Shadow IT: an opportunity for CIOs thanks to Nocode

There was a time when Shadow IT was limited to Excel macros and other tricks of the trade in traditional software suites, purchased by the majority of organisations around the world and known to all. But with Nocode tools, this trend has become a real social phenomenon, even a challenge that is beyond IT's control.

Definition: What is shadow IT?

Shadow IT is a practice, which refers to the use of tools other than those provided by the company's IT department. This can be the result of a lack of trust in the IT department, a lack of knowledge of the IT department. As well as a desire to iterate and test business solutions on their own.

But with the emergence of supercharged Nocode tools, shadow IT has grown exponentially in recent years. So much so that the consultancy firm CEB estimates that 40% of all IT spending in a company will now be carried out outside the decisions of the CIOs and without the knowledge of the managers of each department. But don't panic, Shadow IT is not your enemy, dear CIOs. There are many ways to manage Shadow IT. 

Let's look at the most common organizational and technical solutions to go from darkness to light. And above all, to make your employees love you, who will be very happy not to have to hide anymore because, let's face it, Notion is quite practical

Shadow IT is becoming more and more widespread in companies, according to a study by the consultancy Frost & Sullivan, which reveals that "80% of employees admit to using IT solutions without the formal agreement of their IT department". And among the most commonly used IT solutions, there are many Nocode tools that allow the creation of websites, landing pages, web or mobile applications, much faster and much cheaper (or even free) than through traditional IT development.

It is true that by using tools that have not been selected and authorised by the IT department, teams can expose their company to dangers such as the risk of infection by viruses, the theft of identifiers, the theft of sensitive data, etc. However, the use of Nocode tools is based on the employee's desire to increase productivity, so it is now important to recognise and support the movement, which will only increase in any case. From the IT department's point of view, it should be seen as an opportunity to free up development time for technical teams in order to refocus them on high value-added tasks and accelerate the company's innovation.

Why has Shadow IT become so widespread in companies?

Today, there is a real need to modernise the tools in place in companies, whether in SMEs or large groups. Technical stacks have not changed for 15-20 years, the tools are aging and no longer meet the needs of employees; they are even struggling to keep up with the real needs of the business, which wants more customisation and easy-to-use interfaces.

So, whatever your company structure, it is likely that some of your employees are already using Shadow IT, i.e. using or implementing IT tools without the approval of their management or IT department. The most common example is the use of personal cloud and SaaS spaces for sharing business files between employees.

This phenomenon is largely due to the major digital transformations launched by companies and, in parallel, it is the consequence of sometimes complex IT validation processes requiring numerous security validations.

The result. Teams need to regain control of their business and gain autonomy, so they prefer to use tools, such as Nocode, to move faster and experiment more in an agile way. Most of the time, these are tools that require little or no investment and technical skills, and their implementation generally does not require any intervention from the IT department.

Find rebellious employees and turn them into a force

Searching for Shadow IT profiles in your company means getting your hands on hidden nuggets that may turn out to be candidates with great potential. 

In general, employees who use shadow IT have only one goal: to work more efficiently and to improve the performance of their business. And according to a survey published by Entrust Datacard, shadow IT is not all bad: 97% of IT professionals agree that employees are more productive when they are allowed to use their preferred technologies at work. They are also more likely to stay with the company in the long term.

They are a real strength for the company. In addition to having a real desire to participate in the development of applications to improve the daily life of their profession, they know how to unite the teams around them and spread the word internally through their enthusiasm and creativity. In this way, they facilitate change and the adoption of new solutions.

Previously considered as "rebels" to the more traditional methods of the company, it is time to put them forward and to value their know-how. Capitalise on these promising potentials by offering them Nocode training; this will then allow you to integrate 100% Nocode experts within the IT department who will help you choose and implement the right Nocode solutions to transform your organisation more effectively.

The advantage of Nocode for IT departments

By accepting the use of Nocode tools internally, CIOs give their teams time to refocus on high-value missions (AI, ERP, data, etc.) because it allows them to remove time-consuming development tasks from their scope.

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CIOs, why switch to Nocode?

• accelerate innovation and the digital transformation of the company, 
• free up time for your IT resources,
• revaluing the work of developers and motivating them to perform high value-added tasks,
• highlight the difficulties encountered by employees in using the IT tools in place,
• Identify the real needs of users in order to successfully deploy a Nocode solution more widely,
• to give back to the businesses the possibility of creating tools that meet their needs or the needs of their customers in an agile manner, and in optimal security conditions,
• Solve user adoption and change management issues because it was the employees themselves who selected, tested and mastered the new application, 
• avoid the possible dangers of Shadow IT practices by anticipating and controlling them. no longer fight Shadow IT by anticipating and controlling it.

The IT departments that have now integrated Nocode tools into their daily work are those that have listened to their employees; they respond better to the business needs of their teams and are much more agile in their transformation projects.

Anticipate security risks

Shadow IT is a reality that CIOs cannot get rid of completely. It is therefore essential for IT departments to distinguish between good Shadow IT and bad. The objective is to find a happy medium to allow employees to use applications adapted to their uses and their business while maintaining control of the data by the IT department in order to reduce risks.

Offering Nocode tools first, or listening to what the teams want to use, avoids them making their own choices, and thus preventing security guidelines (especially those concerning access to the data) from being violated.

NoCode: Listening to business teams, trust is the key to security

By listening to the needs and sometimes good ideas of his employees, the CIO has everything to gain by introducing the use of these Nocode tools himself. Because these tools are no less secure than tools developed with code. It is the use that differs. By taking control over the use of Nocode tools, the CIO delegates access and restricts them when necessary. Shadow IT practices open to all serve the whole company. The company becomes more efficient, more personalised in its practices with regard to the expectations of its employees, enables it to remain competitive in its field and improves the entire well-being of its organisation. 

Shadow IT practices must therefore be controlled but not stifled. Because with the growth in the possibilities of NoCode tools, Excel, Word and other traditional software are tending to disappear in favour of these supercharged and accessible solutions. And the companies that will benefit most will be those whose employees know how to use them.