Fig 7 - uploaded by Rory V. O’Connor
Content may be subject to copyright.
Source publication
The software development industry is dominated by a myriad of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The main goal of this chapter is to provide a characterization of SMEs based on previous studies. It also includes an overview of a number of software process models and software process improvement (SPI) models, which are aimed at assisting SM...
Similar publications
Context: Software process improvement (SPI) aims to increase the effectiveness of a software organization. Many studies indicate that the strategic alignment is a critical factor for the SPI success. However, little is known about practical approaches to achieving and maintaining such alignment. Objective: The goal of this study is to evaluate the...
system is the effectiveness of a user to understand the information system and implement the use of technology. One of the factors that can affect the quality of accounting information systems is user involvement, which will be the independent variable in this study. The purpose of this study was to examine and analyze the effect of user involvemen...
This paper presents the components of a newly developed Malaysian SMEs - Software Process Improvement model (MSME-SPI) that can assess SMEs soft-ware development industry in managing and improving their software processes capability. The MSME-SPI is developed in response to practitioner needs that were highlighted in an empirical study with the Mal...
Information systems that are intensified with the Third Industrial Revolution constitute an indispensable infrastructure for Industry 4.0. In the digital revolution, the creation of digital information technology systems, such as cyber systems, simulation, smart factories, automatic machines, lights-out manufacturing and so on. The elements that de...
The Program for the Development of the Software Industry in Mexico has maintained as a strategy the certification of Software Development Organizations (SDOs) in the CMMI-DEV model, with the aim of positioning them as competitors in the international market. However, the current state of the total number of Mexican SDOs certified and maturity level...
Citations
... Among the issues of concern have been a concise definition of what describes software companies. the challenge has been voiced by different researchers like Sánchez-Gordón et al. [66]. The authors refer to "small" and "very small" enterprises as a challenging concept, as there is no commonly accepted definition of the terms. ...
... There are important lessons for software engineering practitioners and researchers who should be aware that although the number of employees is significant in defining (A) CLAUDIA [45], (B) SÁNCHEZ-GORDÓN [66], (C) RICHARDSON [70], (D) RICHARDSON [26] No ...
... Organization x x 12 Processes x x x 13 Product range x 14 Projects x 15 Return on investment x 16 Size x 17 Time in business x 18 Value for money x what SSCs are, it is paramount to go beyond the thinking that the number of staff will define everything Sánchez-Gordón et al. [66]. To solve the challenges SSCs in practice, researchers and practitioners should pay attention to the non-technical characteristics that are influenced by the number of employees and are responsible for the challenges and the operations of SSCs. ...
Despite the inefficiency of software processes and products, small software companies (SSCs) enjoy a promising future. These companies are known to have few employees, creating the inefficiency that makes it challenging for the SSCs to adopt effective software practices. This subsequently introduces additional complexity, affecting software engineering processes’ adoption. Using the Glaserian Grounded Theory, we conducted interviews (N=18) with participants from SSCs intensively engaged in software development from four countries. We looked for the common traits that are identifiable as antecedents to the number of employees in a company to affect the adoption of software engineering processes. From the participants’ experience, five non-technical characteristics (Risk, Competitive advantage, Resilience, Innovative capacity, and Management ability) emerged, complementing the number of employees to affect the process during software practice in SSCs. By the end of this study, we developed five hypotheses for predicting and explaining the adoption of software engineering processes by small software companies.
... In this context, Software Process Improvement (SPI) activities have been recognized as a logical way to increase the competitiveness of software organizations [1][2][3][4][5]. The implementation of SPI in software development organizations has highlighted many challenges related to time, financial support, employee effort, and particularly the capacity to understand the information contained in the international software engineering standards [6]. ...
... Nevertheless, their implementation in software development organizations presents a great challenge. This fact is evidenced by researchers identifying such challenges [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][14][15][16]. But, only a few of them performed an analysis of the factors that impact the implementation of this standard, this section briefly describes some of them [3,14,15,16,17]. ...
... To help VSEs to unlock the use of quality standards, the ISO/IEC 29110 has been developed as a set of standards and guides designed to cover the VSEs' needs [6]. The ISO/IEC 29110 series provides standards and guides with a minimal subset of international engineering standards called profiles for VSEs [1,3,8]. ...
Abstract Around the world, the importance of Very Small Entities (VSEs), organisations having up to 25 people, has been constantly increasing. Worldwide, VSEs represent over 92% of the software industry. Therefore, two main needs can be highlighted: a) providing VSEs with resources to produce high‐quality software, and b) training software engineering undergraduates in proven practices to produce high‐quality software within the given schedule and budget. A logical way to meet these needs is transfering proven practices provided by software engineering standards. However, transferring the knowledge of software engineering standards is not always an easy task. The ISO/IEC 29110 is a series of international standards and guides that provide codified knowledge related to the software development process. The series was specifically developed to be used by VSEs. This study presents an exploratory analysis, conducted in 12 Mexican VSEs, which implemented the software Basic profile of the ISO/IEC 29110, to identify the pace at which they can adopt this standard to their environment. Besides, the benefits and difficulties encountered are provided. The results can be relevant for other VSEs interested in implementing this standard. Even if the exploratory analysis was performed in the VSEs of Mexico, this analysis can be of interest in other countries. The results obtained can help other VSEs that are interested in the adoption of this international standard to reduce the barriers to a successful implementation.
... Software practitioners, especially in small companies because of their nature [1], face a major challenge in shaping the many available methods, methodologies, frameworks and techniques [2,3]. Even in the software process improvement field, there is a lot of diversity [1]. ...
... Software practitioners, especially in small companies because of their nature [1], face a major challenge in shaping the many available methods, methodologies, frameworks and techniques [2,3]. Even in the software process improvement field, there is a lot of diversity [1]. In fact, there is no silver-bullet or one-size-fits-all solution to all software development settings [3,4]. ...
... Nevertheless, adopting an agile approach was challenging not only for the practices, but also because, customers approved a fixed budget. Indeed, contract negotiation is an important aspect that remains a fundamental business instrument in many engagements [1]. Despite that fact, the company decided to take that risk in 2013 by developing a mixed approach that combined the unique strengths, and lessened the weaknesses of both approaches Scrum and PMBOK. ...
There are a myriad of software development methods, methodologies, frameworks, techniques and practices in both traditional and agile software development. Seeking synergy between these approaches has become necessary for the evolution of a software development process. Software companies deal with that challenge by combining well-structured comprehensive methods and flexible agile practices. In fact, some studies have revealed that mixed approaches in software industry are not uncommon. This paper analyzes a case study of the evolution of a software development process in a small company, which is based on Design Thinking, PMBOK and SCRUM. Results show the natural evolution of the software process over 15 years and lessons learned from a pragmatic process selection. The evolution in the company depends on its adaptability which captures the capacity of the company to learn, combine experience and knowledge, and adjust its software process to a changing context. Despite the results are promising further studies should be done.
... Yet, even though most SPI methods and frameworks, such as Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI), have become well known among software engineering (SE) practitioners, studies show that many organizations, especially small-medium enterprises (SME), find the adoption of SPI frameworks to be challenging. 5,6 In response, several endeavors are targeted to tailor standard SPI models or create custom SPI approaches for different purposes. For instance, lightweight techniques and integrated processes for process modeling and improvement have been developed in order to better address the demands of small and very small companies 7,8 or to apply agile principles in the improvement process. ...
Software process improvement (SPI) initiatives have contributed for a long time to the progress of software development. However, the outcome of such initiatives has not always been as effective as expected. The literature of SPI points out that motivation of practitioners involved in SPI initiatives is a critical factor for its success. On the other hand, gamification has been perceived as motivational and has the potential to improve people's engagement. Thus, researchers have been recently investigating the impact of gamification in increasing the motivation and commitment of the organization members involved in SPI. Despite the novelty of the field, we see the integration of gamification and SPI as an opportunity of study and research. The aim of this paper is to investigate and report the state of the practice in this field, identifying key challenges faced by organizations wishing to incorporate gamification into their SPI initiatives. One of the main challenges identified is related to the complexity of gamifying SPI because it involves different organizational roles and aspects that may require designing different gamification strategies. Another relevant issue is the need of more empirical data to provide sound evidence about the real impact of gamification on improving SPI initiatives.
... It has been suggested that start-ups can not afford the upfront costs of adopting software product line engineering nor the tedious planning that run counter to start-ups' lean culture [14]. There is evidence that the majority of small, especially very small software organizations, are not adopting existing software engineering standards as they perceive them as being orientated towards large organizations and studies have shown that small firms' negative perceptions of process model standards are primarily driven by negative views of cost, documentation and bureaucracy [28,37]. Time to market and economy of production are two of software product line engineering best assets, and both are many times more critical for a start-up [17]. ...
Software start-ups face fierce competition in the market forcing them to release their products quickly and often under tough time constraints. To meet their deadlines, start-ups take shortcuts in software development leading to the accumulation of technical debt. They are able to put their product in users hands faster, get feedback, and improve at the expense of quality issues in the long run. As a start-up evolves through inception, stabilization and growth this debt will have to be managed. Technical debt management and software product line engineering techniques have some similar benefits of increased productivity and reduced time-to-market. Our aim is to check whether software product line engineering can be a candidate technique for start-ups to employ in managing technical debt as a response to their life-cycle phase goals and challenges. We conducted expert interviews with nine start-up professionals to identify the strategies applied in relation to technical debt management and software product lines engineering and other software engineering practices in start-ups. By analyzing the responses from the interviews we found that depending on the life-cycle phase of the start-up software product line engineering proved effective in managing technical debt and helped the start-ups to advance through the life-cycle phases.
... Literature reflects an incipient interest on this standard during these recent years, and several updates have been done during 2018. In fact, there is an increased number of articles and papers related to this standard [1]. However, the number and types of contributions are quite diverse ranging from SPI experiences [2,3] to project management practices [4], and it is not always evident where the focus is from these main contributions and which improvements are proposed in these articles. ...
Context
The ISO/IEC29110 has been studied since its release in 2011, and its impact and evaluation over the recent years have been quite diverse. This standard is structured in five parts describing the business terms, the main Very Small Entities (VSE) profile concepts, process assessment guidelines, specification of all the generic profile group, and implementation management and engineering guide for entry and basic profiles.
Objective
The main purpose of this work is to provide an analysis of the research carried out about the ISO/IEC 29110 during the last ten years, and the literature that has developed around it. Literature is analyzed by using the traditional mapping study of the ISO/IEC29110 and its parts. All these studies are categorized in a set of topics where authors have been contributing. This work helps us on the identification of the main research topics within the primary studies.
Method
The mapping study is conducted as a traditional systematic mapping with a categorization of the primary studies. The main search is enhanced with additional searches for each member of the ISO/IEC 29110 series.
Results
A search strategy is defined to conduct this mapping study. 184 papers were retrieved from the literature and selected as primary studies. Our study identifies the reference studies in this area, it characterizes them, and identifies which aspects have been treated.
Conclusion
The results of this mapping reveal that ISO/IEC 29110 has been used in a broad range of small contexts, and the main contributions are basically from research experiences during the recent last ten years. The literature around this standard is classified based on a well-known classification schema, the activity around this standard, and what types of studies have been carried out. Research topics are diverse, and we have identified the research methods used by the primary studies. As conclusion, more research and experimental outcomes are needed in order to observe how VSEs behave under specific circumstances.
... In the described context, this work contributes to a proposal to improve the application of the SDG in VSE type work teams. Here, it is adopted the VSE teams definition, until 25 people [10,11], and it poses a model based on the best IT governance practices, and uses an agile software development process, as an SPM component to probe the artifact. ...
The software development organizations need an understanding of the governance process and their practical approach to reach their strategic goals, a subject where there is a research opportunity. This study proposes a model type artifact to govern Very Small Entities (VSE) Teams for Software Development. The model design is based on COBIT 5 and IT governance best practices, with structural and dynamic governance components. The validation is done through the model application, in a case study, in a Public Sector Organization, using a SCRUM software process. The model application allows the appropriate responses to the software development needs and facilitate the solution of the problems in the project development. Besides, a survey shows that in a developing country, the model applicability can be generalizable. Thus, the study tests a tool for the practitioners and academics and contributes to the growth of the current knowledge concerning the Software Development Governance.
... In the described context, this work contributes to a proposal to improve the application of the SDG in VSE type work teams. Here, it is adopted the VSE teams definition, until 25 people [10,11], and it poses a model based on the best IT gov- ernance practices, and uses an agile software development process, as an SPM com- ponent to probe the artifact. ...
The software development organizations need an understanding of
the governance process and their practical approach to reach their strategic
goals, a subject where there is a research opportunity. This study proposes a
model type artifact to govern Very Small Entities (VSE) Teams for Software
Development. The model design is based on COBIT 5 and IT governance best
practices, with structural and dynamic governance components. The validation
is done through the model application, in a case study, in a Public Sector
Organization, using a SCRUM software process. The model application allows
the appropriate responses to the software development needs and facilitate the
solution of the problems in the project development. Besides, a survey shows
that in a developing country, the model applicability can be generalizable. Thus,
the study tests a tool for the practitioners and academics and contributes to the
growth of the current knowledge concerning the Software Development
Governance.
... In the described context, this work contributes to a proposal to improve the application of the SDG for organizations that have Software development areas and conform VSE type work teams. Here, it is adopted VSE teams definition, until 25 people [10] [11]; the model is based on the best IT governance practices, and in an agile software development process, as SPM component. ...
Using DSR approach, this research proposes the design and evaluation of a model type artifact for Software Development Governance in VSE Teams. Mainly, the model design is based on IT Governance best practices, COBIT 5, and SCRUM, with structural and dynamic components. The validation phase is done through the model application, in a case study, into an Ecuadorian Public Sector Organization. As a part of the research, the results of a survey show that, in a developing country, the IT and Software Development Governance practices are similar in public and private organizations, and in VSE and not-VSE teams. Besides, the model allowed to have the appropriate responses to the software requirements and facilitated the solution of the drawbacks presented in the project development. The work contributes providing a practical tool for the practitioners and academics and on the expansion of the existing body of knowledge in a topic where there is a research lack.
... Sánchez-Gordón et. al. [29] illustrate about of the process improvement (SPI) in Small and Medium Enterprises (SME)s, comprising this current work (UP-VSE) in the creation of prescriptive software process models from lifecycle model standards, and also techniques, frameworks, among others. This article is important since it involves the construction and importance of UP-VSE as part of a systematic revirew in the industry contexts and reports. ...
