Cadre de conception multi-perspectives pour la modélisation des processus de génie logiciel

RÉSUMÉ La littérature scientifique rapporte abondamment les cas de projets de développement logiciel qui débordent de leurs planifications, dépassent les ressources allouées et présentent une faible qualité. Les chercheurs et les praticiens essayent ensemble de résoudre cette « crise » du logiciel. L‘amélioration des processus de développement est un des moyens fondamentaux pour améliorer la qualité du logiciel et atteindre une efficacité organisationnelle. La modélisation des processus est un des leviers de cette amélioration. La modélisation des processus est une discipline du génie logiciel qui soutient la conception et la maintenance des processus1. Elle explicite les pratiques de développement pour pouvoir les étudier, les améliorer et les utiliser de manière répétable, gérable et possiblement automatisable. Les techniques de cette discipline ne cesse d‘évoluer en passant des processus maison peu profonds et informels des années 1960 aux processus basés sur le paradigme orienté-objet. L‘évolution des langages de modélisation des processus (PML) est supportée par l‘évolution des paradigmes2 du génie logiciel. Alors que cette évolution des langages est clairement marquée au niveau de la syntaxe définissant les composants structurant les processus, elle est moins marquée sur le plan de la sémantique qui reste relativement abstraite et manque d‘une description formelle clarifiant le sens et l‘intention des modèles de processus. L‘aspect sémantique permettrait pourtant de considérer différentes préoccupations du gestionnaire d‘un projet informatique selon des perspectives distinctes (ex. productivité, connaissances, risques, CMMI, etc.). Dans ce projet de recherche, nous proposons un nouveau cadre de modélisation conceptuelle, en complément à une description textuelle, des processus dans le but de produire des modèles de processus adaptés au contexte du projet à développer. Sur le plan théorique, nous proposons un enrichissement sémantique pour considérer différentes perspectives. Nous avons adopté une approche ontologique pour formaliser le concept de relations attribuées entre les composants structurant un modèle de processus. Sur le plan pratique, nous proposons un nouvel outil qui supporte la modélisation nommé : « Domain-Specific-Language for Software Process Modeling » (DSL4SPM). En plus de la perspective de modélisation orientée-Activités conforme au standard SPEM, l‘outil DSL4SPM offre trois autres perspectives : Gestion des connaissances, simulation et alignement avec le CMMI. ----------ABSTRACT Cost and schedule of software projects are often overrun. This fact is closely-related to the software process and less to the final product as acknowledged by researchers and practitioners (Boehm, 1991; Barros et al., 2004; Roy, 2004; McConnell, 2009). However, it is also acknowledged that the software production is human and knowledge-intensive process, which means the nature of uncertainty. In order to build efficient process modeling tools, there is a need for conceptualization of process models to address different concerns such as a breakdown structure of activities, knowledge, simulation, alignment with CMMI practices and so on. Addressing those concerns provide a context for analysis, assessment and enhancement of process models, which in turn enhance the quality of software projects. One attempt to enhance the process modeling flexibility has been made with the tool called DSL4SPM (Domain-Specific Language for Software Process Modeling). DSL4SPM was developed and applied to bring order and structure to the software development process. It implements the Software & Systems Process Engineering Meta-model (SPEM 2.0) specification, and is characterized by: 1) a conceptual framework for designing processes in an abstract way; and 2) multi-view-oriented process modeling, which acknowledges the relevance of a multitude of issues in a process model. The conceptual framework emphasizes the relationships among the SPEM elements

DSL4SPM: Domain-specific language for software process modeling

This paper presents a novel formal approach to software process modeling based on the Software Process Engineering Metamodel (SPEM) for the syntactic aspect of a process model and a domain-specific language (DSL) for the semantic aspect of the model. This approach provides a conceptual framework for designing processes in a more abstract way and to enable process implementation on various platforms. A Process-Centered Software Environment (PCSE) called DSL4SPM (Domain-Specific Language for Software Process Modeling) is a plug-in tool which satisfies the meta-requirements for Process Modeling Languages (PMLs). The key concept of the DSL4SPM is the use of a toolbox, containing SPEM elements, to instantiate objects in a graphical scene. The process model designer links these elements with relations, and defines the values of the attributes required for both these and the objects, with the aim of arriving at a consolidated view of the problem. An overview of the advantages of the approach is presented. With it, the process manager is able to quickly and easily model a process from innovative perspectives, with the aim of better understanding the risks associated with software development

Introducing knowledge concepts in software process modeling

ABSTRACT: Software process is knowledge intensive. Nevertheless, knowledge concepts are rarely taken into account in software process modeling. This paper presents a new software process modeling approach, which takes into account the various conceptual knowledge required to perform a task. The approach is based on the Software & Systems Process Engineering Metamodel (SPEM 2.0). It essentially adds knowledge attributes to existing relationships between roles, tasks and artifacts. Comparison between attributes for a given task provides information on the knowledge-gap between the SPEM elements involved. This information could be used in knowledge oriented project management to evaluate the risk associated to the knowledge gaps. A software tool has been implemented to facilitate the recording of various knowledge concepts while modeling the software process. Example of this approach is presented

A knowledge-based perspective for software process modeling

As the acquisition and sharing of knowledge form the backbone of the software development process, it is important to identify knowledge discrepancies between the process elements. Explicit representation of the knowledge components within a software process model can provide a means to expose these discrepancies. This paper presents an extension of the Software and System Process Engineering Metamodel (SPEM), to be used as a new knowledge modeling layer. The approach, which is based on ontologies for knowledge representation, constitutes an explicit method for representing knowledge within process models. A concept matching indicator shows the state of the process model in terms of the concept gaps for each task within the process. This indicator could lead to more informed decision making and better management of the associated risks, in terms of team competency, documentation quality, and the training required to mitigate them