The changing role of the software engineer

In this paper we will discuss the changing role of a software engineer. We will examine this from four major standpoints, the software development life cycle, the influence of open source software, testing and deployment and the emergence of new technologies. We will first analyze what the role of a software engineer was in the past. We will examine limitations associated with software development life cycle models, and software failures that catalyzed increased importance for quality assurance. We then outline the current role of a software engineer. We discuss the impact of agile software development and automation on the software development cycle, the influence of open source software and how new technologies such as Function-as-a-Service and machine learning may impacted the role. Based on our research, we analyze why the software engineer role has changed and postulate prospective changes to the role of software engineer, and in particular how new responsibilities may affect the day to day work of future software engineers. We ultimately find that the role of a “software engineer” is nowadays widely varied and very broad, and it only generally indicates the type of work that the software engineer may undertake

Piloting MDevSPICE: the medical device software process assessment framework

Software development companies moving into the medical device domain often find themselves overwhelmed by the number of regulatory requirements they need to satisfy before they can market their device. Several international standards and guidance documents have been developed to help companies on their road to regulatory compliance but working their way through the various standards is a challenge in itself. In order to help software companies in the medical device domain, we have developed an integrated framework of medical device software development best practices called MDevSPICE®. This framework integrates generic software development best practices with medical device standards’ requirements enabling consistent and thorough assessment of medical device processes. MDevSPICE® can be used by software companies evaluating their readiness for regulatory audits as well as by large medical device manufacturers for selecting suitable software suppliers. The MDevSPICE® framework consists of a process reference model, a process assessment model, an assessment method, and training and certification schemes. The framework has been validated using expert reviews and through MDevSPICE® assessments in industry. In this paper, we describe the MDevSPICE® process assessment framework focusing on its benefits and significance for the medical device manufacturing community as learned from MDevSPICE® assessments conducted to date

Software developers reasoning behind adoption and use of software development methods – a systematic literature review

When adopting and using a Software Development Method (SDM), it is important to stay true to the philosophy of the method; otherwise, software developers might execute activities that do not lead to the intended outcomes. Currently, no overview of SDM research addresses software developers’ reasoning behind adopting and using SDMs. Accordingly, this paper aims to survey existing SDM research to scrutinize the current knowledge base on software developers’ type of reasoning behind SDM adoption and use. We executed a systematic literature review and analyzed existing research using two steps. First, we classified papers based on what type of reasoning was addressed regarding SDM adoption and use: rational, irrational, and non-rational. Second, we made a thematic synthesis across these three types of reasoning to provide a more detailed characterization of the existing research. We elicited 28 studies addressing software developers’ reasoning and identified five research themes. Building on these themes, we framed four future research directions with four broad research questions, which can be used as a basis for future research

Game Development Software Engineering Process Life Cycle: A Systematic Review

Software game is a kind of application that is used not only for entertainment, but also for serious purposes that can be applicable to different domains such as education, business, and health care. Multidisciplinary nature of the game development processes that combine sound, art, control systems, artificial intelligence (AI), and human factors, makes the software game development practice different from traditional software development. However, the underline software engineering techniques help game development to achieve maintainability, flexibility, lower effort and cost, and better design. The purpose of this study is to assesses the state of the art research on the game development software engineering process and highlight areas that need further consideration by researchers. In the study, we used a systematic literature review methodology based on well-known digital libraries. The largest number of studies have been reported in the production phase of the game development software engineering process life cycle, followed by the pre-production phase. By contrast, the post-production phase has received much less research activity than the pre-production and production phases. The results of this study suggest that the game development software engineering process has many aspects that need further attention from researchers; that especially includes the post-production phase

The effect of transformational leadership on small and medium enterprises performance of UAE: the mediation roles of employee creativity and organization innovation

Today, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) become a vital asset for almost all countries in the world and represent a dynamic sector of the global economy. In the United Arab Emirates (UAE), SMEs is the pillar of economic growth in the last decades. While leadership has been proven to raise the profitability and growth among SMEs, the scenario in the UAE is not encouraging, lots of SMEs are struggling to maintain business on the long term, and they are unable to benefit from innovation or hire creative workforce. The reality shows that SMEs in UAE are weak against crises and tough competition. Unsuccessful leadership style was the main cause for continuous losses and failure which forced them to shut down the business or downsize their activities and workforce. Despite the wealth of studies on this topic, there is lack of empirical studies that report the solutions to these problems in the UAE. Hence, the aim of this study is to examine the significance of relationships between transformational leadership, organization innovation, employee creativity, and SME business performance, as well as the mediation roles of organization innovation, employee creativity. Quantitative methods have been deployed to examine these relationships. The population equal 11023 of SMEs working in in Abu Dhabi, the respondents are the executive managers. SMEs worked in information and communication, manufacturing, education, financial and insurance, professional scientific and technical are included in the survey procedure. Simple random sampling technique was used to distribute the questionnaires during the survey phase. A sample of 441 SMEs was specified for survey and collecting the data for the analysis. The results revealed that all direct and indirect relationships are significant, whereas organization innovation, employee creativity partially mediate the relationship between transformational leadership and SME business performance. This study makes several theoretical contributions to the topic of transformational leadership and organizational performance. Whereas the creativity of employees seems to be a key source of innovation particularly in SME, it become vital resources to achieve economic growth in the market and sustainable profitability. Accordingly, SMEs should focus on leaders who have certain traits, such as idealized influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individualized consideration to raise profitability and business growth in UAE market. The findings of this study will benefit the SME Council of UAE to empower small and medium-sized projects and businesses including representatives from government bodies, and developing strategic plans and policies for small firms, setting the necessary rules and regulations to enhance the coordination between the UAE’s National Program for SMEs and following-up the program’s performance indicators

Aproximación holística a la integración de modelos SPI en entorno microempresa

Mención Internacional en el título de doctorEn todo el mundo, una abrumadora mayoría de las empresas son muy pequeñas o pequeñas. Es así que la industria del software no es la excepción. Aunque las pequeñas empresas de software juegan un papel importante en la mayoría de economías, especialmente en los países en desarrollo, tienen que trabajar duro para sobrevivir. Por lo general, les resulta difícil dedicar tiempo y esfuerzo a mejorar sus operaciones y procesos. Además, los conocimientos técnicos y las herramientas no son suficientes. Su capacidad para gestionar las cuestiones humanas es un aspecto importante y particularmente difícil que apenas se ha estudiado. Por lo tanto, es importante abordar tales necesidades mediante la introducción de un marco que especifique las maneras de hacer las cosas mientras que conscientemente les anima a mejorar su capacidad de mejorar. A pesar del hecho de que hay muchos enfoques de mejora de procesos de software, ninguno de ellos aborda los factores humanos de las pequeñas empresas de una manera integral y holística. En consecuencia, esta tesis se dirige a la definición de un marco para integrar los factores humanos en el trabajo cotidiano como una forma de abordar ese reto. La resolución del problema se ha abordado desde un punto de vista humano teniendo en cuenta aspectos que pertenecen a otras disciplinas tales como el pensamiento visual, la psicología y la gestión. La solución propuesta proporciona un marco, llamado Samay, para apoyar los factores humanos en las microempresas de software que pueda ser adaptado a la situación real y concreta de cada organización, y que proporciona técnicas adecuadas para mejorar los factores humanos envueltos en el desarrollo de software. Además, este estudio sugiere gestionar los factores humanos a partir del ciclo de vida del proceso de software. El objetivo es converger hacia una mejora continua por medio de mecanismos alternativos que afecten a las personas. Este marco fue desarrollado en base a las revisiones de normas relevantes (tales como ISO/IEC 29110, ISO 10018, OMG Essence e ISO/IEC 33014) y estudios publicados previamente en este campo. Este marco se compone de un núcleo, que corresponde a un proceso de desarrollo de software, y dos grupos de elementos llamados complemento y soporte. El primer grupo está directamente vinculado al proceso de desarrollo, el cual incluye: flujo de proceso de desarrollo de software, roles y responsabilidades, y competencias y niveles de competencia. El segundo grupo está intentando facilitar la adopción del marco por medio de dos componentes: la iniciación y la gestión del cambio. El desarrollo de esta tesis ha seguido una metodología de investigación consistente e integral que incluye una revisión sistemática de la literatura y métodos cualitativos como entrevistas y grupos focales. Además, una revisión de expertos y los hallazgos de validación respaldan la visión de que Samay podría apoyar a los profesionales cuando las pequeñas empresas de software quieren comenzar a mejorar sus formas de trabajo. En la última etapa de la metodología de investigación se ha realizado una validación empírica por medio de la implementación en un caso de estudio para verificar la aplicabilidad del marco. Los datos obtenidos de la validación indican que la aplicación del marco introduce un cambio positivo en la satisfacción laboral y la comunicación. Finalmente, se concluye que la satisfacción laboral y la comunicación en el desarrollo de software sigue siendo un desafío. Para reducir esta dificultad, esta tesis da luz sobre el tema proporcionando un marco para desencadenar los factores humanos diariamente.Around the world, an overwhelming majority of enterprises are very small or small. So that software Industry is not the exception. Although small software companies play a major role in most economies, particularly in developing countries, they have to work hard in order to survive. They usually find it challenging to spend time and effort on improving their operations and processes. Moreover, technical knowledge and tools are not enough. Their ability to manage human issues is an important and particularly challenging aspect which has been scarcely studied. Therefore, it is important to address such needs by the introduction of a framework that specifies ways of getting things done while consciously encourage them to enhance their ability to improve. In spite of the fact that there are many software process improvement approaches, none of them address the human factors of small companies in a comprehensive and holistic way. Consequently, this thesis is aimed at the definition of a framework to integrate human factors in the daily work as a way to deal with that challenge. The resolution of the problem has been approached from a human point of view taking in consideration aspects belonging to others disciplines such as visual thinking, psychology and management. The proposed solution provides a framework, called Samay, to support the human factors in software microenterprises that can be tailored to the actual and concrete situation of each organization, and that provides suitable techniques to enhance human factors involved in software development. Furthermore, this study suggests managing human factors but pointing out the software process life cycle. The purpose is to converge toward a continuous improvement by means of alternative mechanisms that impact on people. This framework was developed based upon reviews of relevant standards (such as ISO/IEC 29110, ISO 10018, OMG Essence and ISO/IEC 33014) and previously published studies in this field. This framework is composed of a kernel, corresponding to a software development process, and two groups of elements called complement and support. First group is directly linked to the development process which includes: software development process flow, roles and responsibilities, and competencies and competency levels. Second group is trying to facilitate the adoption of the framework by two components: initiation and change management. The development of this thesis has followed a consistent and integral research methodology that has included a systematic literature review and qualitative methods such as interviews and focus group. Moreover, an expert review and validation findings supported the view that Samay could support practitioners when small software companies want to start improving their ways of work. In the last phase of the research methodology an empirical validation has been performed through its implementation in one case study in order to verify the applicability of the framework. The data obtained from the validation indicate that the application of the framework introduces a positive change of the job satisfaction and communication. Finally, it is concluded that the job satisfaction and communication in software development remains a challenge. To reduce this difficulty, this thesis sheds some light on the topic by providing a framework to trigger human factors in daily basis.Programa Oficial de Doctorado en Ciencia y Tecnología InformáticaPresidente: Gonzalo Cuevas Agustín.- Secretario: José A. Calvo-Manzano Villalón.- Vocal: Mirna Ariadna Muñoz Mat

Agile Processes in Software Engineering and Extreme Programming – Workshops

This open access book constitutes papers from the 5 research workshops, the poster presentations, as well as two panel discussions which were presented at XP 2021, the 22nd International Conference on Agile Software Development, which was held online during June 14-18, 2021. XP is the premier agile software development conference combining research and practice. It is a unique forum where agile researchers, practitioners, thought leaders, coaches, and trainers get together to present and discuss their most recent innovations, research results, experiences, concerns, challenges, and trends. XP conferences provide an informal environment to learn and trigger discussions and welcome both people new to agile and seasoned agile practitioners. The 18 papers included in this volume were carefully reviewed and selected from overall 37 submissions. They stem from the following workshops: 3rd International Workshop on Agile Transformation 9th International Workshop on Large-Scale Agile Development 1st International Workshop on Agile Sustainability 4th International Workshop on Software-Intensive Business 2nd International Workshop on Agility with Microservices Programmin