A Conceptual MAP of Software Process Improvement

Software organisations have for many years struggled to mature engineering practices using a variety of approaches. Over the last decade a new approach, known as software process improvement (SPI), has emerged and become widely used in the software industry. In this paper we position SPI in the landscape of initiatives that can be used in software organisations to mature their operations. A map is offered describing the characteristic features of SPI initiatives, the benefits and risks related to such initiatives, and the relations to complementary approaches to professionalise the industry. The map highlights management, approach, and perspective as three main concerns of SPI and lists three key ideas for each of these concerns. The map is based on an extensive survey of the SPI literature combined with experiences from SPI practice. Practitioners can use the map strategically to make decisions on whether to initiate SPI initiatives, to integrate SPI efforts with other improvement initiatives, and, more generally, to create and manage improvement programs based on SPI ideas. Researchers can use the map to identify key questions and areas of knowledge that can fruitfully inform SPI theory and practice

Quantitative Evaluation of Software Process Improvement

This article describes statistical analysis techniques and results used to quantitatively evaluate software process improvement. The analysis techniques include linear regression, rank correlation, and χ2 tests that have been successfully used to quantitatively assess the software process of a large military subcontractor. A logical extension of this work is to examine the results of these statistical techniques after process improvement. We perform these investigations by altering original data to reflect varying types and degrees of process improvements and then repeating the statistical analyses. We find that different types of process improvement generate very different statistical results. The techniques and results presented here can be used to evaluate the effectiveness of process improvements and determine where continued process improvement is needed