The impact of agile practices on communication in software development

Agile software development practices such as eXtreme Programming (XP) and SCRUM have increasingly been adopted to respond to the challenges of volatile business environments, where the markets and technologies evolve rapidly and present the unexpected. In spite of the encouraging results so far, little is known about how agile practices affect communication. This article presents the results from a study which examined the impact of XP and SCRUM practices on communication within software development teams and within the focal organization. The research was carried out as a case study in F-Secure where two agile software development projects were compared from the communication perspective. The goal of the study is to increase the understanding of communication in the context of agile software development: internally among the developers and project leaders and in the interface between the development team and stakeholders (i.e. customers, testers, other development teams). The study shows that agile practices improve both informal and formal communication. However, it further indicates that, in larger development situations involving multiple external stakeholders, a mismatch of adequate communication mechanisms can sometimes even hinder the communication. The study highlights the fact that hurdles and improvements in the communication process can both affect the feature requirements and task subtask dependencies as described in coordination theory. While the use of SCRUM and some XP practices facilitate team and organizational communication of the dependencies between product features and working tasks, the use of agile practices requires that the team and organization use also additional plan-driven practices to ensure the efficiency of external communication between all the actors of software development.

The impact of the Abilene Paradox on double-loop learning in an agile team

This paper presents a qualitative investigation of learning failures associated with the introduction of a new software development methodology by a project team. This paper illustrates that learning is more than the cognitive process of acquiring a new skill; learning also involves changes in behaviour and even beliefs. Extreme Programming (XP), like other software development methodologies, provides a set of values and guidelines as to how software should be developed. As these new values and guidelines involve behavioural changes, the study investigates the introduction of XP as a new learning experience. Researchers use the concepts of single and double-loop learning to illustrate how social actors learn to perform tasks effectively and to determine the best task to perform. The concept of triple-loop learning explains how this learning process can be ineffective, accordingly it is employed to examine why the introduction of XP was ineffective in the team studied. While XP should ideally foster double-loop learning, triple-loop learning can explain why this does not necessarily occur. Research illustrates how power factors influence learning among groups of individuals; this study focuses on one specific power factor – the power inherent in the desire to conform. The Abilene Paradox describes how groups can make ineffective decisions that are contrary to that which group members personally desire or believe. Ineffective decision-making occurs due to the desire to conform among group members; this was shown as the cause of ineffective learning in the software team studied. This desire to conform originated in how the project team cohered as a group, which was, in turn, influenced by the social values embraced by XP.     

Current practice in software quality and the impact of certification schemes

The paper presents the findings of a survey that investigated the level of quality management practice within some 150 UK companies from a sample of 500. It provides a snapshot of practice at the time of the survey, and assesses the impact of government quality initiatives particularly, the TickIT scheme at that time. The survey methodology is described, together with the results and conclusions. The sample has been graded by size of company, which the authors consider to have a significant effect upon the adoption of quality practices. The survey highlights the need to encourage small companies to adopt quality practices and to assist them with the short-term costs incurred.     

Connectionist modelling of skill dynamics

This paper discusses a method for modelling skilled action for synthetic actors in a virtual environment. The method guides lower-level motor skills from a connectionist model of skill memory, implemented as collections of trained neural networks. The relationship between this work and that of other projects in task-level animation is discussed, the principles of connectionist learning are explained, and a series of experiments testing the concept of connectionist skill modelling are reviewed.     

Exploring the challenges and benefits for scaling agile project management to large projects: a review

Requirements Engineering - Organizations have increasingly applied agile project management; however, they face challenges in scaling up this approach to large projects. Thus, this study...     

Data-driven and tool-supported elicitation of quality requirements in agile companies

Software Quality Journal - Quality requirements (QRs) are a key artifact needed to ensure the quality and success of a software system. Despite their importance, QRs rarely get the same degree of...     

System dynamics modelling for supply-chain management: A case study on a supermarket chain in the UK

This paper presents a system dynamics (SD) approach for the analysis of the demand amplification problem, also known as the bullwhip effect, which has been studied fairly extensively in the literature. The construction of an SD model is reported using a part of a supermarket chain system in the UK as an example. Based on the model, the causes of the dynamic behaviour of the system and the sources of amplification from the downstream to the upstream of the chain are investigated. The impact of information delays, demand forecasting and information sharing on the performance of the multi‐echelon supply chain is analysed. Some implementation issues are also addressed based on the simulation analysis.     

Project delivery system selection of construction projects in China

The suitability of the project delivery system (PDS) selected for a project greatly influences the efficiency to conduct a project. It is not an easy task to select an appropriate PDS as a large amount of ambiguous information exists. The paper aims to develop a PDS selection model to help owners to make a decision. The similar projects are identified through the similarity metrics between the target project to be predicted and those in the database. In addition, some of the indicator values are examined and modified through DEA-BND model, and then they are trained by ANN model to predict an appropriate PDS for the target project. A survey was conducted by postal questionnaire to empirically validate the reliability of the model in China. The indicator system for the selection of an appropriate PDS is established. Through the comparison of results predicted by different models, it is found that the PDS selection model developed in this paper can predict PDS precisely, and shows higher reliability than the ANN model. A PDS selection model is developed by inputting project-specific data, which proves to be more accurate and less dependent on experts’ judgment. Its practical application will benefit the owner’s decision making in the selection of the PDS.     

A framework to support the evaluation, adoption and improvement of agile methods in practice

Agile methods are often seen as providing ways to avoid overheads typically perceived as being imposed by traditional software development environments. However, few organizations are psychologically or technically able to take on an agile approach rapidly and effectively. Here, we describe a number of approaches to assist in such a transition. The Agile Software Solution Framework (ASSF) provides an overall context for the exploration of agile methods, knowledge and governance and contains an Agile Toolkit for quantifying part of the agile process. These link to the business aspects of software development so that the business value and agile process are well aligned. Finally, we describe how these theories are applied in practice with two industry case studies using the Agile Adoption and Improvement Model (AAIM).     

Low-dimensional modelling of dynamics via computer algebra

I describe a method, particularly suitable to implementation by computer algebra, for the derivation of low-dimensional models of dynamical systems. The method is systematic and is based upon centre manifold theory. Computer code for the algorithm is relatively simple, robust and flexible. The method is applied to two examples: one a straightforward pitchwork bifurcation, and one being the dynamics of thin fluid films.     

Evaluating the impact of an agile transformation: a longitudinal case study in a distributed context

Many software-development organizations have recently started to adopt agile practices in order to benefit from the improvements they clearly bring, in terms of production speed and software quality, for example. However, in a large, distributed organization, such as Nokia Siemens Networks, an agile transformation may be a long-term, complex process, and therefore, evaluating the benefits achieved, and measuring the success of the change, can be difficult, especially in the early phases of the transformation. This paper is based on the results of a case study on the impact introducing agile practices actually had in a large, software-development organization, part of Nokia Siemens Networks. The impact of this agile transformation was evaluated in terms of how well it succeeded in achieving the goals set by the management before the transformation started. This longitudinal study included two separate analyses, made at 6 monthly intervals, which measured what agile practices were really in use in the organization, and what effects, if any, were visible in terms of the goals which had been set by the management The 6 monthly analyses included defect data metrics and opinion surveys of the personnel directly involved in the transformation. The study showed two things: firstly, that the introduction of agile practices does have the beneficial effects that one would expect, and secondly, that, using this kind of study, it is not only possible to evaluate the impact that the adoption of agile practices has in a large, established software-development company, but also that the effects are visible at a surprisingly early stage.     

Studying the impact of social interactions on software quality

Correcting software defects accounts for a significant amount of resources in a software project. To make best use of testing efforts, researchers have studied statistical models to predict in which parts of a software system future defects are likely to occur. By studying the mathematical relations between predictor variables used in these models, researchers can form an increased understanding of the important connections between development activities and software quality. Predictor variables used in past top-performing models are largely based on source code-oriented metrics, such as lines of code or number of changes. However, source code is the end product of numerous interlaced and collaborative activities carried out by developers. Traces of such activities can be found in the various repositories used to manage development efforts. In this paper, we develop statistical models to study the impact of social interactions in a software project on software quality. These models use predictor variables based on social information mined from the issue tracking and version control repositories of two large open-source software projects. The results of our case studies demonstrate the impact of metrics from four different dimensions of social interaction on post-release defects. Our findings show that statistical models based on social information have a similar degree of explanatory power as traditional models. Furthermore, our results demonstrate that social information does not substitute, but rather augments traditional source code-based metrics used in defect prediction models.     

The impact of environment on lifespan distribution dynamics

The environment generates numerous signals that control the lifespan of species living in it, including humans. By approximating survival curves with the Gompertz function and judging by the Strehler-Mildvan correlation (a linear dependence between the Gompertz function parameters), we have constructed 3D surfaces of survival curves in a wide range of controlling parameter values: characteristic species lifespan and cohort death rate. It has turned out that these surfaces have a complex form. In particular, we have shown the nonlinearity of the dependence between such human lifespan distribution parameters as mean lifespan and variance.     

Assessing the impact of real-time machine translation on multilingual meetings in global software projects

Communication in global software development is hindered by language differences in countries with a lack of English speaking professionals. Machine translation is a technology that uses software to translate from one natural language to another. The progress of machine translation systems has been steady in the last decade. As for now, machine translation technology is particularly appealing because it might be used, in the form of cross-language chat services, in countries that are entering into global software projects. However, despite the recent progress of the technology, we still lack a thorough understanding of how real-time machine translation affects communication. In this paper, we present a set of empirical studies with the goal of assessing to what extent real-time machine translation can be used in distributed, multilingual requirements meetings instead of English. Results suggest that, despite far from 100 % accurate, real-time machine translation is not disruptive of the conversation flow and, therefore, is accepted with favor by participants. However, stronger effects can be expected to emerge when language barriers are more critical. Our findings add to the evidence about the recent advances of machine translation technology and provide some guidance to global software engineering practitioners in regarding the losses and gains of using English as a lingua franca in multilingual group communication, as in the case of computer-mediated requirements meetings.     

Investigating the impact of a measurement program on software quality

ContextMeasurement programs have been around for several decades but have been often misused or misunderstood by managers and developers. This misunderstanding prevented their adoption despite their many advantages.ObjectiveIn this paper, we present the results of an empirical study on the impact of a measurement program, MQL (“Mise en Qualité du Logiciel”, French for “Quality Software Development”), in an industrial context.MethodWe analyzed data collected on 44 industrial systems of different sizes: 22 systems were developed using MQL while the other 22 used ad-hoc approaches to assess and control quality (control group, referred to as “ad-hoc systems”). We studied the impact of MQL on a set of nine variables: six quality factors (maintainability, evolvability, reusability, robustness, testability, and architecture quality), corrective-maintenance effort, code complexity, and the presence of comments.ResultsOur results show that MQL had a clear positive impact on all the studied indicators. This impact is statistically significant for all the indicators but corrective-maintenance effort.ConclusionWe bring concrete evidence that a measurement program can have a significant, positive impact on the quality of software systems if combined with appropriate decision making procedures and corrective actions.     

消费品质量安全影响因子评估系统设计与实现

主要研究了消费品质量安全影响因子评估系统的设计与实现。首先分析了消费品质量安全影响因子评估工作流程,从而确定了系统的功能需求。然后通过用例分析、静态行为建模、动态行为建模等UML分析工具对评估系统进行了功能设计和数据库设计。最后选取了VisualStudio开发平台根据三层架构理论对该系统进行了实现。该系统适用于所有消费品质量安全影响因子评估工作。