Naming the Pain in Requirements Engineering: A Design for a Global Family of Surveys and First Results from Germany

For many years, we have observed industry struggling in defining a high quality requirements engineering (RE) and researchers trying to understand industrial expectations and problems. Although we are investigating the discipline with a plethora of empirical studies, they still do not allow for empirical generalisations. To lay an empirical and externally valid foundation about the state of the practice in RE, we aim at a series of open and reproducible surveys that allow us to steer future research in a problem-driven manner. We designed a globally distributed family of surveys in joint collaborations with different researchers and completed the first run in Germany. The instrument is based on a theory in the form of a set of hypotheses inferred from our experiences and available studies. We test each hypothesis in our theory and identify further candidates to extend the theory by correlation and Grounded Theory analysis. In this article, we report on the design of the family of surveys, its underlying theory, and the full results obtained from Germany with participants from 58 companies. The results reveal, for example, a tendency to improve RE via internally defined qualitative methods rather than relying on normative approaches like CMMI. We also discovered various RE problems that are statistically significant in practice. For instance, we could corroborate communication flaws or moving targets as problems in practice. Our results are not yet fully representative but already give first insights into current practices and problems in RE, and they allow us to draw lessons learnt for future replications. Our results obtained from this first run in Germany make us confident that the survey design and instrument are well-suited to be replicated and, thereby, to create a generalisable empirical basis of RE in practice

The Role of Project Management Standardization in SMEs: Analyzing the Linkages Between Knowledge Management, Project Management, and Stakeholder Satisfaction

Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) are the backbone of our economies. Today's trend of taking every business activity as a project explains why more and more companies are working on a project basis. Previous research has shown that humans, as well as companies, desire a structured approach to work, avoiding uncoordinated business process activity. Little is known about how the structuring of processes influences SMEs. In order to structure an approach or process, a framework consisting of standards and Best Practices must be established. The role of the framework is to give guidance and improve cross-project efficiencies. Thus, this research study investigates the role of Project Manage-ment Standardization in SMEs. Here, the linkages between standardization and knowledge management (KM), project management (PM), and stakeholder satisfaction in SMEs are analyzed. The theoretical framework integrates the vast literature on the four research topics of stand-ardization, knowledge management, project management, and stakeholder satisfaction into a joint context for SMEs. The analytical part of the research is based on a single-case study of a German SME. Insights are gained from data gathered through six semi-structured inter-views with different experts throughout the company's hierarchy. The research highlights the interconnectedness of the four topics and the central role of project management standardization in SMEs. In order to maintain an efficient PM as the company grows, standardization of processes is inevitable. Standardization requires active KM to obtain explicit knowledge. Hence, standardization and KM are key drivers for sustainable business growth. Additionally, standardization accelerates the company's maturation as the company is moving away from informal, unbureaucratic, and exclusively people-oriented management approaches. Centrally stored and accessible explicit knowledge leads to transparent structures that create clear responsibilities and enhance communication in PM. Consequently, process standardization supports a better ‘estimability’ of the work, reducing uncertain requirements, inadequate documentation, hidden business rules, and requirements creep. This increases the satisfaction of all project stakeholders, making work in the company more efficient and creating a transparent organizational culture

The Two Faces of Collaboration: Impacts of University-Industry Relations on Public Research

We analyze the impact of university-industry relationships on public research. Our inductive study of university-industry collaboration in engineering suggests that basic projects are more likely to yield academically valuable knowledge than applied projects. However, applied projects show higher degrees of partner interdependence and therefore enable exploratory learning by academics, leading to new ideas and projects. This result holds especially for research-oriented academics working in the ‘sciences of the artificial’ and engaging in multiple relationships with industry. Our learning-centred interpretation qualifies the notion of entrepreneurial science as a driver of applied university-industry collaboration. We conclude with implications for science and technology policy.University industry relations; Collaborative research; Contract research; Academic consulting; Science technology links; Engineering

Exploring the alignment of organisational goals with KM: cases in four Irish software SMEs

In the anticipation of the knowledge economy and the organisational pursuit of ‘knowing what we know’ modern organisations have endeavoured to achieve varying levels of KM. It has typically been larger organisations that have possessed the economies of scale i.e. the financial resources to pursue this strategy, where they perceive they will lose their market share if they do not follow the trend. Smaller organisations have not had the same luxury. Ironically however, it is smaller organisations that have successfully managed knowledge for centuries. However there remains an absence of empirical evidence that highlights how SMEs operationalise their approach to KM, particularly in the high-technology sectors. In view of the current financial instability, never has it been more important to focus on the knowledge capabilities of software SMEs where managing organisational knowledge is essential to the continued success of an SME. Pursuing a qualitative analysis approach using multiple case studies in four Irish software SMEs, this study identifies sources of knowledge and occurrences of knowledge activities (KAs) as a means of understanding the firm’s approach to knowledge management (KM) and how this may be closely aligned to the organisation’s greater strategic objectives thus providing them with greater flexibility to deal with environmental uncertainty. At the level of the cases, it was evident that software SMEs leverage KAs to serve their knowledge transfer needs. Unexpectedly, the findings from this study indicate that these software SMEs were not good at knowledge creation activity. This may be attributed to the nature of the SME where a small number of key players i.e. founder/manager/head of development assumed responsibility for this type of activity. Fundamentally, these software SMEs choose to leverage knowledge and KAs in order to serve the greater needs of the firm such as the need to develop a new software product, improve their customer relationships or ensure their position as an important cog in a larger organisation