure AD offers multi-factor authentication, conditional access, and identity protection to help secure user accounts and prevent unauthorized access.
3. Azure Information Protection : This is a data classification and protection tool that allows organizations to classify and protect their data according to its sensitivity level. Azure Information Protection can be used to classify data automatically or manually, and it offers features such as encryption, watermarking, and access controls to help protect sensitive data.
4. Office 365 Compliance Center : This is a centralized dashboard that allows organizations to manage compliance with regulations and standards such as GDPR, HIPAA, and SOX. The Compliance Center offers tools for managing data retention, eDiscovery, and auditing, as well as for monitoring and responding to security threats.

By using these tools and features, organizations can implement robust security and governance for their Power Platform solutions, helping to protect their data and ensure compliance with relevant regulations and standards.

We learned about the general concept of the platform in Exploring How Power Platform Can Extend and Support Your Organization's Growth , the definition and main missions of a citizen developer, Understanding Citizen Developer: Needs and Challenges for Company , and the essential tools that can help us. This is already a good start which would move on to the more technical topic of how exactly each tool works.