Agile, Web Engineering and Capability Maturity ModelI ntegration : A systematic literature review

Context Agile approaches are an alternative for organizations developing software, particularly for those who develop Web applications. Besides, CMMI (Capability Maturity Model Integration) models are well-established approaches focused on assessing the maturity of an organization that develops software. Web Engineering is the field of Software Engineering responsible for analyzing and studying the specific characteristics of the Web. The suitability of an Agile approach to help organizations reach a certain CMMI maturity level in Web environments will be very interesting, as they will be able to keep the ability to quickly react and adapt to changes as long as their development processes get mature. Objective This paper responds to whether it is feasible or not, for an organization developing Web systems, to achieve a certain maturity level of the CMMI-DEV model using Agile methods. Method The proposal is analyzed by means of a systematic literature review of the relevant approaches in the field, defining a characterization schema in order to compare them to introduce the current state-of-the-art. Results The results achieved after the systematic literature review are presented, analyzed and compared against the defined schema, extracting relevant conclusions for the different dimensions of the problem: compatibility, compliance, experience, maturity and Web. Conclusion It is concluded that although the definition of an Agile approach to meet the different CMMI maturity levels goals could be possible for an organization developing Web systems, there is still a lack of detailed studies and analysis on the field

Harmonizing CMMI-DEV 1.2 and XP Method to Improve The Software Development Processes in Small Software Development Firms

Most software development organizations are small firms, and they have realized the need to manage and improve their software development and management activities. Traditional Software Process Improvement (SPI) models and standards are not realistic for these firms because of high cost, limited resources and strict project deadlines. Therefore, these firms need a lightweight software development method and an appropriate SPI model to manage and improve their software development and management processes. This study aims to construct a suitable software development process improvement framework for Small Software Development Firms (SSDFs) based on eXtreme Programming (XP) method and Capability Maturity Model Integration for Development Version 1.2 (CMMI-Dev1.2) model. Four stages are involved in developing the framework: (1) aligning XP practices to the specific goals of CMMI-Dev1.2 Key Process Areas (KPAs); (2) developing the proposed software development process improvement framework based on extending XP method by adapting the Extension-Based Approach (EBA), CMMI-Dev1.2, and generic elements of the SPI framework; (3) verifying the compatibility of the proposed framework to the KPAs of CMMI-Dev1.2 by using focus group method coupled with Delphi technique; and (4) validating the modified framework by using CMMI-Dev1.2 questionnaire as a main item to validate the suitability of the modified framework for SSDFs, and conducting two case studies to validate the applicability and effectiveness of this framework for these firms. The result of aligning XP practices to the KPAs of CMMI-Dev1.2 shows that twelve KPAs are largely supported by XP practices, eight KPAs are partially supported by XP practices, and two KPAs are not-supported by XP practices. The main contributions of this study are: software development process improvement framework for SSDFs, elicit better understanding of how to construct the framework, and quality improvement of the software development processes. There are possible avenues for extending this research to fulfil the missing specific practices of several KPAs, examining other agile practices and using CMMI-Dev1.3 to improve the framework, and conducting more case studie

What Can Be Learned from CMMi Failures?

The software crisis has been around since 1968 when NATO first identified the problematic nature of software development. In recognition of the need to manage the process of software development many methodologies have been proposed over the years. A recent contribution to this rich set of rigorous software development methodologies is the Software Engineering Institute\u27s (SEI) Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMi) methodology. While the minimal previous research on CMMi has extolled it, learning how to implement CMMi successfully requires leaning also from its failures. And yet, despite apparent anecdotes, little is known on this topic possibly because of the reluctance of many companies to wash their dirty linen in public. Based on a set of in-depth interviews accompanied with survey verification, this study examines the assessed effectiveness and efficiency of CMMi as implemented in several projects in a large high tech company in which only low levels of CMMi maturity were reached. In an exploratory manner this study shows the need to differentiate between the quality of the software product developed through CMMi and the quality of the process involved. The study also shows that whether the product is an off the shelf product or a customized one has a direct bearing of the quality of the product developed under CMMi methodology and the process itself. In particular, we discuss why some projects reach only a low maturity level of CMMi even though the organization as a whole might typically reach high maturity levels

Critical sucess factors in software process improvement

The aim of the thesis project was to identify Software Process Improvement (SPI) success factors through a deeply literature review. Objectives: • Identify the models of SPI • To identify SPI success factors through literature review. • To identify the most important SPI success factors based on the frequency of occurrence in published research. • To identify the variety of definitions or explanations of the most important SPI success factors in published research

Critical sucess factors in software process improvement

The aim of the thesis project was to identify Software Process Improvement (SPI) success factors through a deeply literature review. Objectives: • Identify the models of SPI • To identify SPI success factors through literature review. • To identify the most important SPI success factors based on the frequency of occurrence in published research. • To identify the variety of definitions or explanations of the most important SPI success factors in published research

The Adoption of Software Process Improvement Programs in the English-Speaking Caribbean

Managing and improving the processes used to develop software products is widely accepted as one of the remedies to overcome the problem of poor quality systems being delivered. As a result, the IS community has adopted several software process improvement (SPI) programs. The tenets of these programs are grounded in the belief that a mature development process can increase the likelihood of producing high quality software products with the requisite requirements which should add business value. However, small firms in developing countries like the English-speaking Caribbean (ESC) are not aware nor adopting these SPI programs because they are seen as costly, time consuming and disruptive; hence, not realizing the potential benefits. This study examined the awareness, adoption and benefits of SPI programs in ESC software development firms. The result found that a slight majority (54.5%) of firms in the region are aware of SPI programs, with only 20% of those who are aware using any form of SPI programs in the development of software. These findings reinforces the need for SPI training in the ESC to articulate the compelling need for a change towards the adoption and use of SPI programs in software development

Towards developing an intergrated maturity model framework for managing an enterprise business intelligence

There has been a great deal of recent interest that is driving research and development in the area of Business Intelligence (BI),but the issues regarding the implementation of enterprise scale of BI is still concern among BI academics and practitioners.Therefore, an Enterprise Business Intelligence Maturity Model(EBI2M) is proposed to serve as useful guideline for enterprises which are planning or undertaking large scale BI initiatives.In this paper, the author utilizes a Delphi study to conduct two stages of enquiries with a panel of BI experts, and then refines the research into a preliminary EBI2M model

Maturity Models in Information Systems Research: Literature Search and Analysis

This article collects and analyzes seventy-six maturity model articles that have been published in leading Information Systems (IS) journals and conference proceedings during the past fifteen years. We study the IS literature on maturity models from three different perspectives: a research perspective, which is particularly relevant for scholars who are interested in the design and adoption of maturity models; a publication perspective, which reflects the interests of authors and reviewers of maturity model articles; and a practitioner’s perspective, which is especially relevant for maturity model users and consultants. The results are interesting in several respects. From the research perspective, the Capability Maturity Model (CMM) is the most dominant foundation of past IS research on maturity models. In contrast, theories on the design and adoption of maturity models are distinctly rare in our sample. The publication outlets that are considered feature quantitative and qualitative empirical research alike, but―with a decreasing number―purely conceptual research as well. Of late, past maturity model research can mainly be located in the area of IT and organizations, while the formerly very popular domain of IS development is of less interest today. As for the publication perspective, we find that the level of publication activity in the field has generally been increasing over the last fifteen years, with North American and European researchers dominating the academic discussion. Finally, with regard to the practitioner’s perspective, we compile advice on the practical application of maturity models from a critical analysis of the literature. It is hoped that the results can stimulate and guide future research in the field and inform the development and usage of theoretically sound maturity models in practice