The Impact of Software Process Maturity and Software Development Risk on the Performance of Software Development Projects

Despite the increasing efforts of organizations to improve the development processes of their software projects, there remain few empirical and generalizable findings when it comes to key questions regarding software process improvement initiatives. Rarely there was any empirical examination in an integrative model on how process improvement efforts affect key organizational concerns such as software project performance and the threat of risks in today’s dynamic and complex business environment. In addressing this knowledge gap, we propose and test a research model that allows for an empirical examination of the relationships between software process maturity and the performance of software development projects while assessing the impact of risk on software project performance. Data were collected from officially CMM-appraised organizations to test developed hypotheses using proven metrics identified in the literature. Our findings support our theoretical framework in providing evidence of the positive impact of software development process maturity on the performance of software projects while underscoring the negative effect of risk on software project performance. Key results and a discussion of the findings are also provided

Web Engineering: An Assessment of Empirical Research

Web engineering is the process used to create high-quality Web-based systems and applications that deliver a complex array of content and functionality to a broad population of end-users. As Web Engineering continues to grow in popularity with practitioners and academics alike, so far, there hasn\u27t been any assessment of its accumulated body of knowledge in terms of academic research. Because Web engineering was established as a new discipline some five years ago, it is perhaps time to take stock of the efforts made in this field. Using the Web Engineering Process Model developed by Pressman, this paper organizes and map progress made so far. The results suggest a significant need for theory-based research in Web Engineering. The paper discusses some of the managerial and research implications of the findings

Toward a Theory of Socialization in Open Source Software Communities: A Symbolic Interactionist Perspective

Recent literature reviews highlight a gap in our understanding of how members socialize into virtual communities. Motivated by this shortcoming, we seek to understand how members socialize into open source software (OSS) communities, which are both virtual and normative in nature. Using the symbolic interactionist perspective, we define socialization and explicate the socialization process in OSS communities. Specifically, we define socialization as the extent of correspondence between the personal meanings of individual members and the shared meanings of the community, which emerge from the negotiated experiences of members. In addition, we posit that the socialization process consists of the interplay between individuals’ meaning-making process, consisting of both action and personal meaning, and the negotiated shared meanings within the community

The impact of Software Process Maturity on Software Project Performance: The Contingent Role of Software Development Risk

Despite growing efforts to improve software development processes, recurring concerns about software project performance remain largely present. The rate of software development project failure rate has been routinely documented in information systems (IS) research (Wallace, 2004; El-Masry and Rivard, 2010). The management of software development projects is often marked by inadequate planning, a poor grasp of the overall development process, and no clear management framework, even as the focus in software development shifts from a technology perspective to a more process-centric view (Slaughter, 2006). To address such concerns few CMM-based studies have examined the benefits and direct impact of software process maturity on software project performance but with mixed results. The present paper attempts to systematically examine the contingent role of software development risk on the impact of software process maturity level on software project performance. Guided by risk-based perspective in Software Engineering and CMM-based framework, an exploratory model was developed and tested. The premise of this paper is that software development risk plays a contingent role in the relationship between software process maturity and software project performance. Drawing on a sample of 107 organizations that have undergone official CMM appraisals, the results of partial least squares analysis of the data reveal initial evidence that (1) a positive effect of software process maturity level on software project performance while underscoring the negative effect of software development risk on software project performance, and (2) more importantly, the findings show that software development risk plays a contingent role software process maturity level on software project performance. For researchers, the integration of software development risk can provide a much needed linkage in the three fundamental constructs of CMM. From a managerial perspective, in order to foster a better software project performance, IS project leaders and managers should strongly emphasize devising effective software development risk assessment since a variation of this construct’s level may strengthen or weaken the relationship between software development process maturity and software project performance

The impact of CMM process maturity levels and software development risk on the performance of software development projects

A model of software development process maturity, the Capability Maturity Model for Software (SW-CMM) is a staged evolutionary model which describes five levels of process maturity through which an organization can progress to define, assess, and improve its software development processes. Despite its ever-increasing adoption, there remain too few empirical and generalizable findings when it comes to key questions regarding the model's adoption. Researchers and practitioners are still struggling to determine how CMM-based process improvement efforts affect key organizational concerns such as software project performance and in turn how the performance of software projects is affected by the threat of risks in today's dynamic and complex business environment. In addressing this knowledge gap, this study proposes a research model which is grounded in prior research and that will allow for a first known empirical examination of the relationships between CMM process maturity levels and the performance of software development projects while assessing the impact of software development risk on performance. Two hypotheses were derived from the model for empirical testing. Data was collected from 107 organizations that were officially appraised at a given CMM maturity level. Results using PLS provide considerable support for the hypotheses. As expected, CMM software development process maturity levels have a direct and significant impact of the performance of software development projects. Furthermore, evidence of the negative and significant influence of software development risk on software project performance was also found. Discussions on the potential for future research and implications for practice are also presented

L'impact de la maturité du processus du développement des SI sur la performance des projets d’informatisation : Le rôle modérateur des risques de développement SI

Despite growing efforts to improve software development processes, recurring concerns about software project performance remain largely present. The rate of software development project failure rate has been routinely documented in information systems (IS) research (Wallace, 2004; El-Masry and Rivard, 2010). The management of software development projects is often marked by inadequate planning, a poor grasp of the overall development process, and no clear management framework, even as the focus in software development shifts from a technology perspective to a more process-centric view (Slaughter, 2006). To address such concerns few CMM-based studies have examined the benefits and direct impact of software process maturity on software project performance but with mixed results. The present paper attempts to systematically examine the contingent role of software development risk on the impact of software process maturity level on software project performance. Guided by risk-based perspective in Software Engineering and CMM-based framework, an exploratory model was developed and tested. The premise of this paper is that software development risk plays a contingent role in the relationship between software process maturity and software project performance. Drawing on a sample of 107 organizations that have undergone official CMM appraisals, the results of partial least squares analysis of the data reveal initial evidence that (1) a positive effect of software process maturity level on software project performance while underscoring the negative effect of software development risk on software project performance, and (2) more importantly, the findings show that software development risk plays a contingent role software process maturity level on software project performance. For researchers, the integration of software development risk can provide a much needed linkage in the three fundamental constructs of CMM. From a managerial perspective, in order to foster a better software project performance, IS project leaders and managers should strongly emphasize devising effective software development risk assessment since a variation of this construct’s level may strengthen or weaken the relationship between software development process maturity and software project performance. Malgré les efforts croissants déployés pour améliorer les processus de développement des systèmes d’information (SI), la performance des projets d’informatisation demeure un sujet d’actualité dans l’industrie. Le taux d'échec de ces projets a été systématiquement documenté dans la littérature SI. (Wallace, 2004; El-Masry et Rivard, 2010). La gestion des projets de développement des SI est souvent caractérisée par une planification inadéquate, une mauvaise maîtrise du processus de développement global et un cadre de gestion imprécis (Slaughter, 2006). Le présent papier tente d'examiner le rôle modérateur du risque de développement SI sur l'impact du niveau de maturité du processus de développement SI sur la performance du projet. Un modèle basé sur le cadre CMM a été développé et testé. Des résultats révélateurs ont été observés à l’appui d’une enquête empirique effectuée auprès de 107 organisations ainsi que des résultats de l'analyse partielle des moindres carrés des données : (1) un effet positif du niveau de maturité du processus de développement SI sur la performance du projet tout en soulignant l'effet négatif du risque de développement SI sur la performance du projet et (2) le rôle contingent du risque de développement SI dans cette relation.Pour les chercheurs SI, l'intégration du construit risque de développement SI souligne le rôle clé de ce construit dans la conceptualisation CMM. D'un point de vue managérial, pour obtenir une meilleure performance des projets SI, les chefs et gestionnaires de ces projets devraient mettre en œuvre une conception plus efficace d'évaluation des risques de développement SI puisqu’une variation du niveau de ce construit peut renforcer ou affaiblir la relation entre la maturité du processus de développement SI et la performance du projet