Articles | Grassroot IT

Values and lifecycle

Determine an application’s organisational value

An application should improve a concrete organisational task. Value may mean more reliable results, fewer manual transfers or shorter processing times. The Grassroot framework describes t…

Make compliance traceable

Compliance starts by identifying the requirements that actually apply to a particular application. Legislation, supervisory requirements, internal policies, business reconciliation rules …

Manage the entire application lifecycle

An application starts with a need and ends with orderly retirement. Tasks, data, users and technical conditions change in between. Lifecycle management connects these changes with decisio…

Create a short application profile

An application profile identifies the operational task a solution performs and who is responsible. Maintain it alongside the application. Within Grassroot IT, it supports further decision…

Retire an application in an orderly way

An application is retired when its purpose disappears or another solution takes over. In Grassroot IT, this is a deliberate lifecycle decision covering data and dependent work as well as …

Include information security in small applications

A small application can process confidential information or support important decisions. Grassroot IT therefore examines necessary information, permitted use and the consequences of incor…

Protect personal data in applications

If an application processes personal data, establish its purpose, legal basis and other applicable data protection requirements. The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) sets out pro…

Development and tools

When does a spreadsheet become an application?

A workbook in Microsoft Excel may begin with a few calculations and later underpin important decisions. A database in Microsoft Access may initially help one employee and soon serve a who…

From prototype to reliable application

A prototype makes an idea tangible and shows whether it can support a business process. Sustained use also requires clear expectations, limits and operational arrangements. Grassroot IT c…

Understand Microsoft Excel as an application platform

A workbook in Microsoft Excel can embody business rules, calculations and recurring tasks. Once other people or processes rely on its results, its operational importance deserves explicit…

Professionalise Microsoft Access applications step by step

An existing application in Microsoft Access can contain valuable accumulated expertise. Grassroot IT first establishes the tasks it performs and the results needed. Required improvements …

Use VBA clearly and verifiably

Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) extends office applications and can automate recurring processing in Microsoft Excel and Microsoft Access. Microsoft’s introduction explains getting st…

Develop low-code applications responsibly

Low-code combines visual development tools with the ability to add custom program logic. Capabilities and limits vary by platform. IBM’s comparison of low-code and no-code explains the ba…

Combine no-code with business responsibility

Here, no-code means creating an application through configuration and visual components without writing custom code for the use case. In practice, offerings overlap with low-code. IBM’s e…

Test business behaviour and record approval

Business testing compares the behaviour of an identified application version with expectations established in advance. Grassroot IT derives those expectations from the operational task. A…

Professional operations

Operate applications reliably

An application fulfils its purpose over time when use, maintenance and recovery are organised. The approach should be manageable and actually used. Grassroot IT scales it to the applicati…

Control changes and versions

A change can affect business results, data or other work steps. Before adoption, Grassroot IT records why it is needed and which components are affected. Users must be able to identify th…

Plan backup and recovery together

A backup fulfils its purpose when the required application and matching data can be made usable again. Program versions, settings and other dependencies may be needed alongside data. Gras…

Shared foundations

Equip employees for their lifecycle responsibilities

Grassroot IT depends on employees being able to perform their lifecycle roles. This includes business and technical skills and understanding of responsibility, testing and operations. Tra…

Organise collaboration and shared learning

A departmental application brings together different expertise: employees understand the task, developers implement rules, operations sustains use and control functions identify requireme…

Choose suitable methods, tools and templates

In Grassroot IT, a method describes how a task is handled transparently. A tool supports that work. A template helps record the necessary information completely and clearly. Selection sta…

Current developments

Develop with artificial intelligence and verify the results

Artificial intelligence (AI) can help formulate requirements, draft programs and explain code. For Grassroot IT, this provides another way to turn specialist knowledge into usable applica…

BAIT and DORA: the position towards the end of 2026

Departmental applications can support important business processes. In finance, their development and operation must therefore be assessed against applicable supervisory and internal requ…